I've been to Pilot Pete's many times. This restaurant is at the Schaumburg Airport and you can see planes coming and going since the restaurant is right next to the run way.
Even though Pilot Pete has a very extensive menu, I usually order one of two items on the menu. The Meatball Calzone or the Chicken Fingers. So this weekend I conducted a duel between the Calzone and Chicken Fingers. We ordered the Chicken Fingers as an appetizer and I ordered the Calzone for my entree.
Now it's been a couple of years since I've been at Pilot's Pete since I no longer hang my hat in Illinois. The Calzone has shrunk. Much like your favorite home run hitter that stopped juicing up. Now, the size is respectable, but it's also gotten a little more doughy, or lets just say a little less meaty. The Calzone was alright, but not as good as I remember it.
The Chicken Fingers were awesome as usual and Pilot Pete definitely makes the best Chicken Fingers I have ever had. These chicken fingers are definitely not frozen and put into the fryer.
Came here to use a Groupon which was near expiration. It was my first visit. The atmosphere and service are nice but I wasn't impressed with my meal (BBQ beef brisket - the meat tasted reheated to me and the BBQ sauce was disappointing). My husband had the pot roast which he enjoyed. We both liked the chicken tortilla soup and the mashed potatoes that came with our meals.
I would consider coming back to try something else from the menu, however, before making a final decision on this place.
I was going to give Pilot Pete's a three, but the Lobster Nachos totally bump it up to a four. Â The last time I came here was because I had a taste for the Lobster Nachos.
The drinks here are reasonably priced and they have a large selection of cocktails which makes a girl like me very happy! Â I love the cheesy airport decor here. Â It makes me feel like I am on vacation even when I am in Schaumburg!
In the times I have been here, I have ordered two different bakes and both were cheesy and fantastic. Â I also had the huge chopped salad which was yummy as well. Â I was disappointed in the creamy garlic dressing though... it did not taste like anything.
So how did I end up finding this place? Â Well first I found the Groupon (how else do I find new favorites?) and I bought it. Â Then Laura N. gave me a customer appreciation card one day and we went for a free appetizer (per table) and a free drink (per person). Â If you didn't want to do the appetizer per table you could also choose to do the appetizer buffet. Â We decided on a lobster nacho (this is where my cravings began). Â The owner even came over this night to see how everything was going, which I think is awesome.
Since we loved our first experience, we were super psyched to still have a Groupon, so we returned for another great dining experience. Â Another restaurant that Groupon turned me onto has quickly become a favorite!
I'm going to have to come update this with our server's name because she was one of the best servers EVER. And I'm hard to impress with service at restaurants. This visit was 1/9 after 7 PM. Â
I come to this place every now and again for work, usually when we are celebrating a coworker's birthday. I wanted to bring my kids because it's a cool place, to see the planes and the helicopter, etc. And the food is good, and I've been craving some really good french onion soup.
The place was seriously understaffed server wise last night. So we had our order ready when she came to get our drink order. We had:
1) BBQ Beef Brisket, French Onion Soup, mashed potatoes, Cajun Corn, Wedding Cake Martini(s)
2) Jamaican Chopped Jerk Cobb Salad, French Onion Soup and a Hacker-Pschorr
3) Two orders of buttered noodles for the kiddos.
When we got our drinks, I joked that I'd need another martini in about 15 minutes (typically that is the case) - but this server actually paid attention to that and 15 minutes later, there it was. That, right there, was awesome. Especially considering the amount of tables she was handling.
The French Onion Soup here is always wonderful. No complaints here.
The Brisket Dinner: Brisket was tender, full of flavor. So very good. It could have used a tad more BBQ sauce but the meat was so good, it did not really matter. It also could have used some more mashed potatoes and less cajun corn. But same thing, it was so good, it didn't matter.
The Cobb Salad was my husband's. He was very impressed. Not one complaint. Â Very good and one of the best he's ever had he said.
