My wife and I are big fans of german food and there aren't enough German restaurants around. We finally remembered Renate's last night and stopped in. They remodelled in May and the place is so charming and quaint, yet updated. The server was wonderful, and dressed in traditional clothing. The food was the highlight though. Saurbraten was tangy and tender and Rouladen was juicy with a wondeful dark brown gravy. The sautkraut was german style, not sweet, which I love and the red cabbage was so good, even my wife who doesn't like it said it was good and continued eating it. Spaetzle was perfect and the warm potato salad was excellent. I love the boiled herb potatoes that came with the main course. Just excellent all around. Highest recommendation. read more

Renate's German Restaurant - Rouladen, potato salad, spaetzel, saurkraut. - Bakeries Near Me - Hanover Park, Illinois

I was really excited to try this place because normally I love German food. I wanted to try out another restaurant vs the usual spot close to us. First thing I noticed was that the restaurant was unusually empty on a Saturday night, we were the only ones there. No problem because we have been to other empty restaurants before but the food was good. Second thing I noticed was that we can hear the microwave turn on frequently and the sound is disturbingly obvious. We ordered apple pancakes, Renate's sampler platter, cheesy spaetzle, and Kleiner haxen. We got the liver dumpling soup with each of our entrees. Most of it was bad but I'll talk about the good first. Complimentary bread was fine, it tasted like pretzel. It was soft and not too salty. Liver dumpling soup was hearty and the meat was tender. Broth was good. The brat was fine, tender and flavorful. Mashed potatoes were fine. Here comes the bad. Apple pancakes were too crunchy like reheated. It's not soft like regular pancakes. Not a lot of apples inside. The hammock was still frozen which was why it was so difficult to cut. I've had hock before and if it's made fresh, it'll cut easily. This one was frozen solid in the middle. We can hear them putting it back in the microwave. We took it home to reheat it in the oven. The sampler platter was mostly terrible. The schnitzel didn't even look like one (I've had it many times at other German restaurants). The sauerbraten and the gulasch bowl both had tough meats. You'll be chewing on this for like forever. The cheesy spaetzle they actually forgot but reheated it when I inquired about my order. Definitely wasn't fresh. It was unflavored. The owners did give us the cheesy spaetzle for free and 20% of the hock order. However, I think they should have given us the entire order of hock for free or 75% off. After all, it wasn't even cooked fresh and was still frozen in the middle. The husband was very apologetic but yeah apologies couldn't save this horrendous experience. I do not recommend coming here. If you do come, eat at your own risk. read more

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Rebate's German potato salad disappointed. NO bacon in German potato salad with limited vinegar, plenty of mayonnaise. Grandma Clementine would NOT approve. read more

I came to visit this local German restaurant when I was visiting my cousin in Hanover Park. I was looking for Polish food, but German food will do. I came in here and the atmosphere was very pleasant. The service was great. And the food was outstanding. I did not like how the server microwaved the pretzel roll that they gave you early on. It seemed unnecessary. I got the liver dumpling soup, which tasted like a meatball and a chicken soup. And I got the Wienerschnitzel with potatoes and a side of sauerkraut. I highly recommend this place. read more

Renate's German Restaurant - Wienerschnitzel - Bakeries Near Me - Hanover Park, Illinois

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We went here on a random date night and I as immediately greeted with smiles and warmth! We were seated in a clean very German flair festive area! The menu is very extensive and there are pictures on the walls showing what the meals will look like! The portions are huge!!! And everything is made fresh! Very authentic German food!!! You won't be disappointed!!! read more

Took my Dad here for his 89th birthday. He was very satisfied with the meal. The service and accommodations were very nice as well. They even added a little birthday theme for him. The people were very nice to it party of 11. I would recommend Renate's as the food was good and budget friendly. read more

Very accomodating to large groups and food was delicious! I had a sampler platter and enjoyed beer with my meal. Most people in my party of 14 enjoyed our social dinner here. Only two women complained about things and I have since removed one of them from my social group for creating a fuss for no good reason. I highly recommend this place and apologize that one of the women in my group complained so much about everything. Bring cash to save money on the credit card surcharge. read more

This is a fine gem of a German Restaurant, with delicious, not watering authentic German food and pastry. Being in a mall it is easy to miss. Please do not miss out on this dining experience read more

Its always just so good here. Love that I can walk here. Owner himself waited in me today and gave me great service with a smile. read more

