22 Best Salad Restaurants near Shorewood

“I don't think I like Facebook's way of posting reviews. [Edit: no one else likes it, either. I'm the only reviewer in 2025, and it's almost 2026. They should also pay closer attention to the "not recommend" reviewers.] The review below this paragraph is just over 1,000 words, as if it appeared in a newspaper. I might just make any reviews of other restaurants and venues as regular posts. If you like Chicago-style fast food, eat here. Expect $15 per person unless you just order one hotdog and a glass of water. Portillo's is a chain with 94 restaurants and "drive-through-only" locations spread throughout ten states. Their greatest concentration is in the Chicagoland area. Founded by Dick Portillo in 1963 as a hot-dog trailer parked in Villa Park Illinois, the restaurant grew steadily over the years. It’s now a publicly traded company, and Dick Portillo no longer plays an active role in day-to-day operations. All Portillo's locations are company owned, with no franchisees. Portillo's sells Chicago-style fast food. They serve Italian Beef, which I’m reviewing here. They also serve Chicago-style all beef hotdogs, Italian and Maxwell Street Polish sausage sandwiches, barbecued pork ribs, grilled and deep-fried fish and chicken sandwiches, pepper-and-egg sandwiches during Lent, chili, and even char-grilled hamburgers. They also sell Chicago-style tamales, but only in the Chicagoland area or "ship to home." The location reviewed here is at 1155 Brook Forest Ave., Shorewood IL. Their hours are 10 AM to 11:30 PM Sunday through Thursday, and 10 AM to Midnight Friday and Saturday. I visited the location in mid-evening on a Tuesday. The dining room was still roughly half occupied, and the double-column line for the drive through was still overflowing into the main parking lot. I've yet to see a Portillo's location not busy, but they might not be as popular outside of the Midwest. I ordered the "regular" Italian Beef wet with extra gravy on the side, sweet pepper garnish, small fries, and a fountain drink. Portillo's sells Coca-Cola products for fountain drinks. They are also famous for their milkshakes; particularly their "Chocolate Cake Shake." While it's incredibly good, it's exactly what it sounds like. Some, but not all Portillo's locations are licensed to sell beer and wine. The selection and availability vary by location. Italian Beef. The French Bread, like all bread products used by Portillo's was a Turano product. It was fresh, with just the right amount of toasting pre-service. The beef was perfectly sliced, very finely grained, and did not seem to have sat for an excessive period of time awaiting service. Portillo's gets their beef from Vienna Beef. However, they get it raw, and do their own seasoning, slow-roasting and slicing in their central commissary before repackaging and sending it to their restaurants. The French Bread Roll was properly filled with roast beef, not overflowing, but still quite full. The regular beef is more than enough for many diners. If you want more, the "Big Beef" sandwich is 50% larger. Both the regular and Big Beef sandwiches are also available as "combo" sandwiches with an appropriate length char-grilled Italian Sausage. The spice blend was properly Italianate, and at just the right strength to compliment the sandwich. When you eat this sandwich, you are eating Italian Beef, not "grandma's spice rack," or "store-brand-watery-Arby's." Gravy. Portillo's makes their own gravy while slow-roasting their beef. The gravy was a rich dark brown. Both the "au-jus" and the spices were in perfect balance, strength, and concentration. It was served properly hot. The flavor was perfect, with no hint of being scorched, burned, or overheated. The sauteed sweet peppers were cut "country style," which suited them well. The peppers were well sauteed, yet had enough slight to moderate firmness“

“Tonight this location got a pretty large rush all at once. I wanted to give a shout out to the team member with the beautiful tattoo on her arm. Way to go! I am unaware of the position you hold but I hope it is management!

Those young boys back on the line were struggling and getting frustrated and made sure they knew they can do this! You were continually shouting out little encouragements out to them back there. Reminding them to “just take it one order at a time” and then on top of that you jumping back there with them when you could tell they could use some support!

Coming from a GM of a franchise I want you to know that not only are you a star employee you are a wonderful teammate! Good job tonight!“

“Great food. Large Portions. 10/10 would eat again.“

“Long story short, this place is phenomenal.

Full story now; we waited a while to try out Happy Falafel after it opened to let the grand opening crowds calm down, but I wish we would have started coming here sooner because everything about this place is great.

