The first stop on our "college visit week" will be for a quick look at U of I. Since we'll be there around lunch time, I'm wondering whether anyone has some good lunch suggestions? We're looking for something quick, but not rushed. No fast food but definitely nothing fancy. Maybe something with good lunch specials. Or a student hang-out where we old fogies wouldn't feel uncomfortable!

Thanks!

No info about UI but I think lunch in the main quad of the campus (of any college) would be worthwhile as you get a flavor of the atmosphere, students, professors, etc. Also most major schools have small (or large) pubs that serve food.

Obvisouly if you are going when school is out then that "flavor" is a bit different.

I've heard Champaign is a great college town!

If you really want to venture into a student hangout, you could try Murphys Pub on Green Street about a block from the Union-good burgers and other pub food. The Green St. area is going to have your most options for walking distance from campus. (Other than the food court in the basement of the Union). There is certainly nothing fancy though. There are a few cute restaurants in Urbana but they would be a drive away.

P.S. Champaign is a great college town!

Caph, as pointed out, there are lots of places around campus. Here's a sample:

The Firehaus (American) 708 Sixth St. www.firehausbar.com
Zorba’s (Greek) 627 E. Green
Bar Louie’s (mixed) 510 E. John

I can post more if you tell me what you like. Enjoy your visit.

This website might help...
http://www.cucvb.org/visitors/index....subcategory=24

I don't have a lunch suggestion, but if you have time you must go to Moonstruck Chocolate Cafe on Wright Street! Their chocolates are divine, and they have wonderful coffees and shakes.

They only have cafe locations in Illinois, Ohio and one in California, I believe. I first went to the one in Chicago and loved it. DH and I drove from St. Louis to Champaign one Saturday just to get some truffles!

Check out http://www.moonstruckchocolate.com/ for more info.

Tracy

No ideas. I'm just reading the thread to see if any of the places I used to visit in the 70s are still around. (My boyfriend went there.)

Missypie, Kams is still there and my uncle worked there in the 60s!

Of the 3 I posted, only Zorba's has been around for awhile. The other 2 are new and their menu is good.

Zorba's for gyros is a must do. Perfect for what you are looking for. If Garcia's pizza is still there, I'd consider it, too.

Kevin

I wish I had me some Garcia's pizza right now!!!!

We lived in Champaign for almost three years and Papa Del's is a great place for lunch! It is our favorite pizza in the world and they sell by the slice at lunch time. It can get crowded but it is worth the wait. Students and locals alike love it. I hope you enjoy the campus. My husband went to school there and loved it.

For something a cut above the fast food level, I'd suggest Timpone's.

http://www.timpones-urbana.com/

Thanks so much for all the great ideas, guys!

At 3:20 CDT, I was responding to swalter's post when we lost power -- for the fourth time this week! What's up with ComEd?! I know it's been hot and there have been storms in the area. But the weather hasn't been severe any of the times we've lost power. When I called they said the estimated restore time was 5:00 AM tomorrow! Fortunately, it came back on about two hours after it went out.

Anyway, I really do appreciate all of the responses.

jahoulih, Timpone's is the best restaurent in town, not a student hang-out.

It is a great suggestion if they wanted to have a nice meal and had plenty of time. They won't get in and out of there quick.

When I was a graduate student in Urbana a decade ago, a group of us used to go to Timpone's every week; we generally ordered burgers. It was certainly possible to get out of there quickly if necessary; it was also possible to sit there drinking all afternoon if time and budget permitted.

Man, I forgot about Papa Del's...umm, that sounds so good right now!

We just got back from our trip to U of I and IU this afternoon. Tomorrow morning we leave for Marquette and UW-Madison. I'm exhausted! So forgive me if I don't do a great job on this. But, first of all, I wanted to thank everyone for their help. And, before the next trip blurrs the details from this one, I wanted to do a brief summary!

Having eaten no breakfast that morning, we were starving when we arrived in Champaign/Urbana. So, following all your recommendations, we headed for Green Street. As we were looking for the places that had been mentioned, we stumbled upon the Bombay Indian Grill. Both of our kids had been craving Indian food. So that's where we ate!

We arrived a little before noon, went right up to the counter, ordered and then sat down. By the time we got our food, the place was full. Thank goodness we got there when we did! The second we got up to leave, someone leapt for our table!

Obviously, a very popular place. And with good reason. The food was very good. Especially the naan that we all opted for instead of the rice. Although the rice that I saw on other diner's plates looked very good too!

Although we chose a place that no one had recommended, we probably wouldn't have found it had we not been looking for the places that you had recommended!

We wound up being much more impressed with U of I than we had expected. My family has ties to ISU that go way back. My grandmother went there shortly after the turn of the last century to get her teaching credentials. My father went there on the G.I.Bill after WWII. Both of my brothers got undergrad and grad degrees from there. And one has been a professor there for 20 years. As you may know, most ISU people don't have a lot of love for U of I! So we went with something of a bias.

I think our son wanted to go mostly because; 1)it was on our way to IU and 2)a lot of his friends want to go there, so he felt he needed to confirm his decision to rule it out. Well, he left feeling that he wants to apply!

The bad thing is that we'd hoped this "week of college visits" would help him to narrow down his choices. Instead, he's added one!

But, seriously, we were very impressed with both the campus (I love the student union!) and the town.

CAPH2 - Glad you reported back and included a little history on why you were visiting.

Brings back memories of making those college campus visits with our children. Proud to say our daugher is a U of I grad. This is a first rate school and a great town.

Best wishes as your son continues his search.

Sandy