Heartland Cafe – Almost Health Food!

Last night I stopped in at the Heartland Cafe with a good friend of mine who had just moved to town.  In many ways it was a perfect welcome-to-the-neighborhood dinner, soaking in the Rogers Park summer from the shade of their front patio and quenching our thirst with their fine local beers.  For the main course, my friend tried the buffalo burger, while I went for the grilled cheese sandwich with avocado and tomato.

It was a perfect example of those almost-healthy meals that places like the Heartland specialize in, with its fresh tomatoes and whole wheat bread offset by the rich melted pepper jack.  Delicious.  The waiter even claimed that my friend’s burger was more or less healthy, as buffalo is apparently “better for you” than beef.  Who knew? Apparently at the Heartland Cafe you can enjoy a big juicy burger and still sleep easy knowing that it wasn’t quite as bad for you as it might have been. There’s something to be said for that.

Heartland Cafe
7000 N Glenwood Ave

Comments

[Joelen]

Thanks for your input on this place. I've been meaning to try this place out but feared it would be all veggies. Good to know there are meat options available that are still healthy!

[Dave]

So -- as a neighborhood resident, I would actually dissuade folks from eating here. You're likely to get very lukewarm food, slow service, and if you're lucky, someone burning patchouli in the gift shop (not kidding, it actually happened). It is, however, a great place to sit on the patio and drink beer.

Originally opened in 1976 by two activists as the "Sweet Home Chicago Heartland Café," it has become a cultural icon for the diverse neighborhood, known as much for its hippie ambience and left-leaning politics as for its largely (but not exclusively) vegetarian food.

Greetings