What can I say???? But, this is the best breakfast place in McHenry county. The food is correctly portioned. Well priced, and the service is excellent.... We took my mother there for her birthday a few weeks ago. Everyone was extremely happy with our choice. I had the corned beef hash and eggs. Corned beef was not from a can as you find at most places and you could tell it was that GOOD! For a party of four all enjoying a wide mix from the selections on the menu it only turned out to be about 35.00 plus tax an tip. We got a lot of food. Highly recommended!
Review Source:If it's possible, I like this Richard Walkers more than I like the Schaumburg location. Â I mean, the Schaumburg one has served its purpose and everything, but the service as this location is SO much better!
My friend called ahead for seating at 9 am for a Sunday morning for a group of seven of us. Â We were seated in a back room with other large parties. Â That made me happy because they were loud, and we were loud. Â It all worked out :)
I ordered the apple pancake ahead of time so that it would come out at the same time as the food--I highly reccommend doing that. Â NEVER skimp on the apple pancake, you will be sorry. Â Even if you can't finish it in one sitting, it makes for amazing leftovers. Â Just heat that baby back up and you're good to go!
I also got a skillet that was on their specials menu. Â It was quite delicious, however, I had ordered it w/ over easy eggs and they came scrambled. Â Not a huge deal in the grand scheme of things, but it would have changed the taste for me. Â I also upgraded my regular pancakes to the chocolate chip pancakes. Â You might want to do that as well. Â Just saying ;) Â Sugar rushes are awesome!!
Our server was great--he was patient and quick with the refills! Â He was on top of things without being on top of us (to leave) like we feel pressured to do at other restaurants!
So basically, don't come here if you're on a diet. Â Either you'll be crying at everyone else's amazing food, or you will crash and burn on the diet-front!
I've been dying to try this place out (and I'm not sure why), but from the Yelp reviews, I've been sort of hesitant because so many people complain about how expensive this eatery is. Â My hungrier half & I went early on a Sunday morning (7am), and when we pulled up, we joked that maybe they weren't open, since there were only 3 cars in the parking lot. Â Apparently they open at 6:30, so people around here must be late risers on Sunday or something (who knows).
We were promptly greeted and seated in a charming booth lined with stained glass. Â The dining area seems a little stuffy, especially with the classical music being piped through the speakers, and I couldn't help but wonder if the ambiance is what made people think that Richard Walkers is so expensive. Â Much to my delight, the prices are not really any pricier than our favorite breakfast restaurant (Wildberry's in Schaumburg), fears unfounded, I guess. Â
Their orange juice is a little pricey, until you realize that it's fresh squeezed, and for someone who juices at home a fair amount, I can tell you that it takes a lot of oranges to make a glass of orange juice, so I didn't mind shelling out for someone else to make it for me. Â Even though I'm more of an egg eater in the morning, I was lured by the luscious combination of whipped cream and strawberries on the crepes (plus I wanted to know what the heck "tropical sauce" is), so I opted for the fresh strawberry crepes. Â My dining companion, a sucker for anything with Choirzo, opted for a Mexican skillet. Â Our food came out promptly and was nice and hot. Â The crepes were just ok, standard crepes and the tropical sauce is actually orange juice based and quite watery instead of being thick and saucy. Â Interesting but not my favorite sauce I've ever had. Â My husband seemed to enjoy his skillet, although he lamented that it was lacking in the chorizo department. Â
Our server was quite attentive, making sure to check on us often enough to feel taken care of but not so often that we felt pushed. Â She was also great about refilling the coffee until my husband declined a refill. Â
Overall, Richard Walkers was good, not great. Â I think we'll probably stick with some of our favorites the next time we are deciding on breakfast though and forgo this place.
This place is another breakfast place that just does it for me and makes me leave very happy. Their food is delicious and I highly recommend their omelettes (SantaFe), steak & eggs, crepes (Strawberry), french toast, the German pancake! and definitely give the Apple pancake a chance. Their portions are very abundant and make me share with others. Besides being a little overpriced, you get what you pay for in some dishes. I always get the steak & eggs and share a German pancake (as big as a sombrero) with my dad.
As for the service, it's excellent (on weekdays and weekends). They are very attentive and kind; furthermore, they don't mind any request you make.
Wrapping this up, the atmosphere of this place makes you feel right at home and is a winner in my book.
