Lindy's Chili & Gertie's Ice Cream

The burgers are so good. The ice cream is good. The people are friendly. Somebody came from behind the counter to take my order when they were packed. It made me feel good to be there

I had a fantastic experience at this establishment! The service was top-notch, and the kids absolutely loved their ice cream. The flavors were delightful, and the staff was friendly and accommodating. One thing to note for future visitors is that it's a cash-only location, so it's important to be mindful of that before heading there. Despite this, I'm definitely planning to return. The positive atmosphere, coupled with great service and delicious ice cream, makes it a place worth revisiting. Looking forward to the next visit!

Just like I remembered it! Grab a burger or dog and shake and it transcends you back to the carefree days. Great job Lindy’s! Keep the tradition alive and tasting great!

Been going to this very small sundae 🍨 shop since the 70s. The original on 59 and kedzie, than on archer and now on Pulaski inside of the ea s t side storefronts. I come either for the Chilli or a sundae. Always have stuffed animals hanging to buy. It's cozy and reminds me of being a kid. No credit Cash only. ATM inside. Lots of parking.

The whipped cream tasted light. Not as sweet as expected. How fudge was good. Ice cream was dense.

Great place that has been in service for a long time. Great food an perfect place to get your dessert 🍨 for sure. It is cash only. Only bad thing is I would say they should get some chair's. I seen one lady came with her family an she wasn't able to fit in the booths.

We had dessert only but service was a bit all over the place, we got there and had to wait for a table and the people behind us got thier order taken before us and served 1st although we had been waiting. Overall, the dessert Sunday was delicious... My brownie was nice and warm, and so was the chocolate syrup.

Love their ice cream 🍦🍨

As I'm sitting here listening to "The Memory-Roy Ayers" I thought I'd yelp and up next is Lindy's Chili & Gertie's Ice Cream. To start I loved the classic diner look. It sort of takes you back in time being inside. They had Christmas decorations up and it felt very festive. The service was AWESOME! I believe the gentleman name was Antonio. Very friendly guy & he told my wife and I to come by in the summer when they celebrate 100 yrs of service! They're known for their Chicago style chili (with or without beans) & hand packed Ice cream. Wifey & I had the loaded fries. It came with chili (no beans for us), cheddar cheese, diced tomatoes, diced onions, jalapeños & sour cream ( on the side. I very rarely eat sour cream) sounds pretty basic but the chili is what separates them! The chili was so savory & it had a sweetness to it. Sooo tasty and it worked really well together. I kept thinking about a chili dog..... so you know I have to return. 10/10 for the service!! 8.3/10 for the loaded fries. 8.5/10 total experience. We are definitely returning! (remember all reviews are subjective)

The food was really good! I had a burger with fries and chili and it did not disappoint! The service was fast according to the person who picked it up!

Yum num nummy yum sorry baby mama I hope you have some wonderful time love love baby baby doll baby mama merry love love baby queen. I stand by that

carrie is the best owner, she has mainted a standard through the years and I will always patronize. Excellent Chili.

Best Chili in Chicago! The shakes are huge. You wont be sorry ! Ver Quaint. The cheeseburgers are delicious also

The staff was very friendly and the ice cream was great! However my chili dog wasn't all that I probably should of just had a bowl of chili instead. Little pricy than I expected. They charged me for an adult serving plain hotdog for my 5 Yr old niece. And you have to pay cash too! I never even got a chance to see the actual bill but for 1 adult and 1 child I paid $28 overpriced

I absolutely love this place. My family has been coming here for years. Best chili in the city. Great ice cream.

It's an OK place not that bad. Ice cream is really good. I love the strawberry sundae they have and the banana float good service the ambience is OK.

