To me it's a bit on the scary outdated side, but this diner really packs people in ... This is where we used to go at my old job when we didn't want to debate over where else to go. They have all the Chicago diner staples (Francheezie anyone??). I like the olive burger, though it's really not that great. ;) The steak fries are good. The waitresses are a bit on the rough side at times...
(3)
Ryan A.
Good, old fashioned family restaurant w/ great greasy spoon grub and affordable menu items. Ideal location for meeting someone for coffee because of the comfy booths and table layout where you find yourself not right on top of your neighbor.
(3)
Nicholas H.
Good place to eat, when you don't feel like having any of the chain flair.
(3)
Bridget B.
Food is very bland, poor quality. Service was friendly and quick though. It's in a good location but there are about 1000 other places within a two block radius that are better.
(2)
A.S. V.
This is a pretty standard diner type restaurant, pretty similar to a couple others nearby. Breakfast and lunch is pretty average tasting, but satisfying when you're craving that type of comfort food.
(3)
Dusty K.
Unfortunately I work in the area and it's one of the only diner type options to visit. So I get dragged here against my will when co-workers are looking for a sit-down location. I really don't seem to like anything on the menu. I've tried quite a few things from the burger, to an omelete to a variety of sandwiches. I finally found something I find edible in the grilled cheese. Service is quick but not in a good way. Food is bland and greasy and there's really not much good to say about this place. The only reason I eat here is proximity. Save your money for somewhere else to eat in the loop.
(1)
Damian C.
Petro's reminded me of a little neighborhood diner you would find in just about any other neighborhood. The food was pretty good (I mean, how can you go wrong with steak fries - they are freaking sweet!), but I think Taco Fresco would have been the better option (I begged my friends to go but NO, they wouldn't listen). I don't know if I will become a repeat customer. Not gonna lie, a little pricier than I was expecting.
(3)
Anpan W.
My friend called it a Greek restaurant. Everything was very bland. I had the soup, spinach pie, and french fries. My friend got a Greek omelette. Two stars for the food. But service was good. And the ambience was linger at your business lunch. Not an impress your date style place, but might be a good place to take your uncle.
(2)
Michael M.
extensive menu and pretty much your standard greek diner. excellent waitstaff.
(3)
Val B.
I am vastly jealous of Daryl E. who had friendly service but bad food here. My service was the worst I've ever received in my life -- and I've been to a restaurant or two. It was Election night and I was about to see a show across the street at the Cadillac Theater. It was a last-minute thing so we didn't have any reservations, and things were closing early in the loop anyway because of the rally. We tried Petterino's first, but they were booked, so we settled for Petro's which looked like a regular family-style place. Immediately we were (not) greeted by the server who started out as seeming somewhat stressed with her now two tables of three people each. When the people in my group ordered, she wouldn't acknowledge us. No, "Ok," or "Sure thing," nothing like that. Just moved on and acted all put off by us being there...a restaurant...to eat food. Slowing more and more people piled in the place and she just got more and more insane (she wasn't the only server, but yes, there weren't enough, that was clear). About 30 seconds after ordering, I flagged her down and asked her if the cook could please not toast my bun. SHE ROLLED HER EYES AT ME!!!!!! and just walked away. WHAAAAAAT???? Anyway, this stuff kept happening and each time the people in my group looked at one another in complete awe. The food was downright bad, too. I had a gross, overcooked burger on the most stale bun ever with forgettable french fries. The hot chocolate tasted like gasoline and we couldn't drink it. In the end, we had a bill for $53 for three people after not even being able to eat our nasty food. Never ever going back ever. (PS, this would have been a 1-star, but the place was actually clean, so I bumped it up.)
(2)
Ryan D.
I too found myself at Petro's today because it's close to work and my co-worker likes their omlettes. In a word....NASTY. I had the New Orleans Salad. Not only was it completely watery, but the salad was actually going bad, as it had red on the edges. The boiled egg tasted like it had been refrigerated for a over a week. The shrimp didn't even have a taste. And I understand that it's a Loop place, but $10 for this pile of sh*t was ridiculous. My stomach hurts now and it's honestly a crap shoot as to what part of the salad is causing it. Also...my co-worker noticed that the prices are cheaper for carry-out and the waitress claimed it costs more because of the dish washing required for eating-in. Ooooookay...and why is the cheese an extra buck on the omlette when you eat in as opposed to carry-out? The service blowed and we gave the waitress $1 between the two of us since she seemed so annoyed that part of her job was to actually answer questions about the menu.
(1)
Y V.
I've been to this Greek-American diner a few times for lunch and thought the food was ok. Most of the lunch spots in this area close around 3pm (and some earlier than that), so it's always nice to find a place like this where you can sit down and grab a bite to eat. The menu is standard diner fare, with breakfast, lunch, and dinner options. I've always gotten something simple, like a grilled cheese & fries or an omelet. I've always liked getting breakfast for lunch :) It's a little pricier than other diners, but considering it's located in the Loop near a few theaters, I'm not surprised. The food is nothing outstanding, but it's a nice place to sit down in the midst of downtown chaos.
(3)
Mike G.
I've only been here once, and that was for a quick breakfast. I let the waitress know that I was looking for something quick and tasty, she said "we have the best cook in the area; you can order anything on the menu except steak and it will be fast". So, I kept the order simple; two eggs over medium, hash browns, english muffins; coffee. The order arrived within about 5-7 minutes, hot off the grill. The eggs were done perfectly, the hash browns were thick-cut and crispy on the outside, just the way I like them, and the coffee was very good. The only thing I didn't like was the english muffins; they were hard and chewy. All in all, a quick tasty breakfast and the price was just a little higher than you would expect for something that simple, but perhaps that has to do with the location. The waitress was friendly, quick, and very attentive. The big Greek at the cash register was not very friendly though.....
(3)
Mary C.
Not only is the food bad, but so is the service. I went later in the lunch hour so had my pick of seats, but was seated in the single booth. When I asked to sit near a window, the host gruffly gave in and sat me in a double booth where there were still plenty of open seats. The wait staff is also gruff and don't want to take the time to answer any of your questions, because they are too busy in their mind.
(1)
Suzy C.
I wouldn't eat anything here except their omelets. Despite that it gets a high rating cause their vegetarian omelet with egg beaters is DELICIOUS. It's huge, fluffy, and full of veggies. Also their hash browns are quite awesome with its crispness on the outside. Great portions too. I also give it a high rating cause it's around the corner from work and i love that i can have breakfast whenever I want it. Reliability is important so I feel the need to be generous here.
(4)
Carrie S.
Petro's is probably the weakest entry in the Greek diner tradition of Chicago. It caters to the government officials, theatergoers, and other professionals in the area who frequent the place and work nearby. They have a large menu of diner staples with everything from breakfast to steak. I've had their BLT and grilled cheese. Both were average and just okay. Their salads almost seem like prepackaged stuff. Nothing special. The service can be spotty at times ranging from decent to just downright miserable. If you go, remember to go before the lunch rush to grab a booth. Your food will be served up fast, just not great.
(2)
Jason S.
I have eaten here several times for lunch due to convenience and the need for comfort food. The menu has anything you can imagine but it all tastes kinda of the same (I think they are in cahoots with taco bell). I love the tuna melt on wheat and their crispy fries and will go here anything I am in the mood to be stuffed after lunch. Prices are 10-12 per lunch with a soda. It is fairly easy to get in and out of this Greek like diner.
(2)
George K.
Little upscale restaurant than Denny's. You will see people eating breakfast for lunch and lunch for breakfast and dessert display case soon as you walk in : ) I have been here few times but never for breakfast. Just about anything you order, it's going to be a huge meal, plus they will give you a bread basket with tasty butter. Waitresses are always sharing secret ways to order so you can save some money.
(3)
Kate S.
This place is not so great. We sat down in an empty restaurant and it took like 20 minutes just to get a menu. Your basic diner food, nothing special. The waitress also insisted on calling is "sweetness" and "honey" -- but not in a sweet way, more in an annoying way. The prices are also very high; it was $30 with tip for a burger, sandwich and sodas!!
(1)
Benjamin L.
Came here for lunch once, not good. It started off bad when we walked in and the "hostess" vaguely pointed us at a specific table way at the other end of the restaurant saying "go sit there". There were at least a dozen tables down there, and three waitresses in the area so we were unsure where to sit without screwing a waitress out of her rotation. The lunch menu was okay in its selection, but when the food actually arrived it was very underwhelming in presentation (crudely slapped onto the plate), quantity (portion was small), and quality (my fish was poorly cooked). You sort of know what you are getting when you go to a Greek diner like this, but I've been to dozens of Greek diners that are vastly superior. Do yourself a favor and get lunch elsewhere.
(1)
Chrystal S.
My husband and I stopped here for a quick lunch. We left and went to the water tower. This place was filthy. We ordered sprite and donuts because we do not like to be rude and just walk out. The donuts are pre packaged crap. I have had better from Walmart. Better yet the seven eleven down the street. Now let me tell you the donuts alone are $2.25 a piece not even worth the price! At first we thought that they were homemade except they forgot to unwrap my donut from the original package on the other hand they tried to make my husbands donut look like they made it. My husband and I didn't even want to finish them.
(1)
richard c.
Well I guess it is all in the customer's attitude. I loved the place the big Greek at the register was a little gruff until I made him smile. I loved the Chicago attitude. We loved the breakfast and just ate there about 4 times during a weeks stay. The eggs were cooked just right the toast was hot and the butter was cold. The older waitress has been there for 32 years and was quite friendly, yes she was a little slow but the coffee was hot and a lot better than that Crap that Starbucks puts out. The French toast was good and the pancakes were cooked to perfection. Could not beat the price and the speed of the order. If yoo want a pricey crappy meal go somewhere else. Loved the humor of the huge Pens to sign your bill, Big Greek was a hoot.
(3)
Mary E.
