I have been watching your videos recently, I am in the Chicago area. There actually is multiple train themed restaurants in the Chicago area. 2 toots in Bartlett and glen ellyn Illinois. Then the all choo choo in Des Plaines Illinois.
Thom, I want to give you the biggest hug. I was born in 1956 and raised in Los Angeles but my parents were from Chicago, as were all of my relatives. I was planning on leaving a long comment on your video about LA’s Union Station and your trip to San Bernardino on MetroLink and I probably still will. Do look for that because it relates to this comment. After my dad died when I was only two years old, my mom would schlep my two older sisters and me to our annual summer trip to Chicago on the Santa Fe El Capitan. We would spend the summer at my grandparents’ house while visiting and playing with all of our cousins. I think I was about eight when we stopped going. My memories of those times remain a bit foggy but one memory has remained somewhat clear: that time we went to a restaurant that had a train that ran around a U-shaped counter and brought burgers and fries in plastic baskets mounted on flat cars. When I clicked on the thumbnail, I was hopeful. Once the view of that U-shaped counter with the train track and the train with burgers and fries in plastic baskets mounted on flat cars appeared, I started crying. I’m still crying as I’m trying to finish writing this. By posting this video, you have rekindled a memory of a place I have long hoped to revisit but assumed could not possibly still be in business. So again, thank you for sharing your birthday dinner experience with us and thank you for helping me find a little of my own history. And for that, please accept my virtual hug. You’ve made an old man very happy.
Now I’m crying! Thanks for sharing this heartfelt memory. I’m glad I could bring back some warm nostalgia. Come to Chicago and we’ll go here together, for the hug and a good burger.
Thom, thanks. Question: Please let me know if this is or is not the original restaurant that I remember. The website is kind of confusing. They’re making it sound as if that this was an original concept in 2012.
Europa Park in Germany, Alton Towers in the Midlands of England, and Wien Prater in Austria have a concept called the roller coaster restaurant where your food is sent in special containers-since some foods do actually go through a loop. Theme Park Worldwide did a POV of the one at Alton Towers so you can actually see what the food does
Ever since I loved trains as a child, these kind of restaurants surprised me before. I can enjoy a nice meal where the trains go all around and it was very entertaining. There were around in the outer suburbs although I kinda thought where’d they go over the years, but this type of restaurant will always be in my mind.
I remember my dad taking me to one much like that in either Glen Ellyn or Wheaton when I was about 8…..70 years ago! It was 3-rail O scale rather than G. I also saw one just a few years ago in Wisconsin Dells.
The Tim Traveller mentioned a Czech chain, with a branch in Vienna, which does something similar. Yo Sushi in the UK was a tiny bit like this during the pandemic, though no actual model trains; now it's gone back to the old ways.
A belated happy birthday to you ! What an amusing venue, and glad the food was good. How intriguing that the restaurant owner chose an Austrian diesel loco to haul the food delivery train ! Perhaps someone could present him with a fine model of a Union Pacific DDA - now that would impress everyone !
Whoa. I did not know about this. I'm a little older than the target demo, but this is my stomping grounds. I'll have to check it out. (FWIW, Mexican Republic across the street is one of my faves.)
I went there a year or so ago, loved the atmosphere and little kids enjoying themselves. There was another ice cream shop off of the Belmont stop that had cta seats in it, but it got taken over by a very obscene dessert bar that allowed kids to go in. I wish the ice cream shop was still there. I mean it kinda you do you with your business but it gave off bad energy when I went.
In a way you could describe this as the World's smallest, commercially operating railroad/railway. It has a genuine operational purpose of delivering perishable goods (food and drink orders) to customers!
Not to long ago, back in the late 70's in NYC, Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs had a indoor trolley car with the inside of the trolley looked like a real one This was located on 5th. Ave. and 58th. Street near Central Park. It was known as where the Posh Goes to Nosh!
I know there is a bar in Prague where they also have this, but I haven't visited it yet. Just for your information: the locomotive of the food train is a type from Austria.