Lindy's Chili & Gerties Ice Cream was recommended to me by one of my colleagues, who came in for the evening eating a cup of ice cream. And as one that is always curious of what restaurants are in the West Lawn area, I asked him about it then immediately looked it up on Yelp resulting in me bookmarking it after scrolling through pictures shared. I vowed to visit the day of bookmarking it after viewing the chili bowl which had my interest along with the turtle sundae and banana split. I have literally been at my internship site in the West Lawn - Ford City area for nearly 3 months and have driven past Lindy's every single time, but never noticed it because of its restaurant being hidden behind a run down building. It sits in the Ford City East shopping plaza next door to Richard J. Daley College. And Lindy's has well enough parking for the amount of customers it seats inside, which parking is far from being an issue. Things that caught my eye immediately after walking in the door was its onsite ATM machine, stocks of junk food: chips, candy, cookies, candy bars, etc., its tiled floor (similar to inside of a bathroom), the stuffed animals hanging from the ceiling and its old school shake machine which reminded me of working at Steak 'n Shake during my junior high school years. And speaking of Steak 'n Shake, Lindy's has similar vibes yet smaller and does not serve breakfast items. Other than taking notice of its tasty looking turtle sundae and banana split pictures on Yelp, its menu presented a number of sandwiches, appetizers, sundaes, ice cream, salads and burgers. For once, I ordered what I actually visited for, which was the chilli bowl w/ beans & macaroni and a serving of fries, which I have no complaints about the service and timeline I received my order. My colleague recommended that I dined in versus ordering to go in order to get a bigger portion of food, which is understandable because regular sized bowls can differ in size than a to go container, so prior to visiting I made sure I had enough time to dine in before the restaurant closed. And then again, it makes for a better review because I can let my eyes wander and snap many pictures of the inner restaurant interior. As for the food, I will say this! My taste buds were not disappointed because I satisfied them with the chili craving I had the day of my visit. And, the fries I ordered barely made it out of the parking lot with me because I munched on them in-between getting up from my seat to while driving on Pulaski. Along with possibly ordering lunch with my colleagues, I anticipate returning to Lindy's because I would love to try one of their sundaes that caught my eye from pictures shared on Yelp; preferably the turtle sundae! I highly recommend this restaurant, and I hope this review assists you in any way. *Be prepared because they take cash only, but does have an onsite ATM. Thomas G

An old school Southside guy who has everything available for restaurants. I have been living in the suburbs for over 20 years now and still crave this famous chili recipe. For family celebrations we have themed menus and nothing goes better with hotdog bar, chili bar, sausage bar, burger bar, nacho bar, tater top bar and appetizer buffet than Lindy's chili w/ beans or turkey chili. It is alway worth the trip to pick up a few quarts with all the fixings!! I also stop by the Archer location on my way back from Midway airport to grab a to go or a burger combo. Check it out if you have never been!!

Ice cream is so good! Great location to bring your family for dinner and dessert. I am so happy they are still open after all it has happend.

I've been coming here since I was a kid and they never disappoint their wings are super good and they treat you like family. They also are stingy with their portion of food.

Been coming here for years. Some of the best ice cream in the city. Their burgers and chicken tenders are good too. The employees are always really good people. Must try it if you havent.

My experience here was disgusting. We hadn't been here in years so we didn't know rather to sit or wait to be seated. Once we decided to sit, since no one even acknowledged our presence, we didn't know that we had to order first. We sat and sat....then realized we needed to order first. The line got about 10 people long while we were sitting. No one ever said a word to us. One of the employees dropped some cups while fixing a shake, my son bent over to pick them up from them. He snatched them and never said a word to my son. We got up and walked out. A utterly disgusting experience and I'll never return. I was only wanting to give my son an old school Chicago experience from my childhood and it was very disappointing. Never, again!

Waitress seen us come in and completely ignored us. Ended up walking out after more then 10 minutes with no service

By far the best chocolate malt around! Going back for chili tomorrow because as the sign says, "Cash Only." To be fair they doo have an atm but I wasn't going to spend money on a withdrawal.

This place has fantastic chili! If nothing else, please go out of your way for this. Everything else is "OK". Don't set your expectations too high. Again, the chili is super legit and a must.