We walked in and checked out the menu for a bit and were greeted by very welcoming staff who were more than happy to help and answer any questions. We ordered and the staff member made a recommendation which gave us a better deal so we went for it. We wanted to try a bunch of things on the menu, we ended up getting falafel appetizers, a chicken rice bowl, a beef shawarma and kafta rice bowl, spicy red sauce, original baklava, and assorted baklava. This was a LOT of food for 2 people, but we were blown away by the amount of flavor packed into these delicious foods. I had never had kafta before this and it's now going to be my go to. We waited about 5 minutes for our large order to be ready and we dug in. The falafel wasn't dry, the rice wasn't oily like other places tend to be, the Arabic salad that came with the rice bowls was a great way to add freshness and cleanse the palate, the spicy red sauce could have been hotter (I am a BIG fan of spicy food, so my tolerance is high), and the additional sauces were and excellent way to add a little extra kick of twang and zest to each bite.

I definitely recommend Happy Falafel and we will be coming back.

I do not get paid or receive any incentives for my reviews, my reviews are made based on my own experiences.“

“Great atmosphere and food. The beef roll was great!“

“⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ We had our Nov. 2024 wedding rehearsal at Cut 158 and were completely impressed and happy with our experience. The food is excellent and the service was top notch. The staff made us feel very welcome and taken care of the entire night. They added little cute touches like our picture on the menu that made it feel special and their new space is really modern and perfect for events. We highly recommend this restaurant for special occasions or just a nice dinner out. We have been coming here with our family the last few years and it is an amazing gem in Joliet.“

“Our baseball team was in town for a tournament and we stumbled upon this place. The owner was really friendly. The staff was friendly and amazing and we had good food. The boys enjoyed it and loved the space that was available. The parents loved it too. I definitely recommend the Irish corner Cantina for any group parties or a great place to hang out, drink and eat. Michelle Milwaukee Wisconsin“

“What a find , Service excellent. The sushi rolls were delicious, freshly made. We will return.“

“comida deliciosa,muy rico“

“Heard a lot of great things but HAD to try to myself! and I was blown away, DELICIOUS!!“

“My family and I had an absolute wonderful experience tonight! Our server was Peyton, she was absolutely wonderful, kind, great customer service, she interacted with our kids. Just a delightful person. We told her manager, and even told her, but I also wanted to make a review here as well. When we come in the future, hoping to have you again, or someone like you. Thank you again! 🙂“

“J-Town Classic, if anyone is giving this place a lower than a 5 star..they’re a straight hattteeer. They’re always quick, I get everything I ordered. The parking lot can get a little crazy, but that just means everyone wants that MR SUB.“

“Ordered extra sauce, only got about a tablespoon of extra sauce. Asked for more, everyone except Connor told us that was the amount they give. Connor walked up and said he would get us more. His customer service was great! We showed up an hour before closing. they were cleaning up but still served us with a smile.
Bolingbrook closed so this will be my new noodle home.“

“It was 70th Birthday! I had a great time celebrating my 70th. The food and drinks were Excellent! The service was Excellent!! The staff sang afterwards Happy Birthday with a torch candle it was the bomb. My sister Roxann & Lou made my day! I will be back with many others in the family! It was great! Love it at Los 3 Martinez!!!“

“Huge shoutout to my man Russ. He is awesome and provides some of the best customer service I’ve experienced in a long time. He’s incredibly kind, attentive, and clearly cares about making sure every customer leaves happy. The food was fresh, the hot peppers hit the spot, and the whole atmosphere was just great thanks to his leadership“

“A very happy clean place to eat a great lunch“

“As a member of the coffee club for about a year now, I wish this location would train its staff on how to make coffee. Lately the coffee has been really weak and watered down. Iced coffee is my go to but this location ways seems watered down. Please train your staff to make a great cup of coffee. Thats all we ask. 🙂 I did mention this to the manager a fee months ago and it did get better for a bit...“

“My family just had a celebration event in their banquet room recently and thoroughly enjoyed everything! The manager was very helpful with our requests and they were very accommodating! Would definitely book there again!“

“I was in a pinch traveling in town from Bolingbrook and needed some shredded mozzarella to top a homemade baked rigatoni I was donating to a Romeoville family in need of a meal and I stoped in hoping they might be able to sell me some. No questions asked, the nice gentleman at the counter went back and got some and did not charge me. I will be making the trip back from Bolingbrook to get some pizza next week! Thank you! 🍕🇮🇹“

“Just love this place and very nice employees����“

“I ordered the lunch special and beef patties. The jerk chicken was delicious and the jerk sauce had a spicy tropical flavor. I also liked the rice and red beans. The beef patty was also seasoned, flaky and delicious.
The portion was large. I have leftovers for tomorrow.
The atmosphere is clean and the guy at the register was friendly. Will try more items on the menu, soon.“

“I have been a couple times and always had great service and food! Recently I ordered through the app and there was an accidental second charge to my credit card. I called the store and they had it fixed by the end of the day! Thank you Potbelly!“