Name: Maple Tree Inn
Address: 18849 Dixie Hwy, Homewood, IL, 60430
Telephone: (708) 388-3461

Maple Tree Inn

Super GemHomewood (suburb) · Cajun/Creole Community-sourced, unverified

📍 18849 Dixie Hwy, Homewood, IL 60430

The building this restaurant occupies has a longer story than the restaurant itself: it started as a 1920s Prohibition-era speakeasy on the banks of the Cal-Sag Channel in Blue Island, run for nearly 50 years by Helen Sadunas.

★★★★☆ 4.5 (2,125 reviews) via Google

Super GemChicago Exclusive Gem$$

The catfish and beignets have been worth the drive to Homewood for decades, and the reservation you should make in advance proves it.

📈 Scores in the top 25% of Chicago Exclusive Gems on ChicagoSpecials.com

Self-taught chef Charlie Orr bought it in 1975, renamed it Maple Tree Inn, and after experimenting with other cuisines settled on Cajun/Creole in 1980 — making this the first, and still the longest-running, Cajun/Creole restaurant in Chicagoland. A 2018 fire forced a permanent move to this Homewood address in 2019, now run by second-generation family Katie Orr and Erich Wennberg, who grew up in the business. The menu leans into the real thing rather than a watered-down Midwest version: Hickory Buttered BBQ Shrimp, Country Gumbo, Jambalaya, and Crawfish Étouffée all show up, and OpenTable named it one of the Top 50 Southern Restaurants in America.

Reservations are strongly recommended — this is a real destination restaurant people drive out to Homewood specifically for, and even with a reservation, waits happen on busy nights. Holds a 4.5-star rating on Google. Closed Monday and Tuesday.

What to Know Before You Go

⚠️ Heads Up

4.5 stars, over 2,100 reviews — a genuine long-running south suburban Cajun destination worth the drive. Heads up: reservations strongly recommended, real wait even with one on busy nights.

Hours

Mon-TueClosed

Wed-Thu 5-9PM

Fri 4-9PM

Sat-Sun 2-9PM

📅 Reserve on OpenTable 📅 Reservations not available 🥡 Takeout unconfirmed 📞 (708) 388-3461

Amenities & accessibility

📅Reservations accepted

❔Takeout: unverified

❔Wheelchair access: unverified

Location

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Maple Tree Inn

The building this restaurant occupies has a longer story than the restaurant itself: it started as a 1920s Prohibition-era speakeasy on the banks of the Cal-Sag Channel in Blue Island, run for nearly 50 years by Helen Sadunas.

Specials at Maple Tree Inn

Maple Tree Inn

Maple Tree Inn