One and done type of place. We entered and there is a sign that says wait here to be seated. Looking at all the workers we weren't even acknowledged to have even entered the restaurant. About 10 minutes later a waitress finally asked me how many in my party and I was seated at the counter. I would have given this place 1 star just for that and would have left but I had my kiddos so that wasn't an option. When you're finally seated however, they're all as nice as can be. Service/getting the food is kind of slow. One redeeming quality is how well done their fries are. I like them like this and they're fresh cut not frozen and all the same size and shape. I had a chicken wrap. Chicken was good, not dry. Their side of hummus is really tasty too with fresh veggies and pita bread. My kids liked their Mac and cheese and killed their fries too. I personally would only come back here if I was invited for a party. The train that comes by with your food is cute the first few times but then it stops and there's no reason to see it again unless you have a hardcore train lover. There are vegan options so that's nice! read more

To start I don't see a need for a wait to be seated sign when it late and slow. It took longer then it possible needs to be. At first I liked the place with its kid friendly area. As we sat down we stared to notice the place was not kept as clean as it should be when you have little ones. The menu is simple but that's fine. Prices were good. Train is cool, bringing food out. Counters, menu and check holder were dirty. Chicken soup was disappointing to say the lease. The best way to describe it is rotisserie chicken pieces on warm water with veggies (bland) It didn't help that I could taste dish soap (I hope it was dish soap) I did not eat it. Cheese fries were NOT cheese fries. It was a basket of slightly over cooked fries and fry crumbs. The nacho cheese sauce was in a soufflé cup ( not on the fries and WAYYYY too much. I asked for sour cream on the side and was charged an additional $.50 My daughter liked her burger but it was on the dry side. She ate half and when I asked her if she would like to take it home she kindly declined. She had lemonade and thought it was stood but when the second cup came she said that's not lemonade. Sadly , We will not be going again. This could be such a nice place to take my grand kids but cleanliness is a deal breaker. Also.... Don't celebrate bday here they recycle the candle (we watched them rinse it right after a child blew it out!) read more

Came here with my wife and daughter. Really cool place to take kids for lunch. The food is really good. I thought it would be mostly frozen burgers and pizza but they actually take a lot of pride in their menu and ingredients. I had the Reuben which was really good. My wife had the juicy Lucy burger which was also very good. Made fresh stuffed with giardenerra on a super soft pretzel roll. The sweet potato fries were also great. Of course what the restaurant is known for is all the food is delivered on a model train which circles around the large counter. The kids love it! Word of advice you will need some quarters for the kids games in front. The decor is kind of blah. Seems like the room could be beautiful but they cut a lot of corners with the decor. But not bad for a kids place. Overall I'd definitely recommend coming here. Being the kids and come hungry. read more

I love everything about the Junction. The staff is friendly, the food is great, the train motif is amazing and they even have an old fashioned photo booth in the back of the restaurant!! My five year old and I try to come once a month and she always leaves with a smile! The prices are very reasonable and I love the this is the type of place where kids are encouraged to get up and be kids! Definitely an A+++in my book. read more

The Junction Diner - Can't beat your food getting delivered to you on a train! - American Near Me - Forest Park, Illinois

How often do you feel compelled to tell your Uber driver how good a burger was? That's how good this was. Ivebeen meaning to stop in for a while. The was a diner where a little train brought your food to you. They do that here. So yeah the food is great it's also wildly cool for children and nostalgic old men. They have beer and wine, I think there was a gluten free bun if that's your thing. The burger was truly excellent and they cut their own potatoes to make the fries. There are potato chips or sweet potato fries if that's your bag. I will also strongly suggest you have the donut holes. They make them fresh. When was the last time you had a donut that was stale or tasted like it was extruded in a factory. It was sublime!!! read more

Pretty good... and offers a wide variety of options for people of all ages. Plenty of kid options, yet a significant number of local brewery offerings for beer aficionados. Kinda cool that way. I selected a cup of chili and a Santa Fe burger for lunch, which was late in the afternoon, so I was about the only person in there. The chili was served in a ramekin that was full to the top. Good flavor, but when adding all the options - onions, sour cream and cheese - it drove the price up over $4 - and for what it was, it wasn't worth it. I ordered the burger medium rare. But here's the thing... it seems like they cook their burgers on a griddle rather than a grill. I'm also guessing that they steam it - bun and all to melt the cheese. So it wasn't really what I was expecting... BUT - the burger was really pretty good all in all. I also had a couple of incidental sweet potato fries in my "normal fries" order - both kinds were really good. AND... I happened to walk in there on Wednesday - half price burger day, which made up for the semi-pricey chili and then some. Great staff too, btw!!! Train delivery at the counter is a nice plus. Overall - A-OK plus... I'll happily go back again. read more