So not worth the fifty dollars. Food is ok but very overpriced. No hashbrowns and toast w eggs? My omelette was egg white and it was eleven dollars! Service was just ok. I use to come here about four yrs ago when they had the same staff and they were actually fun. Lots of stonefaces here.
Review Source:How this place gets a 3.5 is beyond me. Â The food, service,atmosphere are excellent. Â Wish I could give them 6 stars. Â Everybit as good as the Original Walker Brothers. Â The apple pancake is devine, the hash browns are the best I have ever had. Â The Santa Fe omlet was excellent, and the setvice was excellent.
Review Source:Warning: Â There is a math reference, a music reference, and a movie reference. Â This is really more of a 2.5 star review, but due to the rounding half up plus infinity rule(math), 2.5 stars = 3 stars. Â Pancake House, right? Â I'm not sure, but it's the pancakes that are holding back on the 4th star for me. Â Having Pancakes in your name should mean that you serve them AND serve them well. Â It's not called Taco Bell because they have great hot dogs, am I right? Â I LOVE PANCAKES. Â I didn't love Richard Walker's pancakes...I even put half the butter on the table onto 2 pancakes and drizzled syrup on it, it just didn't do it for me, so the 3rd pancake went uneaten, and I kind of knew when I took the first bite, plain. Â It had sort of a crispy exterior , and there was no fluffiness to the interior. Â The second piece I cut, i picked up with my fingers and bent it, and it snapped in half. Â That was weird, Â It should "Bend and Not Break", kind of like a Dashboard Confessional song(music). Â
So other than the pancake thing, my breakfast was pretty good. Â It's kind of hard to mess up chicken fried steak, and my scrambled eggs over easy came a little more cooked than I liked, but they usually do at most places, and thats just "fine and dandy", like Forrest Gump's(movie) legs. Â The coffee is good, and refilled frequently. Â Slight gripe about the wait, but that's usually the case on Sunday Morning(Maroon 5). Â Sorry , I know, I couldn't resist another music reference!
If you want to spend the same money as a real nice dinner than this place is for you. $10.00 for an omelette.....and you don't even get potatoes. $4.25 for 3 pieces of bacon? WTF!! Â Oh yes...don't forget the $4.00 glass of oj. Save your money and go Andy's or Olympic. Better food and half the price.
Review Source:My husband and I love Richard Walker's. The closest one in is Crystal Lake, but worth the drive from Elgin. Â Omlettes are fluffy and wonderful and have never had any complaints with service or food quality. Â I am only giving 4 stars because while very good, still it is on the pricey side for breakfast. I cringe when I see a large family coming in for breakfast ....$$. Â They do seem to upcharge quite a bit on the extras and may want to rethink some of their prices due to the economy. Â That said it is still always a treat for breakfast.
Review Source:Good but pricey.
We checked in today at Richard Walker's Pancake House in Crystal Lake, IL Â I had an Omelet, which was outstanding. Big and fluffy, with cheddar cheese, ham and onion. Â I also had a side of the regular buttermilk pancakes. They were fine, but not especially noteworthy.
My wife had eggs over easy with hash browns and bacon. The bacon is thick cut, and very flavorful. The eggs were fine, but she had asked for toast, and we got another side of pancakes. Â
My daughter had French Toast. It was good, but she never got her side of bacon.
I saw some of the specialty's going by, like the baked apple pancake. It looked very good.
They were quite busy at the time, so perhaps that is why our server missed the toast and bacon.  I did not know about this until after we left, or I would have brought it to the server's  attentions. I expect that he would have made it right.
In total, while the food was good, we spent $58 with tax and tip for the 3 of us. That is a pretty pricey breakfast. The omelet was worth the price, but the rest of the food while good, was not noteworthy. Â I may return for the omelet, or some of the specialty items. If you are just looking for basic eggs, etc.. you can do as well for less $$.
If you're a breakfast person - this place is a must! They have high quality breakfasts!! (As opposed to say the cheap place with the blue roof)... Â All locations have great food! Fast service as well.
I do have 2 objections to this place - very expensive in my book. It's nearly $3 for a small glass of pop, and they up-charge you for everything! I think it was like an extra $1 to add a tiny bit of cheese to my scrambled eggs....C'mon!!! I have also had issues at a couple locations doing substitutions. Â So although I love their food, I always find myself super annoyed when the check comes.