This place is APPALLINGLY BAD. Do not eat here. It will scar you for life. I would give Chef Petro's negative stars, if such a thing were possible. Too bad yelp doesn't have a rating for, "Worst food in the Western Hemisphere," or, "Donner Party would refuse this food!" My husband and I ate here last week. We both agreed that these were the worst meals we had ever had in our lives. We had gone Downtown to see a play, and we planned on having a nice dinner before the show. I spaced out and failed to make reservations at our first choice, which was packed. No problem: I figured we would have a number of options. As a native Chicagoan who used to work in the Loop (not some rube from the far western 'burbs) I should have known better--Christmas season, lots of sold-out shows. We had no luck at choices #2 or 3. At any rate, the light drizzle that was falling when we left our house had turned into a freezing downpour, fueled by icy winds so that the rain was flying horizontally into our faces and we had to dart from doorway to doorway. We could barely see our shoes, let alone get our bearings and systematically seek out a restaurant. But then, shining like a beacon, right across from the Cadillac Palace, was Chef Petro's. "There!" I yelled above the howling wind. "We'll eat THERE!" It looked so warm and bright, and if there is one thing you can rely on in Chicago, it's that Greek -owned family restaurants serve reasonably-priced, tasty meals. Well. Apparently Chef Petro didn't get THAT memo, because the prices were about $5 higher for comparable items at our local Greek joints. Still, you figure the higher Downtown rents would justify bumping up the cost by a fin. So we ordered--my husband got the chicken Parmesan and I splurged and got a rib eye steak. Unfortunately, the meat in both dishes was way over-cooked, although at least we knew that killed any pathogens we may have ingested. My steak was a shapeless lump of gristle, which I had to carefully dissect in order to get two bites of actual beef. Disturbingly, we had a perfect view of the theater marquee announcing the play we were about to see: WarHorse. I couldn't help but think I was possibly eating the main character. My husband's entree was served with spaghetti from a can, and the gravy on my mashed potatoes tasted exactly like his spaghetti sauce, so it was probably prepared in the same pot. And while mashed potatoes would not normally be my first choice with a rib eye, at Chef Petro's, it was the only choice besides fries. My salad was just lettuce (they were out of tomatoes), and I had asked for bleu cheese dressing. "It's an extra dollar," the waitress said, and I said okay. But the dressing was watered down--there wasn't any bleu cheese! It was the consistency of skimmed milk. Not to mention, the "bread basket" offered two stale buns, which we devoured, as they were the only semi-edible items available. In the meantime, my husband decided to seek out the men's room to see if he could dry himself off a little. The waitress directed him to the stairs and told him the bathrooms were on the lower level. He went down to the basement, which was evidently one of those common basements for the entire block, and entered a maze of corridors where a lot of doors warned "No Access!" He said he expected a subway train to come roaring by any second. Eventually he found the restroom, which he thought was empty, and began drying his hair with paper towels....but then he heard a weird noise from the only stall (no feet visible) as if the toilet paper reel were being violently unrolled, and he thought it was either a vagrant or a giant rat, so he left quickly. The waitress seemed disappointed when we declined dessert. You may wonder why we didn't leave or at least send our meals back to the kitchen. As for the latter, what would have been the point? Everything there was icky. (My husband suspects the cook is deliberately trying to get fired.) And leaving didn't seem to be an option, because of the nasty weather. Where would we have gone? Well, we SHOULD have gone to the German Christmas market and bought brats, and we would have done so if we could have eaten them in a sheltered area. Or, if either of us had a "smart phone," we could have done a search and come up with a few other places. (Such as Ronny's, which I found out the next day had gotten a great review in the Trib and which we WALKED PAST several times but didn't realize it because of the horrible weather!) I might also mention that there was almost no one in Chef Petro's, which should have been a tip-off. Read some of these other reviews--as some of the previous victims have noted, it is amazing this place is still in business. But you can learn from our experience and not have to endure this. As for us, we will definitely be better prepared the next time we decide to eat Downtown.
(1)
Bill M.
Yeah, pretty bad. Agree with all the other reviewers. I work a couple of blocks from Petro's and have always been more frightened of it than I would be strolling Lower Wacker Drive at 3 a.m. Got asked by a coworker to lunch today and he suggested Petro's. I was wary, but thought, how bad can it be? The answer is worse than you can imagine. The dining room was colder than a meat locker. The waitress spilled most of my watery chicken noodle soup as she plopped it down in front of me with all the delicacy of a teamster. I ordered one of the specials, spinach pie, which the Greektown restaurants on Halsted in the West Loop can execute expertly. Petro's, not so much. The phylo dough appeared to have given up the ghost during the Eisenhower administration. The spinach was not fresh. No feta cheese in it either, which is kind of the point of a spinach pie/spanikopita. A few limp french fries came alongside. All this for $15! Opa!
(1)
Amanda Z.
Oh, Lordy, gonna have to agree with Colleen C. on this one... It was almost like hospital food...blah...poor service, even though our server was friendly enough. But seriously, diet cokes 5 minutes AFTER we'd had our food? That's just inexcusable. I had the turkey and cheese croissant...thinking that was something hard to really mess up. But it was chunks of partially gristly turkey, which grossed me out. The chicken and rice soup (or maybe it was cream of chicken) wasn't too bad. In any event, won't be returning...even though it's a stone's through from my office...too expensive for blaaahhhhh.... (Although my time with my dear friend was lovely...)
(2)
Michael F.
Yelp got it right with the star rating on this one. "Meh" is the exact right word to name this place. Personally, I'd give it 2.5 stars if I could, because there's nothing wrong with the place, but it's just not good. The service is a little chaotic when you first come it. Feels like the don't have a host and just scoop you up and plop you down wherever they have a spot. They are friendly though. The food. So far I've had the french dip and a turkey bacon club. Both meh. My father seems to like the place, but he enjoys plain food and this place is extremely close to his office. You get your food quick (which is always a plus for a lunchtime diner downtown), and the service is pretty good at refilling your water (but not your pop). Unfortunately the glasses are ridiculously small (seriously, are you guys afraid of dishing out the big bucks on tap water... this feels like im in the college dorms again) so you'll probably need alot of
(2)
Daryl E.
The friendliest, most expedient service wasted on mediocre, lackluster food. I had, hands-down, the most unenjoyable, forgettable, regrettable French dip in my history of French dipping here. Essentially, this was a heap of dried out shaved roast on an equally dry bun. The au jus was oily and bereft of any hint of flavor. This sandwich was like eating a paper bag. None of the other five at my table reported anything special about their food, either. The fries were ok and, like I said, the service was really good, so dual stars. Bonus: most bizarre restroom location ever. When you're searching for it, think Spinal Tap in Cleveland. "Rock and roll!"
(2)
betsy b.
Gross....yea it's a diner and I didn't expect much but it was pretty nasty. Not only that but it was a sauna in there. Not sure how you can mess up grilled chicken but it was pretty blah. The server wasn't the friendliest either. I won't be coming back here ever.
(1)
John R.
holy crap - this lunch was so bad. I had to do a quick business lunch on a Saturday and I didn't see anything else open, so we went here. The food was embarrassing. How is this place still open?
(1)
Ben B.
Greasy food, my friend's patty melt was not quite cooked (to the point the waitress mentioned it but didn't take it off the check), and a mildly insulting wait staff. If I tried to create a bad restaurant, I could do worse (take a pause - does that mean I could make a worse restaurant, or not?).
(1)
Nastassia J.
Ugh. So awful. Got the french dip. Meat tasted a little off and the Au jus was nothing special. Couple with us ordered salads and they both got food poisioning. Terrible, would never, ever, ever go back.
(1)
Rebecca C.
I remember Petro's as a premier greasy spoon as recent as 6-7 months ago. The place was so old, it cried for a face-lift. Well, Petro's got its wish. Gone is the grime, gone are the faded fabrics and the crummy accouterments. Gone are the ugly pieces that are not vintage. Hello to home cooking in a comfy, clean atmosphere that looks current and not from yesteryear. Hello to friendly waitstaff and tempting, tasty options. Order chicken and your plate arrives with 4-5 huge pieces of succulent, moist chicken and bountiful sides. There's enough to be stuffed for your visit and take home and feed a family of 2-3 for dinner. Whether you like your chicken broiled or fried, the 1/2 of chicken on your plate is going to be one of the better chicken meals you've had anywhere, especially for the price.
(4)
Chet M.
Want fried chicken for breakfast, like at 8:00AM? They'll do it for you. Just ask Alicia. I'd bet this is the only place in the city where you can get 4 pieces of fresh fried chicken cooked to order early in the morning!
(4)
Ikaika C.
Went to Petro's today with my best friend Dan. Place was as top as it gets. Top food, top waitress. Should rename restaurant to 'Top Restaurant & Bakery' 100% Had the corn beef skillet and it was dynamite. Highly recommended.
(5)
Paige N.
Not very impressed :-( I was super excited to go and try Petro's out with my best friend but was really disappointed. I had the cream of chicken and rice soup and a slice of their apple pie. The soup was really sour and did not taste right, and the apple pie was nothing exciting to go back for. The service was pretty good but very rushing which I did not like. Don't think I will be returning.
(1)
Gregory C.
Ok, so I went back recently - they were closed for about one week for remodeling. The venue is up to date now. Petro's doesn't look so bad now. In fact, I believe the prices are fair now too. I'm not sure if they gave the entire face lift. But I wasn't so upset the experience this time!
I eat breakfast here often and it's a very solid diner sort of place. Breakfast and sandwiches are usually pretty good, service is always efficient and friendly. You wouldn't go here for great dining. If it can come out of a can or jar - it does. But, good "greasy spoon" diner sort of food, well located, with a friendly staff.
(3)
Cesar M.
Best breackfast I had in years. The staff was super friendly and the place was not that busy. Great place to go.
(5)
Darcy W.
I have been here twice... Once for coffee and today lunch (not my choice). I'm giving 2 stars because the waitress was hysterical! I asked her if the ham and cheese croissant sandwich was good, and her response was...it's terrible. You gotta love honesty! My advice is if it's convenient for a quick coke it's fine, but otherwise just keep walking! Oh don't use the bathroom... It's in the basement and scary!
(2)
Theresa C.
The food is typical greasy food fare. I had a gyros sandwich which was just okay, along with some soup. My mom had the same thing and my friend had a burger. I don't think anyone was wowed by what they had. Like I said the prices are a little high for just so-so food. You are really paying for location and convenience if you want to grab something before a show.
(2)
K R.
I have been here for breakfast and brunch during work related meetings. The diner is a nice, cool spot. The staff is friendly and attentive. the prices are reasonable. No real complaints, i get the basics off of the menu. toast, bacon, and tea
(4)
Rene G.
An over priced diner in the middle of downtown. food is basic nothing fancy, but a change from your fast food. creepy bathroom in the basement.
(3)
Kate S.
