Another Review: Chef Leo’s Cafe
April 30th, 2009Where has the week gone? Saturday afternoon, April 25th, I helped staff the Global Village booth at the Earth Day Celebration at Forest Park Nature Center. Global Village, if you haven’t been in the shop, is a Fair Trade store in Peoria Heights. Our little booth was stocked with Fair Trade coffee and tea, slavery free chocolate, lovely, inexpensive jewelry and colorful clothes that did not come from a sweatshop.
It was a gusty, overcast day, and we were expecting a deluge of rain. Luckily the canopy did not blow down, and we only got a few rain drops. In fact, the sun came out as we were packing up for the day, and the parking lot quickly turned into a sauna. So I was feeling all sweaty-gritty by the time we met up with other GV volunteers at Chef Leo’s Cafe for dinner.
Chef Leo’s opened at the beginning of April inside the Peoria Bread Company at 1400 NE Monroe in Peoria. It was a cool, calm refuge after a day spent with a moody Mother Nature. At first glance, it seems a little stark. The floor tiles are black and white, the walls are stark white with a row of vivid, abstract acrylic painting marching around the room. The table cloths are black.
Dinner hours are 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm, Tuesday thru Saturday. We started arriving about 5:30. There were nine of us, and we had made reservations, but I felt like a we had arrived about 30 minutes early for a party. Dave, our very genial waiter (the only waiter for our large party and two smaller ones), seemed rushed and distracted. The ice tea was weak, and the bread for the bread baskets was still in the oven. But once we all got our water glasses and fresh tea, and warm bread, we all seemed to catch a collective breath and mellow out. Then we got down to the FOOD and some lively conversation.
“The concept behind the creation of Chef Leo’s Cafe,” according to their website and brochure, “began as a conversation between friends concerning the need for a restaurant that would offer high end vegetarian items and other organic and natural products. The idea was to work with local farmers who specialized in growing organic produce, free range chicken and grass fed beef. Utilizing a network of people dedicated to exposing the community to healthy alternatives.” And Goddess bless them, because Chef Leo’s is making good on those promises. Half of our party selected the special for the evening, a vegan lasagna. The portions were huge, looked gorgeous, and smelled wonderful. Two other people selected an eggplant ragout served over an equally huge slice of bread.
A dedicated omnivore, I had two “grilled lamb chops with saffron vegetables and red bell pepper sauce.” The pepper sauce was delicate and did not overwhelm the lamb. It also came with a generous portion of basmati rice. Another omnivore had a large dinner salad with grilled chicken. My lamb was about $18.00. I think the salad was about $12-14. The lasagna was less than my lamb, more than the salad… They also offer a filet of beef or rib-eye. Prices seemed about right on those, about $23-25.
The only disappointment was the “grilled mushroom polenta with roasted vegetables.” None of us knew what to expect on that one. We guessed mushrooms stuffed with or wrapped in polenta. Actually, they were diced, mixed in the polenta and then the polenta (which is fancy for “corn meal mush”) was grilled. The woman with the polenta said it was dry. It looked a little greasy to me…
Dave, when the rush was over, told us that Chef Leo’s is still in the process of working out the wine list. He promised some good wines at moderate prices and some more expensive selections. The restaurant serves Fair Trade coffee from Global Village. We were too full to entertain any thoughts of dessert. Chef Leo came out to thank us for dining.
Chef Leo’s is also open Tues thru Sat, 11:00 am t0 2:00 pm for lunch. They offer soup, salad, veggie sandwiches and a bison burger. And on Friday and Saturday you can buy bread from the bakery. On the the Near North Side of Peoria, it might be a bit out of your way, but you won’t regret it. You might want to call (309) 676-7790 or (866) 770-3895 for dinner reservations.




