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Business & Tech

Birthday Dinner at Dante's

Annie's husband picks Dante's for his special day.

When I was growing up, our family had a birthday tradition – we got to have whatever we wanted for our birthday dinner.  As a kid I would either ask my mom to make SOS or I would ask to go to Cattleman’s Burger and Brew (which is now a gas station at the corner of 62 and 25).

I still follow the same tradition with my family. My four kids always pick the same thing – Japanese food — and I thought for sure my husband would do the same thing and pick Sushi Station or Kobe Steakhouse for his birthday dinner last night. He surprised me by picking Dante’s. I probably should not have been surprised— Dante’s is his favorite area restaurant.

Dante’s is located at 10400 Route 31 in Algonquin. For the old-time Algonquinites, Dante’s is located in the old Scooby’s building.

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We arrived at Dante’s a little after 6 p.m. on Monday night.  We looked over the menu hanging above the register and placed our order with Harry, the owner.  Harry is probably one of the nicest people I have ever met. We have eaten at Dante’s many, many times over the past couple years and he has never been anything but wonderful.

The birthday boy ordered a Demon Steak Sandwich – a Philly Cheesesteak with jalapenos, pepper jack cheese, peppers and Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce.  I ordered Three-Layer Fries – french fries with Merkts cheese, sour cream and bacon. McKenzie ordered a regular cheese fry and the little kids both had a hot dog and fries. Dante’s carries Pepsi products which makes me super happy.

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Tom said his Demon Steak Sandwich was amazing. He likes his food to bite him as he is eating it and this did the trick. The kids ate their hot dogs and fries while discussing the ketchup versus no ketchup on their fries debate they have been having for months. McKenzie said her cheese fries were “super tasty” as usual and my Three-Layer Fries were out of this world good. However, if you are not a fan of Merkts cheese, you might not like this combo. I am a huge fan of Merkts and I thought the combination of sharp cheddar and bacon was amazing.

I ordered a large order of Three-Layer Fries thinking I would be able to eat it all since I was not having anything else. Tom thought I should order the large so he could share with me. When the fries arrived, I tried to keep them all to myself but about a quarter of the way through, I knew I would not be able to finish them and scooted my basket to the birthday boy.

I have never had a meal at Dante’s I did not like. Do not let the location scare you. Dante’s is worth the time you may have to spend in traffic to get there.

More of Annie's Algonquin restaurant reviews:

  • (Jersey Mike's Subs)
  • (Yumz Yogurt)
  • (Algonquin Sub Shop)
  • A Back-to-School Lunch (Sonic Drive-In and Cafe Firefly)
  • Not Just Pancakes at Georgia's Pancake House
  • (El Molino)
  • (Biaggi's)
  • (The Texan Barbeque)
  • (Nero's Pizza and Pub)
  • (Riverview Restaurant)
  • (Reese's Restaurant)
  • (Kobe Japanese Steakhouse)
  • (Tacos El Norte)
  • (Cheeseburgers in Paradise)
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