Alonti Cafe

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  Good selection of salads, samiches and pasta.  The prices are outrageous for everything.  They have a lot healthy items which is why I keep going back.  There are not too many healthy restaurants in the area so my options are limited.
  
  They just remodeled the place recently so it's much nicer inside also.

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  Posted on 01.31.13 Chuck S.

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  This area of the city does not offer many great lunch choices.  You're stuck with $2 pizza, Subway, way overpriced pork chops, Americanized burritos, or the myriad of fried chicken places down Clark St.
  
  I really wanted to like Alonti.  It's on the same block as me and is a 60 second walk from my office.  It has a nice varied menu and when it's fresh, it's good.  I've tried it a few times for both breakfast and lunch now and I just can't bring myself to give it more than 1 star ultimately.
  
  Breakfast is a disaster.  I come in at 8:45AM and there's always a wait for sausage.  Today, I was shocked there was actually sausage in the pan and had hopes of actually getting a sausage breakfast taco.  I was told there's no sausage available for breakfast tacos.  Ridiculous.  Why is this so hard?  Hey I understand, things run out sometimes.  Here though, it's a daily occurrence.
  
  Lunch is a bit better but the sandwich station is obnoxiously slow and the Build your own sandwich is an exercise in patience.  You constantly have to repeat the order.  Nothing is written down and the person behind the counter constantly forgets what you asked for on your sandwich.
  
  Prices aren't bad for the loop.  A build your own sandwich and 1 cookie is $7.  Compared to Subway, that seems pricey for a smaller sandwich but the quality blows Subway away.
  
  I'll echo the comments about the decor.  The place looks like a dump and needs a complete remodel.  The white tile everywhere makes you feel like you're eating in a hospital.
  
  This place could be so much better and a solid 3, maybe 4 stars, if they fixed their disorganization and staffing problems.

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  Posted on 09.23.11 George N.

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  I actually really love this place, and unfortunately it's located right by my office, so I'm there about 2 or 3 times a week, which is more than my budget should allow.
  
  My favorite things there are their amazing Italian dressing, their tequila chicken pasta, and their chicken club sandwich (when adding avocado) is one of the best club sandwiches I've ever had. I think it's the bread. The foccacia bread is to die for.
  
  It's usually not packed, the people are friendly, and they play great music. The only two things I'm not crazy about is that they're a little on the expensive side for fast food (although maybe only on the upper side of average for the Loop) and that their Muffaletta needs a little work to hold up to a real New Orleans Muffaletta. They need to work on their olive mixture in it. It's not bad, just not up to Muffaletta quality.
  
  Aside from that, I have yet to find something I don't love there. Also, it's great for bringing lunch dates.

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  Posted on 06.23.11 Meg H.

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  Lime vinaigrette and jalapenos on the salads. I don't know anything about the rest... but I've had lime vinaigrette and jalapenos with their salads dozens of times. I crave, they provide, I'm full.
  
  I'd give it more stars but the place looks kind of like a crack den. Conveniently located south of the board of trade and under a train station, it's not hard to image. The food's better than it looks.

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  Posted on 10.05.10 Jim S.

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  This place is a dump.  The revolving door at the entrance way has not worked for literally 10 years.  Will someone please fix the door?  
  
  They've got a fruit fly problem and I've seen roaches on many occasions over the years.  I have also received food poisoning twice from Alonti.  Don't ask me why I went back for more after the first time.   Actually, the only reason I went inside Alonti in the first place was because of the independently owned coffee shop in the corner, which had great, cheap coffee and tea drinks.  It disappeared overnight this week and I'm told Alonti shut it down.  Keep up the good work Alonti!  You will never get my business or anyone else's I know ever again!

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  Posted on 08.03.10 Ricardo F.

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  Why have I been to this place more times than I can count? Well, I hate to admit it, but Alonti's proximity to my office of employ is about 80 percent of the reason. That being said, there's still 20 percent of the equation to work with.
  
  This place ain't bad for your middle-of-the-day meal. You have options that range from grilled sandwiches, made-to-order salads, soups and a plentiful salad bar with all the fixins'.  I often opt for one of the salads - the Cobb is pretty awesome (and I highly recommend having it with the lime vinaigrette...that stuff is to die for), or you can "pick three" or "pick four" toppings and make your own salad.  The ingredients are always fresh, and most of the staff (especially the guy at the register) is super friendly.  They take credit cards and cash, which is always a plus (me who often lacks the green stuff on many occasions) but the prices are a bit high, though not unreasonable. Quite honestly, the $8-10 range for grub+soda is consistent with other food joints in the area - there are a lot of hungry businesspeople in that area, and they gotta eat somewhere. Alonti's can certainly scratch that itch for you.

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  Posted on 01.28.10 cassie r.

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