Palatine's Anthem Grill serving up hits
Anthem Grill is about equidistant from Harper College and Fremd High School on a busy corner in Palatine, but the clientele swings predominantly to the parents, and perhaps grandparents, of students from those institutions.
These folks are old enough to appreciate grilled calamari with Andouille sausage and feta cheese, and to foot the bill for better-than-fast-food fare without draining the college or retirement funds.
Located in a handsome brick building with 350 seats, Anthem is divided into a high-energy, high-volume sports bar rimmed with 33 television monitors, a low-key lounge with high tops and standard tables and a mellow dining room with a stone fireplace and attractive pendulum lights. Upstairs is a game room for young children with an assortment of age-appropriate distractions.
Dark woods dominate the 10,000-square-foot interior, which has housed a variety of restaurants over the past 15 years or so.
The menu was developed by executive chef Aaron Aggarwal, a hometown guy who graduated from Fremd, Harper and Kendall College, Chicago. A veteran of taverns and sports bars, he opened the popular Durty Nellie's in Palatine and now is chef for Wool Street Grill and Sports Bars in Cary and Barrington.
The extensive menu is familiar, but with contemporary flare, a melting pot of regional and globally inspired fare. Most items are well under $20 and built with house-made sauces, dressings and salsas.
Check out Southern-style pulled pork sliders, a Cajun chicken sandwich with Andouille sausage, taco salad and Asian-flavored chicken wrap or sesame-crusted tuna over stir-fry vegetables.
Look for die-hard standards, too, like burgers, choice steaks and pizza; daily specials starting at $6.99 take the sting out of weeknight meals, like Wednesday night's meatloaf with garlic mashed potatoes and corn. Sounds like mom's kitchen, right?
A whopping 23 appetizers cover the expected -- loaded skins, Buffalo wings and mozzarella sticks -- and the unexpected, like baked goat cheese with Spanish style tomato sauce and olives, served with basil toast points.
Another surprise: meaty crab cakes served here on smoky-sweet grilled pineapple with smoked tomato mayo and avocado. We were instant fans.
Cajun-style peel-and-eat shrimp remind me of Mardi Gras, hot and jazzy in beer broth with Tabasco and Cajun spice and cocktail sauce. There are plenty for two.
Just as mischievous, the chipotle pumpkin soup seduces first with cinnamon-sweet notes, then smacks you in back of the throat with fiery chipotle peppers, a surprisingly pleasant experience we repeated until it was all gone.
After such a fiery, protein-heavy start, the pasta fresco was a welcome reprieve, and more than I expected from such a simple dish. Angel hair pasta, perfectly cooked, is tossed with onions, fresh tomatoes and basil, lightly coated in well-balanced white wine garlic sauce. For an up-charge you can add chicken, shrimp or salmon.
For a bolder, meatier entree the house ribs are a smart choice. They're marinated, coated in a spice rub and lightly lacquered with Aggarwal's signature barbecue sauce. Coleslaw and fries round out the meal.
From the pastry chef come decadent, house-made standards like four-layer carrot cake and chocolate cake, seasonal cheesecakes and brownie banana split with hot fudge and caramel sauces.
We shared the dessert flight, a trio that hit the mark twice with fresh berries in sweet pastry cream and chocolate mousse. The profiterole was dry and tough the night we tried it, so we just ate the vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce.
The wine list is two-to-one American vintages, with 16 reasonably priced options by the glass, including a split of the popular bubbly Freixenet Cordon Negro Brut for $7.50.
More than 30 draft beers are on tap, from a humble Pabst at $2.50 to Guinness at $6.50 and local favorites from Goose Island in-between.
Service was hit or miss on a busy Saturday night, about a month after opening. The hostess looked irritated when we requested a table in the dining room instead of the lounge, busboys didn't keep up with dirty dishes and appetizers were slow to arrive.
On the plus side, the pace picked up after that, and our server was friendly and accommodating.
Anthem Grill
704 W. Euclid Ave., Palatine, (847) 963-8920, www.anthemgrill.com
Cuisine: American
Setting: Upscale neighborhood tavern
Hours: 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. Sunday through Thursday; 11 a.m. to 3 a.m. Friday and Saturday.
Price range: Entrees $9.95 to $19.95