Hel's Kitchen Catering

We had SUCH a positive experience with Hel's and especially with Linda during our entire wedding planning process. She was incredibly helpful with every part of choosing our food, making changes, and just bringing our entire wedding vision to life! We were planning from out of state and Linda made everything so easy for us. She was so on top of every detail during the wedding week and on the day of.

The Hel's team that set up and served our wedding was absolutely delightful, everyone was so kind and fun to be around! They saved us an appetizer plate and greeted us with champagne- Linda even fluffed my dress as I walked down the aisle! The food was SO good on the day of and our guests were raving. We couldn't imagine going with anyone else!

Hel's Kitchen catered our son's wedding last weekend and we can't say enough good things about our coordinator, Linda and her staff. Her guidance on food and timeline planning are phenomenal! Her attention to detail, care and oversight on the day of the wedding was amazing. Her staff was on top of everything, helpful and so friendly! What a great team!

The wedding guests couldn't stop raving about how great the food was! Linda and her team can handle everything related to the reception, not just catering the food! Highly recommend them for your next event!

This is my 2nd review of Hel's Kitchen and I still cannot express just how lovely they are to work with. We were originally working with Hels for a 200 person wedding that was to happen 9/26/2020. Well as we all know, that changed due to COVID and while it could have been awful in deciding what we wanted to do, Hels and all of our vendors made us feel so confident in our new plan: 50 people in our backyard.

After planning and re-planning and having 3 back up plans just in case, not a beat was missed by Linda and her team. Not only did I have full confidence in them working with our coordinator I had full confidence in stepping back as a bride and just letting them do what they are great at - catering. Our guests are still talking about the food - and that is NOT typical for a wedding. Truly, some of the best food many of us have ever had.

From appetizers, to service to plated meals of chicken & steak - Hels is the choice you should make for your next event (big, small or anywhere in between). It's not easy having strangers in your home, but at the end of the day Hels was like family & we are excited to hire them over and over again for any events we plan!

Classiest service, best food and most professional staff on the North Shore. If you want beyond elegant, beyond exceptional service then look no further. I've seen many events over the years and I don't take photos of catered food ever. But EVERY time they cater I'm always stunned and can't help myself. This is THE gem of high end catering in Chicagoland.

Hel's Kitchen Catering is THE BEST at what they do. I plan events for a nonprofit organization but my background is in hospitality, catering, and catering sales. I've worked with a lot of people and catering companies over the last 10 years but these guys know what they're doing. Linda is incredibly helpful, knowledgeable and friendly, and the on-site team executes flawlessly.

This year we had Mike and Luanna at our event and I couldn't have asked for more. We had some last minute changes and they took it in stride with a smile on their faces. I couldn't do our event (ghscommunitytable.org) without them, and I look forward to another great year next year. THANK YOU to the incredible team at Hel's Kitchen!

Catered our Christmas Eve dinner for +30 family members. Excellent food and service.

We have used Hel's Kitchen several times; most recently for a funeral luncheon. The food and service was outstanding. I appreciated their sound advice regarding the amount of food and variety to order.

I have used Hell's for several events. I had thrown a party recently for about 60 people. Cyndy provided great direction and offered perfect suggestions for my guests. All my guests raved about the food. The bartender and supervisor on site were polite and professional. I highly recommend Hell's.

Hel's Kitchen catered our dinner for 29 people on Xmas eve. I didn't love all the food, but I'm giving five stars because every person I interacted with there was so nice, responsive, and competent. I would absolutely recommend them, I'm thrilled they are here in Northbrook. As for the food, taste is so subjective and it is hard to please all the people with every dish.

Everyone thought the Thai chicken skewers with peanut sauce were delicious. The Mediterranean chicken was also very good (loved the artichokes). The sweet potato mini pancakes were also a hit. The Tangine vegetables were too bland. I like more flavor, spices. To their credit, they use very little salt. The bourbon chicken skewers went untouched. The Jerusalem salad desperately needed dressing, it was also untouched (but of good quality). Having them cater saved us days of time preparing and cooking, it was well worth the money. They are super organized and, as I mentioned above, great people to do business with. We'll certainly try them again now that we know what we like.

We used Hel's for our wedding on 7/23/17 and this review is long overdue. There are really no words that would do justice for the appreciation we have for David Borris and his team at Hel's Kitchen. We started our journey to find a caterer with two things in mind: quality, interesting food, and a limited budget. Despite working in the wedding industry as musicians, we had never hired a caterer and we did not realize how invaluable a caterer can be to the actual planning process and flow of the entire event.