That part where I believe your sister was about to grab that french fry the other girl stopped her so fast it wasn't even funny I was laughing my ass off the little girl mouth was wide open the other girl was not having it otherwise than that I love your videos thank you so much for having great videos on trains
i remember seeing things like this in a old magazine called life magazine and other publications . also many news reels showed them but the track and trains were 3 rail. looked like fun. there used to be a bar near where i live ,that had a train running around the celing.
There is a similar restaurant farther west in Glen Ellyn called Two Toots that is also kit themed but it also made a national list for its excellent food. I haven't been there yet but I'll have to try it and place in your video here.
@@Thom-TRA the name is certainly tailored to kids, hence my reluctance to try it. I should go Shakespeare, say what's in a name, and try it. Yoyu video will inspire me.
Looks like you had a great evening out with Lindsey and your parents and what a great family atmosphere exists in this venue. I seem to remember a sushi train restaurant somewhere in Melbourne (Australia) but not sure if it is still in business given the chaos of recent years. Must check out more of your channel as time allows. Cheers from Michael.
I remember that! On the south end of down town near the King St. station, perhaps? I ate there while stopping over in Seattle on an Amtrak trip in the mid-1970s or 80s, if memory serves.
Hi Thom! Great video and congrats on the 15K subscribers. When I was growing up on Long Island in the 1950's, there were a couple of places like the Junction Diner; one was called Hamburger Junction. They're long gone, but I still remember them 70 years later!
I have been watching your videos recently, I am in the Chicago area. There actually is multiple train themed restaurants in the Chicago area. 2 toots in Bartlett and glen ellyn Illinois. Then the all choo choo in Des Plaines Illinois.
I’ve been wanting to go to choo choo for a while now
I agree! I live in Mount Prospect and the Choo Choo Restaurant is a staple in Des Plaines. Definitely check them out!
Gee, I hoped that I would be the first to mention the Choo Choo.
I thought there were more. There's no way this one was open 30 years ago
There is also a Tyler’s Tender in Schererville
Thom, I want to give you the biggest hug. I was born in 1956 and raised in Los Angeles but my parents were from Chicago, as were all of my relatives. I was planning on leaving a long comment on your video about LA’s Union Station and your trip to San Bernardino on MetroLink and I probably still will. Do look for that because it relates to this comment.
After my dad died when I was only two years old, my mom would schlep my two older sisters and me to our annual summer trip to Chicago on the Santa Fe El Capitan. We would spend the summer at my grandparents’ house while visiting and playing with all of our cousins. I think I was about eight when we stopped going. My memories of those times remain a bit foggy but one memory has remained somewhat clear: that time we went to a restaurant that had a train that ran around a U-shaped counter and brought burgers and fries in plastic baskets mounted on flat cars.
When I clicked on the thumbnail, I was hopeful. Once the view of that U-shaped counter with the train track and the train with burgers and fries in plastic baskets mounted on flat cars appeared, I started crying. I’m still crying as I’m trying to finish writing this. By posting this video, you have rekindled a memory of a place I have long hoped to revisit but assumed could not possibly still be in business.
So again, thank you for sharing your birthday dinner experience with us and thank you for helping me find a little of my own history. And for that, please accept my virtual hug. You’ve made an old man very happy.
Now I’m crying! Thanks for sharing this heartfelt memory. I’m glad I could bring back some warm nostalgia. Come to Chicago and we’ll go here together, for the hug and a good burger.
Thom, thanks. Question: Please let me know if this is or is not the original restaurant that I remember. The website is kind of confusing. They’re making it sound as if that this was an original concept in 2012.
Great video! You should make a video talking about the red line expansion if you haven't already!
Europa Park in Germany, Alton Towers in the Midlands of England, and Wien Prater in Austria have a concept called the roller coaster restaurant where your food is sent in special containers-since some foods do actually go through a loop. Theme Park Worldwide did a POV of the one at Alton Towers so you can actually see what the food does
That’s insane, I am definitely looking up that video right now
Ever since I loved trains as a child, these kind of restaurants surprised me before. I can enjoy a nice meal where the trains go all around and it was very entertaining. There were around in the outer suburbs although I kinda thought where’d they go over the years, but this type of restaurant will always be in my mind.