This place is so cool to bring your kids. I was surprised to like the food here. I order a spicy chicken sandwich with sweet potato fries. The chicken was grilled and it tasted fresh. The spicy souce was not spicy enough for someone that likes everything hot. My son had fish tacos and he ate all of them which means they were good for a picky man. I notice they sell beer and wine. I noticed the place was under staff. Only two waitresses super nice by the way. They didn't seem overwhelm but the place was super busy. The service could have been a little faster with the right amount of staff. Definitely recommend. My son loved the train bringing his food. read more

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We stumbled upon this place looking up kid friendly restaurants, and boy were we in for a treat! There is a train that rolls out of the kitchen and Drops the food of to you. My toddler had a great time! They also have those coin machines for kids to ride and toys to play with. The food was also great! Good burgers, fries and nuggets. We are definitely coming back! read more

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It's in the pandemic, so the restaurant was empty and sad. Yet, the waitress worked to make sure that it was a nice experience for me and my children. The food was tasty, the service was excellent and attentive, and they took COVID precautions that I was comfortable with. I highly recommend this place for families. read more

This is now our second trip to a train themed restaurant and in comparison, Junction Diner comes up a little short. The kids had a good time and that was good enough for me but there's definitely room for improvement. For starters, there seems to be a lack of trains in the train themed restaurant. There was a cute train set up but only three of the many buttons seemed to be working. There was a train table but only a handful of trains for it. There's a couple train posters but that's really it. On the TV was some crappy CW show. The place wasn't very busy at 6pm on a Saturday night so we only saw the trains go out with food a few times. The space is large but a little cold. The food was just ok. My husband and I each ordered the Juicy Lucy and there wasn't really anything juicy about it. It was pretty dry. The fries were good. The kids orders of mac and cheese were ok. But when I ordered I asked the waitress if we were to skip the fries and drink (because I could tell my kids just weren't going to eat because they were too busy playing) if the price went from the advertised $5.99 to $3 for an entree, as specified on the menu. She said yes... then charged us the $5.99 anyways. By the time we got the bill, we were just ready to go and I didn't want to make a big deal over $3 (which is actually $6 because we had two meals) but I did specifically ask her and she charged us anyways. The location is convenient for us because its on our way home from Brookfield Zoo so it could make a nice day with lunch. But it just wasn't that great. We might be in if my 4 year old begs but for train themed restaurants, its done elsewhere much better. read more

They do it right here. The food is actually decent for a kid's restaurant. The menu is surprisingly big. They also offer some good local craft beers. The space is large but also cozy and clean. The video game arcade is also fun. We have been to 2Toots in Glen Ellyn many times and I wish that they would take some notes from this place. We will be back soon! read more

Hands down best kid friendly restaurant I've ever been to and that's coming from a former GM of Friendlys and former employee of rainforest cafe. I was in the area visiting my sister and she brought my 19 month old daughter and I to eat here. I felt as excited as my daughter. I didn't have to worry if she was screening or being a kid, she was having such a great time watching the train bring everyone their food. The food was great and was cooked super fast! I wish we had a restaurant like this in Connecticut where we are from! Every time we visit the area for now on we will have to stop by! Thank you Junction Diner! read more

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I love this place! I feel like it's one of the few places where I can eat peacefully like a real human while my kids are entertained with the train table and the Giant Blackboard wall. They have a delicious Apple ale. We go to the Junction every chance we get. My new fave burger is the Mushroom burger! So good! read more

Decided to stop in and try this place out for lunch on a Saturday afternoon with my nephew and niece. The minute you see the train making its way around the counter you can't help smiling! My nephew and niece thought this place was so cool and they can't wait to go back with their dad, who absolutely loves trains!! The food is very tasty- I had a grilled chicken wrap and fries- fries are great! Kids menu has a variety of selections from mini cheeseburgers to quesadillas, good side options too. Good customer service, waitress was attentive and friendly. read more

The Junction Diner - American Near Me - Forest Park, Illinois

I enjoyed everything about this restaurant! The kids loved it and the adults did too. How fun to get your food delivered by a train and they also loved the model train in the front. The food is delish and my mystery tacos were super yummy. Our waitress, Jodi, was so friendly and helpful. You could tell that she really loves her job. read more

Had one of the best chicken Caesar salads from here tonight then I have tasted in years. Lots of chicken fresh salad and well priced. Would highly recommend giving this place a try. Great food and great pricing read more

Staff and environment was great for the kids. Food was good. Would recommend for lunch with kids.

