Algonquin eatery claims best egg sandwich

I've driven by the sign many times on my journeys up and down Randall Road.

Twice a week, with a carload full of girls driving home after dance class, we see the neon sign illuminated in the dark.

It's in the perfect spot to catch your eye, as you're sitting on northbound Randall Road, waiting to turn west onto Algonquin Road.

After dance class, it's too late to stop in, because by then Bentley's Bagels and Brew, 124 S. Randall, Algonquin, is closed.

But still, that sign — which claims Bentley's Bagels and Brew has the best egg sandwich in town — piques our curiosity.

Many of you have mentioned it too, e-mailing to say you've actually tried this delicious sandwich.

So, I vowed to find out about the best egg sandwich in town.

If you stop in during the daylight hours when Bentley's is open, owner Henry Lee is more than happy to introduce you to that sandwich.

“It is the best,” Lee said. “My customers all say it is.”

To make the best egg sandwich, Lee starts with two large or extra large eggs, and cracks them in the frying pan.

Then to the sandwich he adds cheese — the customer's choice between American, cheddar, provolone or Swiss.

If you want, you also get your choice of meat: ham, bacon, Canadian bacon or sausage.

And finally, the ingredients are all put in between two halves of one of Bentley's freshly baked bagels, which are made on the premises.

“The combination of my own bagels, and the fresh egg that's cracked in the pan and cooked perfectly for you, with the topping, it's a dream combination,” Lee said.

The moniker, he said, came from many customers, who kept saying the same thing over and over.

“My customers said that it was the best in town, and so I caught that phrase and I put it on the wall,” he said. “Now so many customers come in to try because of that, and say it's not just the best in town, but the county and crossing the county line.”

Lee invites anyone up and down the Randall Road corridor to give it a taste test.

He said he's had the sign — which does bring in new customers — for about six or seven years.

A sign he's added more recently though, he said, is because of the economy.

Lee, whose independent bagel business has been a part of the Randall Road community for the past 13 years, is trying to give back to those who've helped make him a successful business.

He's offering a dozen bagels for 99 cents for any family facing economic hardship because of a loss of a job or other problem.

“I want to give them whatever help I can,” he said. “I've been here long enough and my customers are all from here. I know they sometimes run into difficulties because of the economy and I want to help.

“We make and bake our own bagels, so we are willing to help and contribute whatever we have to the community,” he said.

• Amy Williams' column covers all the news of business along the Randall Road corridor from Batavia to Crystal Lake. Contact her at randallbiz@comcast.net or (847) 894-5036.