Seeing as we stay in a different city each week on our 5 year, 50 state road trip, we’re always on the hunt for new and fun things to do.
A few days before we were due to arrive in Naperville IL, I took a look on Groupon to see if there were any good deals for places to eat or things to do. One of the restaurants grabbed my eye – 2Toots Train Whistle Grill.
The name of the restaurant was what initially grabbed my attention, but when clicking through to the description I knew it was somewhere we had to eat. Here’s how the Groupon listing described it:
At 2Toots Train Whistle Grill, O-scale toy trains bustle around the ’50s luncheonette-style grill, delivering burgers, hot dogs, and fries to each table.
Toy trains delivering our food? That sounded awesome and I’m not even a toy train fanatic! So before our friend headed back to Ohio, we all went for lunch at 2Toots.
2Toots has three locations in the Chicago area, with the Naperville restaurant being located in a strip mall. When entering the restaurant, train tracks are one of the first things you see.
The trains loop around the restaurant all the time, even if they’re not carrying food at the time.
2Toots Train Whistle Grill is a 50s-style diner with booths along both sides of the restaurant and some counter seating at the front.
The walls are adorned with all kinds of train paraphernalia that young and old alike should find interesting.
We chose to sit in a booth; booths only have space for four people and there were five of us, so I grabbed a spare seat and sat at the end. Every table in the restaurant is located along the train loop; that meant there weren’t any tables along the wall and so there was plenty of room behind my seat for people to walk by.
After sitting down, we took a look at the menu.
Once we’d ordered our food and drinks, we continued to enjoy watching the trains go by.
Most of us had ordered waters or sodas, but our friend got a root beer float.
After about 15 minutes, the moment arrived – the train was on its way to our station!
We’d all ordered some kind of hamburger or cheeseburger with either crinkle fries or onion rings.
Shae and her mom also ordered train whistle cupcakes because why not.
We now have train whistles to go with the kazoos we made in South Carolina 😀
The burgers were excellent, as were the crinkle fries. They use 100% grass-fed beef for their burgers and they tasted fresh and not at all greasy. I’d ordered a double hamburger which ended up being more meat than I needed, but I ate it all anyway as it was so good.
Final Thoughts
If you’re looking for somewhere interesting to eat in the Chicago area, 2Toots Train Whistle Grill is a great option. With all the toy trains delivering your food, it’s a fun place for people of all ages, plus the food tastes great.
If you decide to visit 2Toots, check out Groupon to see if they’re still running the deal we got – $25 of food for $15.50.
Our Rating
Food = 4.6 / 5
Price = 4.2 / 5
Atmosphere = 4.5 / 5
Decor = 4.9 / 5
Service = 4.3 / 5
Total = 4.5 / 5
Address
2Toots Train Whistle Grill has three locations in the greater Chicago area. We visited the one in Naperville which is found at 1567 N Aurora Rd, Naperville, IL 60563.
What a fun idea! I grew up in the era when there was always a train running around under the Christmas tree and waving at a train engineer was a regular part of our lives. I would love to eat at his restaurant!