We went through several catering interviews over several months before realizing that our first instincts were correct. Not only does Hel's provide 30 years of food experience, they provide 30 years of people and planning experience. We were happy that our initial consultation happened to be with the owner of this well-established North Shore gem (although everyone we worked with was fantastic!). David is a friendly, welcoming, honest, and down-to-earth expert with the patience of a saint.

We asked questions throughout our conversations and he answered every one of them. Our parents were welcomed into the process as well (which was important because Lara's mom is French!;)). We changed our minds about the details many times and David invested hours in our event before we even officially agreed to use Hel's. When a few details changed, he even gave us a follow up tasting to ensure our satisfaction. David (and all of his staff) are extremely thorough, detail oriented and hard-working.

They will listen to your concerns, explain everything, share price breakdowns, and work with you to make sure you are satisfied with every detail. We wanted an international menu, so we went with a European station and an Asian station. We had an impressive variety of flavors and something for everyone (including vegans and gluten free, dairy free guests). David even went so far as to visit Argyle street to ensure that his Banh Mi condiments and nuoc-mam were comparable to the best Vietnamese restaurants in town.

When it came time for our wedding day, we really had no concerns because we knew that Hel's Kitchen staff works as a professional, intuitive and caring team. Their attitude toward their work is really a testament to the importance of valuing one's employees. When we first met David, he gave us a tour of the facilities and introduced us to every employee by name.

The food was fantastic, the display was gorgeous, the staff was polite and our guests were delighted. Even when the rain started 30 minutes before our ceremony, Hel's Kitchen worked with our other vendors like a dream to move tables to make it possible for everyone to sit theater style at our venue for the ceremony (which was originally going to be outside) and then moved it all back during cocktail. We recommend Hel's to everyone as a solid and caring catering team.

Linda at Hel's Kitchen was fabulous. She gave us many options and was able to meet the dietary needs of a diverse group. The food was delicious and the staff was professional and fun. Thanks for helping to make our wedding fabulous!

Hel's kitchen catered our daughter's wedding and did a fantastic job! They deserve 5 stars for everything- presentation, taste, service. Many people said it was the best food they had ever had at a wedding! The food tasted as delicious at the wedding as at the tasting; not an easy feat, considering we had 125 guests. Linda is great at what she does! She was always easy to contact and returned calls promptly, gave guidance when asked, and willingly shared her knowledge, very professional. I highly recommend them.

Spoke to Hel's Catering over a week ago and they said they would get back to me with a proposal in 2 days. 10 days later I heard nothing from them. I called back to ask for status of proposal and they said my contact was busy but would get back to me shortly. She called back the following day but hung up on me when I answered the phone. I finally got a call later that afternoon from another person. I told them I accepted a proposal from another catering company. I have nothing else to say.

My daughter was married in late June 2018 at The Grove in Glenview. Hels's Kitchen was one of their preferred vendors. As luck would have it, a friend of mine had attended a wedding that Hel's Kitchen catered. She couldn't rave enough about the delicious, creative food and wonderful service she experienced. With a little research and a phone conversation we had a meeting with Linda at Hel's Kitchen.

We knew we were in good hands and the tasting was amazing. Every detail was perfect, even better than I had expected, and the staff are a fine tuned team of happy and hard working people who knew exactly what to do. I can't give enough praise to the Hel's Kitchen team. The delicious food, service and care they delivered was exceptional! Cindy S

As the anniversary or our daughter's wedding approaches, I realized that I was remiss in writing a review for the caterer of our backyard celebration of the big event. David and his team are top shelf, yet also willing to roll up their sleeves to get the job done. I would hire him and Hel's Kitchen again in a heartbeat.

I can't even begin to tell you how immensely grateful we are for Linda and her team at Hel's Kitchen Catering who helped make our wedding this past September everything we could have ever hoped for. We were initially recommended by Natalie Moore, the events coordinator at Elawa Farm where we were planning to have our ceremony and reception.

My husband and I weren't familiar with many catering companies in/around the North Shore so we really don't know what to expect.but wow, Linda blew us away. My husband and I live in San Francisco so our entire theme was "bringing California to Chicago". She totally nailed it! From the delicious colorful fresh food, lovely wine, country cross-back chairs, acacia serving platters all the way down to the gold-topped salt and pepper shakers, everything was on point! Linda helped provide the most wonderful experience for us above and beyond just catering.