Nice!!! I’ve been to Choo Choo Diner a couple times in Des Plaines, IL which is the exact same concept.
there is also the Choo Choo Diner in Des Plaines, IL, not too far from O'Hare Airport.
Let us know if there are more train restaurants in the U.S. 🇺🇲 . . . Austin, Tx. 😏 🚂
I remember going there when I was younger. There was also another diner I used to go to called Choo Choo Charlie's, but they since shut down
There's one in Des Plaines called the Choo Choo it's great just tell them it's your birthday they'll blow the train whistle for you.
Wonderful!!! Now you’ll have to try the Choo Choo in Des Plaines!!!
I remember my dad taking me to one much like that in either Glen Ellyn or Wheaton when I was about 8…..70 years ago! It was 3-rail O scale rather than G. I also saw one just a few years ago in Wisconsin Dells.
Glad to bring up old memories!
Just a block from the Des Plaines Metra Station is the Choo Choo Restaurant, a fixture since 1951, where your meal is delivered by model trains.
If you’re ever in Door County WI, check out PC Junction restaurant
Very cool setup. I think if they raised the track higher so the waitress don't have to keep pushing the plates or stuffs away from the track.
Damn i want to revisit Chicago again
The Tim Traveller mentioned a Czech chain, with a branch in Vienna, which does something similar. Yo Sushi in the UK was a tiny bit like this during the pandemic, though no actual model trains; now it's gone back to the old ways.
A belated happy birthday to you ! What an amusing venue, and glad the food was good. How intriguing that the restaurant owner chose an Austrian diesel loco to haul the food delivery train ! Perhaps someone could present him with a fine model of a Union Pacific DDA - now that would impress everyone !
There’s a train themed restaurant in occonomowoc wi that was a Milwaukee road station but now is a restaurant with an ho scale layout inside
I do travel to Wisconsin quite a bit so perhaps if I pass through I’ll check it out
We Sat in A booth where the Train Ran Beside us and we Just Picked it up and Started Eating God Blessed Buffalo Phill’s .
there used too be one in Downers GROVE ILL too on 75th west of Lamont rd ? All Aboard i think it was called
The Tim Traveler mentioned this place during his video about a similarly themed restaurant in Vienna: ua-cam.com/video/rPyIsJfk4zw/v-deo.html
This specific restaurant? I’ll have to take a look
I see it now. That’s so cool!
Keep up the great content Thom!
Thank you! I will!
I always went to snackville junction over in evergreen park not sure if it’s still there or not
There is a place called All Aboard Diner in Downers Grove I believe but it’s closed down permanently
Well that looks pretty neat. I'll have to ask a couple people I know in Forest Park if they've ever heard of this place.
Sorry you’re all right. It is not in Arizona is in the Chicago. Sorry about that.
We went to a train restaurant on Chicago south side just like that when I was a kid. We loved it.
Aww!
This is so cute!
And what a cute backstory!
If I ever go to Chicago I'm going to this restaurant
A Restaraunt with Trains Running Rocks.
Whoa. I did not know about this. I'm a little older than the target demo, but this is my stomping grounds. I'll have to check it out. (FWIW, Mexican Republic across the street is one of my faves.)
Good to know!
Check out Vytopne in Prague
anyone know where can i buy this train?
I went there a year or so ago, loved the atmosphere and little kids enjoying themselves. There was another ice cream shop off of the Belmont stop that had cta seats in it, but it got taken over by a very obscene dessert bar that allowed kids to go in. I wish the ice cream shop was still there. I mean it kinda you do you with your business but it gave off bad energy when I went.
I remember the waffles that were in the Sundae stop. It was very off-putting.
I have been to this diner and it’s so cool
In a way you could describe this as the World's smallest, commercially operating railroad/railway. It has a genuine operational purpose of delivering perishable goods (food and drink orders) to customers!
I may have to pop in here the next time I’m in Chicago. I’m there quite a bit, and this would be something new (and fun) to try.
Cool 😎
Highly recommend!
