It may sound like a trashy motel, but the DuPage Inn is actually the home of the giant burger (as its boasts on the sign out front). The restaurant and bar areas are like two separate establishments. Walk left and you're in a quiet, old-school Greek diner where families and seniors come to grab a bite. Walk to the right and you’re in a neighborhood dive bar lit with Christmas lights. The pub area offers a slightly livelier atmosphere for the blue-collar regulars to post up at the bar for a cold one. And if you're not happy with either of these settings, the DuPage Inn has an outdoor patio available when it's warm enough. But regardless of where you sit, you'll likely be ordering up one of the giant burgers.
The buns can't quite contain these monstrous beef patties that come in a variety of styles. There's the Texas burger topped with pepper jack cheese and Texas toothpicks (fried shoestring onions and jalapenos), the Wisconsin burger topped with American and Swiss cheeses and the Black and Blue, which comes with blue cheese on grilled rye bread. There are also classics like the bacon cheeseburger, and for those looking for something a little smaller, there's the junior burger. For $8.50, the hamburgers come with fries, cole slaw and the soup of the day. But DuPage Inn is not just a burger joint. From pork chops to flaming saganaki, the crowded menu has just about everything under the sun (except for health foods). Vegetarians and dieters need not come here, unless they're heading straight to the bar.
Average cost: $10-$20
Centerstage Reviewer: Jim Collins