She even held the door open for my Dad and I before we walked down the wedding aisle. My mom won't stop telling stories of how Linda made sure everything was exactly how I wanted it and if it wasn't right she was dashing away to make things right. It was like magic. I wish I could give Linda and her team 10 stars. They were outstanding!

Hel's catered my wedding in November, and at first they were great to work with--very attentive and very accommodating of my husband-to-be's severe allergy to nuts and sesame (he can go into anaphylactic shock if he eats either of these things). However, when we sat down to eat a bite right after our ceremony, we were served an item with sesame seeds in it.

My husband spotted them before he took a bite, but this honestly ruined the whole meal for us. How could we trust that everything else served on the menu was nut free and sesame free? We were clear about the allergy throughout the process, and I emailed the catering coordinator two days before the wedding to reiterate that everything had to be nut free and sesame free.

After the wedding, I asked them to make an adjustment to our bill to make this right. They declined to do this, and instead offered to send my husband and me a free dinner at our home. As if we would feel safe eating their food when they already demonstrated their incompetence when dealing with allergens at our WEDDING.

We worked with Hel's for our Wedding (June 4th 2016) and it was a fabulous experience. We started off with Will as our liaison but after he moved on we were given Julie R. The transition went incredibly smooth, and our wedding day was magical. Everyone at Hel's (but especially Julie and Will) were amazing to work with. Extremely professional, quick to respond, and willing to cater to our imaginations.

They worked with us to do just about everything that we asked, all while keeping us within our budget. For example my husband and I were really interested in having a raw oyster/shellfish bar. Catering was one of the first vendors we hired so we kept saying we'd pull the funds from somewhere else in the budget. Will kept insisting we DONT do that, and said if we got close to the wedding day we could always add it on later.

He was so right, we ended up not being able to afford it and are so grateful he insisted that we stick to our pre-set budget and didn't let our spending get out of hand. The food was phenomenal and all of our guests enjoyed it (we even enjoyed it for a few more days after the wedding due to all of the leftovers). Our wedding day menu. Specialty drink: Pimm's cup (mixed by Hel's). Garnished beautifully with lemon and cucumber. Tasted great. Appetizers: Chorizo stuffed dates (loved them at the tasting session, didn't get to try them on the wedding day but guests raved about them) Mango Chutney Cheese Puffs. Unexpectedly delicious.

I HATE mandarin oranges (each puff is garnished with a mandarin slice) but I was completely blown away by these. We loved them so much we ordered 2 per guest. Sweet onion empanadas. Liked them at the tasting, didn't get to try them the day of. I ordered these to make sure my vegetarian guests had plenty of options. All of the vegetarians praised these the day of the wedding. Mini meat loaf bites.

These were delicious at the tasting and the day of the wedding. Would highly recommend these as well. Hot soft pretzel bar. We worked with Hel's to create this for my husband. It was reasonably priced if you had cold dipping sauces (spicy brown mustard, honey cinnamon butter) but for some reason the pricing went way up because my husband insisted on hot oozy pretzel cheese.

I kept persuading him to just have pub cheese style spread but this was one of the very few things he HAD to have. Personally I'd order this again but keep the cost lower with just cold dips. Salad course: baby greens with brussel sprouts, roasted corn, goat cheese, blueberries and balsamic vinaigrette. We loved this salad and many of the guests commented on how delicious and 'expensive tasting' it was. Dinner: beef medallions with wild mushroom bordelaise.

Everyone loved this dish, AND it is one of their cheaper beef options. Highly recommend this one. Boneless chicken breast with mushroom duxelle and tarragon cream sauce. (this one was delicious at the tasting, but we ordered it without the phyllo for the wedding. I think fewer people at this because the beef was so great (all guest were given both proteins).

If I were to order it again I would have left it the way Hel's intended it prepare it, wrapped in phyllo dough. Parmesan potato galette, absolutely delicious, a great side for our menu. Roasted asparagus topped with gremolata. The day of the wedding it didn't notice the gremolata topping. It either didn't get put on or dissolved into the dish somehow.

But it really didn't matter because it tasted great. Vegetarian option: individual sized Eggplant timbale. This was a huge hit. I actually had some meat eaters order the vegetarian option and everyone that tasted it loved it.

