Four guys came for dinner and had a nice meal. The place was almost empty yet the server was pleasant and attentive. Odd kind of vibe here but not loud or unpleasant. I had a single burger but it was very salty and a bit overcooked. Decent sized and of fries accompanied it. One guy had the salmon and said it was great, another had the chicken piccata and said it was ok, too. Maybe they're busy at lunch because the crowd we saw won't support a place like this for long! read more

Best fried chicken around! Great atmosphere and homemade cuisines. Must try! Owners are top chefs from former LF place, food is awesome! read more

We've eaten at Jay Lovell's many times throughout the years, and I'm starting to get concerned that there are very few people in the restaurant. I do see people picking up orders but our last two visits there were only one or two other tables. I had the fish and chips (a special). There were four very large pieces of breaded fish on a pillow of fresh cut fries with a delicious sauce (homemade tartar?). Needless to say I could not eat it all. My companion had (the usual) turkey burger, which is one of their favorites. This is good food, freshly prepared, don't know why nobody is here. read more

Jay Lovell's - Fish n chips - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Highwood, Illinois

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Food quality was fair to poor. Service was questionable, this is basically a fast food, order at the counter then sit at a table and wait for a cook to deliver your food to the table. Water and coffee when they got around to it. We were there twice in one day; our first and last time. Ambiance?? read more

We love the food!!! Brisket, fish fry, burgers and the full dinners. All five star. Very relaxed atmosphere which we also love. We plan our dinners around their schedule! Closed Monday and Tuesday. read more

Ordered takeout from Jay Lovell's. I selected the Trout Almandine Dinner, while the rest of the gang ordered sandwiches. I also ordered an Apple salad to share. Plenty of apple, blue cheese & pecans in the decent size salad. Apple pieces were a little small to me, but there were plenty of them which made up for it. Will definitely be back here. read more

Amazing food and ice cream! This place has had quite the growth on the interior over the years and the owners are always welcoming and happy to offer suggestions. The salads are delicious, especially with salmon on top. I also am a fan of the grits, on their own or with any of the toppings they offer. This is another local staple, my only complaint is the price can be a little steep. However, in today's world you are getting what you pay for. read more

Very fresh and delicious order of home style flaky biscuits & creamy white sausage gravy, served with a perfectly cooked side of sunny side up eggs. Wonderful to enjoy a perfectly cooked breakfast for a change. read more

Very mediocre food and service; expensive for what you received. A little grungy. Nothing terrible, nothing great at all.

My last year was 4 years ago and I'm still coming to Jay Lovell's. Since we started coming they've actually doubled the seating area. It used to be cramped but now it's welcoming. Lots of space now for families. While I've ordered many things from the menu, the burgers are the best around. Good grief they're good! And while they do great breakfasts, it's the pies that really stand out. I haven't had a pie crust like that since my grandma passed away. It was like tasting home. read more

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Had just a really well executed burger and fries. Burger with cheddar, sautéed onions, avocado, lettuce &tomato was perfection. Hard to get your mouth around, but well worth the effort! read more

Jay Lovell's - Custom burg - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Highwood, Illinois

Breakfast experience was not bad! It was not crowded at all, the breakfast was delicious and it was overall very relaxing after a long run in Fort Sheraton Park. lastly I really liked the "mom and pop" feel of it. The mother of work the register while the sun waited the tables/delivered the food. I really liked it!! Definitely considering going back! So for anyone out there who is looking for a place of relaxation for breakfast and brunch after a nice run or walk in nearby for Sheridan Park then I definitely recommend Jay Lovell's! :-) read more

Good food, good service, good people. Great local family that has fed our family for years. Recommend you check it out!

One stop so far. Quite good. The place feels like a vest pocket. Small, cozy, comfortable. My first time here, I reviewed the menu and saw several tempting items. I chose the fried tilapia. Properly prepared. Nice touch of sauce. Toasted bread. Generous proportion. You get a side--I chose cole slaw--again, well prepared. Basically, the place seems a chef's take on a sandwich place, somewhere a chef would come for his own meal. I never found the Lake Forest Lovell's that enjoyable. It seems the remaining spot is just right. read more

Jay Lovell's - Lunch, late afternoon. - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Highwood, Illinois

Very unpleasant experience on Mother's Day evening. Owner was swearing at cooks and yelling at them when they didn't do anything wrong. Door dash took my order from under owner's nose and he blamed cooks. Owner never apologized to me or "sorry to keep you waiting." Nothing. Won't return. read more

