If you were a baller at Logan Square’s Johnny’s Grill as it was operated under former owner Nicholas Kalliantasis, you ordered the steak and eggs. At $10.25 it was the second most expensive thing on the greasy spoon’s wide-ranging menu (the steak dinner with potato and soup or or salad was priciest at $10.50). But Kalliantasis was forced out last spring when the building’s landlord wouldn’t renew his lease. With him went the $2.90 short stack, the $5.75 gypsy skillet, the $6.25 fried perch plate, and the last vestige of Logan Square not to sport a figurative man bun.
Jordan presents an abbreviated menu composed of such cheffy diner classics, some oddballs, and an Irish theme that underscores the Dublin native’s heritage—and nothing over $12. Fish-and-chips for brekkie? Why not? When I ordered it, the catch of the day was sole, and the delicate, flaky fillets held together well under a firm but not overwhelming batter. The spuds were cut thick and remained soft and creamy enough to absorb the malt vinegar. (Eat this at the counter and you’ll occasionally scent some strong and not entirely pleasant evidence of the yet-to-be cooked fish.) There’s an Irish breakfast on the menu with black-and-white pudding, back bacon, bangers (all provided by Spencer’s Jolly Posh Foods), a nicely charred tomato, and two eggs served up and runny. And there’s an Irish bacon bap (a sandwich) with Swiss cheese and piquant giardiniera slaw. The only other sandwich on the menu—the previous incarnation of Johnny’s featured 32—is a towering turkey club with thinly shaved white meat. It’s serviceable enough. There’s also a couple of salads, a bowl of oatmeal, and some tremendously fluffy buttermilk pancakes with blueberry compote ($9), and apart from a few rotating daily specials (meat loaf, chicken-fried steak), there ends all similarity to traditional diner food.
2545 N. Kedzie 773-278-2215
