Sarks in the Park

Cultural landmarks remain cultural landmarks because they stay in one place. Period. After all, it's not like you'd see Disney World in France, or worse, California. Boldly breaking that rule, Sarks in the Park.After steadily staying an Evanston institution for over 50 years, Sarkis Cafe (dropping the "i" for rhyming purposes) is bringing the North Shore's long-beloved diner fare to the city in a bustling below-ground space that still has that old-timey feel, like a freshly pressed pair of Grandpa's slacks, or frankly, a freshly pressed pair of anything. They're continuing to crank out the dishes that made them famous like the Disaster, a sandwich crammed with special homemade sausage slathered in cheese/tomato/peppers/onion on French bread; The Loretta, a similar concoction that subs ham or bacon and adds mayo; and The Animal, a heartstopping amalgamation of all of the above, creating a festival of meat not seen since your All Dude Handcuff Party. They've also got a slew of all-day breakfast fare including bountiful omelets (the special comes with ham, cheese, green pepper, tomato, mushroom, and onion) and legendary hash browns that come with the option of a dousing in veggies & cheese, because, well, this is still Chicago. If all goes well on the first go-round of expansion they have their eye on moving into other Chi hoods, which sounds crazy--I mean, what're they going to do, make a "chain" of restaurants or something?