Jill O.
Yelp
I made my way to Giant City Lodge & Restaurant when one of my family members graduated from SIU. I had never even heard of the place, but I have family who are alumni that were really nostalgic about the place, so here we came.
We opted to do the family style dinner. This costs $11.99 for each adult, and $4.99 for each kid at the table. There were about 14 of us, so this was a really great deal, since the family style menu is all you can eat. With this family style option, you get fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, dumplings, green beans, corn, coleslaw, biscuits and butter.
This is some of the best fried chicken I have ever had. It's a good thing it's all you can eat, because I couldn't even tell you how many pieces I ate, but it was a lot and each bit was delicious. The dumplings were really good too. They were light and fluffy and buttery, and just like mom used to make. Well, not my mother. You wouldn't want her dumplings. But just like somebody's mother used to make, at the least.
I can't tell you much about anything else that was on that table. I know I didn't have anything bad, but almost everything was eclipsed by the awesomeness of the chicken, which was perfectly cooked, juicy, and well-seasoned.
The atmosphere is really rustic and homey, and I feel this is brought out even more so when you dine in family style, and you have to pass around the dishes and things like that. It's a really nice tone to the place. Come for the chicken, and get the all you can eat. You won't be sorry.