Over the years, I have grown fond of a special type of food that my father has made. This dish combines salty fries, savory gravy and melted cheese curds all in one. The dish, called poutine, is a culinary staple from Quebec, the region of Canada my family and I are from. 

Every time I visited my family up north, it was tradition to get a greasy bowl of poutine in my stomach. Being such a phenomenal meal, I wondered how I could shed light on it here in Libertyville. To do this, I am presenting you with — and reviewing — some of the various poutines available right here in Lake County. 

While the local poutine may not be as delicious as it is up north, I know that they will bring me immense joy. The three essentials of poutine are the fries, gravy and cheese. These three components will be judged individually and will inform the overall score.

Calzone and Macaroni Co.

$6.99 – Regular Poutine

Fries: 4/10 – For the first dish I tried, I was severely disappointed by the fries. I think one of the most important things I look for are some salty and crunchy fries; unfortunately, these were neither. They were very soggy, crinkle-cut fries, and I could barely taste any of the salt. It reminded me of the type of fries served at Highland Middle School. 

Gravy: 5/10 – The gravy was what I like to call subpar. When tasting the fries, I tried to look for a distinct gravy flavor, but I could not find it. Nothing stood out about it. If I had to compare it to one thing, it would be the gray clouds that cover Illinois during the winter time. I expected some savory flavor out of it, but the cheese outmatched the gravy by far. 

Cheese: 8/10 – The cheese for this poutine was phenomenal. When I first opened up this dish and saw the cheese, my mouth started watering. When I took the first fry out and saw the cheese clinging on for dear life, my eyes popped. The gooey cheese was by far the best part of the dish.

Overall taste: 6/10 – The dish, while it did have gravy, was ruined due to the crinkle-cut fries. All it needs is some salty, crunchy fries, and they will have the best poutine in Lake County. 

Parkstreet restaurant – 

$9.50 – Craft Poutine 

 Fries: 9/10- The fries were immaculate in this particular dish. The perfect amount of salt paired with the toppings really helped with the flavor. I also found that they were not soggy whatsoever. Alongside with the fries they had caramelized onions and bacon, which gave a sweet kick paired with the savory flavor. 

Gravy: 1/10 – My disappointment with the lack of gravy could not be larger. The restaurant forgot one of the most essential pieces of the dish. If they had served this back in Canada, the restaurant would no longer be in business. While it was still an amazing meal, you simply cannot claim to have poutine and forget the gravy. They did add a garlic sauce, which made up a little for the lack of something essential.  

Cheese: 8/10 – Parkside really threw me a curveball when they decided to add feta cheese to the mix. The feta cheese and the caramelized onions and bacon were the perfect combination. It really made up for the fact that no gravy was presented in the dish.

Overall: 8.5/10 – While the dish did not have any gravy, the caramelized onions and bacon made up for it. The sweet and savory flavor, combined with the feta cheese, was something I was not expecting but I ended up enjoying. 

Consume – 

Breakfast Poutine – $14.99 

Fries: 7/10 – These were your average, run-of-the mill-fries. There was a good amount of salt, and I had no complaints, but at the same time, nothing stood out. The addition of chives with the dish was satisfying but the egg on top hurt the dish’s performance. I would not consider these fries anything more than average. 

Gravy: 0/10 – Once again, my disappointment was immeasurable and my day was ruined when I opened my container to find not a single drop of gravy on this dish. If I would have served this dish to my grandmother, I am not sure I would still be considered a true Amyot. I find that to forget gravy is a little like having a pet fish with no water. It is a disgrace to the dish itself. 

Cheese: 7/10 – The cheese mostly consisted of mozzarella and was quite rich. It filled me up quickly, and I enjoyed it, but it did not pair well with the egg. It was very gooey and tasted delicious when paired with the fries. It had the potential to be amazing but with the egg and no gravy, I had to give the mozzarella a 7. 

Overall: 6/10 The dish failed to meet my expectations without gravy. It was advertised as a breakfast poutine, but the lack of gravy really turned off my love for the dish. The mozzarella was a good addition but not enough to make up for the meal.