Love their eggs all kinds, wonderful fresh-squeezed O.J., and in fall the  Pumpkin pancakes (they're totally not oversweet, just right).
The building is most, if not all, of what is good about this place. It's new construction but cozy and pretty inside and out. The food is fairly consistent in quality, but they prepare certain common things oddly. Like sunny side up eggs are partly poached. And omelets are whipped (and baked?) into enormous air-filled puffy whoopie cushions. It's all on the expensive side and there are not many healthy options -- but if you don't care about that then this may be a good place to go if you're looking for a warm and cozy place on a cold day.
Review Source:Went to Richard Walker's for breakfast on Sunday Morning. Place had a good crowd but not overly packed at about 9:30AM. Tried it because of the gluten free menu for my daughter and was really impressed by the knowledge of our waitress. I must say the whole wait staff also greated us as we came in and exited the establishment. Nice touch. The food was great the gluten free bacon pancakes had the most bacon my daughter ever had in that type of pancake. She had 6 and will be took home 4 of them because they were so big. My country fried steak was good with the gravy having a substantial amount of sausage and pepper in it. And my wife had an omelet that will be eaten for at least another day or two. Coffee was excellent and the cup never was empty. Waitress also offered us a discount card to be used at Rich Walkers and other establishments for points. Will definetly be going back saw some dutch apple pancakes with my name on them.
Review Source:Sunday morning. Â Post-church rush. Â Long line. Â Packed waiting area. Â Completely worth it.
I have been to the Schaumburg location of Richard Walker's a few times, and the one thing that I had always come away with was that it was slightly expensive. Â Walking into the Crystal Lake location was completely different. Â The main entrance has warm-colored wine barrel taps decorating the walls, the main dining area has a giant stone fireplace, and-- most importantly-- the place is packed wall-to-wall with a variety of people. Â Young and old, families and couples, Sunday-best suits and Urlacher jerseys... I could immediately see that this location appealed to the entire town.
The coffee here is wonderful on two levels. Â First, it's brewed well-- bold but not burnt. Â Perhaps benefitting from the time of day, I felt like every cup came from a fresh pot. Â Second, I don't think my cup ever got lower than half full. Â All employees seem to team up to ensure that tables always have hot cups sitting in front of them.
I ordered the mushroom omelet with cheddar cheese, although I was really tempted to have jalapeno cheese. Â This is an option on every omelet, which I found to be very unique. Â The giant omelet combined with a side order of three fluffy pancakes (these are included) was definitely more than I should have consumed in a single meal. Â But I'm overweight, and that's what overweight people do. Â Because it was during Autumn, they had pumpkin-flavored pancakes available. Â They included whipped cream and cinnamon sugar sprinkled on top of them. Â Just like my coffee, I skipped the cream and sugar, and the pumpkin pancakes were still incredible.
On the way out, I heard someone call my name. Â I glanced over and saw the owner behind the counter. Â He asked how my meal was, and I told him that I enjoyed it. Â He leaned forward with a big smile and asked, "So am I going to see you in here again?" Â I mentioned to him how impressed I was with this location compared to the Schaumburg counterpart. Â We then had a brief discussion about Schaumburg, and he wanted to know my thoughts on moving to Cary. Â It would be impressive for any owner to be able to remember customers' names from the waiting list. Â It'd be a nice touch for all owners to have a little chat with patrons on their way out. Â But to do this during the Sunday morning post-church rush with a long line in a packed waiting area was incredible. Â
And it certainly didn't leave me thinking about the price.
Occasionally, I have to travel to Crystal Lake for work. Â It's not a favorite destination of mine. Â I'm from New England, and when I'm not surrounded by rolling hills and closely packed triple deckers I feel out of my element. Â In addition, the place I travel to visit is a rather unpleasant chemical factory surrounded by cornfields and recent (ugly) housing developments. Â The people are very nice, Â but the work and the location just bring me down. Â The one shining bright spot is Richard Walker's Motherfucking Pancake House. Â
Seriously, Â how come I can't get Belgian waffles with bacon in them everywhere I go? Â I love New England, Â but we are way behind in bacon-stuffed waffle technology. Â The fluffy waffle is good enough, but fill it up with the best bacon ever to touch your tastebuds and you will see God.
Thanks Richard Walker, whoever you are. Â You make travelling to the middle of Illinois bearable.
this place rocks now that Lou is now in control of it. Â Food and service have improved significantly thanks to his running this place.