Renate's German Restaurant - It' - Bakeries Near Me - Hanover Park, Illinois

Great food and value. Took my mom for Mothers day and enjoyed it greatly! Looking forward to going back. read more

Went here with my whole family of 6 to enjoy and introduce the kiddos to German food. The restaurant is small and at the time was only manned by the husband of the chef and the chef herself. Therefore, the service was a little slow, but we weren't in a hurry. To start, we tried the potato pancakes and the currywurst poutine fries. We all agree that the fries were the star of the night and we would come back in a heartbeat just for those. For dinner, we got an assortment of German faves-liver dumpling soup (delish), goulash (a little bland), Weiner schnitzel (not as crispy as we would like), and of course, spatzel. Pay extra for it! read more

Great food The young lady that was our Server was very kind It took a little bit to get our food. Once it arrived it was delicious read more

Delicious, authentic German cuisine. Great service with a smile. More than ample portions. Will definitely be going back read more

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The food is amazing. Hands down the best German food in the Chicagoland area. Next want to try the cordon blue schnitzel. read more

Renate's German Restaurant - Amazing food - Bakeries Near Me - Hanover Park, Illinois

Amazing food!!! Perfect device. Husband and wife run. Wife is the cook and she's amazing at it. Perfect little place fairly priced

Excellent find. Beer was fresh, food was good. Had Jaegerschnitzel w/ spatzle and sauerkraut. read more

Renate's German Restaurant - Nice clean dining area. - Bakeries Near Me - Hanover Park, Illinois

Friendly staff, nice portions and delicious German cuisine! Enjoyed the traditional music and the Oktober fest ambiance. Definitely returning!! read more

Very authentic German food. Great service and ample portions. I had the sausage plate and it comes with 4 different sausages. All were very good! read more

I'm adding to my previous review because I really cannot recommend this place enough. It's a small, underrated visit that's completely empty whenever I visit so I feel the need to help this place out because I don't want it to go out of business. Food is the best food I've ever had and even my very picky family loved it! read more

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The place definitely has the German Kneipe smell, meaning, it smells just like a traditional bar/restaurant in Germany. I was not impressed with the food though. We ordered a bunch of different items and most tasted mediocre. On top if it the Schnitzel were paper thin. They did not appear homemade but factory made. The sauces on top of the Schnitzels were a hot mess of flavorless I don't knows. The rolodex were the only ok food I felt. Honestly, I love having a German place so close by but the food needs to be better especially the dishes most Americans see as authentic German. As someone who knows German food well, this was pretty bad! PS My mom, who is German, saw the pictures of the food and she said please do not recommend this Restaurant. She said that we have to make sure people understand that we have really good food in Germany. I'm a little torn because the food really was not good, but I hate to see a German restaurant get bad reviews. I want the restaurant to make a change in their menu so that it resembles the German food we actually eat in Germany. Please Renata! Work on your food. The schnitzel's look like they've been ordered by some company. I know those on that schnitzels you pounded yourself and put the breading on. There's just no way. People who are American may not know what German food is and they think that this is German food but you know yourself that what you were serving is not what we would serve in Germany. I'm gonna rest of that this. read more

I have found my new go to place for German food. The owner Renate is amazing. Her service and sweet manner made this experience great. Next the food was delicious and homemade. Portions were huge! Don't miss it! read more

Renate's German Restaurant - Hofbrau Beer - Bakeries Near Me - Hanover Park, Illinois

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Truly love this restaurant. Renate (the owner) treated us like family and we felt so welcome eating there. The food truly tastes like authentic German cuisine and the service is great overall. They have some of the best french fries around. This restaurant provides great value and it's a place I could eat at every week. I love supporting this restaurant and 100% would recommend this restaurant to anyone! Best German food fare around! Thank you Renate for the memorable meal and being so nice to us! read more

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This is the third time coming to this restaurant and I'm ready to make a fair review. First two times we came for breakfast and it was good so we were looking forward to trying dinner. Dinner was NOT good. The food was extremely salty and the potato salad was nothing special as well as the schnitzel cord en bleu(excuse the spelling). The wurst platter was ok but nothing special and you could tell the meat was old. The bathroom was disgusting as all hell so I wish I went to the bathroom first and saved myself from dinner. The ambiance is just depressing and we had made reservations because this man named "the amazing Mike" was performing that day and when we showed up we wanted to laugh because it was literally us and maybe 2 other parties dining in. The owners were not very nice or accommodating but one of them had no problem talking with the other table, we were basically ignored. The best part of the experience was our young server, who had the best smile and wonderful attitude, special thank you to Dorothy, so she got a good tip which she deserved. But I'm never coming back here and I won't let this one measly place ruin German culture and cuisine for me. Two stars given for Dorothy's customer service skills. I'm attaching the video of amazing Mike but I wish I did a panoramic use of the restaurant and you can totally see what a downer this place is. read more

