Once Upon a Grill is a great spot for great food -- consistently tasty and always satisfying. It's an easy go‑to when you want something reliable and flavorful. My only gripe is the pace during lunchtime. I get that they're busy, but it is lunch, and most people don't have a lot of time to spare. The wait can feel a bit long when you're trying to squeeze in a quick meal. Still, the food makes it worth coming back, especially when you're not in a rush. read more

We couldn't decide if we wanted breakfast or lunch so a friend recommended this place since they serve both. Plenty of parking as it's located in a plaza. The menu is located on a big board behind the counter. They have quite a lot of food items to choose from. You order and pay at the counter and you'll get a number to put on your table and they bring it out to you. They had me at horchata, plus it's self serve and you can get refills. The kicker? It's delicious horchata so I will be back. For my food I ordered breakfast enchiladas in red sauce and a side of hashbrowns. I didn't realize the enchiladas came with rice and beans so that was a lot of food so some got packaged up to go home. The space is clean, there's plenty of tables inside to dine in. Staff were quick to clean off tables as patrons left. read more

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I like their variety, convenience, and dining area. The service isn't bad and the food is decent. What would make me come back more often is a salad dressing without sugar. Even their vinaigrette has added sugar. Gross. read more

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No complaints here ever it was great! I ordered a black sandwich and a skinny bagel with everything on it, but I didn't know that included olives, never had that before, but it was yummy. Food always comes out super fast and all staff are always super nice! Obviously, we'll be coming back read more

Once Upon A Grill - Lox sandwich - Delis Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

Part of the "Once Upon a" family of restaurants. I've been to Once Upon a Bagel before and it's similar if not identical. I had a bagel breakfast sandwich and it was pretty good. I wish they used a different cheese... it was like melted American or something. But that's ok, it was otherwise very good. I got bacon but next time might try the sausage. And I'm sure there'll be a next time. I considered getting some bagels to take home but opted against it this time. Next time I may get some bagels to put in the freezer and if they have it some house made cream cheese. Parking is plentiful as they're in a small strip mall. Lots of seating inside, which is kind of crowded but when I stopped in there was hardly anyone in, though there were two or three others there for pickup/carryout. read more

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Even though I drive by this area quite frequently, to be honest I never noticed this place because it's tucked away in an 'L-shaped' section of the strip mall. Went here to meet some ex-coworkers for lunch and was pleasantly surprised. Lots of options to choose from, it's almost overwhelming! There's breakfast, sandwiches, Mexican dishes, desserts - everything you would think of seems like is here. Ordering was fast the counter person helped walk me through the options from my selection, they do it old school just by writing it down on a paper and then tagging it up to be made. Payment was the normal electronic options. Since I was ordering for sit down, they gave me a number. There was ample seating even for a lunchtime hour. The order came quickly, still a little bit pricey for the sandwich - but it was fresh and a good size. In any case, definitely recommend especially when you have to do a work lunch and only have an hour to spare! read more

Once Upon A Grill - Delis Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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The last time I was there (last week) I had the Chicken Fajita Burrito and it was just fantastic. I had never ordered their Mexican food before that visit and now I will try everything. This restaurant is very laid back and casual and the staff goes out of their way to make you happy! Their eggs are great for breakfast! It is a real gem!!! read more

Always delicious comfort food. Their bagels are great. Perfect for a quick bite. #iraeats #iraeats1 read more

Once Upon A Grill - Tuna Salad Plate - Delis Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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I don't know why our office continues to order from here. Wrote a review two years ago, and it all still stands true. Tried to order and sandwich and requested no pickle cause of allergies...came right in there and couldn't eat half the sandwich. I gave it a two star cause if they don't forget any of the order, breakfast they rarely f*ck up! If we continue to order from there then I'll stick to breakfast or just go to DQ next door. read more

This is one of a group of restaurants that all start with once upon. They have mostly deli food, but have a wide variety of food to choose from including soups, and sandwiches. read more

Once Upon A Grill is a counter-service style of deli. They have great breakfast options, good bagels, and delicious sandwiches. The service is always good and helpful and their bussers/food runners are extremely friendly and helpful. They have a ton of food options from deli to tacos to wings. However, I tend to order their Once Upon A Breakfast when I go in the mornings. Eggs how you want them, a meat selection, hash browns or fruit, and toast or pancakes with a beverage. Lunch is always a deli sandwich...however, they have an extensive menu. You help yourself to anything: coffee, tea, soda, horchata, etc. You even get your own silverware and napkins are on the table. For all intents and purposes, the counter service acts more like a cafeteria. I meet for breakfast here once a month and sometimes meet a group during the week. It's truly my go-to breakfast place. A couple doors down is the Once Upon A Deli so you can purchase items in bulk or order trays for lifecycle events. They are perfect for shivas/wakes, Jewish holidays, family gatherings, etc. If you're looking for a good breakfast or lunch place, Once Upon A Grill is your place. read more

Food is fresh, delicious and a great variety! The chicken kabobs were amazing and the potatoes and salad was wonderful too. I highly recommend this restaurant! read more

Good food, on time pickup orders. All ingredients are fresh. Rolls and breads too. Very popular as noted by many customers.

