It's easy to forget an old friend. You used to visit all the time, enjoyed hanging out with, and then felt good afterwards. But, over time, new friends come along. They are younger and more energetic and run circles around you, capturing your attention. That's what happened with my good, old friend, Jane. For almost 20 years, Jane's, the unassuming restaurant on the edge of northeast Bucktown, has quietly and steadily fed happy diners, even as the surrounding area has been reinvented into a consumer paradise of sushi restaurants and tapas bars. During the years, it's been easy to get sidetracked by so many of the newer, shinier, showier spots, but do you really remember much about Mod or Souk? The trendy restaurants come and go, but the tried and true remains. And, like an old boyfriend who welcomes you back with no questions asked, Jane's welcomes you inside its doors with a big smile. That smile is most often provided by Julie Greenwalt, who has greeted diners at Jane's for 18 years, and looks almost exactly as she did all those years ago. The owners must be treating her right. While the menu does change twice a year at Jane's, many items are constants. One of my favorites is the rather large salad of greens, dried cherries, blue cheese, avocado, and sliced mushrooms, gently dressed in a vinagairette. The soft avocado contrasts with the crunch of the veggies, while the blue cheese and cherries add a zing that often finds me ordering this as an entrée or splitting it with others as a starter. Even the smaller salads, considered appetizers, are large enough for a light meal or also to share. Not bad in a day of tiny $9 starter salads. I like the pear, walnut, spinach salad. Fresh and crisp. Another standard for me is the spicy (they warn you on the menu and they mean it!) angel hair pasta served with a fresh tomato sauce, and sautéed spinach. This dish comes with a generous supply of sliced chicken breast, making for a filling and fairly healthy entrée. In fact, most of Jane's food is healthy without being health food. First, the ingredients are fresh and often seasonal. Second, plenty of options are vegetarian friendly. And last, explains Greenwalt, "Our portions are large, everything is handmade, and no fryer in sight!" So, while you'll have to go to one of the nearby bars for your onion rings and ribs, you can still order plenty of filling food at Jane's, but just not feel so bad about it. Vegans even have an entrée just for them. I'm not a vegan, but I order the brown rice and beans with sautéed vegetables more often than anything else these days. The not-too-sweet yellow salsa on top adds variety and there are always leftovers for the next day. The Chicago cottage that houses Jane's was occupied in 1993 as an office for a paint contracting firm. Explains Greenwalt, "The owner of that company became the first investor in the backing of Jane's. So they took a gamble on Bucktown, not being the neighborhood it is today." Jane's opened the summer of 1994, and in the summer of 2005 it expanded to the east, adding capacity to take larger reservations. The room is a departure from the rustic old house occupied by the original space, looking more modern and French. In the future Greenwalt sees a Jane's on the north side, "perhaps Lincoln Square or Andersonville, and a product line consisting of our great soups and salad dressings." Diners might want to hurry on over to sample some of this, lest they miss out, because "it is a dream for both Tony (who runs the kitchen) and myself to do a boutique hotel in the Yucatan peninsula," says Greenwalt. Jane's Restaurant 1653-55 W. Cortland | 773.862.5263 | www.janesrestaurant.com