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    Once Upon A Bagel

    3.6 (21 reviews)
    Closed 8:00 am - 6:00 pm

    Order Once Upon A Bagel Takeout or Delivery

    Once Upon A Bagel Photos

    ONCE UPON A BAGEL ATMOSPHERE

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    Karyn M.

    This is a tiny location - just pick up - but all of the Once Upon A Bagel favorites are here - no grill though. Still, easy to park on the street and nobody was here at 7:30am so I easily picked up some bagels and other items. There's a refrigerator case with soups, and a stand with coffee cakes. If I were picking up a big order I'd call ahead. Friendly people, delicious sesame bagel!

    Ashley H.

    My friend and I met for lunch yesterday we grabbed some food from once I had a bagel and walked down to a near park brunch and had a beautiful picnic. my friend Mike got a turkey bagel sandwich. We split a veggie & potato pancake. And I had a Baily lox sandwich. Everything was amazing. This place is just opened and the staff were so friendly and quick. it's a very organized clean storefront. I can't wait to go back and have another beautiful picnic.

    Bagel & Bialy selection

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    Photo of Kesha B.
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    6 months ago

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    7 months ago

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    2 months ago

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    2 years ago

    Helpful 10
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    5 months ago

    Food and service were great! New favorite spot for breakfast and coffee. Plenty of seating for our family.

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    6 months ago

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    2 years ago

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    2 years ago

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    2 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Best chili and chicken soup in the area. Glad they opened in Lake Forest . Freshest bagels also

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    2 years ago

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    2 years ago

    So glad they expanded to this location! Excellent bagels and the staff was really friendly and helpful.

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    2 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Great food!! Small location, but efficient and just as delicious as the larger delis!

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    2 years ago

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    Review Highlights - Once Upon A Bagel

    Best chili and chicken soup in the area.

    Mentioned in 2 reviews

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    Buttermilk - Vernon Hills

    Buttermilk - Vernon Hills

    4.0
    (730 reviews)
    5.3 mi
    $$

    Very popular spot in Mellody Farm that can have a sizeable wait of over 30 minutes if you're…read morelooking for a large table, but the quality of the ingredients and dishes are worth it if you have some extra time to spare. Parking is fairly plentiful, though the entire shopping center is so busy you might not be able to park super close to the restaurant during normal meal hours. The decor is nice, with appropriate themes for a breakfast restaurant and the seating is comfortable. Service is not super fast, but not too slow for a spot that is this busy. The food is really the star here, in terms of the items offered and in the quality of ingredients, good textures, and design of the dishes. I was very pleased that every dish I tried was minimally very good, and flavorful. The burritofull morning sounds like a standard breakfast burrito, but the flat iron steak was spiced to perfection and tender. The mix of chorizo, roasted peppers, chipotle crema, and salsa verde were surprisingly not too salty and really helped to enhance the flavor of the steak. The crispy hash browns, onions, and chihuahua cheese helped to round out the remainder of this dish with some carbs and a bit of fat, resulting in a very enjoyable dish with nice crispy potatoes on the side. The chicken fried chicken skillet mixed a lot of flavorful elements without being too salty. The golden fried chicken is tender inside, with almost a crispy tempura style batter and is mixed with honey smoked bacon, sausage, and griddled country ham. The bell peppers, and onion add a nice sweetness and extra aroma to the dish. This is topped off with a fairly light sausage gravy, cheddar, and jack cheeses. The potatoes matched well with the gravy, but also helped to absorb some of the fat from the meats. The overall combination was delicious and something I'd definitely order again. The banoffee pie pancakes were some of the best pancakes I've had in the last year. Light and super fluffy is not an understatement. Topped with bananas and lots of chocolate chips and chocolate curls, this is intense without being overly sweet or indulgent. The toffee sauce lightly blends in with the other ingredients and the graham cracker crumbles add a nice, almost banana pie feel to the dish. Highly recommended as a very balanced and delicious option. The corned beef hash and eggs may have been one of the best dishes to show off pure ingredient quality. This is house-made corned beef that is extremely tender and not too salty. A simple mix of green peppers, red peppers, and onions really allow the meat quality to shine without distraction, with crispy potatoes to add a bit of starch to the dish. The tres leches french toast was masterfully done, eggy, thick, with just the right level of firmness. The coconut flakes were an amazing combination with the milks, and cinnamon whipped cream, hazelnut syrup, and coconut cream elevated the flavors without making the entire dish too sweet. My only comment is that compared to other items on the menu, the serving of this felt a bit small for the price. The lil'bit of chicken fried is not your average chicken sandwich. This is quality throughout the entire dish from the buttered brioche down to the perfectly cooked chicken. The biggest surprise for me is the pickles, which have the perfect texture and level of acid. This goes great with the sweet potato fries which are lightly crisp and quite flavorful. Overall, this place gets busy and the prices are a bit higher than other competitors in the area. But the quality of the cooking here makes it worth the wait.

    Wow wow wow, I really wished I lived closer so I could come here all the time! Came here for…read morebreakfast with a friend, and it was delicious! First off, they give you a free biscuit on Tuesdays, so leave room for that. I ordered the griddled ham and cheese crepe, and it's one of the most delicious breakfast items I think I've ever had. The ham is a tiny bit sweet, which balances out the richness of the Gruyère and hollandaise nicely. It's also huge-two giant crepes as big as my head! I finished one and took the other one home-it heated up really nicely. I also ordered the apple/gouda chicken sausage. The flavor was good, though a tiny bit on the dry side (which tends to happen with chicken sausage). I ordered the cookie butter latte as well, delicious and not too sweet. Service was good, even though they were pretty busy when they were there. Prices are good too, especially for how much food you get. One note: they don't take reservations, so be prepared for a wait, especially on the weekends.