Kids were easy to please, they liked the buttered noodles and especially the ice cream at the end.
All in all it was a great visit last night, especially after have a very VERY lousy day.
I will come up and update with that server's name because any time we come there from here on out, she is who we'll be asking for.
Just a great, great experience.
Next time we'll have the fish and chips which is also some of the best I've had in the area.
Was here over the weekend when it snowed enough to cover the runway. Table right by the window overlooking it. Saw some planes take off. The place has planes hanging on the ceiling and it's just a cool atmosphere. Chad waited on us and he was awesome. Very attentive. I had the buffalo chicken sandwich with fries and slaw. It was huge. Had to take half home. Everyone I went with loved there food. They have plane seats in the waiting area, but we didn't have to wait. Way cool place right at the airport.
Review Source:For a fly in restaurant, this is about as good as it gets. Â The restaurant is large. Â We did not have to wait. Â They have a private room at the back for small parties. Â We received fast, friendly service. Â The food was good. Â There was plenty of it, and what I and the Mrs. could not eat, my son polished off for us.
Then it was a short walk back to the plane for us and a short walk to the car for my son. Â We both arrived home at about the same time with him fighting Chicago traffic and me with a nice tailwind.
Palm trees and lights and planes, oh my!
I purchased a Groupon to use here after seeing a good deal ($15 for $30 worth of food) and knowing this place was really close to home. I am so glad I bought it. My husband and I used it last week for a date night.
Walking in the building, we didn't know what to expect since it kind of seemed like a small lobby. However, a walk down the little hallway brings you to the seating area and the guest counter for the restaurant. The seating area was pretty cool, with amazingly comfortable airport seats and dozens of framed photographs (which were wrapped up as presents for holiday decor so I don't know what they were pictures of). As we walked into the actual restaurant, it felt like we were in some bizarre tropical Christmas in a hangar. Christmas trees mixed with palm trees. Holiday swag was everywhere. So were tropical items and random airplane memorabilia. EVERYTHING WAS DECORATED. (I was later told by our waitress that they go all out for every major holiday.) The restaurant consisted of a bar (I didn't pay much attention to it) and a large seating area that was filled with happy families, couples, friends, and business associates.
We purchased an appetizer and two meals and came out and just a little over $30. The only appetizer we could really agree on was the margherita pizza. I can't believe this was just an appetizer! It was larger than we expected, the size of an actual pizza (OK, maybe the size of a frozen pizza, but really, that thing is a meal!). We were both slightly full after eating this delicious concoction of cheese and tomatoes and basil. When I received my dinner (the all-you-can-eat fish fry -- it was Friday night), I almost didn't want to eat it because of how full I was. But I ate it. And I overstuffed myself. And it was extremely delicious. The french fries were way better than I expected and the fish was really good. It was still good as warmed up leftovers the next day, too. My husband's burger was massive. I don't know how he managed to fit that entire thing in his stomach. We had to pass on desert.
Our waitress, Lindsay, was wonderful. She always had a smile on her face, checked up on us often, and didn't leave us with anything to complain. On top of that, when she handed us the check, she signed "Merry Christmas" to me and proceeded to tell me she looked it up on YouTube in the back so she could say it to me. How sweet! We proceeded to have a five-minute conversation with her. Pilot Pete's did a great job hiring her.
We came back yesterday evening for a free customer appreciation appetizer buffet (with a free drink), not sure what to expect. The place was packed -- with people that wanted the buffet and with people that were just dining there. The line for the buffet was kind of long, but moved quickly (it started at 6pm and we arrived at 6:30). After grabbing plates, we headed to the bar to get our free drinks. Every seat in that bar was full! Crazy! I asked for the drink menu, scanned over the wines, beers, and few specialty drinks, and ordered a Mai Tai. Our friends (Taylor M. and Jon C.! Shoutout!) put in a reservation for my husband and I since they arrived before us, so we had a seat soon after we arrived (in our favorite waitress' section -- whoo!). The buffet just had chicken, potato skins, and pizza -- it honestly wasn't that great. However, we ordered more appetizers for dinner -- I had quesadillas with roasted veggies (inside) and my honey had nachos. One bite into the quesadilla and I was having a foodgasm. It was SO YUMMY. (I'm hoping at this point it wasn't the extremely strong Mai Tai that had me falling in love with my food and that the food was actually good because I'm eating the rest of it for lunch today.)