The chili with beans, sour cream, cheese and onions is delicious. The staff was friendly and patient even when I changed my mind and they had to rewrite some of my order. Goad I finally tried them out!

After my boyfriend went on and on about this place for hours, I finally caved and decided to try this place. Boy O Boy, I'm glad I did. We ordered the Lindy's Loaded Nachos an an appetizer. We finished with a cool treat on an Hot and Humid Day. I ordered a Turtle Sundae. I was surprised by how Humongous this ice cream sundae was. I knew at first sight, I was defeated (in a good way). He ordered the Three Queens sundae which was bigger than my sundae. Needless to say, this place gets the 5 stars.

The chili was very good! I also had the senior sundae topped with chopped cherries. Was so good and huge! For a senior sundae I expected it to be small. Enjoyed both the chili and sundae.

Everything is amazing. I have been a customer for years now and even after covid everything is the same just as I remember it :))

Best chili in the city, box me heads up one on one no one jumps in if you don't agree. Don't worry about the beat up seats you ain't gonna eat the mfkers, the chili, hot dogs, burgers and ice cream are all good. You can't go wrong with either one.

Best chili in Chicago. Real ice cream. Nicely varied menu items/combinations. Crazy fun decor. Reasonable prices.

This is the place to go for homemade ice cream. My favorite is their turtle sundae, but know many who love their hot fudge sundaes & banana splits. Their chili is great as well. FYI this place is cash only & isnt cheap so come prepared.

I remember my grandparents taking us to Gerties Ice Cream as children, so I could resist being my kids while we vacationed in Chicago. Needless to say, we all loved it! My wife and oldest daughter orders the double hot fudge sundae, my youngest daughter orders the cherry sundae, my son with a simple chocolate sundae, and I got the battleship! Everyone left with a fully belly. The staff was friendly, the restaurant was clean, but they only take cash (thankfully the added an ATM).

Best Burger I ever had! By far, no comparison what so ever! I was floored how good it was, they are consistent too.

I ordered a cheeseburger meal and substituted my drink for a chocolate milkshake. I paid the difference which was only about $2 more. The food and milkshake was amazing. Very affordable prices. I came with my friends and we all left very satisfied with our meals. I'll defiantly be going back soon!

Omg I just came here and it's horrible service I walked in and all the employees where sitting on there lazy ass and just talking I was standing there waiting there for 10mins so I could give my order and they where just looking and smiling like I was a Statue or something omg horrible and the place looked old and rusty and dusty the seats are ripped up it doesn't look clean at all they should up grade because ew ! So as I was standing there for 10min I just left ! And walked out and they seem like they don't care about there Business! Never going back again! Don't go! You will regret it!

Best chocolate malt you'll ever have. Been coming here with my family for 30 years. My parents and grandparents always loved coming here for Chocolate sodas and green river phosphates which are hard to find outside of Chicago. The chili is also really good. The chili tamale extravaganza was always my Dad's favorite. The sundae's are huge. My friend ordered a 3 scoop hot fudge sundae and two of us had to help her eat it. Love the real whip cream and nabiscos on top. Seriously, I've never found a better chocolate malt in my life.

I remember when this place first opened back when I was a kid but I have never been here until just now for a banana split! The banana split was awesome! I mean how can you even mess up a banana split, I imagine that even a bad one is still pretty good. The interior has seen better days but I am thinking that is the old/old-fashioned look they were going for. You know what, The "old" look is working for this place. The guy who tool our order obviously wanted to be somewhere else and he made that perfectly clear by not cracking a smile, and just being as unpleasant as possible to us. He barely said a word to us all night. He was so downright rude that he made me just want to get out of there as soon as possible. I am not going to go out of my way to go to this location again. There are other locations that I enjoy visiting.

