Chicago Pizza Snob: York Tavern

York Tavern
3702 York Road, Oak Brook, IL  60523, (630)323-5090
Pizza Snob Says: The York Tavern puts out (as one would expect with such a name) tavern-cut crackery pies that come out a bit cold, under-cooked, under-seasoned and served on styrofoam plates.  Come for the beer and the Hinsdale "slumming-it" crowd.
Rating:  Two "Ats-a-Nice"

They list five Speciality pizzas on their menu including "The York's Special" - which is a SMOP (sausage, mushroom, onion and green peppers), "The Hawaiian" - with pineapple, bbq sauce and bacon, a Vegetarian, classic Margherita, and the pie we ordered: The Pizza Bianca: a olive oil-based artichoke/garlic/parmesan combo.  The place is owned by the same folks who own Roberto's in Elmhurst and the pizza menu looks surprisingly similar.  (compare the link to the image below)

Unfortunately, I didn't grab a photo of the pie we ordered, but I can tell you that it looked nothing like the one on the menu.  Granted, we did have the Bianca, but the photo on the menu shows a full, rich pie with toppings from one end to the other.  What we got was a stale-tasting, cold, unseasoned pie that was completely unmemorable.  

Nat remarked that we were looked at sideways when we walked in and from the sounds of it on Yelp, we're not alone.

When we walked in to the tiny dive everyone looked at us like we were outa towners or really ugly monsters, including the hostess/waitress. Eventually some lady came and sat us.

We had a pretty similar experience.  A fairly inattentive waitress who didn't care much for us.

After a little discussion of the food, I was left with the ordering duties.  They feature three kinds of crust: thin, pan and stuffed, but each of the speciality pies only come in thin.  I briefly considered my standard go-to of Sausage and Pepperoni combo, but with Nat eating, I went with the Pizza Bianca.

The wait wasn't long, but when the pie arrived, so to did the styrofoam plates.  Although I am the Chicago Pizza Snob, I'm not a snob about plates.  I didn't mind them.  But, I did mind the pizza.  It was cold and lackluster.  Nat said immediately, "something's off with the crust".  She has a theory that they might par-bake the crusts and/or whole speciality pies at Roberto's in Elmhurst and bring them down to the York Tavern to finish off.  We didn't get into the kitchen and we failed to ask the waitress what the oven set-up was (she wouldn't have told us anyway), so we're left guessing why the Pizza Bianca failed so terribly.  Could it have been left to get cold by the waitress?  Maybe.  Could it have been an off day with the crust?  Perhaps.  With another visit, we'll know for sure.

I didn't give this place just one Ats-a because I didn't get a red sauce-based pie and the place is a worth-while stop if you are in Hinsdale.  The address is Oak Brook, but don't get confused.  This is Hinsdale.  Just check out the parking lot for confirmation.