Delicious egg white omelette with green pepper, tomato, onion, and pepperjack cheese. Great staff. Very nice for food you want fast

A fall favorite! Delicious soups with a side of fresh bagel! Yummy! They have soup by the day or the classic chicken noodle or chili every day. The ambience it's casual and relaxed. Order when you come in and the food gets delivered to your table by the very friendly staff. Very clean and nice for a lunch during workdays. read more

Once Upon A Grill - Split pea soup and bagel. - Delis Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

This is a walk-up counter, seat yourself place that claims to have the best breakfast. Unfortunately, it falls short of best... unless it is like the world's best coffee like in the movie "Elf". The restaurant is tied to other "Once Upon" like cafe and bagel, and even the Mean Wiener. There really isn't much service. The man behind the counter did talk and point, but it was pretty self service beyond that. Get your own drink, get your own flatware. Once I sat down alone, I had to get back up a couple times to refill my drink. I always fret about leaving food at the table and as soon as I go to refill, someone takes my plate I haven't finished. That didn't happen, but eating alone in a place like this made it a chance. My food came out hot and all at the same time. I got the ham and cheese omelette with a sesame bagel. I added a side of hash browns. There was entirely too much food for me to eat. The omelette was light and fluffy. But that is all, it fell flat on flavor. Even the ham was less than impressive. The hash browns were good and cooked to the right point before serving. The sesame bagel was surprising lacking in sesame seeds. It had some but it looked like someone wiped the seeds off before sending it to the table. Ambiance is sparse. It had more advertisements than artwork. read more

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Always good order frequently. Reuban burger is worthy of a social media post. Boats are good

This restaurant is nice, clean, good service. Nice place for breakfast. A nice place to go to. read more

Gave Once Upon A Grill another chance and ordered through a delivery service. Complete fail. They didn't include any of the bagels or bialys from my order! Also my steak that I asked for RARE was completely BURNT. Charged me almost $2 for some cheese that I asked for on top of eggs. Also, do not get avocado toast here. It's literally a little bit of avocado smeared on a couple pieces of bread for $8. Did they switch owners after the pandemic? Complete rip-off. Not worth it! Do not recommend. read more

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Outstanding deli and authentic Mexican by the nicest people. Best Reuben I've had in a long time.

Our go to when we want breakfast for dinner. If your looking for a diner style breakfast, this is the place to go! Everything is always cooked perfect. The garden omelet is full of veggies! Yum yum! Also comes with bread/toast. read more

Once Upon A Grill - Garden Omelette - Delis Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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I recently hosted a breakfast for the staff at the three District 27 schools. We ordered bagel trays and breakfast combo trays (muffins, donuts, coffee cake and cookies) and coffee. We had 15 people at one location, 90 at another and about 115 at the third. The people at Once Upon went above and beyond to make sure the trays arrived on time at all 3 locations and the spread was beautiful! Everybody enjoyed the delicious food. I was very impressed that the bagel trays came with three different cream cheeses as well as fresh cucumbers and tomatoes. The bagels were also pre-sliced which was very helpful! If you need a nice breakfast for a large (or small) group, I HIGHLY recommend Once Upon a Grill and Once Upon a Deli! read more

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I have been eating here my whole life. Every time the food is great, and the staff is very friendly! Last night I finally decided to try the Mexican food. We tried the carne asada a la mexicana and the chicken fajitas. Both were DELICIOUS!!!! The beans were a little too salty for me, and I do wish the fajitas came with guacamole, sour cream, and pico, but overall I was very impressed! My dad had a garden omelette and corned beef hash and LOVED both! I also recommend the veggie skins... Scooped out toasted bagel with grilled veggies, melted cheese and served with salsa - SO GOOD!!! read more

Once Upon A Grill - Chicken fajitas served with a grilled jalapeño, rice and beans - Delis Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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Haven't been here in a while. They have a full menu of Mexican good. I ended u on a steaming cup of delicious elote with a big container of kreplack matzo and vegetable. Broth was to salty kreplach was excellent . I'm excited to come back and try it. Nice looking menu read more

The food is usually good here, but the service has gone down hill. We ordered a Nova Delight Omelette, which is supposed to come with cream cheese mixed into the middle. We also ordered extra cream cheese for a bialy on the side, which they charged us for. The omelette came with no cream cheese in it. Of course mistakes happen, but when we complained they wouldn't fix it! They wouldn't remake the omelette or even give us a credit. They were rude and told us to put the side cream cheese in it ourselves. The employees here no longer have any customer service attitude like they did years ago. read more

OUAG is amazing all around. Great local feel and has the BEST tacos in the north shore. Chicken and Steak are my go to.