I came here yesterday with 3 of my friends for brunch before attempting to win $25 Wicked tickets (which we unfortunately did not). We were looking for Bonjour, but couldn't find it, and nothing else was open at 10am on a Saturday (apparently brunch in Chicago starts at 11?) This place is huge (and mostly empty), and the view from our table was great...looking right at the theater. However, that's about the only good thing about this place. Well, and the waitress was really nice, and she brought my friend 2 cookies because it was his birthday. When I talked to him later that night he said they were not good. The guys all ordered omelets (and one ordered a pita sandwich thing), and they looked okay. The servings were pretty large, but I think they all paid $11 or $12 for their food. I ordered a side order of $3.50 hashbrowns (as I had already eaten breakfast earlier), and they were barely warm enough and decent but not great - I've definitely had better at several places. I tend to judge a brunch place by it's hashbrowns...this place doesn't pass. Also, my stomach was a little iffy while I was eating it, but I finished it anyway, taking my time. The last bite tasted like it was burned (much to "crispy" for hashbrowns), and I couldn't wait to get to Walgreens to buy some gum or mints to help calm my stomach pains. Also, the bathrooms. What the hell. They were clean, which I was not expecting, but good luck getting to them. For a place this large, you would think they would have bathrooms on the same floor as the restaurant, but no. You have to walk around this big counter, past a Coke machine, through a door that looks like a fire exit, down a flight and a half of stairs (that are made out of that metal they used to have on playgrounds back in the day before they became all safety conscious), and then out a door and through these concrete hallways, past a boiler room or something. Make sure you follow the signs, because if you make a wrong turn you'll be in a "restricted access" area. Once I found the bathroom, I was surprised it wasn't nasty and gross, so that was nice. But seriously, I kinda thought I'd be kidnapped or something trying to find it.
(1)
A N.
Great option for lunch in the Loop. I meet friends here for lunch on a regular basis. The wait staff is incredible- they're all really friendly, fast, and get everything right. Huge selection and everything I've had is good. It's greasy spoon diner food, so don't expect to be blown away, but the prices are reasonable for downtown. It's very homey and old school, with an old Greek man meeting you at the door and decor that probably hasn't been updated in a few decades. I wouldn't come here for a nice dinner, but for a work lunch option it's great- fast, affordable, friendly, comfortable and convenient.
(4)
Nicole P.
Awful, awful, awful! Stopped here for a quick dinner before going to the theater. Wish we had more time to go to a nicer restaurant. One waitress for 20 occupied tables. A BLT sandwich where only the tomato was edible. The bacon must have been left over from yesterday's breakfast. I can't even describe what I presume should have been mayo. Split pea soup tastes better out of an expired can of Campbell's. I don't think I've ever had a worse dining experience. Do yourself a favor and stay away!
(1)
Derrick T.
Since there were six of us looking for a place to chowdown with no reservations, we ended up checking out Petro's since it was close and looked like a fair amount of customers go in on a regular basis. This is your standard family owned Greek Diner kind of place. Fun owners, uber friendly waitress who was non-stop entertaining and all about the customer, serving up greasy spoon kinda food. Had a cheeseburger with fries and split pea soup. Nothing phenomenal, nothing bad. At about $13 after tax/tip, it was a simple meal and did the trick. Unfortunately for the price, you can get much higher quality meals elsewhere. Verdict: Need something quick? The food's acceptable. It's diner food done OK,. Waitress was energetic, entertaining, and very accommodating, even if the food is nothing to write home about. Unlikely to go back.
(2)
Kate M.
Yuck. Ew. Gross. The food is bad. It's not just not good, its actually bad. Bad french fries? That's hardly possible, but it's true. The service is bad. The server wasn't very attentive, I almost felt like we were bothering her. I asked if there was any dairy in a dish I was considering because I can't eat dairy. She looked at me like I was an idiot and said "Well yeah! It's gotta be cooked in butter". No, no it doesn't "gotta". Then I ordered a Reuben sandwich and she said "The bread has flour in it, are you allergic to flour?!" Uh, no, are you? On the way out we were still hungry and we're in the Loop at 8 pm. This is not a good situation. I grabbed a bag of two house made cookies on our way out, I thought "Cookies have to be good". I was wrong. They don't have to be. I choked down half a cookie before tossing them in the trash. I did get Dots at the theater and they were remarkably better than my Petro's dinner.
(1)
Allen B.
"Club Petro's" is what I would rename this restaurant too. I have been here for breakfast more than 7 times and almost each time I've heard dirty house music (electronic house) played in the background. Haha...classic. Now I like my house music & beats, however, at 7:30am on a Tuesday morning it doesn't really play along well with my bacon, eggs & hashbrowns. But since I'll ignore the music and concentrate on the rating the food. The breakfast is of average fare. Simplistic delicious egg, bacon, sausage, pancakes, and hasbrown combinations - well there's really not much to be said (remember this is just breakfast). Dinner and lunch I'm sure is a different story. What I can say about the place is that their service is friendly, quick and reasonably priced. Numerous mornings at Petro's have given me fuel to get through the day. So don't knock Club Petro's, just go with it and dance to their house music.
(3)
Scott R.
My credit card receipt says "Chef Petros Restaurant"; I find it hard to believe there is any Chef involved in this place. I eat breakfast or lunch almost very day in the loop, so in the past year I've had both a breakfast and a lunch here. For breakfast I had strawberry pancakes. The strawberries looked like they were some kind of artifical product and tasted worse-bitter. The pancakes by themselves were actually salty. For lunch I had a fish sandwich. It was one of those frozen things and completely tasteless. This place undoubtedly has the worst food in the loop.
(1)
Mary U.
This was literally the worst restaurant I've ever been to. I tried to give it 0 stars but yelp made me choose at least 1 We walked in and were seated at a booth. The backrest was broken so I ended up having to sit same-side as my friend because the man behind me was moving so much. Both the menu and waitress neglected to inform us that soft drinks came with only ONE refill (seriously? What does it cost to fill a glass from the soda fountain? 10 cents?), not to mention the glasses held about 5oz of liquid... Without ice. The food was mediocre at best and the waitress was a jerk when my friend asked if there was any way she could get a smaller sized portion instead of the regular size. I had a hot turkey sandwich with mashed potatoes and gravy, something I found equivalent to the hot lunches in my elementary school cafeteria. My friend had a grilled cheese sandwich. A $12 grilled cheese sandwich. When we got up to pay the cashier informed my friend that she liked her shoes, and then, after taking a long look at my new Ann Taylor heeled ankle boots, disdainfully informed me that she's "not a fan of boots." Worst service, quality and hospitality ever. Don't go.
(1)
Andre W.
I have worked nearby this diner for many years and always wondered what the food was like. A former co-worker thought it would be a good idea to meet for lunch. Real old school joint with a nice menu. I had the grilled cheese with fries which was ok. Service was cool....I might go back sometime soon
(3)
JJ F.
Wow, stopped in for a quick lunch....horrible food! Low quality, tasteless. Go elsewhere!
(1)
Gordon F.
Good service. Food? Not so much. Probably the worst chicken Caesar I've ever had.
(1)
Wesley T.
this place looks like it's been here forever. it looks like it has tons of "old school charm". however, it's really just mediocre and has probably only stayed in business because it's right next to the theatre. The people at the table next to us looked like suburbanites and I overheard them mention that they were "here for the show" so I'm going to assume that's this business' target audience. if you have the chance, go elsewhere. you aren't missing anything here.
(2)
Colleen C.
Location, location, location. No one would step foot in this joint were it not situated in the barren wasteland (food-wise) of the Loop. Wanting to try something "local" we opted out of Corner Bakery and into Petro's. If the mauve (yes, very mauve) leather booths and nursing home-esque decor doesn't squelch your appetite, the menu will. Just pretty blah food at high Loopy prices. I had the Petro's salad, which consisted of chicken on yellow lettuce. Yum. Not. $10!? For real, I could buy that shiz at Jewel for a grand total of about 87 cents. Our diet cokes arrived halfway through our meal, and even in the finest of establishments if I have to wait 20 minutes for DC, there will be issues. Luckily, my good friend was with me, and we had a good laugh about the whole thing. Honestly, I think I'd have been better off at Corporate Bakery.
(2)
Sabrina M.
All I can say is that if you have no other dining options or all your other choices are too crowded or closed, then come to Petro's. It is old-school diner food but not in that "hidden gem" kind of way. The coffee is weak, the soup is tepid, and your food is either going to be undercooked, overcooked or oversalted. And at about 2 p.m. your GI system is going to let you know it's really mad at you. It's a no-brainer choice if none of your other options are available, but Petro's is not a destination spot.
(2)
Rob U.
If you never set foot in here, consider yourself blessed. As soon as I walked through the revolving door I knew something was wrong because I saw nothing but empty booths. My father and I stopped by after an event near city hall. This was convenient, and I had fulfilled my need for Qdoba just 2 days earlier. Our waitress was an elderly woman who at first seemed sweet, but turned sour when we reminded her our cokes were MIA. Luckily for her, the location-appropriate prices kept her tip out of the gutter. For claiming to be a bakery, their dinner rolls seemed more fit for hockey pucks over at the UC. Chicken noodle soup was edible, and came alongside my Dad's salad. He ponied up the extra buck for bleu cheese dressing, which came out looking more like mayo with some colored chunks in it. I took fellow yelper Fat Girl's suggestion for the gyro because well, I didn't see anything else on the menu that sounded appeasing. It was crunchy as was the pita, which could have passed for a week old. The only thing that came as expected was the gyro style bad breath. For the $10.75 that went to my gyro, I probably could have taken a quick cab to greektown and gotten a gyro at any one of the great places there. Needless to say, I won't be visiting again. Had I yelped before passing through that revolving door I would've known better in the first place!
(1)
Marsha C.
One of the few places open on Black Friday @ 10 AM after a 5 hour shopping spree! That being the case, should have known it wouldn't fare well when there were only 2 other tables occupied. We were obviously a bother to the waitress who couldn't have been more rude or inattentive. We had a question about the bill and that really set her and the "hostess" off. "Had we have explained the question better the answer would have been simple". $2.25 for a side of white toast. Not even average Greek diner food. See it - pass it by.
(1)
Nick B.
Wow, other Yelpers weren't kidding when they said this place was not good. I work across the street, and this morning was the first time i ate at petros. i ordered a ham/cheese omelette and hash browns to try and play it safe. Not good. You know that nasty feeling like you are chewing on a knot? I experienced that three or four times while eating my omelette. I had to drench everything in hot sauce to give the food a little flavor. The hash browns were fine, and the coffee was fine. I'm 20 minutes out of that place, and my stomach is feeling a little queasy. Yep, a lot queasy. Oh, consistent with at least one other review, i think they snuck an extra dollar onto my bill. The omelette was listed at 6.95, and coffee was .85, so that should be 7.80 plus tax (which they listed as .95). By my calculations, that is $8.75. For some reason she wrote my total as $9.75. I didn't really care to bring it up so i just paid it. I'm not going back to Petros. Too bad, because i work right across the street. I should have listened to the Yelps and not went.
