MCL Restaurant & Bakery

Viva la simple goodness! I cannot count how many times I ate here with my cousins and friends. Is it the Ritz Carlton? No! But for a cafeteria rating, it earns a solid five stars on that scale. The people are really nice. Someone on here says it was old people food. Yeah, so what? Old people invented classic staples. The food is sort of slightly unhealthy enough at times to taste good, when you order say a fish dish. It has healthier basic fruits and salads. The desserts are simple and yummy. I remember it having portraits of Lincoln and people. They may still be hanging up somewhere. I remember eating here and going to watch indie movies that they didn't bring around unless you lived in downtown Chicago. Back then, movies hardly made it to major cities or St. Louis/Chicago very often so we went here. I ate here and watched The Royal Tenenbaums, giving you an idea of how long I've been eating here. One time, Governor Edgar was here with a bunch of people right before he left office. I went that night with my parents. This is a really feel good place that isn't beautiful by any means, nor is the food dramatic, but it's good enough to fill you up when you are starving for a good, boring but yummy meal. Their cornbread was soooo awesome. Pumpkin pie too!!!!! When the food runs a tad greasy, say chicken and so on, it isn't anywhere as greasy as other parts of the country. I miss my catfish dinners so badly and I'm vegetarian mostly now. Don't diss the MCL until you visit Texas or elsewhere, learning that nobody knows how to cook a good fish away from the Midwest. This plain cafeteria with its premade meals had better fish than a bunch of high end restaurants claiming they know how to make a catfish out in Texas!

Cafeteria style place, caters to seniors.  Food is not bad, a little pricey to buy everything separately though. Great place to take your gramma.  Packed on Sundays after church.

Old people food. Enough said.