Ok my travels took me to IL so I wanted to hit up a breakfast spot and this place looked just a little different from the typical breakfast spot because I look for that. The place is in a strip mall with a once upon a deli a few doors down and both had neon open signs in the windows so I was confused, I think all the deli sandwiches pictures are from the other restaurant. The place is not your typical breakfast spot because you order/pay for your food and they bring it to your table, you grab your drinks, silverware, napkins, water etc so no table service for coffee refills. The menu is on the wall and big so step back a take a good look if it's your first time. I would have the pick three omelette with the three generic toast or one of their fresh bagels, it's been a long time since I have had an omelette. For the price of a breakfast omelette from most places this one doesn't come with any potatoes for some reason. The toast was room temperature cold with the cold butter right out of the fridge so butter melted into the toast was not possible WTF. The omelette was mozzarella, ham, bacon and sausage for my build your own. The omelette eggs were dry/dense, not fluffy and fresh egg tasting so I think that they were commercial liquid eggs. They did have a homemade frozen soup take home selection so I grabbed a split pea that comes with a bagel to go with me. Overall my breakfast was super average and nothing impressive but that's how it goes some times when your trying a new place. read more

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This is our go to Sunday breakfast spot for years. The problem is they are getting orders wrong on a consistant basis lately. Last Sunday, four tables were served the wrong food. The reason is an inexperienced staff and inability to understand enough English to take an order. Staff should be training during weekday off hours, not on Sunday prime time. read more

Order taker recommended the vegetarian vegetable soup as I was scanning the menu for vegetarian items. They were not wrong, ''twas delicious. Apparently served every Friday. Service was, per usual, good to great. read more

I'm a huge fan of the Once Upon A chain, namely for their matzo ball soup! Their bagels here are also fantastic. This place is usually busy and tends to have slower service, but the baked goods, soup, and bagels are well worth it! Just a heads up--I accidentally stopped here instead of Once Upon A Deli! Both are great but in the same strip mall, which can be a bit confusing if you are visiting for the first time! read more

Absolutely love this place. Never had a bad meal. Amazingly friendly efficient staff. The food, sooooo good! And the WINGS!! Not kidding when I say the wings are the best and it's not even close. read more

In the last 10 times we've picked up our order from Once upon a Grill, I would say they messed it up 7-8 times. I asked to speak to the manager and he blamed it on the restaurant being too busy. He then told me to go somewhere else if I wasn't happy with the service. read more

My experiences at Once Upon a Grill the last 4-5 times there have been awful. I have been a frequent diner there for over 15 years, however the service as of late has been less than acceptable. The quality of the food and the constant price increases have made this restaurant a much less desirable choice for dining than ever before. They have consistently handled my take out orders incorrectly. No wonder it seems empty all the time now. Their business is reflective of their food and their attitudes. Thumbs down read more

In one line: stick to the Mexican themed food here. My steak quesadilla was flavorful, crispy, hot, and a hefty portion and value for $7.95! We confirmed this place is related to Once Upon A Bagel in Highland Park upon walking in, immediately recognizing the menu set up and interior decor. The meat lover's omelette was underwhelming and extremely bland considering all the meat it was supposed to have. It does come with your choice of bagel or bread! Note the corned beef hash is more hash brown than corned beef and comes with chopped green peppers. Overall, ok if you're in the area and need calories in a pinch. read more

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Fresh and delicious! Prepared so beautifully, too! I am so glad you are open again. The pickup was seamless. The portions are a great size, too. We loved the food, and the bagels are so good, too. read more

Once Upon A Grill - Egg white salad - Delis Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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Still , not on par with bonafide delis, Once Upon A Grill is okay if you want something in a hurry. Prices are decent, and the hot corned beef sandwich on rye does the job done, but they don't even have deli mustard (at least on the table) only yellow mustard? The menu is quite extensive but I implore you to only order deli foods plus burgers. The soups are homemade but they end up microwaving them as their hot pots lack convection power unfortunately. read more

Once Upon A Grill - Sandwich was dry. At home had to add some sauce and relish because why not! - Delis Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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It was my first time here today and won't be my last. Yelp comes through again and I found myself hungry for lunch. I've always driven past and seen cars outside this busy diner but never went in. I saw on Yelp they had a taco Tuesday special. The new price is now $1.95 (vs .50) a taco but still worth it. We friend the chicken, pork and steak. I would rank steak first with pork a close second. I also got tortilla soup which was $4.95 and came with a bagel. Both were very good. To finish it off I ordered Cajun Curley fries and they were delicious. The servings were quite big the hot sauce was good and service was quick and excellent. I think their sandwiches are on the costlier side but I'm sure you get what you pay for. I can't wait to try more next time. read more

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An amazing staple in Northbook. Even though you wouldn't necessarily think of this location for any type of Mexican food, I've been coming here for Huevos Rancheros for years, and it is phenomenal. Between the huevos rancheros, bagels, pancakes, juice, and great coffee, there are plenty of great options for our entire family to be happy when visiting for breakfast. As an added bonus, everyone who works there is always friendly, smiling, and helpful. Truly wonderful experience every time! read more

Best steak tacos for cheap on Tuesdays, great curly fries. But the best part is when you're sick and you need some jewish penicillin. Get either the mish mosh or the chicken and matzoh ball soup. You won't regret it. Friendly staff and is always quick. read more

Salads are huge and taste really good. They throw in some bread, bagel or bialy. I have yet to try anything else but will have to try their breakfast. read more