Ugh... I was hoping they would be a reasonable brunch spot in the HP area, but no, they're almost complete garbage. I ordered the eggs, grits and chorizo sausage gravy, with a side of wheat toast ($2 extra...)... Grits and gravy are a good southern staple, so I was interested to see how they would serve it. Well, I didn't have to wait long, a giant bowl of instant grits with a pool of bolognase sauce was plopped on the counter. The man yelled my name and as I stood to go and pick up my meal, I saw the flat disk of eggs that had been plopped onto this catastrophe. Let's start with he eggs, as that is what I was first approached with as I tried to eat this garbage. They were hard and rubberized. I had ordered my eggs 'over easy' so that the runny yolk could mix into my gravy and grits. Instead I had what would be most commonly described as 'flat tire's eggs. I have pictures added of one of theholes to this review. It was a solid hard overcooked disc. I just pulled this pile of trash off of the grits, hoping that at least 1/2 of this meal could be salvaged. That's when I tasted the grits. Slimy and bland. Instant grits, made thin. The sauce, or 'gravy' as the menu had described it was a tomato based sausage sauce with an incredibly acidic aftertaste. Mixing it into the grits gave the entire bowl a look of bloody vomit. The taste didn't help that impression. It was an acidic flavorless and texturally unappealing bowl of sludge... Ah, but wait! I had ordered toast! So maybe.... Just maybe that will salvage this meal? Well, for $2 extra, I hoped it would be edible. It was! Hallelujah! For the grand total of $12 I had toast that I could eat. But, don't get carried away, for the $2 extra you don't get 2 pieces of toast, no, you get 1 piece cut in half served on a saucer... The iced tea they had there was okay. Brewed too hot for too long it had a musky and pungent taste, but it wasn't the worst I've had. My GF had the eggs Benedict. It was serviceable but totally unremarkable, served with a pile of cold and unripe fruit, it was an amazing step up from the hot pile of garbage before me. TL;DR: Bad food, high priced, skip it. read more

Jay Lovell's - The garbage that they called grits and gravy. - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Highwood, Illinois

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We love the service, burgers, chicken sandwich and the occasional ribeye steak special. We waited too long to give them a try but is now a family favorite. read more

We ordered the gumbo and chili. The gumbo was quite good, authentic and, while it could have been more highly seasoned, it was near perfect after the addition of Tabasco. My problem was the chili. Chef Lovell, you grew up in Texas, right? And you're an actual chef! (I had the great pleasure of dining at Lovell's of Lake Forest so I know your food can be phenomenal.) So what's the deal with your chili? Where the cumin? The garlic? The chili powder, for Pete's sake! I can only assume that someone besides you is making the chili but if you want to actually sell chili, make sure it's seasoned like chili. And I'll bet a lot of people do like your "chili" because it does taste good. But I decided it was missing something so I made a cup of elbow macaroni and added it to the "chili" and--voila--really good Beef-a-Roni. Will return for the gumbo... read more

If you're on Keto or Paleo, come here. I've been doing Keto for quite awhile and the folks at Jay's will accommodate you. They also have a salad on the menu that is great---Blackened Salmon over asparagus with freshly made avocado salsa. My wife prefers it grilled and the salsa without onions---no problem. just ask. read more

Jay Lovell's - Jay's has ice cream to go with their pies. - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Highwood, Illinois

We really like eating here because the food is good. Nothing tastes bad, but every time we come here, I get the feeling that I am inconveniencing the owner or the cashier. Some restaurants I feel welcomed, I don't get that feeling here. With that being said, this place is very casual, very relaxed and very expensive for that atmosphere. The salmon with asparagus and avocado salsa is outstanding. read more

This is a "place holder" review for me because I plan to go back after they have been open a while. Hubby and I saw the "open" sign and went for dinner to see what it was all about. We love Lovell's and we were hoping for some of the same great food we have always loved there. This is basically a breakfast and sandwich place. There is no table service. You order at a window and they bring you your order. We were there the first day it opened.... so bear with me. They didn't have some items yet (beer and wine) but I think they had them the second day. I ordered the pulled pork sandwich (it didn't come with a pickle, you have to ask). Hubby had a burger. He said his was tasty and juicy. The sandwiches come with a small side in a tiny cup all for about $9. I liked the potato salad with egg in it. Hubby's cole slaw looked good. My pulled pork was very salty. It wasn't what I expected... but that's ok. It's more of a breakfast/lunch place or a VERY casual dinner when you want a sandwich or a burger. Understandably, they have kinks to work out. But give it a try and let us fellow yelpers know how you like it! read more