(2)
Ed R.
how is this place still in business? once i figure this conundrum out, i'll then try to solve the mystery of how Oscar Mayer gets that perfect sliver of cheese into each and every scrumptious hot dog. but more pressing matters first, who would honestly step foot into Petro's more than once? someone who enjoys bland, overpriced, straight out of the freezer and onto your plate diner food? some poor disillusioned sap who despises himself so much that they would subject their body to such culinary horrors? buck up people, life isn't THAT bad if you're willingly paying $10 for a gorton's fish plank masquerading as a whitefish sandwich. the only "saving" grace of this place is that it's rather spacious and can accomodate a large party at a minute's notice, even at the peak of lunch hour. i'll let you fellow yelpers interpret the sincerity of such a statement. instead of turning right at the corner of la salle and lake, please join me in my death march across the street, into the decaying bowels of the thompson center. once you get down the escalator, close your eyes and point in any direction to find a better option to fill your doughy paunch.
(1)
Mary Beth E.
My gay BFF and I both work downtown. The other night, we got tickets to go see Billy Elliot. As we were patiently waiting around after work for the doors of the Oriental Theater to open we came across Petro's. Since we had time to kill and large stomachs to fill, we decided to pop in and get a bit to eat. The place was empty, we got seated right away and our waitress came right over. This place is your typical greasy spoon. Menu had plenty of options and was resonably priced, considering where we were. The food came out quick and piping hot. My bacon cheese burger was perfectly yummy. I only gave it three stars because it's just another greasy spoon. Food is good but nothing remarkably special about it. I'm not saying that I wouldn't go there again, because I probably will. :-) (Billy Elliot was a freaking AWESOME show, by the way)
(3)
Jill M.
Hello. Fat Girl here. I'm surprised this greasy little diner didn't get as many good reviews. Petro's was recommended to me by my co-worker (who is a regular). She always has good food, so I decided to give Petro's a try! I ordered the gyros for takeout. I called on my way out to go pick it up, and by the time I got there, it was ready! I only spent just over $8. And that includes a cup of soup, the gyros on a pita, a large cucumber sauce, and fries. I was impressed with the gyros. It was sooooooo good! I loved that some pieces of meat were nicely charred. On top of that, it was HUGE! Huge enough to satisfy this fat girl's appetite. It came with your typical greasy diner fries that would put fast food restaurant fries to shame. Maybe you will have a better experience with take-out than dining in! Fat girl feels like she just gained another pound...
(5)
Matt P.
The food's okay, I mean it's a diner, what do you expect. Not only that the server double timed our order cause we were seeing Lion King across the street (at Cadillac Palace), and that's where they get you .. 1 club sandwich 1 bowl soup 1 coke (refill?) 1 hot turkey sandwich for a total of $30 ... so with tip, it almost came to $40. Which leads me to believe that: a. we got the wrong bill b. refills weren't free (of which, I had one) and that we could have have gone someplace infinitely better for the price we paid.
(2)
Mike W.
Having just moved from Detroit, I'm used to driving up and down the main streets and seeing a handful of these dumpy Greek inspired restaurants every couple miles. I never thought a place like that would exist in the almighty food mecca that is downtown Chicago. Insert Petro's Restaurant and Bakery. I liked the "home-y" feel I had while dining in Petro's. I was brought back to the days where everything I ate was deep fried, the portions were large enough to turn any thin man obese, and taste wasn't important because in the crappy diner world quantity reigns supreme over quality. Needless to say, I've lived in the city for almost 2 months now and even the crappiest of crap restaurants blow this place out of the water. Unless you're on the verge of hypothermia (or heat stroke in the summer), pass on this place and a walk few more minutes to something else. It should be quite easy to find a place that doesn't cover 40% of their food with mysterious brown "gravy".
(2)
joseph r.
It's pretty bad, which is sad because the location is key. One thing that scared me, I asked for ketchup, they brought me a Heinz bottle and the ketchup was very brown looking, almost like a bbq sauce color. Anyway, waitress's are nice, but the food would be considered average to bad. Skip this place.
(1)
Jordan M.
I work just around the corner from this place and would suggest it to anyone. It has good food with quick service. All day breakfast and a rather larger lunch selection.
(3)
Dan D.
Petro's Restauranta and Bakery is the type of place where you come looking for a lot of food at a pretty good price. Typical family restarant and clearly Greek-owned. In downtown, it is quite hard to find a family-restaurant like in the northside. Thus, Petro's is a nice place if ya need that food right then and there. BUT.... if you are in the downtown area, I must say, you better have a good reason NOT to eat at another one of the amazing unique restaurants around downtown and across the river. Petro's is good and solid food. Just not unique. This place has good value, good food. Closes really early like many places in the area (~7pm).
(3)
Maurilio G.
My boss insisted we try this diner she saw for our holiday lunch this year. So we go and it looks like a decent place. We sit down and I get a napkin that has some weird orange smear on it. I think nothing of it and use it anyway. Next, I get my plate for bread and sure enough, there's some weird brown stuff all over it along with condensed water from the washer. Again, I say whatever, still use it. Along comes my food (Bacon Cheeseburger) and its good, no problems there. Pretty standard burger with bland fries that are too thick and have no salt. As everyone finishes up their meals I start to finish my coke and something pops into my mouth. I really start to hope that it's just a piece of ice that made it through the straw, but unfortunately for me it doesn't start melting. I spit it out into my napkin and its this weird green/black clump of what looks to be old spinach. That was from only taking a quick glance at it because I was afraid to investigate too much. I then look at the bottom of my glass and floating all along the bottom is a bigger clump of the weird mystery substance. It was disgusting. I shouldn't have investigated any further but my curiosity got the best of me. To top off the experience, the waitress overcharged us by $10.
(1)
Jen J.
One word: Disgusting. We walked past this place and it was packed during lunchtime! Then we came back around 3pm. We should have known right away what kind of restaurant this was when our server came out to take our order with food on her face and in her mouth. Anyhow, our kids ordered cheeseburgers while my husband and I were still deciding. The server went back to place the order and then came back to inform me they didn't have hamburger buns left. None. It was FRIDAY. Sooo....the kids ordered a hotdog and chicken fingers. I tasted both, they were, meh. I ordered the mostaccoli and my husband ordered the gyros. She brought out rolls to go with his soup and my salad. They were dried-out and hard. I asked if they had fresh ones in the back, she said no since they just had a really busy lunch. Then informed me that it was French bread, which is supposed to be hard. Ummm....yes, CRUSTY on the outside, soft on the inside. That bread had neither of those attributes. When our food came out the minute she placed my mostaccoli in front of me I knew right away I didn't like the smell of the sauce. So I figured I'd cover it with the parmesan cheese. Then I smelled something rotten. I leaned forward to smell the parmesan cheese and nearly vomited. I asked the server to remove my mostaccoli because I found it disgusting and then tried to tell her the cheese was spoiled. She told me it wasn't. That "he" (I assume the cook/owner) orders it that way. My husband choked down the dried out gyro and gave me a little to supplement the saltines I was eating. We are not terribly picky eaters, nor were we rude to this server, as it's not her fault her employer has disgusting food. Never the less, we won't be going back--ever. I would have given this negative stars if I could. The. worst. restaurant.
(1)
Nerkles F.
Awful. Bad food and unclean. Sick waitress coughed on her hand and then touched my plate. Clean up is done with dirty old rags. Stay away. I'm sure they'd be out of business if not for having such a great location and plenty of unsuspecting tourists. Also: blaring TV always on with horrible dreck playing. You can't read or converse.
(1)
Erik G.
Oh, where to start. Hands down the best chocolate-frosted donuts in the Central Area. Thus the second star. Beyond that, this place really does suck completely. To be fair, I KNEW better than to order the fried perch with a side of macaroni and cheese. I also knew better than to order the clam chowder. I mean I really must be stupid having just returned from an east coast excursion. I blame the hangover. The clam chowder had no hint or essence of clam or chowder. It was clearly cream of chicken with diced potatoes and no chicken much less clams. It is so obviously not clam chowder that I cannot believe that they are able to serve it with a straight face. That said. It was not the worst cream of chicken without chicken plus potato soup that I have ever had. It could double as wallpaper paste if you pureed it first and applied it with the proper brush. I wanted to pour it into a container for further study but thought better of it. On to the entree. The undoubtedly frozen perch (Of course!) had been encased in a Kevlar-like substance. The substance goes way beyond coating and way beyond batter. I think that it may have been applied at the factory in multiple coats with a Wagner to achieve the uniform 1/4" thickness. The perch's flavor was very fishy and the texture was very mushy. Just completely terrible. I never leave food on my plate. This stuff was 90% intact when I walked away. The macaroni and 'sauce' was as gelatinous as it could possibly be before reaching a truly runny state. The pasta itself had been cooked within an inch of becoming one with the water and the 'cheese' for which the dish is named was non-existent save for the small glob of unidentified orange plopped on top. I agree with other reviewers regarding Petro's being the worst of the 'greek diner' genre AND it surviving solely on the lazy nature of the government worker. This place is definitely 'good enough for government work(er)'. A very sad statement indeed. If you find yourself stuck here because you are too lazy or because you need some place that is 'middle of the road' acceptable to all of your dining companions, be sure to stick to the tried and true: burger/patty melt, club, spinach pie, omelet, etc. Otherwise, avoid it altogether save for a chocolate-frosted donut for yourself and that special 'lady friend' you have back in the office.
Takes Reservations : No Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Breakfast Bike Parking : Yes Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Noise Level : Quiet Alcohol : No Outdoor Seating : No Has TV : No Waiter Service : Yes Caters : No
Greek food is a fine melody of the finest pressed olive oil, fresh fermented bread, colorful vegetables, juicy meat, sea food all cooked in spices and fresh rosemary. The people from Greek were great scholars who aimed to excel in everything they do. The results are quite visible in their food as they are the inventors of olive oil which is beneficial to health. Greeks also made different type of wines from the best quality of grapes fermented in controlled environment.
Today, you can find hundreds of restaurants offering authentic Greek food or popularly termed as Mediterranean cuisine in New York city alone. People wait in line to taste the exotic Greek dishes like saganaki, taramasalata, souvlaki, loukoumades, spanakopita, moussaka, and many more. One thing which most people like about these authentic Greek dishes is abundant use of lemon juice, olive oil, fresh rosemary and sea salt. A smart mix of few ingredients can virtually take you on the pebble streets of beautiful city of Greece.