My son has a wired fascination with Trains. So I googled Train Restaurants and The Junction Diner came up. It's in Forest Park, not so far but I'm coming from South Chicago in Evening Traffic, sooooo yeah! Im going to list the pros and cons. Cons: 1. No parking. I was literally driving around looking for spots to park! 2. The fries were horrible. They were burnt! The burger was okay. Pros: 1. The waitresses Tara and Carol were really nice. Very polite. Carol recommended dishes and drinks for me. 2. They bring food out on the moving train. My son loved that. He kept running around the table trying to follow the train. They didn't seem to mind him doing that. 3. They have a small play area for the kids, my son loved it and he never came to eat! 4. The Lemonade was good. 5. The Chicken Creamy Soup was soooooooooooooooo good!!!!! I ordered two cups! Soooooo goood! Overall it was a decent. I might come here again, idk. I wanna check out some more Train inspired restaurants read more

The Junction Diner - American Near Me - Forest Park, Illinois

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I am a definitely a fan of The Junction Diner! Food wise, its a true diner with a straight forward menu featuring pretty classic American fare. The prices are equal to the quality of diner food -- which for me is a big plus because I can take my son there for chicken nuggets, fries and a chocolate milk and not be overcharged. They have a large selection of beer on the menu for the adults, a bunch of toys and games, a big wall chalkboard, a game room and a photo booth. And best of all, the food is delivered to you via choo-choo train. Four stars instead of five because this place is always so busy (which is fine) but sometimes the service is over-run or short staffed and suffers when it gets super busy. None the less, it's entertaining for the kids, and makes for a super fun pit stop for the whole family. read more

Really great food at a very reasonable price. My daughter loved the fries and her spicey chicken to go wrap. This is a great little hidden restaurant diner with very good affordable grub read more

Nice place to take the kids. Food gets delivered on a miniature train. Had the spicy chicken wrap with sweet potato fries. Hit the spot, family had a variety of tasty deeserts. Also a small arcade in the back and some kids games in the front while you wait. We will be back, would suggest adding a foyer door out front to keep the cold air out. read more

Great place for parents and their little ones. I was able to eat while the kids played. Good beer selection and great burgers!

Good vegetarian burger and Turkey burger. Fries are also good. Vegetarian wrap is also good. Parking in thisnarea can be a challenge at times. R read more

I'll start by saying that I was denied service for the simple fact that I'm a regular and an employee of the the business next door. I know for a fact that some of the business's on forest park treat other employees from neighboring businesses like crap. I don't know if they think of us less than but the employees who work their businesses are the back bone of their wealth. I have given this owner my hard earned money for almost 2 years but I wasn't good enough today, everyone else's money was green like mine. I felt so small like I was a bum begging for hand outs when I was willing to pay like everyone else. Like I have been for a year and a half. I won't bother the owner again with trying to spend my money their. Shame on you Brad. read more

It's been so great to be able to get delivery from here over the past couple months! Good specials! We can't wait to get back with our son and enjoy craft beer while he gets the highlight of watching the train deliver his food. read more

I found this place online and am glad I did. Brad was helpful in reserving an area for our larger group. This was perfect for the children (ages 1-4) and the adults loved the ability to order beer and wine. Service was quick and friendly. The gal helping our party was so sweet. I am sure she has seen her share of 2 year old Birthday's but she made ours feel special. Not far from the city! We will be back. read more

The Junction Diner - American Near Me - Forest Park, Illinois

Rude staff, rude owner. Interacted with everyone else and ignored us. Waited for nearly an hour to just get OUR drinks, not food! We never got to try the food because it never came. Kept getting told be patient while everyone around us got theirs. I never knew how long it took for an order if pancakes! read more

