Strongbow Inn, Valparaiso

Eight decades ago, the land that Strongbow Inn now stands on was filled with 1,500 turkeys, gobbling under the guidance of founders Walter and Bess Thrun. The family’s storied history has since been tied to that plot of land, from the construction of Strongbow Inn and US 30 in the ‘40s to the turkeys they continued to raise and dish up until the '80s. Three generations have built the restaurant to its current glory, serving turkey-centric comfort fare in an upscale, white-tablecloth-clad dining room and a casual wood-paneled lounge that made it onto WTTW’s Check, Please!.

The menu showcases fresh poultry in dishes that range from turkey schnitzel to turkey pot pie and Thanksgiving-esque feasts of carved turkey with homemade cranberry sauce and all the trimmings. Poultry-free fare also stakes out a space for itself, boasting grilled lamb chops and crab cakes made in house. Beside each menu item, the restaurant lists ideal wine pairings, such as a Leonard Kreusch with the turkey dinner or an Ecco Domani pinot grigio with the crab cakes.

In a dining room suited for big groups, plates rest near floral centerpieces surrounded by scalloped napkins. Patrons can also sup in the Blue Yonder lounge, where curly chandeliers hang above wooden lattice-backed chairs. Over the lounge’s bar, a populous fleet of model planes hangs from the ceiling ready to skywrite love notes to special guests or dive bomb dates who stole the last bite of pie.