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    Gardner Restaurant

    3.7 (37 reviews)
    Closed 11:00 am - 8:00 pm

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    a burger and fries on a plate
    Christine R.

    Stopped in here with my husband on our way to a wedding outside of Decatur. It's a small, family restaurant, but it's nothing special.The service was great, but the food was merely meh. Our waitress (the only one on shift at the moment) was perfectly attentive and polite. Once seated, my husband and I did notice a couple fruit flies zigging and zagging around our booth. After ordering, our Reuben and cheeseburger with the soup of the day - beef vegetable, my husband checked out the bathroom facilities. The bathroom was not clean, and it had a weird set-up. The main bathroom door locked, but inside there was a urinal, two toilets, a sink, and no dividing doors. The soup arrived right away. It was obviously homemade and well-flavored. There were large chunks of vegetables. Unfortunately, though the beef chunks were pretty small. When our meals came, both the sandwich and the burger were piping hot. I liked my Reuben, but they forgot the Thousand Island dressing. It did have two slices of American cheese though (traditional Reubens are made with Swiss cheese). The burger was greasy. While the lettuce and tomato were fresh, the fries appeared to be from a frozen package. Despite the food being nothing special, the price was right. The two of us had lunch for $16 total. I didn't think that was possible anymore! The service, the soup, and the price inch this place above the one-star. Even still, we wouldn't plan to stop here again.

    Linguini carbonara
    Adam F.

    Incredible place! Little hole in the wall that serves great homemade food. And the variety of food is unlimited. The server was beyond nice and was so professional. Truly a must stop place to eat.

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    2 months ago

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    21 days ago

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    5 months ago

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    4 months ago

    The food is delicious & prices are reasonable. The menu has a wide variety of food to choose from

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    Photo of Rana D.
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    4 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Just off the highway food nothing special or flavorful . It just not a place I would recommend the food is basic

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    2 years ago

    Excellent food at great pricing and good service. What more would you want in a restaurant?

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    3 years ago

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    8 years ago

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    8 years ago

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    4 years ago

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    8 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    5 years ago

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    8 years ago

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    9 years ago

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    10 years ago

    Surprisingly good. Reminded me of an old road trip through Europe.

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    9 years ago

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    12 years ago

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    9 years ago

    very good fried chicken and the price is nice. a little worn down but who cares when the food is good.

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    12 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    9 years ago

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    Ask the Community - Gardner Restaurant

    Review Highlights - Gardner Restaurant

    My husband and I were driving down to Springfield and stopped at Gardner, just off of I-55, exit 227, IL 53 toward Gardner.

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    Fortunato Fish and Oyster - Pistachio cheesecake

    Fortunato Fish and Oyster

    (112 reviews)

    $$$

    We were looking for a new place to celebrate my wife's birthday, and she selected this one. It's…read morestraight off of I-88, exiting north on the left side. First off, the place is very nice looking - feast your eyes on the photos. Angled windows in front, nice table spaces, art at every table, a nice oil candle, and good enough lighting that you can read the menu without wrecking the intimate nature of a booth. The menu (photos attached) is loaded with good stuff. For an appetizer, we selected their Imperial American Wagyu Filet Carpaccio, which came with thinly sliced Wagyu Filet, topped with black truffle, king crab, kaluga caviar, panna grattato, and other tasty stuff. It was served on a white plate with bread, and was incredibly tasty. My wife ordered their Lobster Linguini (on the bill) or Linguini Aragosto on the menu. She enjoyed it very much, and even took some home. On the other hand, I went with their Butcher's Butter Spinalis which was a Ribeye Cap. It was very tender, very tasty, nicely seasoned and cooked as requested at medium rare temperature. With that, we ordered their Rosemary Potatoes, which were "family sized" (enough for two or three) and tasted great. We closed out with a cannoli which was two-sided with two different end preps, which was excellent. To work with all this, I needed a wine which would work for the seafood and the meat, so I selected a Grosjean Pinot Noir, which worked great with both. Service was very very very good - regular checks, food timing was good with each part coming out with enough time to easily finish it before the next course came out. Our waitstaff Ashley kept us watered, and even removed the cork from the wine using a wine key while standing. Nicely done! This is a great place to celebrate a special occasion, or just to go for a nice, relaxed meal. They do store their wine horizontally (like you are supposed to, see the picture) and keep it out of the sun. They also have a deli on the west end with reduced hours, so if you want something I'd suggest going there before you arrive so you don't miss it.

