Jeri’s Grill

Reviews

• Scott H.

  star star star star star_border 12 June 2026

  Jeri's is everything that someone looking for a true diner wants and deserves. Maybe it's because I grew up hitting diners with my dad before school each day, often the same diner where they knew our name and we ordered the same thing every day but this place meets my 3 criteria for an awesome diner:
  
  1) Quick - Food comes out almost as soon as you place your order
  2) Good Food - I didn't say great, but food like your mom, dad, uncle, or Neighborhood breakfast spot would throw in your plate
  3) Inexpensive- ~$7 for eggs, toast, hash browns, meat, and coffee.
  
  Don't go here if you're looking for "top breakfast spots in Chicago" or used to decor and over the top service. This is a "get what you see" kind of spot but we need more of them around the area if you ask me. Especially with kids/families that want to get it and get out and not spend a lot on finicky kids  that don't eat a whole meal.

• Dan T.

  star star_border star_border star_border star_border 6 June 2026

  Place is disgusting. Unsanitary, not clean and the food they serve shouldn't even be served to rats. First the screwed up our order and me and my bro both got BLT with fries but we only got 1 with fries with the whole order. I could've made a better BLT at home, was bland and the bacon was nasty.
  
  There is literally shit in there Chili. Not even joking on this, I saw them lift up there chili and I through up in my mouth. It looked liked it had been sitting there for years. I told my bro not to get it but didn't listen to me. He had one bite and through up.
  
  To top everything off, the server gave us attitude when we questioned are order. Ok that's fine, have a "customer is always wrong" philosophy,  you won't ever see us back again.

• Stephen C.

  star star star star star_border 29 May 2026

  If you stand at the bus stop on the corner of Montrose & Western in Chicago's North Center neighborhood and you look to the corner across street you'll see a joint, a real joint, reminiscent of the joint in Edward Hoppers 'Boulevard of Broken Dreams'. While there may not be any James Dean, Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley or Humphrey Bogart hanging out in the window in this joint you've got something better, the real thing. The hard luck, rough life, weather-beaten old characters in the flesh. These days there's even a couple of bearded, skinny jean hipster guys and girls and married couple types lounging in the old press wood booths of yesteryear. It's a picture that could be straight our of the Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer episodes, marked by a mood of pessimism, fatalism, and menace, real film noir stuff.
  
  Though it may at first sight appear somewhat foreboding it's anything but on the inside. Sure, while it may be true nobody inside cares who you are, what you do or where you're from, you're not there for all jazz. No, you're there at Jeri's Grill a 24 hour Chicago diner for the grub, the true late night, gut busting, greasy spoon eats. It's a throwback to the days when your grandma used to save the extra bacon grease on stove in a coffee can to cook with the next day. I mean, that's what made the food so good right? And there's always a copy of the Chicago Sun-times or Chicago Tribune to be had as you enjoy your meal. As for the customers, the truth is most of the regulars know each other and if you come around enough they just might get to know you too. In fact, most everybody there is pretty friendly and everybody has a story, pretty interesting ones in fact, they've just been around so long some of them they've seen it all and seen them come and go. You get the feeling "if these walls could talk". The waitresses are neighborhood gals who know the ropes, always friendly and ready with a smile but you get the feeling you wouldn't want mess with them. Customers are from all walks of life in a neighborhood that has seen the good and bad and has been on the upswing for some time now. Started in 1963 by Anice DePiero Jeri's is now run by his son Frank and like they say, what you see is what you get. The North Center neighborhood may be a destination these days but Jeri's has been a destination for over 50 years.
  
  It just so happens to be one of my regular hangs where I peck out a few pages of s story or read a good book over the course of a night with some decent hot coffee, a few truly great bowls s of homemade soup, they usually have a few to offer up on any given night, this particular night I had the chicken tortilla soup. If I'm there early enough in the morning I'll tear up some wicked biscuits and gravy. Like I said, it's the great straight forward, no frill, no fuss, diner food you expect in a 24 joint like Jeri's.
  
  You walk in this joint and grab a table, that's it. Nobodies gonna baby you or lead you by the hand to your table and there's no reservations taken though there may on weekends be a line. On each table there's a two-sided plainly typed menu with everyday offerings. It may be the only spot outside of Cook County jail that  serves up the "Jailhouse Special", fried bologna, eggs, hash browns and toast. The last time I had a jailhouse special that good was, well, in Cook County Jail. Because of high demand the biscuits and country gravy are served only between the hours 12 a.m. and 2 p.m. Of course they have the old standbys like pizza puffs, beefaroni and mozzarella sticks. The homemade chili and soups are a must try. The sandwiches such as cheeseburgers, rib eye steak sandwich and boneless pork chop with grilled onions bring you back to your childhood. There's always a daily special in addition to the hot lunch and dinner platters of grilled pork chops, breaded veal cutlets strip steaks and fried chicken to name a few. Jeri's even serves up desserts like fruit pies, warm cobblers and assorted milk shakes and fountain drinks. Who else still serves Sanka and the Chicago staple, sweet rolls?
  
  Jeri's is a drop in anytime joint and one of the last of it's kind greasy spoon over 5o years in the making and I have a feeling it won't be going anywhere anytime soon. Stop in even if just to say you've been there you won't regret it.

• Amy K.

  star star star star star_border 19 May 2026

  Haven't been here since before I started using Yelp! The chili is thick, hot, kind of pasty, and not very spicy. (They'll bring hot sauce to the table, but that's not very spicy, either.) Fries are classic diner fries, but could have used more salt. I recall the bacon, hash browns, and coffee being a fine example of their type. Soda comes in one size and price: $1.25 for a 12 oz. can. The food is cheap. The space retains its pre-gentrification "charm". Single-seat bathroom in the back. Jeri's is old-school Lincoln Square, from back before upscale gyms and brunch places came in. Get there before it's gone. Recommended for cheap food, not healthy food.

• Gregory M.

  star star star star_border star_border 16 May 2026

  No matter the hour on the clock Jeri's is open and is serving up good diner comfort food. We have visited at 6:00 AM for a quick Omelet or French Toast and bottomless cups of coffee. Recently we stopped in at 11:00 PM and as is always the case there were a number of tables or stools occupied with regulars. Today there was a community conversation talking about who has the best cell service. You kind of feel like you have walked in on  a family mealtime. The service is quick and friendly. Tonight we spilt a heaping $6.95  hot beef sandwich entree. Tasty and very filling. We did however leave room for dessert. Mine was a dish of hot Peach Cobbler ala mode and Nancy enjoyed a slice of their own made key lime pie. The decor is little dated which only adds to the experince . When you just need a good comfort  food meal and you don't need a table cloth Jeri's should fill the bill.