Located in Rolling Meadows, “Hungry?” is blessed with plenty of parking thanks to its strip mall residence. Deep yellows and earthy greens bring to life a deceptively large dining room. Step up to the counter and order off of their fairly extensive menu, which covers basics such as burgers and gyros, but also items such as kabobs and roast turkey. Grab a number and a seat and they’ll bring your meal to your table.
I visited “Hungry?” a few times and was pleasantly surprised. On my first visit I sampled the sirloin steak sandwich and fries. Most places serve skirt steak, but they instead serve center cut sirloin topped with caramelized onions, Asiago cheese, and bordelaise sauce. Served neatly on a white plate (not a plastic basket), the tender steak featured a bordelaise sauce that was a nice departure from the expected barbeque or steak sauce. On my next visit I decided on the cheeseburger and the cheese fries. The big ˝ lb burger was served on a freshly toasted roll and had a great beef flavor. With every passing burger I consume, I come to the realization that any burger under a 1/3 lb is almost a waste. To really enjoy the meat, you need enough of it to have texture and a choice of internal temperature.
On my final visit I figured I’d go out with a bang! And by that I mean with a very full belly. For my final meal I decided on the gyro sandwich, the Madeira sandwich, cole slaw, and a banana shake. The slightly charred gyro meat was cut to a medium thickness and nestled nicely in a warm pita. A satisfying gyro that is worth ordering again. The shining star of my visit was the Madeira chicken sandwich. The toasted baguette is topped with a beautifully charred chicken breast, mozzarella cheese, and their homemade Madeira sauce. Madeira is a fortified wine made in the Madeira Islands, Portugal. Make that into a sauce and you get a dynamite chicken sandwich. The hand dipped shake was thick, bursting with fresh banana flavor, and served ice cold in the metal cup it was blended in.
It would have been very easy for them to serve pre made, quick to prepare food, in order to get people in and out of the door quickly. What you get is the exact opposite, high quality food prepared when you order and served while still piping hot. The only small chink in the armor was the sides. While certainly not bad, neither the fries nor the cole slaw matched the quality of the main dishes. The cole slaw was creamy and presented nicely, but was not the standout it could have been. The fries were disappointing simply because they were never served hot. Every sandwich I had was made fresh and served hot. But both orders of fries were served lukewarm and not up to par with the rest of the food.
Overall, “Hungry?” offers very good food at fair prices. Almost everything on the menu is under $10 but tastes like it costs much more. So the next time you’re feeling a craving coming on, give “Hungry?” a try, you’ll be glad you did. Rating *** out of ****.
Location
1673 Algonquin Rd
Rolling Meadows, IL 60068
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