For those who don't have time to enjoy fine dining should try tasting the famous souvlaki with pita which is type of meat dish, also a trademark Greek fast food. For those who are vegetarian, or vegan can try different versions of Greek Salad. So, if you wish to enjoy a hearty yet healthy meal that tastes divine then try dining at the best Greek restaurant in your city. Greek cuisine not only tastes good but also help maintain your body in a natural way through healthy diet.
Dane K.
To me it's a bit on the scary outdated side, but this diner really packs people in ... This is where we used to go at my old job when we didn't want to debate over where else to go. They have all the Chicago diner staples (Francheezie anyone??). I like the olive burger, though it's really not that great. ;) The steak fries are good. The waitresses are a bit on the rough side at times...
(3)Ryan A.
Good, old fashioned family restaurant w/ great greasy spoon grub and affordable menu items. Ideal location for meeting someone for coffee because of the comfy booths and table layout where you find yourself not right on top of your neighbor.
(3)Nicholas H.
Good place to eat, when you don't feel like having any of the chain flair.
(3)Bridget B.
Food is very bland, poor quality. Service was friendly and quick though. It's in a good location but there are about 1000 other places within a two block radius that are better.
(2)A.S. V.
This is a pretty standard diner type restaurant, pretty similar to a couple others nearby. Breakfast and lunch is pretty average tasting, but satisfying when you're craving that type of comfort food.
(3)Dusty K.
Unfortunately I work in the area and it's one of the only diner type options to visit. So I get dragged here against my will when co-workers are looking for a sit-down location. I really don't seem to like anything on the menu. I've tried quite a few things from the burger, to an omelete to a variety of sandwiches. I finally found something I find edible in the grilled cheese. Service is quick but not in a good way. Food is bland and greasy and there's really not much good to say about this place. The only reason I eat here is proximity. Save your money for somewhere else to eat in the loop.
(1)Damian C.
Petro's reminded me of a little neighborhood diner you would find in just about any other neighborhood. The food was pretty good (I mean, how can you go wrong with steak fries - they are freaking sweet!), but I think Taco Fresco would have been the better option (I begged my friends to go but NO, they wouldn't listen). I don't know if I will become a repeat customer. Not gonna lie, a little pricier than I was expecting.
(3)Anpan W.
My friend called it a Greek restaurant. Everything was very bland. I had the soup, spinach pie, and french fries. My friend got a Greek omelette. Two stars for the food. But service was good. And the ambience was linger at your business lunch. Not an impress your date style place, but might be a good place to take your uncle.
(2)Michael M.
extensive menu and pretty much your standard greek diner. excellent waitstaff.
(3)Val B.
I am vastly jealous of Daryl E. who had friendly service but bad food here. My service was the worst I've ever received in my life -- and I've been to a restaurant or two. It was Election night and I was about to see a show across the street at the Cadillac Theater. It was a last-minute thing so we didn't have any reservations, and things were closing early in the loop anyway because of the rally. We tried Petterino's first, but they were booked, so we settled for Petro's which looked like a regular family-style place. Immediately we were (not) greeted by the server who started out as seeming somewhat stressed with her now two tables of three people each. When the people in my group ordered, she wouldn't acknowledge us. No, "Ok," or "Sure thing," nothing like that. Just moved on and acted all put off by us being there...a restaurant...to eat food. Slowing more and more people piled in the place and she just got more and more insane (she wasn't the only server, but yes, there weren't enough, that was clear). About 30 seconds after ordering, I flagged her down and asked her if the cook could please not toast my bun. SHE ROLLED HER EYES AT ME!!!!!! and just walked away. WHAAAAAAT???? Anyway, this stuff kept happening and each time the people in my group looked at one another in complete awe. The food was downright bad, too. I had a gross, overcooked burger on the most stale bun ever with forgettable french fries. The hot chocolate tasted like gasoline and we couldn't drink it. In the end, we had a bill for $53 for three people after not even being able to eat our nasty food. Never ever going back ever. (PS, this would have been a 1-star, but the place was actually clean, so I bumped it up.)
(2)Ryan D.
I too found myself at Petro's today because it's close to work and my co-worker likes their omlettes. In a word....NASTY. I had the New Orleans Salad. Not only was it completely watery, but the salad was actually going bad, as it had red on the edges. The boiled egg tasted like it had been refrigerated for a over a week. The shrimp didn't even have a taste. And I understand that it's a Loop place, but $10 for this pile of sh*t was ridiculous. My stomach hurts now and it's honestly a crap shoot as to what part of the salad is causing it. Also...my co-worker noticed that the prices are cheaper for carry-out and the waitress claimed it costs more because of the dish washing required for eating-in. Ooooookay...and why is the cheese an extra buck on the omlette when you eat in as opposed to carry-out? The service blowed and we gave the waitress $1 between the two of us since she seemed so annoyed that part of her job was to actually answer questions about the menu.
(1)Y V.
I've been to this Greek-American diner a few times for lunch and thought the food was ok. Most of the lunch spots in this area close around 3pm (and some earlier than that), so it's always nice to find a place like this where you can sit down and grab a bite to eat. The menu is standard diner fare, with breakfast, lunch, and dinner options. I've always gotten something simple, like a grilled cheese & fries or an omelet. I've always liked getting breakfast for lunch :) It's a little pricier than other diners, but considering it's located in the Loop near a few theaters, I'm not surprised. The food is nothing outstanding, but it's a nice place to sit down in the midst of downtown chaos.
(3)Mike G.
I've only been here once, and that was for a quick breakfast. I let the waitress know that I was looking for something quick and tasty, she said "we have the best cook in the area; you can order anything on the menu except steak and it will be fast". So, I kept the order simple; two eggs over medium, hash browns, english muffins; coffee. The order arrived within about 5-7 minutes, hot off the grill. The eggs were done perfectly, the hash browns were thick-cut and crispy on the outside, just the way I like them, and the coffee was very good. The only thing I didn't like was the english muffins; they were hard and chewy. All in all, a quick tasty breakfast and the price was just a little higher than you would expect for something that simple, but perhaps that has to do with the location. The waitress was friendly, quick, and very attentive. The big Greek at the cash register was not very friendly though.....
(3)Mary C.
Not only is the food bad, but so is the service. I went later in the lunch hour so had my pick of seats, but was seated in the single booth. When I asked to sit near a window, the host gruffly gave in and sat me in a double booth where there were still plenty of open seats. The wait staff is also gruff and don't want to take the time to answer any of your questions, because they are too busy in their mind.
(1)Suzy C.
I wouldn't eat anything here except their omelets. Despite that it gets a high rating cause their vegetarian omelet with egg beaters is DELICIOUS. It's huge, fluffy, and full of veggies. Also their hash browns are quite awesome with its crispness on the outside. Great portions too. I also give it a high rating cause it's around the corner from work and i love that i can have breakfast whenever I want it. Reliability is important so I feel the need to be generous here.
(4)Carrie S.
Petro's is probably the weakest entry in the Greek diner tradition of Chicago. It caters to the government officials, theatergoers, and other professionals in the area who frequent the place and work nearby. They have a large menu of diner staples with everything from breakfast to steak. I've had their BLT and grilled cheese. Both were average and just okay. Their salads almost seem like prepackaged stuff. Nothing special. The service can be spotty at times ranging from decent to just downright miserable. If you go, remember to go before the lunch rush to grab a booth. Your food will be served up fast, just not great.
(2)Jason S.
I have eaten here several times for lunch due to convenience and the need for comfort food. The menu has anything you can imagine but it all tastes kinda of the same (I think they are in cahoots with taco bell). I love the tuna melt on wheat and their crispy fries and will go here anything I am in the mood to be stuffed after lunch. Prices are 10-12 per lunch with a soda. It is fairly easy to get in and out of this Greek like diner.
(2)George K.
Little upscale restaurant than Denny's. You will see people eating breakfast for lunch and lunch for breakfast and dessert display case soon as you walk in : ) I have been here few times but never for breakfast. Just about anything you order, it's going to be a huge meal, plus they will give you a bread basket with tasty butter. Waitresses are always sharing secret ways to order so you can save some money.
(3)Kate S.
This place is not so great. We sat down in an empty restaurant and it took like 20 minutes just to get a menu. Your basic diner food, nothing special. The waitress also insisted on calling is "sweetness" and "honey" -- but not in a sweet way, more in an annoying way. The prices are also very high; it was $30 with tip for a burger, sandwich and sodas!!
(1)Benjamin L.
Came here for lunch once, not good. It started off bad when we walked in and the "hostess" vaguely pointed us at a specific table way at the other end of the restaurant saying "go sit there". There were at least a dozen tables down there, and three waitresses in the area so we were unsure where to sit without screwing a waitress out of her rotation. The lunch menu was okay in its selection, but when the food actually arrived it was very underwhelming in presentation (crudely slapped onto the plate), quantity (portion was small), and quality (my fish was poorly cooked). You sort of know what you are getting when you go to a Greek diner like this, but I've been to dozens of Greek diners that are vastly superior. Do yourself a favor and get lunch elsewhere.
(1)Chrystal S.
My husband and I stopped here for a quick lunch. We left and went to the water tower. This place was filthy. We ordered sprite and donuts because we do not like to be rude and just walk out. The donuts are pre packaged crap. I have had better from Walmart. Better yet the seven eleven down the street. Now let me tell you the donuts alone are $2.25 a piece not even worth the price! At first we thought that they were homemade except they forgot to unwrap my donut from the original package on the other hand they tried to make my husbands donut look like they made it. My husband and I didn't even want to finish them.
(1)richard c.
Well I guess it is all in the customer's attitude. I loved the place the big Greek at the register was a little gruff until I made him smile. I loved the Chicago attitude. We loved the breakfast and just ate there about 4 times during a weeks stay. The eggs were cooked just right the toast was hot and the butter was cold. The older waitress has been there for 32 years and was quite friendly, yes she was a little slow but the coffee was hot and a lot better than that Crap that Starbucks puts out. The French toast was good and the pancakes were cooked to perfection. Could not beat the price and the speed of the order. If yoo want a pricey crappy meal go somewhere else. Loved the humor of the huge Pens to sign your bill, Big Greek was a hoot.
(3)Mary E.