Background: family live and born in Germany, I have been to Germany and Austria nine or so times throughout life. "Food-ish at restaurant": started as claim to be Gypsy (ethnic slur--well done!) schnitzel but more of a runny canned tomato soup tinned favor with over cooked corn and a copious number of white onion strands causing the sad, yet tough and tasteless breaded pork cutlets hidden underneath the sloppy mess ashamed to be known as schweinefleisch. Since it was rather expensive for a place in the middle of a banged-up strip mall on the outskirts of Hanover Park, it I swallowed my pride, and maybe a few unexpected things, and finished the meal as takeaway. I am glad I did. The food-ish quickly evolved into painfully gas, which led me to believe, maybe it was not as fresh as a person would expect given the price tag. For dessert it promptly departed faster than it took to drive home and eat it. This was nothing normal or enjoyable about Olde Hanover Cafe. I will never go again and never recommend it to anyone that is not Russian. read more

Great homemade food. Worth the trip! Very reasonably priced. Large portions. My husband and I went there for lunch. They have lunch specials but serve breakfast all day too. This is a hidden gem that has been recommended by Chicago's Best. Don't miss it! read more

Renate's German Restaurant - Homemade chicken soup and bread - Bakeries Near Me - Hanover Park, Illinois

Wonderful, hidden treasure in a strip mall off Irving park in Hanover Park. Food is wonderful and she really works hard with the variety offered. Generous portions, good tasting and drinks are reasonable. Five stars plus one. read more

It's on my bucket list to visit all the German restaurants in the Chicago area so I was super excited that this place is right by our apartment. We had a Groupon which they happily took. We really enjoyed our meal. The loaf of homemade bread at the beginning was fantastic. I guess the chef was trying out French baguettes and I think that was a winner. As usual I had to get the schnitzel. I got the pork with spaetzle. My husband got the schnitzel sandwich. We both really enjoyed the dishes. I really liked that the spaetzle was pan fried a little after it was boiled. I know places do it that way but I've never had it that way. My schnitzel was a bit greasy from the pan fry for my tastes but I loved the flavor of it. It was sooooo good. He really enjoyed the flavor of his sandwich as well. The fries, which we're pretty sure we're hand cut we excellent. Perfect crispy. I will definitely be coming back to enjoy more items off the menu and from the bakery. read more

Renate's German Restaurant - Pork schnitzel with spaetzle - Bakeries Near Me - Hanover Park, Illinois

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For authentic German Food, or just a great meal... this is your place. I love the jager schnitzel... the Gypsy schnitzel... and the freshly baked bread and deserts. Omg. Yum! Order your next meal from here and make sure to order the desert. I come here all the time. Small family owned business, YUM read more

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After years of living in the area, I could not believe I had not checked out the Olde Salem Cafe! After having done so, I've been at least 6 times since May, taken friends, & even had catering for a World Cup Viewing party! If you're looking for something super fancy place, then this place is not for you. If you're looking for an inviting cafe, friendly staff & owner, & authentic food, then, this place is for you! For someone who visits Deutschland often ... all the food is the most authentic German food I've had in the Chicagoland area! Die Apfel strudel & Black Forest cake desserts are my favorite! The bratswursts, schnitzel, potato salad, cheesy spatzle, pretzels, sauerkraut, & red cabbage taste so homemade! You know the food is delicious when people at your party who have never had German food before ate seconds & asked where the catering is from! The Olde Salem Cafe also offers traditional German breakfast options! For educators, German teachers, & Deutsch Klub sponsors... it's a great place to take students! I'll definitely be returning & looking forward to the baking classes offered ! read more

Renate's German Restaurant - Bakeries Near Me - Hanover Park, Illinois

Its very disappointing to see that there's not many German restaurants around. I love the tasty authentic German food offered here. Most of the times we came here the owner has waited on us & he's a very friendly & hospitable individual. Love the chicken noodle soup along with Rahm Schnitzel. Every single food item including the sweets are made in house. Can't wait to come back here. read more

Excellent home cooked food. Very reasonable prices. We are on our way there now. Food tastes very authentic