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It was very good. My wife had the egg salad BLT, my son had a grilled cheese sandwich and my mom and I had their burger. I was hoping for more with the burger, living in West LA with all of the gourmet burger places there. I'm not too picky about how my burger is cooked, but I ordered mine medium rare and got it well-done. My mom ordered medium and hers was well-done too. But they were good, as were the fries. The ambiance is great and the service is very friendly. Definitely a good addition to the area. read more

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Wow wow wow this is my new favorite place! The food is absolutely amazing so fresh so delicious!!! The service was awesome!! Such a cute place too!!! Love it!!!!! read more

I ordered a NY Strip. Far and away, the worst I have ever been served. Clearly this steak had been frozen and thawed quickly -- it had a faint taste of liver that such treatment imparts. Also, the exterior was tan, which means it was either cooked over a very low heat, or (more likely) the meat was very cold when cooking started, so the exterior could not sear before the meat was cooked to medium rare internally. So highly likely this poor steak was not even fully thawed before cooking. Which would explain the toughness of the finished product, as well. The restaurant was almost empty. Guess that's why they have to freeze their steaks. Yuk. read more

The ambience is very warm and inviting The pecan smoked brisket is good not great. The potato salad was good. Overall, good quality food in a nice setting. read more

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It's cute but overpriced and portions suck. My sandwich didn't fill me up and way too many fries. Disappointed all around since I was hungry coming from school. read more

The food was great the workers were so nice. If your looking for a good place to eat check this place out.

Really great food and pies! Jay does a wonderful job with some great food. And, did I say they make great pies? Fresh baked pies. A slice or a whole pie. These guys kill it. Yummm. read more

A bit pricey for a "just okay" breakfast. $11 waffle with pecans was very tough (better at home with a mix!) .. and they advertised it as a "sweet cream waffle" .. it did not come with sweet cream, nor any butter. Had to ask for butter (was given a hard packaged "pat" of butter .. and had to ask for silverware and napkins. Tables and chairs were a bit "sticky" .. perhaps needing a good cleaning. Was nice to try a "new place" for us but probably won't be back ... read more

Amazing - great salads and great employees. If you add meat it can get a little pricey so I wouldn't recommend coming for your protein fix (:: read more

This is a funny review. We came here a few months ago for lunch. I forgot to write a review and now for the life of me, I can't remember what I had. I looked over the menu and so many things looked good and interesting, but I could not recall what we had settled on. I do recall it was cheerful and the service was friendly and I know we both enjoyed whatever the heck we had, because we wanted to come back, even though it is a bit of a ride. So .... I'm going to have to come back, so I can update my review with more specifics. LOL read more

Jay Lovell's is a great place!! Wonderful burger and fries, and amazing blueberry pie!

The food was good, but I'm not in the camp of higher prices for self service and diner atmosphere.

Unfortunately our experience at Jay Lovell's was a big disappointment. We went on a Saturday evening and the place was about half full. Not empty but not too busy. We took a look at the menu and noted that everything looked a bit pricy, but considering that it's located midway between Highland Park and Lake Forest, the prices were to be expected. What wasn't expected, though, was the odd menu and poor food we experienced. First, I'm not sure who the target market is for Jay Lovell's. It's not a family-friendly burger spot as they don't have a kids menu (so I hope your kids like $9-$14 burgers) and they don't have fountain drinks, yet it's a far cry from the regular Lovell's of Lake Forest menu, so those who are happy there likely won't be happy here. They have a handful of salads but the menu is mainly burgers, sandwiches and some bowls of chili and gumbo. So is it a southern restaurant? We hoped so and ordered a smoked brisket sandwich and a chicken & cream w/biscuit bowl. The brisket was very tough and dry, like it had either been very overcooked or simply cooked at too high of a temperature. There was nothing low & slow about it. The highlight of the chicken & cream w/biscuit bowl was the biscuit, which was light and fluffy. The chicken, veggies and sauce were heavy and mostly unflavorful. I'm not even sure if the veggies were fresh as opposed to coming from a frozen bag. You order at the counter and then have to go back to the counter to pick up your order when ready. I'm not sure why they can't bring it to your table like most other quick-serve restaurants, but they don't. The food itself is served on flimsy, brown plastic trays which are cheap and ugly. A lot of care went into designing the interior of the restaurant (gorgeous hand-scraped wood floors and counters), so I'm not sure how they could let ugly plastic trays mar the experience. On to the drinks: they have a handful of domestic beer bottles, but they are $7 each! For soft drinks, they have some Mexican Cokes and root beers in a cooler, but no fountain drinks at all. Dessert choices were a couple of slices of pie, but we went to the ice cream shop next door and had ice cream instead. Other gripes: We had a couple of sodas in glass bottles from the cooler. When we were clearing our own table at the end of our meal, I carefully set our glass bottles next to the trays near the garbage cans since I didn't see any place to recycle them. A couple of minutes later, one of the managers came by and picked up the bottles and tossed them into the regular trash! Grrrr, not what I wanted to see! read more