Also, Pilot Pete's has punch cards. After seven punches, your eighth entree (up to $8?) is on them. SWEET. One night of the week is double-punch day. I forget which day it is. We have fun here, and the food is pretty good, so we're definitely coming back here regularly to get that free entree!
I bought a Groupon for Pilot Pete's because I'd been wanting to try it for awhile now. Â My husband and I took our two young kids on a Sunday for lunch. Â The decor was really fun. Â Our 3 year old loved all the airplanes,heck...we loved all the airplanes. Â We were seated right away but then ignored for about ten minutes. Â Finally my husband got the attention of a passing waitress and told her we hadn't been greeted by a server yet and she said that she was actually our waitress and dealing with a Groupon had held her up. Â Ironic, I suppose, but still not an excuse to ignore patrons. Â
We were finally presented with menus (but no ice water was offered or given...not sure if it was an oversight or if they don't bring out the obligatory ice water) Â The menu was huge, varied and looked really good. Â We ordered a half size of the won-ton nachos as an appetizer and for entrees my husband chose the broasted chicken (as it was listed as a Sunday special) and I chose the lobster roll. The kids ordered their go-to chicken tenders from the children's menu and we asked our waitress if the kids' meals could come out with the appetizer as they were getting restless and the broasted chicken takes a little longer to prepare. She said no problem and we anticipated the kids would be happily eating in about ten minutes.
After a fairly long wait our massive, and I mean massive, plate of won ton nachos arrived. Â It was overwhelming, I cannot imagine how big the full size order must be. Â They were really good with a unique flavor, it was honestly just too big and quite a bit went to waste. Â We noticed pretty quickly that the kids' meals hadn't arrived so we flagged down our waitress...not an easy task. Â She said she had put the order in for the kids' meals to come out with the app and wasn't sure "what happened." Â She went off to check on it as we continued to scale the mountain of won tons smothered in cheese sauce before us.
More than fifteen minutes had passed; our drink glasses sat empty, the waitress was M.I.A. and no chicken fingers to speak of. Â I began to think that this was going to be one of those dining experiences where you like the food...but the service bordered on ridiculous. Â I really wanted to love the restaurant, so I was curious to see how the rest of the meal would go.
Finally the chicken fingers arrived to our hungry little boys and we had to ask for refills as our waitress seemed oblivious to the empty drink glasses witting in front of us. Â We each had the lemonade, but when our waitress returned with the refills my husband got more lemonade, I got water. Â I didn't bother saying anything because when we next saw our waitress she had our food and I was starving. Â We knew the broasted chicken would take nearly 20 minutes to make once ordered, but it had been at least 30 minutes. Â The waitress also informed us as she served our food that the broasted chicken was no longer a special...and if that was "okay." Â The chicken was sitting in front of my husband when she mentioned this. If it had not been "okay" did she think that we would send it back and wait another 30 minutes for his plan B to arrive?
My husband said the chicken was pretty good (and not surprisingly the portion was gigantic) though the huge potato wedges that came with it were pretty bad. Â My lobster roll was just average. Â I know we were in Schaumburg, Illinois and not Bangor, Maine...but still. Â I prefer chunkier bits of lobster in a lobster roll and this one had very tiny bits of lobster and an overly wet dressing that was more messy than flavorful. The dressing also overwhelmed the delicate lobster flavor I was so looking forward to, so it was sort of disappointing, though not terrible by any means. Â The coleslaw did not come with my meal as I had asked so my husband sacrificed his. Â It was the smallest portion of coleslaw I had ever seen, sitting in a cup similar to those on the top of cough medicine...a teeny tiny plastic cough syrup cup of coleslaw my spoon barely fit into. Â Strange. Â Again, I didn't bother mentioning it as we had two squirmy kids (and two disappointed adults) who were ready to go.
