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That was a Hi Ricky's in a previous incarnation.

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"Johnny thought when all purpose had been forgotten the world would end this way, with a dance. He slumped back in a corner, drew his knees up to his chin, and watched."-Derek Jarman

Ah...makes sense. I think I knew that in the way back part of my brain.

This must be an even better business model than Joy Yee's - this place serves horrible expensive food yet continues to be packed to the gills (at least whenever I drive by after visiting 1/2 Price Books).

As an aside, "Gourmet Pita & Pizza" located in the same shopping complex is OK in a pinch for a chicken schwarma plate.

Gourmet Pita & Pizza
5549 W Touhy Avenue
(at Linder Ave)
Skokie, IL 60077
(847) 933-9211

http://www.yelp.com/biz/zE_mHgbboJIADcG ... query:pita

I am a big fan of moodle dishes and use to go to Noodles and Co when I could.
But IMHO, it seems like their quality has gone down. My favorite dish they had was a mushroom sauce dish that had chunks of mushrooms in a balsalmic vinegar/cream sauce. They replaced it with Mushroom Stroganoff, which is ok at best.

Their Mac and cheese is like most mac and cheese that you find in corporate entities like this. Cant really taste the cheese. I like my M&C to have a good bite flavorwise.

My 2 cents.

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Dirty Duck Inn - feeding the villagers of the Bristol Ren Faire since 1574
If making Chilaquiles with fried chicken skins is wrong, then I dont want to be right!!

Because sometimes the company matters more than the food, I end up at N&c on occasion. I have found that the quality varies by location, but on the whole, I've found the Penne rosa to be one of the more acceptable dishes, though the stroganoff is what I most commonly get when friendship draws me to one of these places. Beef and sour cream over noodles is generally pleasant, though most other dishes have been a bit of a disappointment.

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"Nothing important is easy." Patrick White (Australian Nobel laureate)

http://waltzingaustralia.wordpress.com

I think I might be the lone dissenter here, but I like the Noodles and Co. I travel heavily for work, and most places I go I can count on the Noodles and Co. It's not the best food in the world, but in my opinion is some of the best 'fast-food' take out, out there. You can find it almost anywhere, and it's very consistent.

I avoid all of the Asian dishes. The Penne Rosa with Feta and the Truffle Mac are both pretty good for a quick bite out. I like the tomato soup. The beef stroganoff is good. It's not as good as at Russian Tea Time (my favorite), but good. This place isn't trying to be the best in the world, it's trying to be user friendly, quick, quality food. I think it succeeds on that front.

Nope, not alone.

I absolutely love Asian noodles, and often find myself eating with people I can't take to my usual haunts (or in areas where it's all I can find). In those instances, N&C's Japanese pan noodles with tofu fits the bill. I don't proclaim it to be exactly what I'm looking for, but with some sriracha, I find it satisfying enough. The same can be said for a few of their other menu items, although I can't stand the tasteless chicken. I must also say that as far as rice krispie snacks go, theirs are pretty damn good.

I've been to Noodles and Co. a few times over the years. I do not think their food is as bad as many would indicate on this thread for glorified fast food. The mac and cheese is popular and good. Of course I prefer my own mac and cheese but N and C is an acceptable alternative if you do not have time to make it or need a quick bite.

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Toria

"I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it" - As You Like It,
W. Shakespeare

I'm in the "like" Noodles group. I really enjoy the med salad, and even more the med sandwich and chicken noodle soup or thai soup. But that being said, I completely agree with staying away from the Asian noodle dishes. But the Italian ones are generally good. And it's great for the grandkids!!

i at around that plaza all the time and would take Gourmet Pita & Pizza any day over noodles and company. Also it is nice to support the local guys instead of a big company.

Gourmet Pita & Pizza
5549 W Touhy Avenue
(at Linder Ave)
Skokie, IL 60077
(847) 933-9211

About four years ago my in laws were in town and my brother n law (who lives in Wheaton) decided to take us all, including my sister n law and her husband to noodles and Co. No one except him and his family had ever been. He kept saying it was a great place to get something quick and there'd be something for everyone. After the whole ordeal I really wanted to smack him. Everyone hated it. My husband was not fond of bland food nor was I. My sister n law was pretty much disgusted by it. My father and mother n law had the spaghetti and they told us it was just ok. Reality was that they absoultely loatehd it. To this day you cannot mention spaghetti without my 80 year old father n law putting a face that is reminscent of a five year old being told to eat brussel sprouts. He was just taht grossed out by it.

On the plus side I did think the parmesean crusted chicken was actually tasty.

Mr. Pie and I got takeout here. Never, never again.

First of all, I wished I had remembered GWiv's original post about the prices. I ordered the larger size because it was dinnertime. It was $5.35 for a vegetarian dish, and it was approximately lunch-portion size. WTF indeed. We couldn't tell them apart, and I realized afterwards that I ate his Pasta Fresca by accident. I could not taste balsamic, the cheese was skimpy and I could count the spinach leaves and tomatoes on one hand. So basically we paid about $12 plus tax for naked pasta. We could have gone to Sanders for meat, potatoes, veggies, bread, soup, a side salad and a dish of pudding for about $18 with tax and tip. Makes me wonder why we didn't.

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I want to have a good body, but not as much as I want dessert. ~ Jason Love
There is no pie in Nighthawks, which is why it's such a desolate image. ~ Happy Stomach
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Late-Nite Eats Database

There's one in my building so I'm there from time to time. I confess a guilty liking for the beef stroganoff, but my go-to is the Thai noodle soup with shrimp. It wouldn't hold its own in a real Thai restaurant, of course, but it's better than commercial chicken noodle soup on a cold, or coming-down-with-a-cold day.

I like Panda Express better than some places in Chinatown where the bill comes to 2-3 times the price. Panda Express' chili sauce in the red packets is better than the Chinatown versions which are flakes in oil (yuck). Panda Express was started by a real bona fide Chinese person in Pasadena, CA where his main restaurant is. He still owns the business and the entire chain, so people can't bash it with the corporate stereotype they love to mock. Also, Sbarro is actually pretty good (not the pizza, everything else) and they use a great brand of canned tomatoes, whatever it is, they are vibrant and good.

I am no moderator but I couldn't help but notice that this post has nothing to do with the topic at hand.

Oddly two of the most cloned or "hacked" recipes in the blogosphere and on the web are Noodles and Company Wisconsin Mac and Cheese and the Panera Mac and Cheese. Both of these have a real fan following and people love them. I have not been to Noodles for some years actually but I do recall my son loving their Mac and cheese...it was not plastic but had real cheddar and jack cheese and was very creamy and delicious. These are not kraft type products but way better.

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Toria

"I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it" - As You Like It,
W. Shakespeare

See, I don't get that at all. The Noodles and Company Wisconsin Mac and Cheese I have found to consist of nothing other than a few glops of one cheese covering mostly barren elbows, with a bit of grated cheese on top. IF it were any good at all, I'd probably get it a lot. But I think it is the worst thing on their menu: it is neither good baked crusty mac&cheese nor low end comfort style. it resembles a cheesy noodle soup with most of the liquid drained out. I get talked into The Noodles and Company about once a month. I can put up with the indonesian noodles and even their pesto noodle thing, and actually, the parm chicken strip isn't too bad though way overpriced for the serving. The Noodles and Company Wisconsin Mac and Cheese seems like yet another Chicago way to insult the people of Wisconsin.

I'm no moderator, but I am a human being, and I died a little inside reading that. So should any human who knows the difference between chili sauce and chili oil.

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We cannot be friends if you do not know the difference between Mayo and Miracle Whip.