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Y'know when you look forward to trying a place because it's had terrific reviews and a great rep in the community and then you go one night only to discover...it's just sorta...average? Sadly, after two evening visits that's the best I can offer. For a joint in an area with some really superb eating, man, Lovells just doesn't compete. The service was quick tho indifferent, the food decent (burgers better at any of a number of places) but at 15 bucks a burger/sandwich the dozen or so fries alongside just seems paltry. My companion thought the atmosphere cute but we agreed it really is more a diner with social aspirations and few smiles. Maybe...breakfast someday? read more

Stopped I for breakfast on a Monday morning. Had delicious scrambled eggs, bacon, 9-grain toast and fresh fruit. The servings were generous and it was perfectly cooked to order. Cute place and very clean. Would definitely return if I were in the neighborhood again. read more

No one home. Before bridal gown shopping, we all meet here Saturday, April 18th at 8 a.m (which is when they are open on Saturdays). We waited for over 15 minutes in front of the store. With 6 people in front of the restuaruant, the cook came out to say the manager wasn't there yet and couldn't let us in. Since we couldn't be late to our bridal appointment we didn't have a chance to try Jay Lovell's. It looked so yummy. So we went to Cafe Pettopia and had nice omeletes. read more

We arrived at 6:45 pm. It was offsetting to have the cooking staff staring totally bored at us while we ate (not busy). We soon learned why.... While all the food we ordered looked great, there was no spicing in the Gumbo with Okra, the Grits and Shrimp, or the Texas Chili. In fact, the Chili was sooo awful, that we sent it back. It was just lumps of medium rare hamburger meat in colored water with two chunks of stewed tomato and half cooked kidney beans. Even tabasco and black pepper could not salvage this watery dish. We returned it. Not offered a refund or a substitute dish. The register lady shrugged and said it was made elsewhere (i.e., not their fault). The peach pie was excellent for me, but another diner complained that pieces of his slice were too undercooked. Hope this restauranteur re-works this establishment. But, with such terrible staff, I'm not willing to try it again. read more

This much more affordable Lovell's opened up in 2014 and I tried it once during the Summer, it was only ehhh. I thought I would give it a 2nd try and dined in with my hubby. Gotta say, there are better casual restaurants in the area offering a full wait staff and entrees for less $. As you enter the very small restaurant, it is unclear to diners: is there a wait staff? do you order at the counter? do they bring the food out to you? do I clear the table or does the staff? what about the drinks? Ugh! Too many unanswered questions. Since it was my hubby's 1st time here and my 2nd, I was able to guide him on how the restaurant operated. We arrived on a week day during the lunch hour, no problem finding a table, there were lots available. We approached the counter but, found the Hostess MIA. No sign indicating she would be back shortly, when we turned to the cooks, they ignored us. Good news, it was just a bathroom break. They had a special that day: sliced beef and cheese on a crusty roll with horseradish sauce. Sounded intriguing we inquired as to exactly what the sandwich included; beef, melted cheese and horseradish sauce. Ok, sounds good, I ordered it. The hubby went for a bacon burger, medium. We decided to splurge on soda (usually drink just H2O, it's healthier) so, we ordered 2 bottles of Fanta, yep that's all they serve, no fountain drinks and you have to grab it out of the refrigerated case yourself. Both dishes came with a very small side, total: $27. If you want H2O, there are 2 pitchers of water being handled by all the patrons, ick! So, you do need to retrieve your food. The hubby liked his burger, cooked ok, tasted ok, it was just a burger. However, and this why I will not return to Lovell's (2 strikes & you're out!), my crusty beef and cheese sandwich with horseradish sauce included BACON! What??? No, we specifically asked the Hostess and she said meat, cheese & sauce. I think they forgot to drain the bacon, cause the roll had absorbed lots of the fat and now was soggy, not crispy. The Hostess had warned us: be prepared for the sauce, cause it's going to be hot. Well, I couldn't find the sauce, just a gloppy mess of cheddar cheese, bacon and beef. I don't blame the cooks or staff, rather the person managing this restaurant. read more

Jay Lovell's - CHOPPED CHICKEN SALAD - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Highwood, Illinois

First time here. Small and casual. You order then seat yourself. I like the casual atmosphere, nice change from the noisy breakfast places. Ordered Eggs Benedict, very good with runny eggs. Perfect. Lady of the house had The Two eggs with grits and Chorizo. Very good, will be back. read more

Jay Lovell's - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Highwood, Illinois