    Photos
    Inside
    Inside
    Chicken and Wow-fles (December 2023 special item)
    Chicken and Wow-fles (December 2023 special item)
    Maple bourbon candied bacon

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    Maple bourbon candied bacon
    Walker Bros Original Pancake House

    Walker Bros Original Pancake House

    3.7
    (447 reviews)
    6.1 mi
    $$

    I haven't been to a Walker Bros in over 20 years and was pleasantly surprised to see that no much…read morehas changed. Friendly staff, great menu with great food, and the ambience was nothing short of a fairy tale. I had never been to this location and it was like dining in a fancy castle from Beauty and the Beast. The corned-beef hash was delicious. My colleagues also enjoyed their meals, including the huge pancakes. Prices were in line with current inflation rates, so you're getting a good bang for your buck when dining in this beautiful environment. I'll be back.

    Walker Bros is one of our favorite breakfast places. We grew up going to Walker Bros and anytime we…read moreare back in Chicago, we love to go back for their breakfast. Love their omelets, bacon, French toast, but their specialty is their apple pancake! It's so good. More than enough to share, even though you might not want to. We have visited similar locations in Minnesota however there is really only one place to go for that apple pancake! That is the reason for our visit this day. Since we had already had breakfast, and since we unfortunately do not have a Walker Bros location in Minnesota, thankfully Christmas came early for us this day. Walker Bros sells frozen versions of their famous apple pancake. Yay! So we picked up 5 of them. That should hopefully last us until we visit again where we can pick up some more to take home with us. Walker Bros has locations throughout Chicago. Over the years we have been to several of their locations and we certainly will visit again.

    Photos
    View of entrance area from exit
    View of entrance area from exit
    Walker Bros Original Pancake House
    Beautiful dining space

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    Beautiful dining space
    Da Local Boy

    Da Local Boy

    4.8
    (152 reviews)
    3.7 mi
    $$

    Holy wow I can understand why this spot is so popular! If I lived nearby I'd be here all the time!!…read moreWe got two different meat platters to sample everything and I'm so glad we did because I'm still dreaming about the Huli huli chicken and the short ribs. Spam musubi was also on point and the Mac salad was bomb. Also enjoyed trying some Hawaiian drinks!

    I'm not sure why there aren't more Hawaiian restaurants around Chicagoland because I find Hawaiian…read morecuisine to be delicious. Even if we don't consider its rarity, Da Local Boy is a winner in every category. The prices are very fair for the enormous portion sizes, the decor is fun and appropriate, the service is friendly, and food is phenomenal both in flavors and textures. The only possible criticisms are that the space is a bit small for how popular this spot gets, and the parking in the area can be a bit limited around popular meal times. The food here shines, making it worth a special trip -- both again for the rarity but also the quality. For me, the poke nachos are a must order item, just the perfect mix of large chunks of tuna with super crispy wontons, fresh avocado, and a good helping of sauce. Amongst friends, we've agreed that this is a must order item. The huli huli chicken is also unreal in flavor and texture. Besides being marinated and sauced well, the chicken is melt in your mouth tender while simultaneously having a delicious crisp skin. Think brick chicken, but with more flavor and a much better price. The rice and macaroni salad that accompany this are also well done -- and feel more like a core part of the meal rather than an afterthought. The grilled pork is pretty good as well, though I kind of wish it wasn't sliced as thin, as certain pieces felt a bit dry. The spam musubi with a light touch of furikake also provided a flavorful, fun dish to accompany the other delicious items I tried. Overall, delicious and consistently surprises me with the quality of the execution and bold flavor combinations. This is on my top places to visit in the area and has never disappointed.

    Photos
    Da Local Boy
    Corned Beef Hash
    Corned Beef Hash
    Da Local Boy

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    Pixca

    Pixca

    4.4
    (164 reviews)
    5.0 mi

    We stopped in at Pixca on a Friday night for dinner. When we arrived many tables were open but when…read morewe asked for a table for two the host paused like he wasn't sure he could fit us in. He did find a table and during the course of our meal there were non-stop arrivals with a few heading straight to the small bar so I'm thinking perhaps it has a strong flow of regular customers. The service was efficient and the dining room has a cozy bistro feel to it. The menu is seasonal. Nothing was calling out to me so I went with the burger and fries. Both were good. Overall we are glad we gave Pixca a try. Before we go again we'll make a reservation and check the menu to see what the current options are.

    We were around the area at the Botanic Gardens and found this spot on Yelp. Located in a cute…read morelittle area, this is a nice local restaurant. We arrived very early at a random time, probably right after opening. Everyone was so nice and service was great. The table started with the cornbread, moist and warm. Not as sweet as I personally like (I can't help it I'm southern) but delicious nonetheless. The eggplant hummus wasn't that great to me, loved the bread it came with but I think I would prefer typical chickpea hummus instead. Brussels were so good, probably the favorite thing I tried. For my entree I had a kale salad with added salmon. I liked the crunch and the light vinaigrette. My husband had the seafood risotto which was slightly undercooked. All and all a positive experience and I'd definitely go back if I was in the area.

    Photos
    Entrance
    Entrance
    Crispy chicken sandwich
    Crispy chicken sandwich
    Summer Spritz

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    Summer Spritz

    Once Upon A Bagel - cheesesteaks - Updated July 2026

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