This place is APPALLINGLY BAD. Do not eat here. It will scar you for life. I would give Chef Petro's negative stars, if such a thing were possible. Too bad yelp doesn't have a rating for, "Worst food in the Western Hemisphere," or, "Donner Party would refuse this food!" My husband and I ate here last week. We both agreed that these were the worst meals we had ever had in our lives. We had gone Downtown to see a play, and we planned on having a nice dinner before the show. I spaced out and failed to make reservations at our first choice, which was packed. No problem: I figured we would have a number of options. As a native Chicagoan who used to work in the Loop (not some rube from the far western 'burbs) I should have known better--Christmas season, lots of sold-out shows. We had no luck at choices #2 or 3. At any rate, the light drizzle that was falling when we left our house had turned into a freezing downpour, fueled by icy winds so that the rain was flying horizontally into our faces and we had to dart from doorway to doorway. We could barely see our shoes, let alone get our bearings and systematically seek out a restaurant. But then, shining like a beacon, right across from the Cadillac Palace, was Chef Petro's. "There!" I yelled above the howling wind. "We'll eat THERE!" It looked so warm and bright, and if there is one thing you can rely on in Chicago, it's that Greek -owned family restaurants serve reasonably-priced, tasty meals. Well. Apparently Chef Petro didn't get THAT memo, because the prices were about $5 higher for comparable items at our local Greek joints. Still, you figure the higher Downtown rents would justify bumping up the cost by a fin. So we ordered--my husband got the chicken Parmesan and I splurged and got a rib eye steak. Unfortunately, the meat in both dishes was way over-cooked, although at least we knew that killed any pathogens we may have ingested. My steak was a shapeless lump of gristle, which I had to carefully dissect in order to get two bites of actual beef. Disturbingly, we had a perfect view of the theater marquee announcing the play we were about to see: WarHorse. I couldn't help but think I was possibly eating the main character. My husband's entree was served with spaghetti from a can, and the gravy on my mashed potatoes tasted exactly like his spaghetti sauce, so it was probably prepared in the same pot. And while mashed potatoes would not normally be my first choice with a rib eye, at Chef Petro's, it was the only choice besides fries. My salad was just lettuce (they were out of tomatoes), and I had asked for bleu cheese dressing. "It's an extra dollar," the waitress said, and I said okay. But the dressing was watered down--there wasn't any bleu cheese! It was the consistency of skimmed milk. Not to mention, the "bread basket" offered two stale buns, which we devoured, as they were the only semi-edible items available. In the meantime, my husband decided to seek out the men's room to see if he could dry himself off a little. The waitress directed him to the stairs and told him the bathrooms were on the lower level. He went down to the basement, which was evidently one of those common basements for the entire block, and entered a maze of corridors where a lot of doors warned "No Access!" He said he expected a subway train to come roaring by any second. Eventually he found the restroom, which he thought was empty, and began drying his hair with paper towels....but then he heard a weird noise from the only stall (no feet visible) as if the toilet paper reel were being violently unrolled, and he thought it was either a vagrant or a giant rat, so he left quickly. The waitress seemed disappointed when we declined dessert. You may wonder why we didn't leave or at least send our meals back to the kitchen. As for the latter, what would have been the point? Everything there was icky. (My husband suspects the cook is deliberately trying to get fired.) And leaving didn't seem to be an option, because of the nasty weather. Where would we have gone? Well, we SHOULD have gone to the German Christmas market and bought brats, and we would have done so if we could have eaten them in a sheltered area. Or, if either of us had a "smart phone," we could have done a search and come up with a few other places. (Such as Ronny's, which I found out the next day had gotten a great review in the Trib and which we WALKED PAST several times but didn't realize it because of the horrible weather!) I might also mention that there was almost no one in Chef Petro's, which should have been a tip-off. Read some of these other reviews--as some of the previous victims have noted, it is amazing this place is still in business. But you can learn from our experience and not have to endure this. As for us, we will definitely be better prepared the next time we decide to eat Downtown.
(1)Bill M.
Yeah, pretty bad. Agree with all the other reviewers. I work a couple of blocks from Petro's and have always been more frightened of it than I would be strolling Lower Wacker Drive at 3 a.m. Got asked by a coworker to lunch today and he suggested Petro's. I was wary, but thought, how bad can it be? The answer is worse than you can imagine. The dining room was colder than a meat locker. The waitress spilled most of my watery chicken noodle soup as she plopped it down in front of me with all the delicacy of a teamster. I ordered one of the specials, spinach pie, which the Greektown restaurants on Halsted in the West Loop can execute expertly. Petro's, not so much. The phylo dough appeared to have given up the ghost during the Eisenhower administration. The spinach was not fresh. No feta cheese in it either, which is kind of the point of a spinach pie/spanikopita. A few limp french fries came alongside. All this for $15! Opa!
(1)Amanda Z.
Oh, Lordy, gonna have to agree with Colleen C. on this one... It was almost like hospital food...blah...poor service, even though our server was friendly enough. But seriously, diet cokes 5 minutes AFTER we'd had our food? That's just inexcusable. I had the turkey and cheese croissant...thinking that was something hard to really mess up. But it was chunks of partially gristly turkey, which grossed me out. The chicken and rice soup (or maybe it was cream of chicken) wasn't too bad. In any event, won't be returning...even though it's a stone's through from my office...too expensive for blaaahhhhh.... (Although my time with my dear friend was lovely...)
(2)Michael F.
Yelp got it right with the star rating on this one. "Meh" is the exact right word to name this place. Personally, I'd give it 2.5 stars if I could, because there's nothing wrong with the place, but it's just not good. The service is a little chaotic when you first come it. Feels like the don't have a host and just scoop you up and plop you down wherever they have a spot. They are friendly though. The food. So far I've had the french dip and a turkey bacon club. Both meh. My father seems to like the place, but he enjoys plain food and this place is extremely close to his office. You get your food quick (which is always a plus for a lunchtime diner downtown), and the service is pretty good at refilling your water (but not your pop). Unfortunately the glasses are ridiculously small (seriously, are you guys afraid of dishing out the big bucks on tap water... this feels like im in the college dorms again) so you'll probably need alot of
(2)Daryl E.
The friendliest, most expedient service wasted on mediocre, lackluster food. I had, hands-down, the most unenjoyable, forgettable, regrettable French dip in my history of French dipping here. Essentially, this was a heap of dried out shaved roast on an equally dry bun. The au jus was oily and bereft of any hint of flavor. This sandwich was like eating a paper bag. None of the other five at my table reported anything special about their food, either. The fries were ok and, like I said, the service was really good, so dual stars. Bonus: most bizarre restroom location ever. When you're searching for it, think Spinal Tap in Cleveland. "Rock and roll!"
(2)betsy b.
Gross....yea it's a diner and I didn't expect much but it was pretty nasty. Not only that but it was a sauna in there. Not sure how you can mess up grilled chicken but it was pretty blah. The server wasn't the friendliest either. I won't be coming back here ever.
(1)John R.
holy crap - this lunch was so bad. I had to do a quick business lunch on a Saturday and I didn't see anything else open, so we went here. The food was embarrassing. How is this place still open?
(1)Ben B.
Greasy food, my friend's patty melt was not quite cooked (to the point the waitress mentioned it but didn't take it off the check), and a mildly insulting wait staff. If I tried to create a bad restaurant, I could do worse (take a pause - does that mean I could make a worse restaurant, or not?).
(1)Nastassia J.
Ugh. So awful. Got the french dip. Meat tasted a little off and the Au jus was nothing special. Couple with us ordered salads and they both got food poisioning. Terrible, would never, ever, ever go back.
(1)Rebecca C.
I remember Petro's as a premier greasy spoon as recent as 6-7 months ago. The place was so old, it cried for a face-lift. Well, Petro's got its wish. Gone is the grime, gone are the faded fabrics and the crummy accouterments. Gone are the ugly pieces that are not vintage. Hello to home cooking in a comfy, clean atmosphere that looks current and not from yesteryear. Hello to friendly waitstaff and tempting, tasty options. Order chicken and your plate arrives with 4-5 huge pieces of succulent, moist chicken and bountiful sides. There's enough to be stuffed for your visit and take home and feed a family of 2-3 for dinner. Whether you like your chicken broiled or fried, the 1/2 of chicken on your plate is going to be one of the better chicken meals you've had anywhere, especially for the price.
(4)Chet M.
Want fried chicken for breakfast, like at 8:00AM? They'll do it for you. Just ask Alicia. I'd bet this is the only place in the city where you can get 4 pieces of fresh fried chicken cooked to order early in the morning!
(4)Ikaika C.
Went to Petro's today with my best friend Dan. Place was as top as it gets. Top food, top waitress. Should rename restaurant to 'Top Restaurant & Bakery' 100% Had the corn beef skillet and it was dynamite. Highly recommended.
(5)Paige N.
Not very impressed :-( I was super excited to go and try Petro's out with my best friend but was really disappointed. I had the cream of chicken and rice soup and a slice of their apple pie. The soup was really sour and did not taste right, and the apple pie was nothing exciting to go back for. The service was pretty good but very rushing which I did not like. Don't think I will be returning.
(1)Gregory C.
Ok, so I went back recently - they were closed for about one week for remodeling. The venue is up to date now. Petro's doesn't look so bad now. In fact, I believe the prices are fair now too. I'm not sure if they gave the entire face lift. But I wasn't so upset the experience this time!
(4)Jaye L.
Been coming here for 4 years now, and I've not had a single bad experience. I don't know why some reviewers give 2 stars for a restaurant because of where the bathroom is located or the fact that a waitress actually gave an honest answer to a question. Ridiculous. It's a fantastic and consistent greasy spoon Greek diner. If you order a typical breakfast (eggs, bacon or ham, toast, etc), you can expect your order in under 3 minutes flat. Not even kidding. In 4 years, my order has never been wrong and never taken more than about 2-3 minutes, even when packed during lunch. Coffee never sits empty either. Granted, sometimes I'll try a special and think, eh maybe not again. But ultimately, the coffee is great, the waitresses hustle like mad to get everyone taken care of, and the owners take a real personal interest in their customers. I go about once a week, sometimes more. And yes, it's a landmark in the downtown landscape of Chicago so, like hundreds of bars, restaurants and cafés, the restroom is in the basement. But at least they HAVE a public restroom. That's more than most places downtown.
(5)Michael C.
I eat breakfast here often and it's a very solid diner sort of place. Breakfast and sandwiches are usually pretty good, service is always efficient and friendly. You wouldn't go here for great dining. If it can come out of a can or jar - it does. But, good "greasy spoon" diner sort of food, well located, with a friendly staff.
(3)Cesar M.
Best breackfast I had in years. The staff was super friendly and the place was not that busy. Great place to go.
(5)Darcy W.
I have been here twice... Once for coffee and today lunch (not my choice). I'm giving 2 stars because the waitress was hysterical! I asked her if the ham and cheese croissant sandwich was good, and her response was...it's terrible. You gotta love honesty! My advice is if it's convenient for a quick coke it's fine, but otherwise just keep walking! Oh don't use the bathroom... It's in the basement and scary!