Overall the food was pretty good, the atmosphere and decor were great, the service was pretty bad and the Groupon saved it for me. Â I honestly would have been annoyed paying $50 for that experience. Â We most likely will give the restaurant another chance, let's hope for less turbulence next time. (sorry...had to write that)
Not only is this a neat place to eat (airplane design throughout the place, and watch planes take-off and land) the food is fantastic! Â The pasta-bowls are really good, the crab-cake sandwich is really good, even the burgers are really good. Â You really wouldn't think a restaurant hidden away in a small airport would be good, but it is. Â It's really good! Â The only thing that was bad was the fries.
Review Source:I was there last night with my family - the waiter was good, very personable.
I ordered the Crab Cake sandwich - it was TERRIBLE. It looked like it was all cornmeal. I picked it apart with my fork and never found any crab meat in it.
Will I go back? Probably not, this is the second time and my food was bad both times - it's a shame, we were a party of 10 people -
Well....it's ok. Â We won't go back there. Â My food was good, I ordered something with chicken in it. Â My wife had to send her food back twice, once for hair and once for them putting bacon in it (doesn't eat pork). Â The waitress seemed upset at US for calling it out on them. Â
Anyway, the environment is really cool. Â The inside is nicely decorated. Â Watching planes come in and take off is something you don't get to see anywhere. Â I would consider going to sit at the bar, but because of the food and semi-rude service, we will not go there for a meal.
Great atmosphere! Almost wished it would of started snowing as we sat by the window. Had the chicken crisper and was pleasantly surprised huge portion and reasonably priced. My girlfriend had the Jumbo wings that came out and looked like 2 whole chicken, she didn't care for them and the sauce was very bland, however out neighbors at the next table had pasta that she couldn't keep her eyes off and said she will be back to try the pasta most definitely. My son had the best value with his cheeseburger kids meal that included drink and ice cream that wouldn't hurt the wallet to bad for a large family. Â Our waitress was super sweet and provided us with great service. Best part of all is I used a groupon that gave me an opportunity to try a new place and found out this place is just blocks from my house. So I most definitely will be back and can't wait to see the Christmas decorations.
Review Source:Five of us went last Friday...busy night fish fry and all! Â We had a great experience! Â The server was helpful and the all you can eat fish fry was easy to use, if a server passing by noticed you were out they asked if you wanted more and brought you two to three new pieces.
The chicken fingers were absolutely fantastic! Â If there was a downer it was the hamburger...asked for medium and got more medium rare...not a big deal and by no means a deal breaker!
The calamari...we had our three sons with us, 12, 12 and 9, they loved it and so did mom and dad!!
We will be more than happy to go back, everyone on staff was professional and helpful that we had contact with. Â That includes the hostesses work the front and phones!
Sister restaurant to Village Tavern with a SLIGHTLY more formal atmosphere. Â They share many of the same items on the menu, but it is far from a carbon copy. Â This used to be a hidden gem on the outskirts of Schaumburg, but you can no longer go there on a weekend night and expect no wait. Â Â
Kids and adults will dig the airplane/Jimmy Buffet them they are going for.
Food - Oh man...the Calzones, word's can't describe the gut bomb you are about to consume. Â It doesn't matter if you go with the Meatball, or the BBQ Pot Roast you are in for a treat. Â They also sometimes offer specials with different types and most of these are worth giving a try. Â Since I mentioned the BBQ Pot Roast calzone I can't forget to mention the Pot Roast itself. Â Available as both a dinner and a sandwich, both of which should not be missed by anyone looking for the kind of comfort food missing from most casual dining places. Â
Their soups are worth trying from the "famous" Baked French Onion, to the various daily specials. Â I'm not usually a soup guy, but if they have anything interesting on special I will try it and have never been disappointed. Â I'm not sure if it homemade, or not, but if it comes out of a can I get the feeling they dress it up. Â Don't forget to ask for some dinner rolls if you are having soup. Â Nothing beats dunking a hot fresh roll into their Wisconsin Beer Cheese Soup.
