Amazing food, friendly staff. Sometimes we eat there mainly to take in all of the buildings charm…read more One of my favorite places to eat!!!

Didn't go there yet ...................................,,, ........................ so we shall…read moresee if we do later - okay?!

Good, small town stop. The menu is surprisingly full of options and specials abound. There's no…read morebeer tap here, but you can fill up and then stop be t door if you like. Or, order for takeout as we did. The chicken fried steak and breakfast bowls are good, but there are so many others too that you may have to try it more than once!

Everything was amazing! The waitress was very friendly. We ordered New York strip and it was cooked…read moreperfectly. Oh and don't forget to try their homemade chilli! I am so glad we decided to stop and try them out. I didn't get a picture because we ate it before I thought about it. Lol

We picked this place to meet up with friends for lunch. The place is HUGE!! The vibe is minimalist…read moreroadside bar and grill. It felt very clean and well maintained. We waited maybe 10 minutes for a table on a Sunday afternoon. The service from everyone team member was friendly and prompt. The menu is extensive. We tried the catfish bites with a homemade dill forward tartar sauce and the fried green tomatoes with a spicy remoulade. They offer brunch on the weekends. We had pancakes, and biscuits and gravy. For the more savory palates, we ordered a burger, the ribeye, and the Capone. The burger was thick and juicy, the bun held up to all of the toppings. The ribeye sandwich is a full steak on a hoagie roll. The Boursin cheese made this a little too rich for me but an amazing sandwich nonetheless. The Capone is a burger interpretation of a parmigiana sandwich. Rich marinara, mozzarella cheese and grilled onions and mushrooms made for an amazing meal. We had a wonderful time. We plan to stop in again soon

We've been coming here for years. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know, I say that all the time. What can I…read moresay? Wifey and I eat out A LOT. The goat gets you a few ways: 1.) unusual name 2.) cool building 3.) great food 4.) ver good prices 5.) really nice/fun staff I gave you lots of pictures and show the menu. Wifey will comment on our next visit. Have a fantastic day, and eat at The Gabby Goat.

We read about this place in our Route 66 guide. Traveling from Chicago to Santa Monica on a Route…read more66 journey, we earmarked The Ariston Cafe as a place to stop and we're glad we did. We sat up at the counter and had a great experience dining with other travelers and locals. The waitstaff was friendly and helpful even taking a photo of us behind the counter. The entrée and pie were great!

Route 66 icon! If memory serves me it's been in operation since 1924. Inside the decor is…read moreauthentic to the 1950's, but this is obviously well cared for, which was very apparent when I saw the counter swivel stool-chairs: they look brand new! I was on a road trip up from Florida to Wisconsin with a friend. We were going through Springfield, Illinois, so we could visit the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum & Library. So that's how I ended up in this neck of the woods. Needed a spot for dinner and this popped up as an option and sure glad it did. My friend & I both opted for the Fried Chicken dinner and this place makes the best fried chicken I've had in decades! OMGOSH! The meat was fully cooked, but still so incredibly juicy. The crispy skin and coating was unreal, it was so good - it was truly "finger-lick in' good". While I'm borrowing that old slogan, The Ariston Cafe's fried chicken is like the fried chicken ideal of perfection. They have a classic salad bar and that hit the spot, especially on a road trip where you're not often getting enough veggies. I'm writing this review some weeks later after getting back home. If the place had been average, I wouldn't bother, but when a reminder to do a review popped up, I had to do this as the waitresses and cooks deserve it, as do the owners & all the staff. Waitresses were all nice as could be and helpful. It's like walking back in time when you go inside, and it reminded me of great restaurants in the area I grew up in. If I make it back up that way again, I'll plan my travels to include another stop in at The Artisan.

