Among all the restaurant chains in Peoria, there are also simple cafes. One such place is Sweet Basil Cafe, located off of Lake and Sheridan Avenue by Hyvee.
The diner provides breakfast, lunch and dinner options. It serves skillets, waffles, omelets, pancakes, wraps, burgers, horseshoes, pizza, pasta, seafood and sandwiches and so much more. Right now, the cafe allows pick-up and dine-in, but they do not offer delivery.
I tried one of their wraps, which typically comes with a side of fries and your choice of soup or salad or fruit cup.
Honey tender wrap:
This wrap was bigger than expected and was cut into two. Inside were crisp, diced up chicken tenders with tomatoes, lettuce, Monterey and cheddar cheese inside with a side of honey mustard to dip or pour on your wrap. The first bite was messy from the amount of food inside, and I was expecting honey mustard already in the wrap, hence the name, but it was only served on the side. Despite this, it was a delicious combination of all the food in one bite, plus the tangy taste of the honey mustard. It was not overpowering with one flavor. All the ingredients added together to make it a savory taste.
4/5
French fries:
I always say that you know a restaurant is good if they have good fries, which is true in this situation. Their fries were the right crunch. You get a pretty good handful of fries in the tray with the wrap. They really don’t have many other sides to choose from other than fruit, salad and orzo pasta.
4/5
Salad and soup:
Unfortunately, when I went to pick up my food, they were out of their chicken noodle soup, so I was only left with their salad. It was mediocre, it had its lettuce, carrots and tomatoes. I decided to get caesar dressing on the side in a plastic cup for the salad. Honestly, this was the best part of the salad but the dressing didn’t even taste like caesar. I should have gone with something else.
2.5/5
Fried Pickles:
These were unexpected. I was expecting a handful of pickle chips, but it was the opposite. I got a huge handful, more than expected, of tiny pickle spears. It reminded me of fried green beans from appearance.
Other than that, they had a good crunch and it was good to dip in with a little honey mustard.
3.75/5
For a total of about $20, it was a full meal with plenty of options for everyone to choose from for morning, afternoon and evening.