Service - It can be hit or miss, but when I say hit, or miss it means that it is either beyond good to just okay.
Pilot Pete's is a fairly average restaurant. The menu contains much variety--sandwiches, seafood, pasta, etc. In my few outings here, I have never had a bad meal, but the food has been just okay. The grilled pesto chicken sandwich is a decent item on the menu. The chicken was tender and I could taste the pesto. The lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise made the sandwich quite juicy, and a bit messy. It's worth a try if you like chicken sandwiches.
What is special about Pilot's Pete's is the airplane theme. Upon entering the restaurant, you will see large old-school airplane seats in the waiting area. Around the corner from that are some neat model airplanes. If you are fortunate enough to be seated near a window, you will be entertained by the small planes taking off and arriving on the runway. Being able to watch the planes during lunch or dinner makes this a unique dining experience. However, if you are looking for a really special culinary experience, this probably won't be your go-to place.
For some reason my in-laws love this place. Â I just don't get it. Â The service every time that we've been there has been slow & we usually joke about how we're going to detract from our watier/waitress' tip because of the slowness. Â The food is just mediocre at best. Â I've tried several things on the menu & I've never been even mildly impressed with anything. Â The only thing it's really got going for it is the kitschy vintage airport theme. Â Unfortunately I'll probably be back, since this seems to be a favorite of my husband's family, but I would never ever ever choose to come here of my own accord.
Review Source:Considering this is a theme restaurant I'd say its a winner. Most theme restaurants seem out of place but this one happens work perfectly:
An airplane/flying themed restaurant built in a working airport. What could be more appropriate.
I had the: (See Pictures)
French Onion Soup: soup comes with a meal but there is a 1.50 up charge if you want french onion. It tastes very very average, the onions weren't properly caramelized (very few restaurants do it right), the croutons were soggy old sandwich buns  and the cheese was thick and stringy and melted pretty well. (See Pictures)
London Broil: I asked for medium, I got a perfect medium. The mushroom sauce had no taste but the steak was pretty good by itself. (See Pictures)
Horseradish Mashed potatoes: Not bad, had bits of skin and I couldn't taste any horseradish until I was already walking out in the parking lot.
Corn: tastes like corn..nuff said.
This place is a really solid restaurant with decent food. Not bad at all, but not great or amazing. There are hits and misses. The view and service is really good. If you look out the window you can see airplanes taking off and landing which makes this place worth checking out at least once.
Oh lordy. Â I am SO not impressed with this place, and I doubt I will be back.
This time it was my daughter's fundraiser night here. Â They get one star for hosting one in the first place. Â
That's pretty much where they will get their only stars from me.
I had made reservations for 9 of us for 6:15. Â We got there and were told our table was being set up. Â More time passes. Â Then we're told that they're clearing the table from the previous customer. Â Hmmmm....more time passes. Â Finally we ask, and they just say it'll be about 2 minutes. Â What the... ok. Â If the table wasn't ready, DON'T LIE ABOUT IT. Â Tell the truth.
So we had our waiter, Sal. Â Sal was...rude to say the least. Â After waiting for him to address our table for 10 minutes and being thoroughly ignored (to the pint where we thought he wasn't our waiter) , we finally stopped someone (manager??) and asked him if he could send over our server. Â He got the attention of Sal and Sal gave us attitude and said he would be with us in a minute. Â So we're kinda off to a really bad start...
Sal's catchphrase was "in a minute". Â We probably heard that about 30 times that night. Â It got old.