Had a great experience on a rainy weekday at 11:30am! Not crowded at all. The perfect little play area for our 3 & 1 yr old. Food was good and everyone had a good time! Drove 30min from Chicago and will do it again in the future. I'm thankful to have a flexible job that allows for weekday trips with the family! Cute little neighborhood with lots of shops to visit. read more

The Junction Diner - American Near Me - Forest Park, Illinois

I'm tellin' ya the food at The Junction Diner is not just for kids! On taking a recommendation from the owner himself and our awesome waitress, I had the Mystery Tacos and they did-not disappoint! read more

I've been to three train restaurants in the area and this one easily has the best food selection. Had fish tacos with fresh lettuce and tomatoes. Certainly not gourmet but they tasted good and weren't too heavy. It is loud but it is a train restaurant. Highchairs are extra tall which helps get the kids up to the counter and let's them see. The only change I'd suggest is for the staff to run the train around a bit more even if there is no food on it. read more

Perfect for kids, my son always asks to go here! Service is great for a place for kids and a great beer selection for us adults.

Pros: -The concept of a train-themed restaurant would be a big hit with the Oak Park/Forest Park crowd if it ever gets fully realized. It's part-way there. -The food is really good. My french fries were the best I've had in awhile. Cons: -There isn't enough waitstaff to handle the crowd. -There's no host, hoststand or any signs to let you know if you should seat yourself or flag down one of the completely overwhelmed staff. I've been to The Junction Diner twice and the first time, our order was lost and it took more than 40 minutes to get our food. When the food came, it was wrong, but we just ate- with a starving two-year-old it was just easier to have something to eat! We chalked it up to new-restaurant kinks and gave it another chance yesterday. Yesterday, two months after they've opened, we stood for 20 MINUTES at the front of the restaurant with no acknowledgement from any staff. We finally just took a table, but it only had two chairs. My 70-year-old mother-in-law carried additional chairs across the entire restaurant with not even a busboy stopping to help her. We sat for another 15 minutes waiting for anyone to come by- but no one did! So we went across the street to Louie's and ate within minutes of our arrival. Junction Diner, you could be very successful, but you need to hire more waitstaff, a food runner, a host and install some real train tables or activities for kids before everyone realizes this place isn't worth it. read more

This isn't our first train restaurant rodeo and certainly wont be our last. After an afternoon on the Polar...ahem excuse me, the Santa Express out of River Forest (they can't use "Polar Express" anymore due to licensure or copyright or whatever blah de blah de blah) The Junction Diner was the perfect place to keep the train theme going. Sunday at about 4pm the place was pretty empty except for a birthday party in their party room. But by 5pm more and more families started coming in. My 3 yr old son, MIL and I were greeted immediately when we entered and we easily found seats along the counter. Our server was very enthusiastic and made sure we were aware of all the specials, pointed out the kids menu and pointed out the craft soda and beer/wine options. Among the train restaurants I've visited in Bartlett and Downers Grove, this one has the best menu. It comes pretty close to DG, but JD's specials menu and craft soda selection sets them apart. My MIL and I couldn't decide between two sandwiches so we ordered each and split them. The Pot Roast sandwich and the Reuben (which was on the specials board). I upgraded my fries to sweet potato fries and opted for the Birch Beer Soda. My son ordered the cheese quesadilla. We also split an order of their home made doughnuts for dessert. The food was excellent. I loved how they served the sauces for the sammies on the side (horseradish for the pot roast and russian for the Reuben). The food came out piping hot and everything was delicious. The pot roast was very tender and the horseradish sauce def added a nice element of flavor. The Reuben was also very good too. Nice helping of corned beef too. The sweet potato fries were excellent, made well and very tasty. The dessert was wonderful. It's 5 dounut puffs, sitting on top of some honey, dusted with cinnamon and comes with a chocolate dipping sauce. It really didn't need the chocolate as it was pretty tasty on its own but who are we kidding, it's chocolate and it's always welcome! The space is nice, seems like an older building as it's very tall and spacious inside...it could use more train decor the walls. But there are some fun things about the space. The train that delivers your food--but it only runs on the counter so if you're seated at one of the tables, the train still brings your food, it's just one of the servers has to deliver it to your table. There's a train table for tykes to play with. There's also a mechanical train ride and a stationary train ride. Also a little village of trains and buildings that light up/move at a push of a button. Wonderful and friendly service. We'll be back. read more

