Fatty's Pub & Grille

Calling all potato salad lovers! Looking for a great place to eat, drink, and be merry? Well here's the place folks, Fatty's Pub & Grille. Located at 1312 W. Lincoln Hwy in Dekalb, Il, Fatty's has been cheering up college students since 1996. With its classic pub ambiance, combined with its sports bar decor, Fatty's is Northern Illinois University's official pre and post-game head quarters. Whether you're looking for a great meal to fill you up (or help your hang over), or you're just looking for a good time, Fatty's is the place to be. Known for its famous cajun potato salad, Fatty's lunch and dinner menu has it all. Starting with appetizers, Fatty's has everything from spinach artichoke dip served with garlic bread to their fun creation, loaded buffalo fries. These are no joke people! Skinny spiced fries, smothered with melted cheddar jack cheese, buffalo chicken, and served with ranch. I know, your mouth is watering, so is mine! Fatty's also has a wide range of overstuffed sandwiches, indulgent burgers, and chicken sandwiches. It's outrageous how many choices there are, but I could only choose one. After taking about an hour and a half to decided, I finally chose a hangover favorite, the Chicken Club Wrap. Grilled chicken strips wrapped in a flour tortilla, served with crumbled bacon, cheddar cheese, diced tomatoes, lettuce and of course what would this dish be without ranch dressing. Then comes the best part. You get a choice of fries, or Fatty's famous cajun potato salad. And unless you aren't from around here, you better pick the potato salad. You also get your choice of coleslaw or baked beans. This dish is tough to beat! Outside of its lunch and dinner atmosphere, Fatty's is well liked by every college student as the place to party. Fatty's has an impressive array of drink specials every night. On Sunday they offer a $3 bloody mary buffet, along with $1.50 domestic drafts. Monday nights include $1.50 well drinks and domestic bottles, as well as $2 chilled shots and $0.50 wings, a perfect cure for the Monday blues. It's Fat Tuesday every Tuesday and all night long it's $2 U-CALL-ITS, perfect for a college students budget. On Wednesday's it's $3 top shelf U-CALL-ITS, and believe me, you won't be able to find that anywhere else in Dekalb. Thursday's Fatty's offers $2 Captain Morgan mixers along with $2 Domestics and $3 Jager Bombs. Friday's Fatty's offers $4 martini's and you can guarantee no other college bar has that on special. To end the week Fatty's specials on Saturday's includes $2 smirnoff mixers, $3 Bombs and Strong Islands, and $8 bottles of wine...sounds like my place to be! This place has it all. So if you are looking for a good time, any day of the week, do yourself a favor and stop by Fatty's Pub & Grille.

Ollie's Frozen Custard

Summer is right around the corner, and ice cream hot spots are getting ready for the rush. I've been waiting all winter long to get a taste of that delectable frozen goodness. And finally, my long awaited cure came from Ollie's Frozen Custard, located at 2290 Oakland Dr. in Sycamore, Il. I have pretty high standards when it comes to frozen custard, given that my father owned a frozen custard shop while I was growing up. And let me tell you, I thought there was nothing better, until I got a taste of Ollie's. It's a small joint, with only outside seating, but the line wraps around the entire building. The after dinner crowd is fairly huge, but this frozen custard is worth the wait! Ollie's menu is a frozen custard utopia, filled with frozen delights ranging from 17 different kinds of sundaes like my all time fav, The Turtle Sundae, to milk shakes, malts, floats, arctic blasts and sodas. These sodas are definitely something you won't find at a regular ice cream shop. They are made up of carbonated water, custard, your choice of flavoring and whipped cream, a true old fashioned drug store treat! When it came to decision time I opted for the one treat that was closest to my heart, The Turtle Sundae. Three delicious scoops of vanilla frozen custard, topped with hot fudge, caramel and toasted pecans...mmm! Believe me, after eating this ladies, you'll realize you don't need that man in your life anymore. Nothing at Ollie's costs more than $6. And believe me, when you live in the mid-west and are only given 3 months to enjoy these scrumptious frozen treats, you'll want to get your fix in as much as possible. So stop by Ollie's, I guarantee you will fall in love with this frozen custard paradise!