We ordered drinks and put in our nacho order at the same time. Â He just kept passing us by as we tried to order food. Â Then told us hsi catchphrase over and over. Â So then, when we finally did stop him and MADE him pay attention to us, we told him we wanted to order. Â He goes "But your nachos aren't out yet". Â Yes, sweetie, we get that. Â But we have 4 kids under the age of five with us, and they ARE NOT PATIENT.
The nachos were ok. Â The rest of our food was less than mediocre :( Â My broasted chicken was alright, but my husband's wings were NASTY. Â And the kid's pizza was very stock-quality.
Not impressed...
I had the New England Clam Chowder which was good and thick. In fact, it was filling to the point that it was almost a meal in itself. I had the Oscar Chicken: boneless grilled chicken covered with crabmeat and served with asparagus, which is supposed to be on top of the chicken but I think it was on the side. And there wasn't too much crabmeat on it but that's OK; it still had a great crabmeat taste. It came with mixed vegetables: cauliflower and broccoli. It was a delicious meal, but I had to take half of it home because the soup was so filling. I went with a group and almost everyone said the same thing and they took home leftovers. Some of the others in my party had pasta and it looked like ALOT of pasta. I would definitely come again. I might try the steak next time. Also it was cool seeing the planes take off. What restaurant can you go to and see that??
I still have one question though: Who is Pete?? If half the menu items are named after Pete (IE "Pete's Za"), then I expect to learn a little something about Pete. Couldn't the menus have some sort of biography?
And who is Ashley?
Hey everyone, it's a restaurant in an airport that's not a Cinnabon! Â Rather, it's a restaurant not quite sure of its theme; is it passenger planes? The South Seas? A nostalgia for an Indiana Jones-esque early age of flight? A place to spend your money? I'll say a place to spend your money.
The food at Pilot Pete's was always good up to a point. I couldn't finish my original three fish fillets of my endless fish and chips due to the overwhelming greasiness. It starts off as the perfect Friday night food and ends with my feeling like I'm eating Matthew McConaughey's hair. Â Pete's Pie, Pilot Pete's take on a shepherd's pie, was good until my brain realized I was just putting meat and potatoes into my mouth over and over again without any kind of taste variation. Then I stopped.
I wish all airports had more Pilot Pete's and less McDonald's or Burger Princes or whatever fast food the kids are eating these days.
I was excited. It was my first time to Pilot Pete's and I had heard good things. And as a bonus - it's a mile from my house. Sadly, I didn't share the same sentiments as some of my friends.
The food was okay. Nothing fantastic. Definitely overpriced. I ordered the chicken tenders and a minestrone soup. The chicken tenders were over battered - not the way I enjoy them. The "minestrone" soup consisted of a few tri-color rotini noodles and a scoop of a frozen vegetable medley. As an Italian woman, I know what minestrone soup is, and that definitely wasn't it.
The atmosphere is something out of a cheesy 80's movie. It's kind of old and run down, and could use some improvements. Our waitress was nice though - and on top of taking care of our table.
Would I give it another shot? Sure. If I were too lazy to drive somewhere better.
I have been to Pilot Pete's before and I don't recall it being anything impressive....but times have changed.
Have you been to Village Tavern recently? This is the upscale Village Tavern. They have very similar dishes. Obviously work off similar recipes, but they use better ingredients!!!
When you walk in you walk through a small hall way which is their waiting area and it's filled with seats out of an airplane. Pretty cool decor! Definitely goes with the theme.
If you don't want to sit in a booth, you can seat yourself in the bar area and eat dinner. Just ask for a menu, or better yet, the hostess may automatically bring you one as she did with us.
I ordered the pot roast just as I do at Village and it came with delicious fresh green beans (not out of a can like they are at Village), and garlic-horseradish mashed potatoes. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food. Didn't know I had such home-style and decent food this close to home.