They have good chili and we love the fries! I took my kids here for lunch today, and it brought memories of my mom bringing me to " Lindy's Chili" for lunch. I still think they make good chili that is great on hotdogs or just in a bowl with crackers and cheese. I would return again because they are consistent and the service is very friendly. It's cheap eats.

Lindy's has some of the best chili I've ever had in my life! Whatever they do, the spices they choose, is near perfection. I honestly cannot put my hand on what they use to create this perfect blend of spices. The chili has a bit of a bite to it, but not too spicy by any means. Lindy's original location opened in 1924 on Archer and have since expanded into a handful of locations. Get your delicious chili and eat in, and when you go, get a container and buy more for later. Trust me on this one!

Sadly, this shop, like the mall beside it, have fallen on hard times. Huge pot holes in the parking lot. Threadbare and heavily soiled velvet upholstery in the banquettes that does not appear to have been replaced since the shop opened. But the soda jerks still turn know how to turn out some of the best ice cream sundaes you will ever find anywhere, and at a fraction of the price you would pay at just about anywhere else. I wish I'd taken a picture on my recent return visit. A strawberry sundae -- two scoops of darn-good vanilla ice cream equal to the size of a pint and a half of Haagen-Dazs, packed into a classic soda fountain glass, topped with strawberry sauce with real strawberries, capped with a towering mound of fresh whipped cream and a gorgeous dusting of crushed Brazil nuts, topped off with the classic maraschino cherry, and, one of the iconic ingredients I've always loved about their ice cream dishes, a couple of Nabisco French vanilla cream sandwich cookies. Yeah!

Love this place. Great food, great ice cream. Been coming here since high school and the food is still on point. Get the chili cheese fries and grilled chicken sandwich. Too good.

This is right around my area. I see this place all the times across from Daley college. It was hot one day and we wanted ice cream. My mom came into town and we decided to go there. My mom got a cheesecake ice cream and I got banana split. My children got there's in a cup. Oh my gosh. It was so much ice cream that we put the rest in the freezer for later. Service was great and we just admired all the vintage looking pieces around the store. They also let my mom taste as much as she wanted. They even offered a taste. We to say, we left very satisfied

This chain is an institution in the Southwest side of Chicago and suburbs. It's one of the many locations and the one closest to me. I have a lot of great memories of eating here with my friend and enjoying the food. The quality in my opinion is a bit better than your standard fast food. They serve burgers, hotdogs, turkey club sandwiches, patty melts, and other standard stuff. However, the chilli and ice cream is really the focus of this place. It's very inexpensive and two people maybe even three can eat for less than $20. The chilli is great and I always order it without beans which I've read is the real way to eat Chilli as Beans are considered a filler in Texas or maybe I'm wrong? It's not spectacular but it's pretty good. It's got a bit of a sweet finish to it and a great overall spice. You can order it by the cup or have it served up on some fries, nachos and even spaghetti!(I tried it once and it was actually pretty good, it came with garlic bread) This place is also one of the few places in Chicago that does old fashioned Ice Cream, like old soda fountains in the early 20th century did. It's pure Americana and I love it! My friend and I would usually share a sundae but if you're hungry it's more than enough for one person with an appetite. They always have an assortment of flavors(try the butter pecan!) and have toppings that include hot caramel(so good!), fresh strawberries, bananas, peanuts, and a couple other things. Instead of McDonalds try this place for lunch.

Definitely a good place to go if you want an old fashioned sundae. The chili is really great to, I love the chili mac. Of the 3 different locations the one over on Archer Ave by Nashville is the best, friendliest service yet. Can't say the same about the other locations. On the down side if you order a hot dog or burger that's all you're gonna get, fries come extra.

