Al's Beef is so disappointing it's embarrassing. Â Look at a picture of their beef sandwich and then go and get one. Â It's pathetic. Â The bread will be closed with so little beef inside you'll have to open it up to see if there's any actually in there. Â And the beef itself is all shreds. Â You won't find a slice in the whole sandwich. Flavor??? Â You really think there none better? Â Don't fall for the hype. Â Do a real comparison and you'll understand. Â If I were one of the national reviewers, I would make a second secret visit and get a real version of the sandwich to review. Â I bet you won't get the praise at that time. Â You can find better beef sandwiches at almost any other place that serves them. Â The hype about Al's is just that, hype. Â Don't be afraid to admit that they aren't very good. Â Maybe it will prompt them to really earn their reputation. Â They are overpriced as well. Â Compare it to Portillo's or Buona Beef and you'll never go to Al's again.
Didn't try Nancy's so there's no comment there.
Why are people so stingy with their reviews?!?! The beef is delicious, the restaurant is very well-kept and there are a lot of menu choices. Â I ordered a dipped beef sandwich with spicy peppers and cheese. Â It's the best beef I've ever had. Â As a Chicagoan, this is my go-to beef restaurant.
Review Source:I have to say that I used to love Nancy's pizza but I haven't had it in quite some time, we used to order all the time form the oak lawn location in oak lawn ill. I figured I would try it our since we were new to the area in park ridge and were looking for a good pizza place in the area. We ordered a large pizza with spinach, and half peperoni. We also ordered fries on the side as well I got them well done since I don't like them soggy. the fries got here and they were still crunchy which is a plus, but I have to say that we were disappointed with the pizza. When we opened the box it looked skimpy on ingredients and cheese as well. When got the pizza on our plate the crust was very soggy so we had to put it into the toaster over to crisp up the crust. I don't complain to much about pizza but this was beyond anything I would eat. I LOVE pizza! Â But for $30 bucks for a pizza and fries and I highly disappointed. I would not recommend getting delivery and if you do I would recommend to get it well done if you don't like soggy crust. I called to let them know about and they were unresponsive at best so that why they only get 2 stars. Â we were still on the hunt for good pizza in the park ridge area.
If you want pizza here, spend our $30 bucks somewhere else.
We've always loved Al's beef sandwiches and fries, but it seems like everytime we find one close to home it gets closed down. Â We started going to one downtown in Park Ridge and then that one closed. Â We went to the one on HIggins in Park Ridge and will never again go there. Â The bathrooms is filthy. Â Wet toilet paper strewn all over the doors. Â Toilets not flushed. Â I almost gagged eating my sandwich just thinking that the people that work there use that same bathroom. Â Sorry, never again.
Review Source:VISIT...
Visited this Al's & Nancy's location for the first time - not too far from our house in Des Plaines. Bought a Groupon, believing good food / service, being familiar with other Nancy's pizza locations.
LOCATION...
The facility is good sized for up to small groups. Clean, with two large TV's playing college football games at the time of our visit.
FOOD...
Purchased an Italian Beef combo meal with upgrade to Onion Rings, and a Tamale Boat to share with my wife for a quick lunch. Later ordered a Nancy's Pizza for dinner.
Beef was dry, gritty and had only OK flavor. Serving size was only adequate for one - note we tried to split into 3" halves. Hot pepper giardiniera ordered on the side, however, were outstanding! How 'bout a meal of peppers?! ;)
Onion Rings were very good, and a decent serving size. Real rings with a nice, thick batter. Not healthy, I'm sure, but very tasty.
Tamale Boat was inexpensive, and still not worth the price. Pasty texture with very generic, almost canned flavor. Fair amount of bland chili poured over, but we kept pushing the last bite back and forth for the other to eat.
Pizza ordered later for evening was very good! (Ordered NORTHERN ITALIAN VEGGIE PIZZA: Roasted Red Peppers, Roasted Garlic, Black Olives and Fresh Basil) Sauce and toppings were very good, but the thin crust lacked character and flavor. Very basic.
SERVICE...
The male employee was polite in taking our lunch order, but when I asked about the combo price - full price for all individual items - he told me that this was because of a Groupon. When asked about it, he made like he was being patient, but really wasn't very friendly explaining the extra costs. The combo is another 'special'. No problem, but he needed to say something at the time of the order, and be far more polite when addressing customer concerns.
