Frank and Betsie’s
Frank and Betsie’s French and California Cuisine
51 Green Bay Rd, Glencoe, IL 60022
Phone: (847) 446-0404
Menu: frankandbetsies.com
Visited: December 2025. 5:15 pm.
Reviewers: Andrea and Rich
The Place
The Food
It's Never Too Late to Discover Frank and Betsie's
For years, we'd driven past Frank and Betsie's on Green Bay Road. We'd browsed the menu online—familiar French that we enjoy, but usually not our first choice. As reviewers, however, we knew we needed to expand our horizons. We're glad we did. Our preconceived notions? Completely wrong.
The Place
Our first impression confirmed what many reviews suggested: this restaurant is cozy and comfortable and blessedly quiet... It's a refreshing departure from the cavernous, overly bright, music-saturated dining rooms that dominate many of today's restaurants.
One expectation proved accurate, but in a good way. The muted French motif might strike some as dated, but it's well-maintained and creates an inviting dining atmosphere.
Tables are well spaced, giving us the sense of dining in our own private enclave. Located on a corner in downtown Winnetka/Hubbard Woods, there is ample street parking and a convenient lot across the street.
The Food
From their website: Our menu pays homage to French traditions while blending comfort, culture, and a touch of Californian cuisine.
The menu does emphasize traditional French fare, but we found little that we consider contemporary California. The focus is red meat, but it also features several appealing chicken dishes and modest seafood options. For Richard, the picky eater, the selection offered more choices than most French restaurants we’ve visited—and mercifully, no exotic animal parts.
We went with the meat. We began with the bacon-wrapped scallop appetizer: three generously sized, perfectly cooked.
The entrées include your choice of salad or soup. I opted for the Caesar, while Andrea chose the chowder—both were generous portions and well prepared. The breadbasket was better than typical. Andrea had a glass of wine.
For entrées, I selected my French restaurant benchmark: Steak Frites. While various cuts are used for this classic dish, Frank and Betsie's goes upscale with an excellent strip steak. Perfectly cooked. Delicious. Andrea ordered the Colorado lamb shank, a rarity on menus and typically priced more than what we're willing to spend. Yet both the steak and lamb were reasonably priced compared to many restaurants, especially considering the quality of the cuts.
However, one flaw prevented a five-bird rating: potatoes.
The Steak Frites were described as coming with "crispy hand-cut frites." I can’t confirm hand-cut, but crispy they were not. They arrived limp and barely warm.
Andrea's mashed potatoes were dense and also lukewarm. Both were edible, and we chose not to send them back while our meat grew cold.
Our philosophy: if a restaurant can't execute it properly the first time, we won't continue the experiment unless the problem is truly inedible or genuinely unappetizing. Had the meat been terrible, we would've spoken up. But they were just potatoes.
The Experience
As noted, the vibe is cozy. Service was friendly, attentive, and perfectly paced—never rushed, never left wondering when our food would arrive.
The clientele skewed middle-aged and older, but no families with young children. Our 5:15 pm reservation found several tables already occupied. By the time we departed around 6:45, the room was full.
Frank and Betsie fulfilled our preconceived notion of being somewhat old-fashioned, but in this case, we welcomed it. The calm, quiet atmosphere was perfect with the excellent food.
The Verdict
We enjoyed an elegant meal and experienced what we consider reasonable in today's pricey restaurants. At $110 for dinner, this isn't an "early bird special," but it's certainly worth adding to our list for special occasions or the occasional splurge. Fix those potatoes, and it's 5 birds.
Rating Highlights:
⭐ Food Quality: Excellent
💰 Value: Excellent, not cheap but a very good value for the quality.
🕐 Early Bird Experience: Very good
🔇 Atmosphere: Cozy, comfortable,
👍 Would Return: Yes, we have our eyes on the chicken entrees.