While it's definitely great that we have another restaurant well designed for kids in the near west suburbs, this place is unfortunately one to avoid until they can get a proper management team in place. We walked in this evening and weren't acknowledged or greeted by a single employee until we walked up to the counter and asked to be seated. While I was keeping tabs on the kids, my wife was told that they were cleaning up and they would seat us shortly. Several other patrons walked in after us and were seated by one of the wait staff right in front of us (at the seats they were cleaning up for us). We then complained and were offered 3 seats (for a party of 4). Given no satisfactory resolution, we promptly left after waiting nearly 20 minutes in a restaurant which was maybe 60% occupied. We are now glad we did not dine here in hindsight. Given they've obviously cut some significant corners in the front of the restaurant, we're wondering what kinds of corners they are cutting in the preparation of the food. Very basic misses - like a complete and total lack of a greeter or host(ess) lead one to believe that they don't know what they're doing. Are they skimping on cleaning in the kitchen? Are they skimping on disposal of spoilage? Are the "overworked" wait staff too busy to wash their hands or too busy to ensure dishes are properly cleaned and sanitized? Until this place can demonstrate some basic restaurant management skills, I would highly recommend avoiding it. At a minimum to you'll save yourself the inconvenience of having to explain to your 3 and 5 year old boys why we're not eating at the Train restaurant tonight. read more

Cute little place to take the kids. They serve your food on a miniature train that come around. It's diner style, so you sit at the stool. The food is decent. I had the mini burgers which were good. They also have little train toys nearby for the kids to play with while you wait on your food. read more

The kids love this place and all the cool trains and train tables they have. The food is actually pretty good and tasty, I had the turkey burger with fries, kids had hot dogs and the missus had the wrap. She said the wrap was good but burped it up all day. My burger was right on and the chipotle mayo was great. Of course the big attraction is that they bring the food in a train so the kids love it! read more

Showed up at noon; was told a table would be available in 15 minutes and food would take 15 to 20 minutes to arrive. I wasn't served until 2 PM. My children had not eaten since breakfast. Very unprofessional management. Will not be coming back! read more

Stopped in here with my lady and the little one a few weeks ago. For anyone who is looking to take children somewhere they'll enjoy without having to sacrifice the quality of their meal, this is the place to go! The decor is still a little sparse, but that didn't bother my 3 year old. The really impressive train set, coin-op train ride, full chalkboard wall and open space for her to run around in were all a big hit. And did I mention the food? The food here was so good, I would go back without a little one. I had the mushroom burger on pretzel bun, the little one had the Mac and Cheese and my wife had some kind of salad. We also shared some mozzarella sticks. Everything was delicious, with really high quality ingredients, the Mac and Cheese was made with whole wheat pasta and my kid ate every bite. The burger was juicy and prepared just right. The mozzarella sticks were excellent, not too greasy, but very flavorful. The place wasn't very crowded when we went on a Thursday night. I could see the need for a larger staff if things were busier, but overall our experience was very positive and I hope the Junction Diner is around for a long time to come. read more

I feel bad complaining because the staff is certainly friendly, but seem very under-skilled. We've been there twice now and both times, they messed up our orders. (The first time they got my side wrong, then this last time they got grandma's order wrong and mine was completely whacked out - and believe me, when the 5 year old gets fries and the 3 year old doesn't - that's fighting time. They were both supposed to get fruit BTW...) The food is decent, but nothing that I would rave about, and so that makes it harder to overlook the shortcomings of the poor service and really, the not very appealing atmosphere. It's quite cold and blank - I am not sure what they are going for - a kids' restaurant should be much more colorful, interactive, and playful. This is tasteful and more adult, but really rather sterile. It doesn't have to be tacky (there is a train restaurant further west where it feels like Thomas threw up on the place...) but it's not super-appealing to little kids. It takes more than a train bringing the food to make a train-themed restaurant!! Living in Forest Park and having 2 boys who love trains, we'd like this place to succeed, but they really need to step it up. It feels like they've only been open for 2 weeks rather than 4 months. read more

Went here for a celebration for my daughter's basketball team and it was a pleasant surprise. Inside dining is a little cramped. Ordered the Reuben with sweet potato fries and it was great. All if their food seemed to be fresh and not rushed to prepare. There was a bit of a wait, but that's always okay when the food is good! My son is now addicted and always asks to come back. It's been a while since we've been here but we just pulled up across the street and ordered 4 Reubens for carry out. Fingers crossed for another great experience! read more