stevez wrote:I had lunch ate the "new" Katy's in Westmont yesterday.
Although it looks different and all spiffed up, the staff (including the chef) are all the same people as before. I was dining solo, so my ordering power was limited. I can report that my stir fried onion pancake with pork was as good as ever.
When I asked about Mr. Red Shirt, all they would say is that he retired. I didn't ask about Oak Park, since I only frequent the Westmont location.
Jefe wrote:
Was Katy there? (I'm pretty sure she's the woman that always waits tables.) I've noticed its her name on the business license too.
stevez wrote:Jefe wrote:
Was Katy there? (I'm pretty sure she's the woman that always waits tables.) I've noticed its her name on the business license too.
If you mean the tall, skinny woman with long hair who has worked there since the begining, no she was not there. If you mean the shorter, somewhat stocky woman, who worked in Naperville, then Oak Park and finally Westmont (but I don't think her name is Katy), then yes. She is still there.
There was another woman, who I had never seen before, that was also there and acting like a boss. She might be the new owner.
We felt very bad for the server, it was her first day and it appears that the POS and the menu do not match.
Panther in the Den wrote:That is really sad as I live in Oak Park and really loved the place. Where to now?
stevez wrote:Panther in the Den wrote:That is really sad as I live in Oak Park and really loved the place. Where to now?
Although I live closer to Oak Park than Westmont in actual distance, in reality, it takes me the same amount of time to get to either location from my house. After sampling Oak Park's wares a few times, I cut them out of the picture and have been exclusively going to Westmont. I've always felt that Westmont was a least two notches better than Oak Park, even on OP's best day. Now that this change has come about, OP is completely dead to me.
I'd suggest following my footsteps and simply heading to the Westmont location.
bobbywal wrote:Does the Katy's in Westmont have some of my favorites from the Oak Park location? For example, dry chili chicken or tofu, cumin lamb, three chili fish? When I swnug by there for lunch a few weeks ago - and had an excellent stir fried pancake - the menu I was given seemed extremely limited. But maybe you can order "off menu"?
stevez wrote:No. Those dishes were never on the menu in Westmont. I think they ended up on the OP menu because they were inherited from the restaurant that was at that location before Katy's took over. Westmont specializes in dishes made with noodles (soups & stir frys) and dumplings. They also have a few American/Chinese dishes to satisfy non-initiated eaters and a bunch of cold items in the fridge.
bobbywal wrote:stevez wrote:No. Those dishes were never on the menu in Westmont. I think they ended up on the OP menu because they were inherited from the restaurant that was at that location before Katy's took over. Westmont specializes in dishes made with noodles (soups & stir frys) and dumplings. They also have a few American/Chinese dishes to satisfy non-initiated eaters and a bunch of cold items in the fridge.
Darn. That'd be a bummer if the new owners in Oak Park cannot pull them off. They were some of the best versions I've had of those - including their eggplant and their green beans. Better than versions from Mapo (Naperville) and Szechuan House (Aurora) which are regular lunch spots for me.
Sweet Willie wrote:Westmont location this evening. Dan Dan noodles tasty, not a lot of ma la going on.
Pork/Chive dumplings very bland flavor, also far little pork/chive mixture, easily pass on these next time.
Tried a new item, chicken roll in fried bean curd. Tasty, server stated there was some fish "a very small amount" in the roll as well.
Lots of sodium or msg also, I'm parched despite staying well hydrated throughout the day.
BR wrote: Still, the pancake noodles are my favorite item there and the XLB are probably my favorites in the Chicago area.
turkob wrote:Made a stop here recently and they are still great as ever in my book. As I was chowing down on my plate of noodles, a customer came in and noted that there was no tea smoked chicken in the fridge. No problem, the kitchen smoked a chicken to order in about ten minutes. You can do that?? I got one to go and it was awesome. Freshly smoked is definitely the way to go. On my must-order list for future trips.