This place is SUPER German (there are German posters on the wall, the food looks authentic, there is German music playing in the background). This review is for the atmosphere, service, and dessert. We came at 2pm on a Saturday so it was pretty empty, most of the time it was just us or one other table. I was looking for a little cafe to sip on hot chocolate and nibble on dessert while reading a book and this was the perfect location. My husband and I were there for about 2 hours and we ordered 2 hot chocolates, an appetizer, and two slices of cake. They didn't seem to mind that we didn't order very much but stayed for a very long time. The waitress was extremely friendly. The cafe was welcoming and I felt at home. I took a picture of the two cakes and sent them to my German friend and he immediately knew what they were (so authentic). We ordered the Schwarzwalderkirschtorte (according to my friend), which is known as Black Forest Cake, and a Bienenstich which literally translates to a bee sting. Both cakes were DELICIOUS! I'd definitely recommend the Bienenstich. It was very moist with a bit of crunch from the almonds on top. The hot chocolates were just okay. They are made of real milk but were light on the chocolate flavor. I have a feeling that if I had asked, they would be willing to make it richer in flavor though. I would definitely come back here for lunch or dinner. The menu looks so authentic and the food at the neighboring tables looked really tasty. read more

Renate's is a german bakery/restaurant located in a strip mall. My wife ordered the spaetzel with bacon, onions & mozzarella cheese which she LOVED. I had the sauerbraten with fried potatoes and red cabbage which was very good. Unfortunately, we did not leave any room for the homemade apple strudel.. next time we will set aside room for dessert. Our dinner came with either salad or soup. They also serve good german beer. We will definitely come back! read more

Renate's German Restaurant - Spaetzel with bacon, onions & mozzarella - Bakeries Near Me - Hanover Park, Illinois

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Haven't been here before. Great service. Good food and you must have the Bienenstich cake to end your visit! Sooooooo good! Thank you! We'll be back! read more

Renate's has excellent German food and German beer. By far the best in the Northwest Burbs. Ignore the fact that its hidden in a strip mall, the service is top notch. Stop in or order out any you will not regret it! read more

Truly outstanding authentic German Food. Great service and reasonable prices. One of the best for traditional German food.

Incredible food. Outstanding service. The most kind people. Loved the new Bavarian pizza. It's made on a pretzel crust. Soup was very flavorful. Omelette- mom said best ever. This is a definite place you will want to be a regular read more

This is small, little known restaurant in a small strip mall. The ambiance is cozy, very clean and comfortable. The food is authentic German and is just, excellent. And plentiful. Olde Salem is a regular stop on our favorite restaurant list and will continue to be. Love this place! Skip Cordell, Bartlett. read more

Very good German food, generous portions and tasty deserts. Not fancy for sure, reminded me of my German language school room in high school! read more

Went tonight for the first time- celebrating my sister's birthday with my German born mom. I was looking for a place to get traditional German food without having to cook it myself as usual ; all of the German places seem to be closed at this point , or not worth going to. What a pleasant surprise! I can't believe this place is fairly close to us being in Sleepy Hollow. We were greeted with wonderful German music, and the best smells ever when we enter the restaurant. We were seated immediately as we had reservations, and I had stated it was for a birthday. Our table had a cute birthday tablecloth on it! How thoughtful and kind! Our server was extremely attentive. We had two Weiss beers and 2 glasses of white wine. They were excellent. We had an appetizer of the pretzel sticks, which were very good. All of us had the Liver dumpling soup which was excellent. Aside from my homemade liver dumpling soup, this was the best I've ever had at a restaurant, including Maders in Wisconsin. My sisters and I all got the sauerbraten with red cabbage. They had spätzle and I had the bread dumplings. I thought the bread dumplings were phenomenal, and I tasted their spätzle, which tasted very good. Like homemade the red cabbage was excellent. The sauerbraten was OK, but in my family we marinate it much longer so it could be just a family recipe type issue. Our mom had the smoked pork chop with sauerkraut and fried potatoes. It looked beautiful and it was excellent. We also had desserts and one of them we were given free for my sister's birthday, which was a wonderful treat. We had the bienenstich, which was very good !! Another thing that I enjoy, not having to make myself because it is a lot of work! We also had a slice of carrot cake, which was excellent as well. We all had coffee, which was fresh and delicious. I will definitely be going back with my family. What a treasure to have this in the neighborhood. I wish I would've known about this restaurant years ago. read more