The female employee taking my pizza order was wonderfully friendly. She offered advice on the limitations of a Groupon, and smiled the whole time.
LAST WORD...
Al's Beef & Nancy's Pizza is NOT the place to go for beef! Many other outstanding beef places in the area! Pizza's are good, but there are other Nancy's locations, as well as many other great pizza places, not far away. If it's convenient, stop in for pizza and to watch a game.
Am I able to give a rating on this place since I have not had either their beef or pizza? Â Well I'm going to anyway because they have Vienna hotdogs and delicious fries. It might sound surprising that I've been to places that have not hit a home run with the standard hotdog and fries, so I have to give some credit to the places that do a good job. The place is clean & there is a drive tru...because of this I will say I'm a fan.
Review Source:Al's Beef Nationwide TV coverage, And On Saturday Night they Cashier Says We dont have Bread to make Beef or Italian Sausage Sandwiches.
Next door is a DOMINICKS Super Market, I'll bet they had bread.
Bad Management.... $ 3.00 worth of Bread cost them a $25.00 order and pissed of customers,
During Lent is when I appreciate this place most. Â They offer one of the best fish sandwiches in the area and pair that with their savory french fries. Â Not sure why they don't offer it year round and between the two brands offered, no one can tell me which brand offers the fish sandwich. Â I've been to stand alone Al's Beef locations where the only Lent special was on an pepper egg and toast sandwich. Â Al's beef is not my favorite location for Italian beef sandwiches. Â I tend to like Mr Beef a bunch more. Â If you are trying it for the first time, I'd suggest getting it wet or extra wet and for sho' get the fries! Â You'll enjoy them. Â Al's offers many toppings for your fries and it's worth the trial. Â Blue cheese is my favorite though its heavy on the heart burn.
Weekdays are very busy. Â Inside it's a decent place to catch a meal or salad. Â Plenty of tables to cover a couple to a large group. Â Two televisions usually set to the news.
Not a bad place for beef and sausage sandwiches. Â Its one the better sandwiches, but it doesn't replace Johnnie's Beef for me.
Had a combo with beef and sausage - dipped. This came with fries. Â - Beef wasn't dry and was actually very good. Â
Also ordered a 10 inch Thin crust pizza with sausage, mushrooms and pepperoni.
Thin crust pizza was good. Â Was typical of other pizzas I could find elsewhere. Â It is cool that you can take care of your beef and pizza cravings at one place.
This is a 2 in 1 place. Â I've driven past this place several times before and never realized it. Â It's an Al's Beef and Nancy Pizza.
There are several buildings in this area, with the train station across the street. Â Has indoor and outdoor seatings... with a good size parking lot... and a drive thru. Â Nice clean place. Â Was not busy at all at the time we were there. Â But there were a few customers.
We ordered a combo italian beef sandwich that came with fries and a drink from Al's Beef. Â Then a small thin crust pizza with sausage, pepperoni, and mushrooms from Nancy's Pizza.
The sandwich was good. Â Was not overly seasoned or salty. Â We did order it dipped or "wet" and ordered the peppers on the side. Â But didn't get our order right. Â We got the sweet peppers on the side. Â And the hot peppers in the sandwich. Â Which I didn't mind at all. Â Thankfully the hot pepper was not very hot... nor was it expremely seasoned... so the sandwich was still ok.
I've had italian beef sandwiches from many places before... so it was kind of hard not to compare it to some of my other favorite places. Â But here is what I thought of their sandwich.
I think i prefer Giardenara peppers... vs their hot peppers here. Â I like the sour vinegar taste with the oils.. which I did not seem to get much of that here. Â The sweet peppers were very bland. Â As for the itallian beef, the texture was very good. Â Soft, tender, and very juicy. Â So plus on that. Â The sausage was a little bit too soft for me. Â It was not grilled, but more like steamed or boiled. Â Was very soft texture.
As for the pizza... it was ok. Â Crust was ok.. and the sauce on the pizza was ok. Â No Wow factor for me. Â It was fresh pizza with fresh toppings. Â
Would I go here again? Â Yes. Â But maybe just for the Italian beef sandwich.
Al's mediocre beef and Nancy's bland pizza all in one place?!!?