(2)Theresa C.
The food is typical greasy food fare. I had a gyros sandwich which was just okay, along with some soup. My mom had the same thing and my friend had a burger. I don't think anyone was wowed by what they had. Like I said the prices are a little high for just so-so food. You are really paying for location and convenience if you want to grab something before a show.
(2)K R.
I have been here for breakfast and brunch during work related meetings. The diner is a nice, cool spot. The staff is friendly and attentive. the prices are reasonable. No real complaints, i get the basics off of the menu. toast, bacon, and tea
(4)Rene G.
An over priced diner in the middle of downtown. food is basic nothing fancy, but a change from your fast food. creepy bathroom in the basement.
(3)Kate S.
I came here yesterday with 3 of my friends for brunch before attempting to win $25 Wicked tickets (which we unfortunately did not). We were looking for Bonjour, but couldn't find it, and nothing else was open at 10am on a Saturday (apparently brunch in Chicago starts at 11?) This place is huge (and mostly empty), and the view from our table was great...looking right at the theater. However, that's about the only good thing about this place. Well, and the waitress was really nice, and she brought my friend 2 cookies because it was his birthday. When I talked to him later that night he said they were not good. The guys all ordered omelets (and one ordered a pita sandwich thing), and they looked okay. The servings were pretty large, but I think they all paid $11 or $12 for their food. I ordered a side order of $3.50 hashbrowns (as I had already eaten breakfast earlier), and they were barely warm enough and decent but not great - I've definitely had better at several places. I tend to judge a brunch place by it's hashbrowns...this place doesn't pass. Also, my stomach was a little iffy while I was eating it, but I finished it anyway, taking my time. The last bite tasted like it was burned (much to "crispy" for hashbrowns), and I couldn't wait to get to Walgreens to buy some gum or mints to help calm my stomach pains. Also, the bathrooms. What the hell. They were clean, which I was not expecting, but good luck getting to them. For a place this large, you would think they would have bathrooms on the same floor as the restaurant, but no. You have to walk around this big counter, past a Coke machine, through a door that looks like a fire exit, down a flight and a half of stairs (that are made out of that metal they used to have on playgrounds back in the day before they became all safety conscious), and then out a door and through these concrete hallways, past a boiler room or something. Make sure you follow the signs, because if you make a wrong turn you'll be in a "restricted access" area. Once I found the bathroom, I was surprised it wasn't nasty and gross, so that was nice. But seriously, I kinda thought I'd be kidnapped or something trying to find it.
(1)A N.
Great option for lunch in the Loop. I meet friends here for lunch on a regular basis. The wait staff is incredible- they're all really friendly, fast, and get everything right. Huge selection and everything I've had is good. It's greasy spoon diner food, so don't expect to be blown away, but the prices are reasonable for downtown. It's very homey and old school, with an old Greek man meeting you at the door and decor that probably hasn't been updated in a few decades. I wouldn't come here for a nice dinner, but for a work lunch option it's great- fast, affordable, friendly, comfortable and convenient.
(4)Nicole P.
Awful, awful, awful! Stopped here for a quick dinner before going to the theater. Wish we had more time to go to a nicer restaurant. One waitress for 20 occupied tables. A BLT sandwich where only the tomato was edible. The bacon must have been left over from yesterday's breakfast. I can't even describe what I presume should have been mayo. Split pea soup tastes better out of an expired can of Campbell's. I don't think I've ever had a worse dining experience. Do yourself a favor and stay away!
(1)Derrick T.
Since there were six of us looking for a place to chowdown with no reservations, we ended up checking out Petro's since it was close and looked like a fair amount of customers go in on a regular basis. This is your standard family owned Greek Diner kind of place. Fun owners, uber friendly waitress who was non-stop entertaining and all about the customer, serving up greasy spoon kinda food. Had a cheeseburger with fries and split pea soup. Nothing phenomenal, nothing bad. At about $13 after tax/tip, it was a simple meal and did the trick. Unfortunately for the price, you can get much higher quality meals elsewhere. Verdict: Need something quick? The food's acceptable. It's diner food done OK,. Waitress was energetic, entertaining, and very accommodating, even if the food is nothing to write home about. Unlikely to go back.
(2)Kate M.
Yuck. Ew. Gross. The food is bad. It's not just not good, its actually bad. Bad french fries? That's hardly possible, but it's true. The service is bad. The server wasn't very attentive, I almost felt like we were bothering her. I asked if there was any dairy in a dish I was considering because I can't eat dairy. She looked at me like I was an idiot and said "Well yeah! It's gotta be cooked in butter". No, no it doesn't "gotta". Then I ordered a Reuben sandwich and she said "The bread has flour in it, are you allergic to flour?!" Uh, no, are you? On the way out we were still hungry and we're in the Loop at 8 pm. This is not a good situation. I grabbed a bag of two house made cookies on our way out, I thought "Cookies have to be good". I was wrong. They don't have to be. I choked down half a cookie before tossing them in the trash. I did get Dots at the theater and they were remarkably better than my Petro's dinner.
(1)Allen B.
"Club Petro's" is what I would rename this restaurant too. I have been here for breakfast more than 7 times and almost each time I've heard dirty house music (electronic house) played in the background. Haha...classic. Now I like my house music & beats, however, at 7:30am on a Tuesday morning it doesn't really play along well with my bacon, eggs & hashbrowns. But since I'll ignore the music and concentrate on the rating the food. The breakfast is of average fare. Simplistic delicious egg, bacon, sausage, pancakes, and hasbrown combinations - well there's really not much to be said (remember this is just breakfast). Dinner and lunch I'm sure is a different story. What I can say about the place is that their service is friendly, quick and reasonably priced. Numerous mornings at Petro's have given me fuel to get through the day. So don't knock Club Petro's, just go with it and dance to their house music.
(3)Scott R.
My credit card receipt says "Chef Petros Restaurant"; I find it hard to believe there is any Chef involved in this place. I eat breakfast or lunch almost very day in the loop, so in the past year I've had both a breakfast and a lunch here. For breakfast I had strawberry pancakes. The strawberries looked like they were some kind of artifical product and tasted worse-bitter. The pancakes by themselves were actually salty. For lunch I had a fish sandwich. It was one of those frozen things and completely tasteless. This place undoubtedly has the worst food in the loop.
(1)Mary U.
This was literally the worst restaurant I've ever been to. I tried to give it 0 stars but yelp made me choose at least 1 We walked in and were seated at a booth. The backrest was broken so I ended up having to sit same-side as my friend because the man behind me was moving so much. Both the menu and waitress neglected to inform us that soft drinks came with only ONE refill (seriously? What does it cost to fill a glass from the soda fountain? 10 cents?), not to mention the glasses held about 5oz of liquid... Without ice. The food was mediocre at best and the waitress was a jerk when my friend asked if there was any way she could get a smaller sized portion instead of the regular size. I had a hot turkey sandwich with mashed potatoes and gravy, something I found equivalent to the hot lunches in my elementary school cafeteria. My friend had a grilled cheese sandwich. A $12 grilled cheese sandwich. When we got up to pay the cashier informed my friend that she liked her shoes, and then, after taking a long look at my new Ann Taylor heeled ankle boots, disdainfully informed me that she's "not a fan of boots." Worst service, quality and hospitality ever. Don't go.
(1)Andre W.
I have worked nearby this diner for many years and always wondered what the food was like. A former co-worker thought it would be a good idea to meet for lunch. Real old school joint with a nice menu. I had the grilled cheese with fries which was ok. Service was cool....I might go back sometime soon
(3)JJ F.
Wow, stopped in for a quick lunch....horrible food! Low quality, tasteless. Go elsewhere!
(1)Gordon F.
Good service. Food? Not so much. Probably the worst chicken Caesar I've ever had.
(1)Wesley T.
this place looks like it's been here forever. it looks like it has tons of "old school charm". however, it's really just mediocre and has probably only stayed in business because it's right next to the theatre. The people at the table next to us looked like suburbanites and I overheard them mention that they were "here for the show" so I'm going to assume that's this business' target audience. if you have the chance, go elsewhere. you aren't missing anything here.
(2)Colleen C.
Location, location, location. No one would step foot in this joint were it not situated in the barren wasteland (food-wise) of the Loop. Wanting to try something "local" we opted out of Corner Bakery and into Petro's. If the mauve (yes, very mauve) leather booths and nursing home-esque decor doesn't squelch your appetite, the menu will. Just pretty blah food at high Loopy prices. I had the Petro's salad, which consisted of chicken on yellow lettuce. Yum. Not. $10!? For real, I could buy that shiz at Jewel for a grand total of about 87 cents. Our diet cokes arrived halfway through our meal, and even in the finest of establishments if I have to wait 20 minutes for DC, there will be issues. Luckily, my good friend was with me, and we had a good laugh about the whole thing. Honestly, I think I'd have been better off at Corporate Bakery.
(2)Sabrina M.
All I can say is that if you have no other dining options or all your other choices are too crowded or closed, then come to Petro's. It is old-school diner food but not in that "hidden gem" kind of way. The coffee is weak, the soup is tepid, and your food is either going to be undercooked, overcooked or oversalted. And at about 2 p.m. your GI system is going to let you know it's really mad at you. It's a no-brainer choice if none of your other options are available, but Petro's is not a destination spot.
(2)Rob U.
If you never set foot in here, consider yourself blessed. As soon as I walked through the revolving door I knew something was wrong because I saw nothing but empty booths. My father and I stopped by after an event near city hall. This was convenient, and I had fulfilled my need for Qdoba just 2 days earlier. Our waitress was an elderly woman who at first seemed sweet, but turned sour when we reminded her our cokes were MIA. Luckily for her, the location-appropriate prices kept her tip out of the gutter. For claiming to be a bakery, their dinner rolls seemed more fit for hockey pucks over at the UC. Chicken noodle soup was edible, and came alongside my Dad's salad. He ponied up the extra buck for bleu cheese dressing, which came out looking more like mayo with some colored chunks in it. I took fellow yelper Fat Girl's suggestion for the gyro because well, I didn't see anything else on the menu that sounded appeasing. It was crunchy as was the pita, which could have passed for a week old. The only thing that came as expected was the gyro style bad breath. For the $10.75 that went to my gyro, I probably could have taken a quick cab to greektown and gotten a gyro at any one of the great places there. Needless to say, I won't be visiting again. Had I yelped before passing through that revolving door I would've known better in the first place!
(1)Marsha C.