The shame of it all is that it's a little over priced. I would go here more often, but it's just a little over priced for me. Â
They have a fish fry every Wednesday and Friday which I know my fiance loves, so it's a good local spot for fish fry. You can check out their daily specials online. Here's a link: <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fpilot-petes.com%2Fdaily-specials.aspx&s=7b71f176bb27b298620b35660292143d96e4915bd5b9f05119ad290bcad6f280" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://pilot-petes.com/d…</a>
We will be back, I'm sure.
Rounding uo from 2 1/2 stars. I am so over this place. We have been regulars here for about four years and it seems every other time we go here the service is terrible. The manager, Maria, is wonderful, but they seem to have a training issue with their staff. Or their staff are just clueless. Or both.
There are very few options if you are looking for anything remotely healthy.
We decided to go to Pilot Pete's one Sunday's evening to meet up with a couple friends who been there many times in the past and liked the place. Â
It wasn't very crowded; I suppose it was way past the end of Bears game.
So, seating  was not an issue.
Once seated, the first thing we noticed was the waitress's crude behavior. Â We felt rushed to order. Â Through out the visit, the attitude didn't get any better. Â
One of us order Mojito (skip it!), the rest just had bottled beers.
There was only one soup per menu (Soupe du jour), that day the soup was (I think) chicken tortilla soup.
I wasn't sure because the waitress wasn't sure!! Â She said the soup was "Chicken tortilla, cream soup with jerked chicken thing". Â I thought there were two "soupe du jour". I love chicken tortilla soup, but luckily, I decided to skip the soup that day.
One of us, decided to order one. Â There was not a single strip of tortilla on that soup (came with a pack of crackers). and from what I was told about the taste, I was glad I didn't order any.
For my meal, I ordered Lobster Roll (the menu said, it was a special recipes from Pilot Pete's cousin from Maine). Â Okay, I was a sucker. Â The filling is more like lobster salad that you can buy from the deli section in any grocery store and it was a bit salty.
The bread is not bad (then again, slap some butter on any roll and grilled it, it would turn out tasty). Â My meal came with coleslaw and french fries.
We also order Apple Crisp as dessert. Â The apple had a funny (because I couldn't identify it) taste. Â
The place seems very popular with the locals. Maybe we just came on a bad night. Â
Would I ever go back? Â Maybe not. Â There are so many other places that serve better food, it doesn't seem worth the trip back.
I've been here twice in the last couple of months. The food was ok. I recommend the lobster nachos appetizer. The view of the airport is pretty cool.
What bothered me, was that the first time I went the silverware was dirty, & BOTH times the stack of plates that they leave out on the tables for appetizers were wet, & in between the plates were wet  food particles stuck to them, & not just a small amount either....GROSS.  It makes me wonder how clean everything else is that they serve your food on.  The only reason I went back a second time was because of a Living Social coupon.  I don't think I'll be going back anytime in the near future.
This place is really fun. I wasn't expecting good food here at all, but they delivered on the pulled pork sandwich I had. The cole slaw was strange and had a large chunk of some unidentifiable substance in it, so that grounded the meal a bit. The calamari was tasty, ranking high on one of my dining companion's list of good calamari. I was happy that they didn't serve too many fries with the sandwich, but I can see where some might find it skimpy. The lobster roll was fairly authentic, though the consistency was more like lobster spread instead of chunk lobster. I can't blame them on that, though, since I highly doubt there's a daily flight of fresh lobster landing at the airport just for them...
Our server was fantastically nice, speedy, and honestly *nice*. I felt like giving her a hug at the end of our meal, she was just that happy.
If you have kids, this is a great place to take them to watch the planes come and go. If you have to wait for a table, there's plenty of "flair" on the walls to look at and keep little eyes busy, and sitting in old airline seats to wait can make an otherwise tedious adventure in entertainment go by much faster. If you don't have kids, everything above still applies for the young at heart airplane buffs too.
