Located just on the edge of Campustown on First Street, The Hub is one of the newest and tastiest restaurants in Champaign. This place has an energetic atmosphere, complete with colorful lights and sports games playing on multiple large TVs found throughout the restaurant. It's the perfect place to watch any Illini sports game.
All right, I know the ambiance of a restaurant is important and all, but you're probably wondering about the food. The Hub has an awesome variety of foods for all kinds of meals—from a bottomless mimosa brunch to a variety of burgers and mac and cheese dishes. And as a plus, the portions are quite generous.
The Hub is the perfect place to grab drinks or a quick bite with friends. Their menu offers a large selection of beers on tap, wine and specialty cocktails including the Fighting Illini Mojito, the Peach Me Mule (a twist on the classic Moscow Mule featuring peach vodka) and the Prickly Pear Margarita.
In terms of appetizers to pair, I recommend the tasty Chipotle Chicken Quesadilla or The Hub Nachos, which are served with a blend of cheeses, salsa and chicken. These nachos are so good that you'll want go make your own nachos once you get home.
This new spot is also a great place to get the best bang for your buck. The Hub offers an $8 lunch special with options ranging from sandwiches and flatbreads to salads paired with a soft drink. Additionally, The Hub has daily food specials such as $5 flatbread Friday that they announce on their social media pages.
There's one dish I have to rave about: the mac and cheese. It's so good you'll forget about eating store bought mac and cheese for good.
The menu offers three options: The Hub Favorite is stuffed with pizza toppings, The Uptown has short rib and ricotta cheese and the Sriracha Chicken (which is pretty self-explanatory). There is nothing better than digging into one of these cheesy, breadcrumb-topped skillets of happiness.
The Hub is Champaign's new hot spot that you need to hit up ASAP. Whether it's brunch with your parents or drinks and dinner with friends, The Hub is great for any and all Illini needs.