Mystery Diner in Lake in the Hills: Sampling some new White Castle menu items

White Castle is 101 years old. You don’t get to serve, and outlive, generations of customers without a lot of staying power. White Castle calls its experience a craving.

There are plenty of jokes and stories to go around of diners recalling trips to White Castle in the middle of the night to pound sacks of its mini burgers, called sliders. But the chain has its legion of fans and pop culture references aplenty. Consider the many mentions of White Castle in movies (“Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle”), television programs (“Mad Men” characters Don Draper and Harry Crane binge on White Castle burgers after a Rolling Stones concert) and songs (The Smithereens’ “White Castle Blues”).

There are numerous White Castles in Chicago and the suburbs, and while we drove past the Randall Road one in Lake in the Hills, the restaurant’s sign advertising its new Sloppy Joe Slider caught our attention. Sure, why not?

White Castles look similar: white building with battlements and blue awnings. The interior is white, as well, with large windows and blue, white or stainless-steel tables and several photos depicting the restaurant’s history.

On this visit, my lunch mate and I decided to stray from our traditional order (Original Sliders, fries or onion rings and a pop) and try some of the new items on the menu, including the Sloppy Joe Slider.

The Sloppy Joe Slider (99 cents) comes on the signature mini slider bun, as do most White Castle sandwiches. The meat was similar to a Manwich-sauce Joe you’d make at home. It was not sloppy, which is a good thing. I ate mine plain, and my lunch mate added a barbecue sauce packet. We agreed the sandwich was “not bad.”

We also shared the Sloppy Joe Fries ($3.09), which is an order of White Castle crinkle fries topped with Sloppy Joe Slider meat and cheese. This, too, was an interesting concoction, but also pretty good.

Another experiment was the Crispy Chicken Breast Slider ($1.99), which was white meat chicken with cheese on a bun. The key word here is crispy. The chicken had a distinct crunch and a satisfying, if not a bit salty, taste. Again, this sandwich passed our taste test.

I wasn’t quite ready for our next option, the Impossible Slider ($1.89). As White Castle describes the sandwich, “It sizzles, tastes and smells just like real beef – but guess what? It’s made from plants! Amazing taste, plant based!”

Upon my first bite, it was clear my lunch mate knew more about the sandwich than I did. I opened the sandwich to find a requisite slider, which was about a half-inch thick, and a couple large pieces of onion and pickles. The Original Slider has several tiny pieces of onion, pickle and a very thin layer of ground beef. The taste of the Impossible Slider was quite bold. Before taking his first bite, my lunch mate already had put a packet of White Castle Dusseldorf mustard on his Impossible Slider. I followed suit before my next bite. The mustard helped complement the taste of the plant-based burger, but not the consistency, which was a bit chewy for me.

We each had one more item on the tray: the Original Slider (85 cents). Being fans of White Castle since, well, birth, we knew we saved the best for last. Sliders are unique, savored by some and, well, not by others. For us, they will always continue to be a treat.

We were happy to try the new White Castle menu items, and some of them, especially the Sloppy Joe Slider, were quite fun. But we know what our next order will be.

Seeking reader suggestions: We welcome you to share your recommendations of places you would like the Mystery Diner to visit. Please email ideas to tips@nwherald.com.

• The Mystery Diner is an employee at the Northwest Herald. The diner’s identity is not revealed to the restaurant staff before or during the meal. If the Mystery Diner cannot recommend the establishment, we will not publish a story.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: White Castle

WHERE: 241 N. Randall Road, Lake in the Hills

PHONE: 847-854-6760

INFORMATION: www.whitecastle.com