Eleven City Diner

There are a lot of diners in Chicago and while there aren't as many as there used to be, there are still many Jewish delis around town.  There aren't many Jewish diners around town, however.  In the South Loop, near 11th and Wabash is the Eleven City Diner, a very good Jewish Diner.  Located in what looks like an old warehouse, it has very high ceilings and cement columns.  The decor is classic diner with a checkered tile floor and large half-round booths.  The menu was a large wall hanging on the wall in addition to the menus that were provided to us at our table.  The cuisine is classic diner fare with all-day breakfast, burgers, meatloaf, and mac and cheese.  They also have a classic soda fountain (with a soda jerk), and cold deli sandwiches.  On top of all of this, they also have a full bar.  I came during the early afternoon and while it is perfectly acceptable at a diner to have breakfast at any time, when I saw the Reuben on the menu, I knew what I had to have.  A Reuben is a classic sandwich made with Corned Beef (or pastrami here), Sauerkraut, Swiss Cheese, and 1000 Island Dressing.  They serve the sandwich here open-faced and garnished with paprika.  There are still two pieces of bread, but they are on top of each other.  Even if it was served in regular sandwich style though, I am pretty sure that I still would have needed a knife and fork because it was enormous.  It was served with a pickle spear and spicy fries.

Eleven City Diner is a very good diner that does very good versions of classic diner fare with a Jewish twist.  I really liked my visit here.  The service was very friendly and the food was good.  I will definitely be an option if I happen to be in the South Loop and am in the mood for diner food.