    Thank you for the great hospitality, the amazing service, and the fresh food. My recent visit I had…read morethe Woodford reserve old fashioned, let me tell you it was the best I've ever had. The oysters are also out of this world.

    Eddie V's Prime Seafood - Nothing sets the tone for an enticing night, quite like The Big Eddie chilled shellfish tower.

    Eddie V's Prime Seafood

    (77 reviews)

    Well, don't know what to say. Straight off, service was excellent, Mercedes and Stephen for a…read morespecial callout. But the down side is that the place was dead on a Friday night, unsure if this is an indicator to an out of towner that the place is on the down slide - steak was under seasoned (10 oz filet) and appeared to be a fabricated filet. Brussels are awesome as well as asparagus. Not the overwhelming experience for $$$ price.

    Easter Sunday was a hit! Eddie V's gorgeous restaurant was extremely satisfying! From complimentary…read moreparking, to the tasteful menu with the live music, it was a pretty dope vibe! The venue Wasn't too crowded which was a plus. I decided to have dinner with reservations @3pm with the App OpenTable. On time for my reservation with no wait time! Seated immediately, I was excited to have my waitress named Arielle. Immediately, she accompanied me with complimentary bread and water along with the restaurant cocktail and food menus. She was very happy to be able help in any way to make me comfortable and was just a joy to have. My first course was the Iceberg wedge BLT, with my cocktail smoked old fashioned. For the second course I spoiled myself with the filet medallions with lobster tail Oscar style accompaniment sides; truffled mac&cheese, and crab fried rice with mushrooms and scallions. Sheeeshh! That meal was phenomenal! Lobster sat perfectly on top of the beef medallions as they both were served and with gratitude I ate every bit of it! Truffled Mac & cheese were so cheesy it was a perfect mouthful. The rice also had some delicious flavors that enticed my tastebuds with savory goodness! Everything was GOODT! Easter Sunday with great food, good company, and dope service ! Check em out!

    Barrel & Vine - Short rib

    Barrel & Vine

    (100 reviews)

    Came here for a birthday brunch. My friend was able to make rsvp for 26 ppl (adults + kids) with no…read moreissues. The restaurant has an upstairs that is pretty big. Could probably hold a huge wedding or Shower party there. Love the decor and food was great. I think they have a coat check, but I'm not sure. The coats didn't stay well on the chairs. And can't hang your purse on the back either. I ended up putting my purse between my shoes. Had the mimosa flight and was able to try all of their flavored mimosas. They were pretty tart. But I like the strawberry lemon the most. Got the eggs Benedict with the smoked salmon. Came with a side of potatoes and peppers. Then ended with the sticky toffee pudding. Definitely recommend as it melts into your mouth. The waiters were really nice and was able to do split checks with no issues. There are street parking and a small parking lot not far from the restaurant. There were signs on the street that helped guide me to the parking lot.

    Me and my wife recently stopped at Barrel & Vine for a late night adventure. We rarely go out to…read moredowntown Plainfield but this place was really great. We didn't book a reservation but we were able to get a seat without any issue. My friends that came here prior say that whenever they booked with the reservation they were able to get a seat upstairs. We weren't dining in, we were only staying for a few drinks but this place was really cozy and the waitress who took care of us throughout our time here was very friendly and social. Great selection of drinks to choose from and there's even non-alcoholic drinks and mocktails as well. It can be a bit pricey coming here as well as a bit tricky trying to find a parking spot but it's a great place to stop at!

    Gardner Restaurant - seafood - Updated May 2026

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