Overall Rating: 8.7/10
Food Quality: 9/10
Diversity of Menu Items: 9/10
Accessibility (gluten free, vegan, allergies, etc.): 8/10
Location (relative to campus): 9/10
Atmosphere: 8.5/10
Price: $$ (out of $-$$$$)
This is the price scale I used for this rating.
Qualitative Review
Frida’s Breakfast and Lunch — lovingly known by many Northwestern students as simply Frida’s — is a classic diner with delicious breakfast and lunch options. The extensive menu features everything from classic fare such as eggs, omelets, and pancakes to more elegant, sophisticated dishes such as crepes, creative salads and various burger options. Frida’s also offers multiple versions of almost every item listed on the menu; that is, patrons can have their crepes plain or loaded up with berries, whipped cream and coulis. The food itself is delicious. At typical diners, while the eggs and pancakes might be solid, sometimes the more complicated dishes are lacking. However, everything that I have personally tried at Frida’s has been excellent, from the pancakes to the crepes to the salads and avocado toast. For these reasons, I awarded Frida’s a 9/10 rating for both their food quality and diversity of menu items.
While considerate of allergies, the menu itself at Frida’s is not very accessible for people who are gluten free and vegan given the nature of diner food mainly consisting of bread and egg variations. However, the staff is very friendly and as accommodating as possible with dietary restrictions, so I gave Frida’s a 8/10 for accessibility.
Located right next to Whole Foods in downtown Evanston, Frida’s is super convenient for Northwestern students. Eating at Frida’s can easily be incorporated into any midday or morning errand run. I also, personally, really enjoy the classic diner atmosphere of Frida’s. However, the restaurant is a bit small and narrow, so it can occasionally become a bit loud. Therefore, while I gave Frida’s a 9/10 for location, it received an 8.5/10 for atmosphere.
Finally, pricing. Like most diners, Frida’s is a bit more expensive than one might expect for the casual food it offers. Most menu items cost in the $14-$15 range, and thus place Frida’s alongside Stacked and Folded in terms of price. This makes Frida’s more pricey than other casual pick-up-food restaurants like Pono Ono and Elephant and Vine, but cheaper than some other sit-down places in the area like Triatorri Demi. Frida’s is about $1-$2 more expensive than most other brunch places in the area, like Cupitol, Le Peep and Ovo Frito.
In my opinion, the great food and quintessential diner atmosphere of Frida’s make the price well worth it. Averaging the scores resulted in an overall 8.7/10 rating for Frida’s.