One of the few places open on Black Friday @ 10 AM after a 5 hour shopping spree! That being the case, should have known it wouldn't fare well when there were only 2 other tables occupied. We were obviously a bother to the waitress who couldn't have been more rude or inattentive. We had a question about the bill and that really set her and the "hostess" off. "Had we have explained the question better the answer would have been simple". $2.25 for a side of white toast. Not even average Greek diner food. See it - pass it by.
(1)Nick B.
Wow, other Yelpers weren't kidding when they said this place was not good. I work across the street, and this morning was the first time i ate at petros. i ordered a ham/cheese omelette and hash browns to try and play it safe. Not good. You know that nasty feeling like you are chewing on a knot? I experienced that three or four times while eating my omelette. I had to drench everything in hot sauce to give the food a little flavor. The hash browns were fine, and the coffee was fine. I'm 20 minutes out of that place, and my stomach is feeling a little queasy. Yep, a lot queasy. Oh, consistent with at least one other review, i think they snuck an extra dollar onto my bill. The omelette was listed at 6.95, and coffee was .85, so that should be 7.80 plus tax (which they listed as .95). By my calculations, that is $8.75. For some reason she wrote my total as $9.75. I didn't really care to bring it up so i just paid it. I'm not going back to Petros. Too bad, because i work right across the street. I should have listened to the Yelps and not went.
(2)Ed R.
how is this place still in business? once i figure this conundrum out, i'll then try to solve the mystery of how Oscar Mayer gets that perfect sliver of cheese into each and every scrumptious hot dog. but more pressing matters first, who would honestly step foot into Petro's more than once? someone who enjoys bland, overpriced, straight out of the freezer and onto your plate diner food? some poor disillusioned sap who despises himself so much that they would subject their body to such culinary horrors? buck up people, life isn't THAT bad if you're willingly paying $10 for a gorton's fish plank masquerading as a whitefish sandwich. the only "saving" grace of this place is that it's rather spacious and can accomodate a large party at a minute's notice, even at the peak of lunch hour. i'll let you fellow yelpers interpret the sincerity of such a statement. instead of turning right at the corner of la salle and lake, please join me in my death march across the street, into the decaying bowels of the thompson center. once you get down the escalator, close your eyes and point in any direction to find a better option to fill your doughy paunch.
(1)Mary Beth E.
My gay BFF and I both work downtown. The other night, we got tickets to go see Billy Elliot. As we were patiently waiting around after work for the doors of the Oriental Theater to open we came across Petro's. Since we had time to kill and large stomachs to fill, we decided to pop in and get a bit to eat. The place was empty, we got seated right away and our waitress came right over. This place is your typical greasy spoon. Menu had plenty of options and was resonably priced, considering where we were. The food came out quick and piping hot. My bacon cheese burger was perfectly yummy. I only gave it three stars because it's just another greasy spoon. Food is good but nothing remarkably special about it. I'm not saying that I wouldn't go there again, because I probably will. :-) (Billy Elliot was a freaking AWESOME show, by the way)
(3)Jill M.
Hello. Fat Girl here. I'm surprised this greasy little diner didn't get as many good reviews. Petro's was recommended to me by my co-worker (who is a regular). She always has good food, so I decided to give Petro's a try! I ordered the gyros for takeout. I called on my way out to go pick it up, and by the time I got there, it was ready! I only spent just over $8. And that includes a cup of soup, the gyros on a pita, a large cucumber sauce, and fries. I was impressed with the gyros. It was sooooooo good! I loved that some pieces of meat were nicely charred. On top of that, it was HUGE! Huge enough to satisfy this fat girl's appetite. It came with your typical greasy diner fries that would put fast food restaurant fries to shame. Maybe you will have a better experience with take-out than dining in! Fat girl feels like she just gained another pound...
(5)Matt P.
The food's okay, I mean it's a diner, what do you expect. Not only that the server double timed our order cause we were seeing Lion King across the street (at Cadillac Palace), and that's where they get you .. 1 club sandwich 1 bowl soup 1 coke (refill?) 1 hot turkey sandwich for a total of $30 ... so with tip, it almost came to $40. Which leads me to believe that: a. we got the wrong bill b. refills weren't free (of which, I had one) and that we could have have gone someplace infinitely better for the price we paid.
(2)Mike W.
Having just moved from Detroit, I'm used to driving up and down the main streets and seeing a handful of these dumpy Greek inspired restaurants every couple miles. I never thought a place like that would exist in the almighty food mecca that is downtown Chicago. Insert Petro's Restaurant and Bakery. I liked the "home-y" feel I had while dining in Petro's. I was brought back to the days where everything I ate was deep fried, the portions were large enough to turn any thin man obese, and taste wasn't important because in the crappy diner world quantity reigns supreme over quality. Needless to say, I've lived in the city for almost 2 months now and even the crappiest of crap restaurants blow this place out of the water. Unless you're on the verge of hypothermia (or heat stroke in the summer), pass on this place and a walk few more minutes to something else. It should be quite easy to find a place that doesn't cover 40% of their food with mysterious brown "gravy".
(2)joseph r.
It's pretty bad, which is sad because the location is key. One thing that scared me, I asked for ketchup, they brought me a Heinz bottle and the ketchup was very brown looking, almost like a bbq sauce color. Anyway, waitress's are nice, but the food would be considered average to bad. Skip this place.
(1)Jordan M.
I work just around the corner from this place and would suggest it to anyone. It has good food with quick service. All day breakfast and a rather larger lunch selection.
(3)Dan D.
Petro's Restauranta and Bakery is the type of place where you come looking for a lot of food at a pretty good price. Typical family restarant and clearly Greek-owned. In downtown, it is quite hard to find a family-restaurant like in the northside. Thus, Petro's is a nice place if ya need that food right then and there. BUT.... if you are in the downtown area, I must say, you better have a good reason NOT to eat at another one of the amazing unique restaurants around downtown and across the river. Petro's is good and solid food. Just not unique. This place has good value, good food. Closes really early like many places in the area (~7pm).
(3)Maurilio G.
My boss insisted we try this diner she saw for our holiday lunch this year. So we go and it looks like a decent place. We sit down and I get a napkin that has some weird orange smear on it. I think nothing of it and use it anyway. Next, I get my plate for bread and sure enough, there's some weird brown stuff all over it along with condensed water from the washer. Again, I say whatever, still use it. Along comes my food (Bacon Cheeseburger) and its good, no problems there. Pretty standard burger with bland fries that are too thick and have no salt. As everyone finishes up their meals I start to finish my coke and something pops into my mouth. I really start to hope that it's just a piece of ice that made it through the straw, but unfortunately for me it doesn't start melting. I spit it out into my napkin and its this weird green/black clump of what looks to be old spinach. That was from only taking a quick glance at it because I was afraid to investigate too much. I then look at the bottom of my glass and floating all along the bottom is a bigger clump of the weird mystery substance. It was disgusting. I shouldn't have investigated any further but my curiosity got the best of me. To top off the experience, the waitress overcharged us by $10.
(1)Jen J.
One word: Disgusting. We walked past this place and it was packed during lunchtime! Then we came back around 3pm. We should have known right away what kind of restaurant this was when our server came out to take our order with food on her face and in her mouth. Anyhow, our kids ordered cheeseburgers while my husband and I were still deciding. The server went back to place the order and then came back to inform me they didn't have hamburger buns left. None. It was FRIDAY. Sooo....the kids ordered a hotdog and chicken fingers. I tasted both, they were, meh. I ordered the mostaccoli and my husband ordered the gyros. She brought out rolls to go with his soup and my salad. They were dried-out and hard. I asked if they had fresh ones in the back, she said no since they just had a really busy lunch. Then informed me that it was French bread, which is supposed to be hard. Ummm....yes, CRUSTY on the outside, soft on the inside. That bread had neither of those attributes. When our food came out the minute she placed my mostaccoli in front of me I knew right away I didn't like the smell of the sauce. So I figured I'd cover it with the parmesan cheese. Then I smelled something rotten. I leaned forward to smell the parmesan cheese and nearly vomited. I asked the server to remove my mostaccoli because I found it disgusting and then tried to tell her the cheese was spoiled. She told me it wasn't. That "he" (I assume the cook/owner) orders it that way. My husband choked down the dried out gyro and gave me a little to supplement the saltines I was eating. We are not terribly picky eaters, nor were we rude to this server, as it's not her fault her employer has disgusting food. Never the less, we won't be going back--ever. I would have given this negative stars if I could. The. worst. restaurant.
(1)Nerkles F.
Awful. Bad food and unclean. Sick waitress coughed on her hand and then touched my plate. Clean up is done with dirty old rags. Stay away. I'm sure they'd be out of business if not for having such a great location and plenty of unsuspecting tourists. Also: blaring TV always on with horrible dreck playing. You can't read or converse.
(1)Erik G.
Oh, where to start. Hands down the best chocolate-frosted donuts in the Central Area. Thus the second star. Beyond that, this place really does suck completely. To be fair, I KNEW better than to order the fried perch with a side of macaroni and cheese. I also knew better than to order the clam chowder. I mean I really must be stupid having just returned from an east coast excursion. I blame the hangover. The clam chowder had no hint or essence of clam or chowder. It was clearly cream of chicken with diced potatoes and no chicken much less clams. It is so obviously not clam chowder that I cannot believe that they are able to serve it with a straight face. That said. It was not the worst cream of chicken without chicken plus potato soup that I have ever had. It could double as wallpaper paste if you pureed it first and applied it with the proper brush. I wanted to pour it into a container for further study but thought better of it. On to the entree. The undoubtedly frozen perch (Of course!) had been encased in a Kevlar-like substance. The substance goes way beyond coating and way beyond batter. I think that it may have been applied at the factory in multiple coats with a Wagner to achieve the uniform 1/4" thickness. The perch's flavor was very fishy and the texture was very mushy. Just completely terrible. I never leave food on my plate. This stuff was 90% intact when I walked away. The macaroni and 'sauce' was as gelatinous as it could possibly be before reaching a truly runny state. The pasta itself had been cooked within an inch of becoming one with the water and the 'cheese' for which the dish is named was non-existent save for the small glob of unidentified orange plopped on top. I agree with other reviewers regarding Petro's being the worst of the 'greek diner' genre AND it surviving solely on the lazy nature of the government worker. This place is definitely 'good enough for government work(er)'. A very sad statement indeed. If you find yourself stuck here because you are too lazy or because you need some place that is 'middle of the road' acceptable to all of your dining companions, be sure to stick to the tried and true: burger/patty melt, club, spinach pie, omelet, etc. Otherwise, avoid it altogether save for a chocolate-frosted donut for yourself and that special 'lady friend' you have back in the office.
(2)