I used to live right down the street and made the mistake (twice) of coming here. Al's beef is so far from number one that it might as well be from Thailand. Nancy's pizza is so mediocre that you might as well just grab a frozen jacks pizza from Dominick's a couple of doors down.
It's a nice place, kinda like a bar w/o the liquor. Â The interior is all wood and they have tons of chicago nostalgia hung on the walls. Â The interior is huge and there are two plasmas, always with some chicago sports team on. Â
This is a guy's place. Â The food is meaty and the fries are greasy. Â I'd say that's the only way "Chicago Fry's" come: a fresh cut spud, drenched in hot grease. Â The burgers are one of my favs, a combo meal runs $8 incl fries and a drink. Â It's nothing fancy like Champps americana, but it's done right. Â
The Italian beef, is an itiallian beef. Â Get them with some grilled peppers and you either love them or your don't. Â I pass on them. Â They're plenty of places that have lines out the door, Johnny's Beef on North ave, that i don't care for either.
Their hotdogs are okay not the best chicago dog, that would be Gene and Jude's in river grove, but it gets it's point across. Â For real chicago style, get the fries and smash them ontop of your dog to let the grease get into the bun, then pry them off and enjoy. Â Trust me on this one. Â
All in all, i don't frequent this place as much as i should, even though it's in my neighborhood. Â It's hidden away almost two blocks off the major intersection but if you're looking for a nice place for a bite to eat, catch the current score and want to get in and get fed, this is the place. Â I'm hungry, let's eat!
I know that many people have given this place terrible reviews, but I did not have a bad experience. I have only been there once for a take out order, but my experience was okay. The girl at the register was not overly-friendly, but took my order alright. The order was ready fairly quickly, and the girl said thank you.
As for the food, it was a caprese salad with red peppers. Everything was fresh, but I did not like the red peppers in the salad. I have never heard of this ingredient being added to this salad, and think it should definitely be omitted from now on.
If I ever go there again, I will update my review. As for now, it's okay.
AVOID THIS PLACE AT ALL COST!
I work a few blocks from this place, but I wish I was farther away. Â In the past, I was forced to eat their foods because my boss would pay for it. Â Free Food normally equals Good Food right? Nope, not at this place. Â
So fast forward a couple years later... I decided to give this place another shot (hopefully 2 years of horrible service might have taught them a lesson or 2). Â I ordered a cheddar burger and cheese fries.
Cheddar burger was nothing too great. Â The actual hamburger patty itself was cold and not hot enough. Â
The Cheese Fries were DISGUSTING!! Â You know after a restaurant cooks up their fries, they normally drain the oil from the fries? Â Al's did not do this. Â My fries were soaking wet from oil/grease. Â And did I mention they tried to cover up this slop with a bucket of cheese on top? Â I took one bite and spit it out. Â The entire thing weighed close to 10lbs with all the grease and cheese they threw on top.
So after that experience, I said never again. Â Little did I know that my girlfriend decided to buy lunch for us there one day. Â Same order of a cheddar burger and cheese fries. Â Â But my girlfriend ordered a grilled chicken sandwhich.
She took one bite, and had this weird look on her face.. I ask her what's wrong? she says.."I don't think the chicken is cooked.."
WTF?!?!?! Â What restaurant serves up raw uncooked grilled chicken? Â
I furiously call Al's back and speak to some dumb chick. Â I tell her I ordered the chicken sandwhich, and it was not cooked. Â She asks.. "how do you know?" Â Really??
She then directs me to her manager "Fransisco" or something like that.
So this rude manager comes on, no apologies to me, and says "what's wrong" I tell them about the chicken, and this idiot responds back with "What do you want me to do with it?"
LOL Â never again. Â I hope everyone else stays away from this place.
At the end of my Chicago trip, I was on a mission to experience Italian Beef and Chicago Style hot dogs.
This combo joint was near the airport. It did the trick, but the experience felt lack luster. Like a passive aggressive shot at Chicago's own cuisine. So i can say that i had it... but next time i'll do it right.
This was a nice place to eat if you want to get in and get out with a full belly.Yes you will walk out knowing you have yet to experience the best of chicago.But you will also walk out knowing you have the energy that a full belly gives you to put off feeding your face for awhile and do other things non food related that wil not be nearly as quick in service or satisfaction(HELLO...no lines here people).Word of caution though...the Al's famous italian beef sandwich is SOGGY.If you dont like soggy bread stay away.Nicely seasoned beef though. I'd come back to this place in a pinch.