I don't know how I really feel about PP (hehe I said PP). I've been a few times now, the parents like the place. Once the food came out really greasy (though it's a greasy food kind of place with a few exceptions) and the service was bad. Another time the food was good and the service was great. I just don't know, I guess it's kind of cool beginning able to look out at the Schaumburg Airport runway and see the prop planes fly by. Â Â
PP is easily the cheesiest restaurant in Schaumburg, that is next to the Rain Forest Cafe. It's hard to be mad in Pilot Pete's, their decor won't let you be. There is a million things to look at and of course the prop plane hanging over your head has you nervous enough not to think about anything else but it falling down on your head. Apparently the story is that PP is named after the great aviator "Pilot Pete" (never heard of him). The decor is filled with his private collection of memorabilia he collected from flying around the world and visiting over 25 countries. Ok then...
The menu is insane, Steak, Seafood, Chicken & Chops, Pie's (as in baked), pizza, calzones, salads, soups, pasta dishes, sandwiches, burgers, not to mention 12 different sides, appetizers galore, and finally 8 different desserts. Some greasy and some good. I don't know what else to say.
Great find on a random occasion! I was at Bachman Aero and while we thought we'd just get tea/coffee here, their surprisingly vegetarian-friendly menu tempted to give it a try!
Loved their bruschetta, veggie quesadilla and veggie sandwich on foccacia with cucumber, tomato and basil plus a pesto sauce!
Nice ambiance and view too!
I ate here ove the weekend with my BF and my P's. My P's had been here back in the day and said it was a fun little place to eat and watch the planes so we thought we would take the drive out there.I really wished we hadnt.I never saw it back in the day but when we pulled up my Ps couldnt stop saying how big and how much it had changed.
When you walk in it smells like gas and there are some blue velvet Austin Powers looking plane seats to sit in. We were seated right away. The dining room was filled with airplanes and a tiki hut? The decor was cheesey but I liked the airplaned hanging from the celing so they get 1/2star for that.Read below to see where they earned the other 1 1/2 stars....
The menu was enormous! It looked like some chain restaurants menus.With everything from salads to pasta to burgers to sandwiches.There were 3 full pages of chain restaurant knock off entrees. We started with an onion blossom thing that was good just cause it was fried. I ordered the quesadilla off the app. menu because the veggie choices sounded icky.My Bf and Ps all ordered the" famous burger", each with different toppings. My quesadillas were greasy and they squirted the sour cream all ove thte top so when I picked them up my fingers got all icky.The hamburgers were disgusting or so I heard.The meat looked like it had been shredded and ground for hours, it was brown and didnt really resemble meat.It actually reminded me of how my soy burgers look. Everyone hated their meals so we grabbed the check and headed out asap!
So your wondering were the other 1 1/2 stars come from,well Pilot Petes earned them when they hired Tim the server! He was one of the best waiters any of us have ever had,speedy,friendly,attentive,smiley.We were so impressed with him! He should get a raise or quit and go somewhere that deserves his sweet waiting skills.
12-26-2011
Had the chicken strips and they were HUGE and some of the best I have ever had. Â I couldn't even finish them all. Â Their secret honey mustard sauce was excellent.
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I don't know where this "chain restaurant menu" commentary comes from. Â Few things on the menu have I seen at a TGI Friday's or other.
Where do you see Shepherd's Pie on the menu at Appleby's? Â Not just Shepherd's Pie, but made with pot roast that melts in your mouth?
This place is down-home cooking at an airport. Â That alone should be enough to get you to go.
When i was a teenager earning my pilots licenses, this place was a frequent stop. It gave me and my friends a destination to fly to. For pilots, this place is ok, because it is just sorta cool to fly to a restaurant and finally give your private license some sort of practical purpose. Â For EVERYONE else, think Crapplebees with an aviation theme.
Just like those applebees-type restaurants, the food is prepared haphazardly by some guy wearing a blindfold I assume.
Dry salads, poor service, Â diner-type food. NOTHING notable except for the airplane watching, if you are into aviation. Â When the weather is warm, just pack a picnic and sit on the grass to watch planes, you'll be much happier.
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