We stopped in for breakfast while in town visiting our family. There were 10 of us in all and we…read morewere greeted and accommodated quickly by the staff. The menus had many choices for breakfast lunch and dinner. The waitress was friendly and helpful. Some of our group had breakfast while others chose lunch. My "mama's special" was delicious. It included 2 sizable pancakes, 2 eggs, 2 bacon, 2 sausage. My daughter ordered biscuits and gravy with eggs which were also very tasty. (I had a nibble). All of the others seemed pleased with their choices as well. The portions are generous, the food is really good, and the service was great. I would like to return and try the fried chicken before our trip is over! I noticed this establishment was not yet listed on Yelp, so i decided to add it for the benefit of others who might enjoy it too ;)

A nice quaint small town restaurant with an upscale menu and good food. The decor is old and dated…read morebut it's clean and nice. There is a separate bar area and small dining room. We were seated promptly and the service was great, our food came out in a pretty short time and was hot and fresh. They feature daily specials and have a nice variety on the menu. They also offer pizzas.

Pretty darn good, I had the rattlesnake and I was impressed. A great small town restaurant with…read moregood food!

Great experience! Walking in on a Saturday night I was worried it would be a long wait as it was…read morebusy, but they were able to squeeze us in. The staff was super friendly and the service was great! We ordered fried mushrooms that came out quick and was tasty. My husband and I both ordered steaks. They were both cooked to perfection and tasted great. Great cocktails too. We were too full for dessert.

Great lunch stop! I had the loaded potato with buffalo chicken. $12. The chicken was not too…read morespicy, which I liked. My husband had the walleye sandwich with fries, $13. The fish was lightly breaded and had a good flavor. The wait staff was friendly and checked on us to make sure everything was okay. The restaurant is super clean and has seating at tables, booths and a small bar area. There's a children's menu as well.

OMG! I just happened to visit the Wooden Duck for my first time, during Blackburn Colleges…read moreHomecoming. The restaurant was packed and the staff hustled to provide good service. Lucky for me, I was able to get a seat at the bar. My adult beverage was a draft Flight by Yuengling. For lunch, I went with a Pork Tenderloin Sandwich with a side of Fries. The tenderloin was crisp and had good flavor. However, it had a perfect shape, so I could tell it came from a bag and was not done in house. I enjoyed the thin crisp fries. A roll of Paper Towels served as your napkin. Typically I prefer linen, but for a dive bar, paper towels do the trick. I also liked that the Wooden Duck has hooks under the bar. Hooks provide a safe place for purses and jackets. I got a giggle when I used the mens room and the owner showed his political views by having a caricature of the governor in the urinal. They even had a witty disclaimer, so you shouldn't be offended. I got a second giggle when I looked around the bar and realized, about 60% of the guest were an alternative lifestyle. So everyone is welcome at the Wooden Duck.

How did I get here. We retired to a small town that doesn't have a DMV office. So we drove the 20…read moremiles to the thriving metropolis of Carlinville (not really,charming for sure, but just big enough to have cheap plaza office space for a state govt. office). So of course although my wife had done extensive research on all the documentation we would need to pay a state to drive our car...we had missed one. So we went to the Wood Duck for lunch while we waited for our credit union to send us a lien release form. We had talked to the kind soul at the DMV and she was "all-in" on this place. She was so right. It is an intimate space, with a small bar out front, and then a few more tables in a back area. We took a booth right in front of the kitchen. It is a very "locals" place. There were some police having lunch (likely the entire force, at least by weight)...and one of them stared me down as if he had never seen a veteran, former DoD executive, in a collared shirt, and khakis in a public restaurant before. [Yes I was the only pepper in the salt]. The actual restaurant staff was excellent, and welcoming. Our server was a whirlwind of effecient hospitality. I got a pork tenderloin sandwich (and later the same day was invited to join a pork tenderloin sandwich group on FB)... ordered the fries, not clear if that came with them, didn't keep the reciept. My wife got a cheesburger that she was very happy with. My tenderloin was crispy, juicy and a bit too salty in a good way. This place is a definite keeper on the list of places we will be willing to travel to over time. Perhaps if I come back often enough, Barney will get used to "others" visiting his little fiefdom.

The food is good service is great the beer is cold and there open on Monday now . The atmosphere is…read morevery cool all the old signs is the icing on the cake

Food was delicious. Not a real big fish fan, but their walleye is the best I have ever eaten.read more