This is pretty much a conveyor belt restaurant, they have done this with Sushi for decades . It’s cool
I lived in Japan for 10 years so I know a thing or two about those
Not to long ago, back in the late 70's in NYC, Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs had a indoor trolley car with the inside of the trolley looked like a real one This was located on 5th. Ave. and 58th. Street near Central Park. It was known as where the Posh Goes to Nosh!
I've been to this place before
I enjoyed that video👍👍
Congratulations on your birthday.🎂 Many healthy and happy years! 👍Great video.
Výtopna Restaurant, I believe there are several around Czechia and Austria(?), have a similar setup.
You should try the 2 toots in Glen Ellyn if you ever ride the UP-W line because it is the same concept and it is right by the station
Named after the train or what you do after eating the food? Lol
Buffalo Phil’s has At Least 15 Trains Running at The Same Time.and Love it.
I know there is a bar in Prague where they also have this, but I haven't visited it yet.
Just for your information: the locomotive of the food train is a type from Austria.
That part where I believe your sister was about to grab that french fry the other girl stopped her so fast it wasn't even funny I was laughing my ass off the little girl mouth was wide open the other girl was not having it otherwise than that I love your videos thank you so much for having great videos on trains
That looks cool!
i remember seeing things like this in a old magazine called life magazine and other publications . also many news reels showed them but the track and trains were 3 rail. looked like fun. there used to be a bar near where i live ,that had a train running around the celing.
The Flapjack Express is a train I catch every weekend! ❤
🤣🤣🤣🤣
There is a similar restaurant farther west in Glen Ellyn called Two Toots that is also kit themed but it also made a national list for its excellent food. I haven't been there yet but I'll have to try it and place in your video here.
Two Toots is a funny name too!
@@Thom-TRA the name is certainly tailored to kids, hence my reluctance to try it. I should go Shakespeare, say what's in a name, and try it. Yoyu video will inspire me.
good video!
@5:04 You're a little too big for those attractions, aren't you Thom? It was good to see you and your family enjoying the train themed restaurant.
Does the waitress get a 20% tip for lifting the food off the train in front of you?
She was a great waitress, had to put up with a lot. Idk what we tipped her, I’m not a big proponent of tipping culture tbh.
One of those trains needs a car that shoots little pickles.
I second that
Cool 😎
Very nice ! Train news and restaurant reviews as well ! Good show !
I had this place once it’s decent but it’s been years
As a Chicagoan I must check this place out
Highly recommend!
That's awesome, Thom! I'm planning on Moving to NYC when I retire, but Chicago is so cool, too, and so inexpensive!
I love NYC
Glad I came across your channel, good stuff. I live right by there in Oak Park and I really enjoy watching all the trains around here
Yeah oak park that’s right by there!
Looks like you had a great evening out with Lindsey and your parents and what a great family atmosphere exists in this venue. I seem to remember a sushi train restaurant somewhere in Melbourne (Australia) but not sure if it is still in business given the chaos of recent years. Must check out more of your channel as time allows. Cheers from Michael.
I hope time allows for a lot 😂 I’ve always wanted to go to a sushi train restaurant
You look like Macaulay Culkin
I don’t think I do
I’m really enjoying your channel. Thank you for sharing your experiences 🙂
I’m so glad you’re enjoying it!
There used to be a restaurant in Seattle that had trains deliver food, I sure miss that restaurant
I remember that! On the south end of down town near the King St. station, perhaps? I ate there while stopping over in Seattle on an Amtrak trip in the mid-1970s or 80s, if memory serves.
Hi Thom! Great video and congrats on the 15K subscribers. When I was growing up on Long Island in the 1950's, there were a couple of places like the Junction Diner; one was called Hamburger Junction. They're long gone, but I still remember them 70 years later!
Thank you!
Restaurants like this have a certain charm, wouldn’t you agree?
@@Thom-TRA Absolutely!
Hamburger Choo Choo in Huntington, NY. Corner Main Street and New Street. 1950’s. Long gone. Favorite as a child.
i hope that train dosen't derail with the food on it
5 second rule
@@Thom-TRA does it have positive train control? Hee Hee
Great video !!!!!!
Thanks!