I used Hel's Kitchen to cater my Wedding at the Redfield Estate. They were amazing. The whole process was easy. From the initial discussion to the tasting and finally just easy and amazing during the event. Every step of the way we were wowed by how great they were. The food was perfect I had so many people compliment us on the food. I am late at posting this review 1.5 years later here I am writing this because I still remember how good it is and I still get comments on how good the food was. Hel's kitchen is perfection and they are very accommodating.

Our style choice was a buffet style and it looked very elegant and there was more than enough food for everyone, plus the bar stayed open during dinner which was great. I love love love this place and highly recommend! Thanks again Hel's Kitchen, if you are reading this, you did a great job and I am a very satisfied bride.

"Tell me what you want, and we'll make it happen" was the theme that Linda Norgaila and the Hel's Kitchen Team adopted from the day we first discussed our wedding plans. Our wedding was at The Grove Redfield Estate, in Glenview and we weren't sure what setup we would use for the ceremony and reception given the unpredictable weather we had in May.

We found great comfort in having Linda in our corner as she was prepared with a plan A, B and C depending on the weather and we ended up having a beautiful day! We knew the food was going to be fantastic when we had the tasting, and it did not disappoint. All the guests loved the food and the service was exceptional. The staff made sure everyone's glasses were full at all times and everyone had their dessert! Hel's kitchen and Linda were very professional and friendly which made the ceremony and reception flow through perfectly. A true pleasure to work with and we would recommend them to anyone. Thank you Linda and Hel's Kitchen!

Hel's Kitchen catered our wedding on 3/22/14 and they were fantastic! The food was delicious and the staff was very professional. We received compliments from our guests about the food throughout the cocktail hour and reception. The taste, quality and presentation of the food were all impressive. We worked with Will and he was the best! He helped my husband and I plan a menu that fit our tastes.

Throughout the process he was helpful, kind, organized and quick to respond to our calls and emails. His attention to detail made it clear to me that he truly cared about making our event one our guests would enjoy. We even had a few vegans at our wedding and Will ensured that their dietary needs were met without sacrificing taste. He made the entire process and all the little details easy.

We are so happy we chose Hel's Kitchen for our event. They helped make our day memorable. The next time we need an event to be catered we will definitely go with Hel's!

Dinner for 25 - Buffet Service Great food - I ordered one of their preset menus plus added a couple of extras. Loved the chicken warped dates. Everything was devoured - not even a little left overs for me. They brought the chafing dishes with the little fire warmers along with serving utensils. They set the Buffet table up and then came back the next day and picked everything up. Great food, great service and reasonable prices.

So easy peasy! I ordered the calypso cocktail package, home delivered. A half hour before my party, the truck shows up and gets everything set up in 15-20 minutes. Then after the party, we just rinse everything off, put it out on the porch for pickup the next day. Everyone raved! The food was delish and it looked so pretty. The reason I did not give 5 stars.

I tipped the guy. and then hubby didn't know and he tipped too. The guy could have said something! grrrr-rrrr. Also, I ordered several items in addition to the calypso buffet. I also told the sales person I was cooking beef and pork etc. at some point, It would have been since to get advice that I would have WAY too much food. To me, that would be a five star caterer.

We had our annual Hanukkah family bash last night. At the final hour, I'd realized I'd had enough on my plate and they weren't potato latkes! I enjoy all the accolades and truly love doing the whole thing myself. This time, I acquiesced and handed it over to David Borris at Hel's Kitchen. David assured me that he was going to send me a "lovely, and very talented guy." I told David that my kitchen is so antiquated, when you turn on the micro wave oven, and the toaster at the same time, the electricity goes off!

This gem of a guy, Eduardo, was indeed talented and lovely beyond words. He made and saved the day. He assured me that frequently, they run into altercations on location and are trained to "make do." Never mind what happened. The food? Sorry Grandma. The matzoh ball soup was better than yours. The salmon was cooked to perfection, not dry or too flaky, the flavor delicious!

We had Chicken basil, grilled veggies, and a wonderful salad t'boot! Not to mention, the potato latkes were kick "a!" I'd insisted on making my own apple sauce, and at the last minute, Eduardo pulled off that caper too! All the minutia aside, this is your go to caterer. We all need our carefully planned gatherings of friends, family, et al, to be special.

When you need a company that's reliable, with food that is positively delicious, and staff who is capable of handling what ever arises, keeping you looking like a star, call a pro. Call David Borris at Hel's Kitchen.