Pricewise, it isn't the bargain basement, but it isn't the most expensive either. Â Portion sizes are good for the money, and the coffee is worth the price.
Well, I grew up in Crystal Lake (I now live in Chicago) and I never ate at Richard Walker's when I lived in the area. Â Now I know why. Â I went back to CL today to visit my parents and they wanted to go there. Â I ordered the french onion soup and a side of potato pancakes. Â The soup was lukewarm and the pancakes were probably the worst I have ever had. Â They had a very strange taste. Â
I went home afterward and the food gave me something that rhymes with rhiarrhea. Â That was a blast. Â Thanks Richard Walker!
I initially ignored Richard Walker's driving by it for several months, curious about a pancake house that appeared more upscale but not curious enough to give it another though. Â A co-worker recommended it and I tried every other restaurant along highway 14 so why not?
Stepping in to the Cabela/Caribou Coffee meets Cracker Barrel aesthetic building on the right of the counter they were selling pancake mixes and Kona coffee to take home. Â
I noticed signs for the Pumpkin Pancakes which sounded great! I think it would go well with pumpkin ice cream but that is another story. Â
I ended up selecting the wheat bran pancakes with a side of broccoli and a glass of Cabernet; I have healthy but shall we say eclectic taste sometimes. Â There were 8 or so mini-pancakes delivered and they were delicious served with the authentic real maple syrup, the only way it could be so flowingly liquid with lightly fruity tasting.
Richard Walker's is my ideal breakfast place. Â You pay a bit more, but you get great ambiance, good service, perfect coffee (it's Kona and served with fresh, real cream), and it keeps Riff and his brother Raff out. Â Yes, the wait is horrendous on weekend mornings!!! Â I couldn't afford to eat there daily, but it is a terrific place to treat yourself (or a loved one). Â I love the seafood crepes, Seafood Newberg, filled with a very rich concoction of scallops, shrimp, and crab and served with potato pancakes. Â The huge, fluffy omelets are... well, huge... and served with 3 buttermilk pancakes (or toast). Â One thing regarding pancakes is that they serve it with warmed real maple syrup, while I appreciate Aunt Jamima, or the like, better-- but really! What kind of complaint is that! Â The German Pancake is something magical to try if you haven't before. Â I used to make Pilgrimages for those until I learned to make them myself. Â Don't let it's size scare you. Â It is a super-big, super-fluffy, almost souffle-like pancake served with powdered sugar and lemon. Â Lemon on my pancake??? Yes. Â It is really good!
Then there is Richard Walker's for dinner. Â Dining out in Crystal Lake on a weekend evening can cost you valuable time waiting in line for a seat. Â No one thinks of a breakfast place for a lovely dinner. Â It is quieter and more intimate than TGIF and chances are you can get immediate seating. Â The calamari is perfectly prepared lightly coated and not overcooked. Â The Bistro Burger (with brie and bacon) and French Onion Soup are also excellent. Â The French Onion is not over-salted, like most restaurants tend to do. Â There is also a limited breakfast menu.
This is a great place for a fantastic meal any time of the day.
This restaurant is owned by a member of the same family that owns the Walker Bros. chain of pancake houses, though this is a separate restaurant. I enjoyed this one even more than Walker Brothers; the ambience was a little nicer, the restaurant more clean (meaning less kitsch all over the walls), and the prices were just as good. I also liked the pancakes better!
I've seen that the Schaumburg and Crystal Lake restaurants have slightly different menus, and since I have only once been to either location, I can't comment on Schaumburg. My friend ordered the apple pancake, and I've had a small bite of this at another and didn't like it; at this restaurant, it was fantastic. I've seen other reviews that mention it was pricey, but our total bill was $22.05. I had a Denver omelet with pancakes, my friend an apple pancake with bacon on the side. In my opinion, it was comparable to most of the pancake houses we've been to.
This is my #1 pancake house, and we've been touring area pancake houses to find a our favorite one to visit on weekends (so far, we've been to at least 6). I'll drive the 30 minutes to Schaumburg or Crystal Lake on the weekend now and then to enjoy a nice breakfast.
A little pricey and sometimes very crowded, but worth. Pretty good food and nice atmosphere including classical music and you can sit by the gas fireplace in the winter.
You can avoid the crowd and have the same breakfast food by going in the evening. Â Kids love the silver dollar pancakes.
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