After living only 5 minutes away for the last 14 years...this was my first time stepping into the place. I loved the atmosphere, a 70s, 80s feel. Peaceful when I walked in. I didn't take too much of a good look at the cleanliness of the place as I was more focused on the menu, in and out for my lunch break. I saw that they a good variety of food selections which I liked. I had a taste for a scoop of ice cream, I was debating between the Irish Coffee and Peach Yogurt..both sounded so good. I chose the 1 scoop of Irish Coffee and left with a beautifully filled cup of what looked like 2 1/2 scoops at a nice price!! (vs. Baskin Robbins for instance) Very hearty in their serving size! Ice cream tasted wonderful, no complaints. Staff; very friendly. I'm ready to take on their food menu soon!! HEADS UP: CASH ONLY!

Go for the chili! Stay for the ice cream! This is my happy place! I love their chili with cheese and sour cream. You can get a bowl of chili or a combo meal (burger/fries) with a cup of chili on the side. In fact, you can add chili to practically anything on the menu. It's that good!! Make sure to save room for dessert! The turtle sundae is my favorite. It's beautiful too look at too. Have your phone ready to Instagram a pic! To top it off the staff is always very friendly.

"Baby it's cold outside!" Or maybe the rain has you in the mood for a cuddle; so let your tongue spoon with hot Lindy's Chili (with or without beans), and your body caress the heat inside you with each slow swallow. That's right, it's like that...an experience, an emotion, a gratification. I follow it with a shockingly cold pineapple milkshake (there's always enough to share), with pieces of pineapple to keep you occupied, and satisfied in the moment. I'll leave the explicit detail of each bite of chili and each sip of milkshake to the imagination. Try it blindfolded it might heighten your experience!! Cheers!

Was an awfully good place years ago. I just wish Ii had gone to the original location at 59th & Kedzie. But yet......Progress be damned......But the Banana splits weren't bad at the Pulaski location.

The ice cream here is great. Only place I know that does ice cream how they used to do it in the "old days" or that's what I'm told. Big sundaes, banana splits, milk shakes, malts, and turtle sundaes, etc... My personal favorite thing is the chili. It's a bit sweet compared to other chili, but it's really well done. A bowl is only $3.50; I'd recommend eating it without beans, as chili with beans isn't real chili in my opinion. The burgers, hotdogs, and sandwiches are okay but nothing special. Good place to go out with your friends after a movie or take a girl out on a date for a reasonable price. The service is always fast, but be patient if there's a lot of a seated table there is usually only 3-4 people working at a time.

Worst nachos I've ever tasted. The chips were stale and not warm. The chille just tasted like taco seasoning and salt, nothing else. The ice cream is the only thing that's great about this place. It's not how it used to be.

I just moved by this place and I wanted to get something to eat with my family and oh my god it was the worst the people were nice but the food was bad my onions were under cooked and I order something off the special but they charged me for each peace of cheese and my family's chili was warm and the vide in the place was weird they had stuffed animals everywhere and they had old pictures hanged up but anyways I never will go there again hopefully this helps everyone

Awesome desserts and food. Love the brownie sundae... Paid $18 for 3 sundaes. They were huge though. They don't accept credit cards Cash only. Great place!

Went to Lindy's for the first time yesterday. I've passed by here before but never stopped to try it. I was not disappointed! I got a cup of chili to go and it was wonderful. It was a little spicy, with the right amount of meat to beans ratio. I wish there was a Lindy's on the north side ;(

I went here for the first time today. They have sandwiches , chili, and ice cream. I wanted some ice cream and decided on a turtle sundae. I was not disappointed. The presentation was nice, the size was large, and the taste was awesome! I'll be back to try some of the other offerings. The chili is supposed to be really good and the peach melba frozen yogurt sounds intriguing.

I ordered a strawberry banana milk shake, but was given a vanilla milk shake with a hint of strawberry. I gave three stars for the vanilla ice cream used for my shake.

Best banana splits !! Ive tried other places and im sure many would agree. This is a great place !! Im addicted !! Maybe next time ill try the food.

For a place that has "the best chili in Chicago" it was not as good as claimed. I also tried "the best hot fudge sunday in Chicago". I have had better one of my personnel favorites is Margie's. This was a good place to try once, doubt I will be back it is also a drive from the northside.