Best Casual Restaurants in Crystal Lake

As a local resident who enjoys many of the area restaurants, The CL Junction is a great fit and has become my restaurant of choice in town. While the American fare is great, I love the Portuguese and Mediterranean spin on many of their options. The service is such that you immediately feel welcomed like a regular. The vibe is nice, comfortable, and not pretentious. Even when the place is filled up, it’s easy to carry on a conversation without having to compete with all the other tables.

The Annex is a great addition to the area offering upscale food in a casual environment. The menu items are unique and packed with flavor. We dined as a group of 4 and had a great time sharing some apps and drinks before our main courses. We dined on eggplant parmesan bites (a special that day), crunchy feta (I almost passed on this because I thought it would be too much cheese, but it was delicious and it was split between the four of us!) We also had French onion and cream of chicken soups. They were both freshly made and had excellent flavors. For entrees, our group dined on the roasted beet salad, the classic steakhouse filet with mushroom gravy and mashed potatoes, a special steak fried rice dish with fresh hummus, tatziki, and veggies, and the Friday fish fry. Everyone was pleased with their dish and eager to share and try the other dishes at the table. The great thing about this restaurant is they are always creating new and exciting dishes with fresh ingredients, so you won’t get sick of having the same old thing every week (a rut that we get into often!) It was a packed house when we got there but we didn’t have any trouble hearing each other and never needed to raise our voices. Reservations are needed on Fridays and Saturdays especially, so make sure to reserve your table ahead of time!

My wife and I had a date night and absolutely loved this place. We had the wings as an appetizer and they were the bomb! Our drinks and dishes were delicious as well. Can’t wait to come back.

Fun night out for a little kid birthday dinner! Our server Austin was attentive, food was delicious as always, and the staff was all cheerful and accommodating!

Jason gave us excellent service. Prices are reasonable, and food choices were great for an Italian restaurant. Food was brought hot and promptly. We had the spinach artichoke dip, which was delicious, and both of us had a Lasagna, and it was yummy.