Review Source:When asked what other foods is Chicago known for (besides the hot dogs and deep dish pizza...btw, don't get me started on pizza), I was told the Italian Beef sandwiches. So, for lunch my friend and I came here.
***Offensive Alert***
I can't help but say, what else can I expect from a Second Rate City but a second rate beef sandwich. Folks, meh at best and for the price, fughedabowdit! Save your money, and if you get the chance, go to Philly and you will know what a good steak/italian beef sandwich is like...and I'm not even from Philadelphia!
I say all this only because it was said that this is what Chicago is known for. (Good grief)
This place was lame!! I accidentally ended up here and thought to give it a try. What a huge mistake!! Its like an italian sausage sandwich/fastfood burger/chicago style pizza joint. Though I did not try the pizza, i did try the Italian sausage w/ Â sweet peppers(they say they make them there). What garbage, the bun was kinda stale, the sausage was weird and the sweet peppers were like a lame version of something that looked really good in the picture. Avoid this place unless u want imitation food garbage heave!!!!
Review Source:Stay away from the drive thru.
As far as the taste goes, this fast food chain ranks high. The choice is extensive, and you can find something for everyone in your group, picky kids included.
BUT Al's BETTER start taking more pride in their presentation and drive-thru. I was there just today and waited three cars back for about 10 minutes. I am not sure why the one order took so long, because the next car was quickly served. When I approached the window, there was no apology or explanation. But my burger was dry and the toppings were just thrown on. It was a mess.
Last time at the drive through the blue cheese fries turned out to be cheese fries.
So stay away from the drive thru... just go inside. It will probably be faster, and it will certainly be tastier.
We were passing time in Chicago after driving there from a family reunion in Dundee, Ohio and decided to do the town, and being we got to our hotel latish ( Marriott, nice!) we saw this establishment and I remember seeing some comments online while researching our trip.
I took one look at the menu and saw " It's why you're here!" staring me in the face, so I said, self what can I say!
I got the combo, Italian Beef and Italian Sausage on a roll with everything on it and my wife had a Chinese Chicken Salad??
We foolishly got a side of cheese fries.
I've read the other reviews and maybe we got lucky but after 7 hours on the road I thought it was great, dripping off my elbows and all!
Fries were good and greasy, yum, and the Mrs. loved her salad ( I think she just needed some ruffage after being on the road)
We didn't try the pizza but they look good coming out of the kitchen.
DO NOT EAT THE PIZZA HERE!! We ordered sausage pizza and my coworker bit into what 100% appeared to be a tooth - with dried blood. Obviously people jump to conclusions when foreign objects are in their food, but it really did look like a tooth. Turned out to be a piece of a cow bone (per the health department) and I'm sure that happens from time to time but still - finding that in pizza was disgusting (for him, hilarious for those of us seeing his reaction).
Review Source:Al's Beef is a well-known Chicago franchise. Â Better than typical fast food if you've got no other options, but they're inordinately pricey for the fare and kitchen organization isn't the best. Â When ordering in for a large group, expect to find some items missing. Â The pluses: they have an extensive menu so everyone will be able to find something they like, and the drive-thru is convenient if you work nearby. Â Still, I'd recommend searching the area and finding a place you really adore - even out here, there are tons of hole-in-the-wall joints that serve up amazingly greasy and delicious food.
Review Source:As if The Signature Room at the 95th didn't offer enough tongue-tying for the day, we decided to up the ante a little for dinner by visiting a small local place after we returned to our hotel.
I had the Italian Beef with sweet peppers and my wife had the Tamale Boat (I think that was what it was called). Â Even though I would classify this place as fast food, the sandwich was quite tasty. Â The tamales were good too, and there was a good spice to the chili that came with them, but there was nothing particularly special about them.
Though this was also (apparently) a Nancy's Pizza location, we didn't have any Pizza, so I can't tell you anything about that.
What a treat for the person who wants lots of choices. Â You can order a great pizza from Nancy's (love that crust and cheese!) and then nibble off the Al's beef sandwiches or chicken wraps that one of your friends chose. Â Casual and roomy dining area, quick service and you'll enjoy some classic Sinatra or Bennett tunes as you munch away on your yummy delights.
Review Source:
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