storing info: Chicago foodie & tourist advice
I constantly leave comments in other people's journals with advice and recs for this or that, but I never save the info myself. I write miles about subjects that interest me that never come near my journal! Must remedy this habit. Starting with this:
cestovatela asked for food and art-related insider tips for those visiting Chicago.
THE TIPS, IN UTTERLY RANDOM ORDER
It can be hard to give recs in Chicago, because the city is vast and has amazing food culture! Also the neighborhoods where restaurants are located can be fun destinations in themselves, with their own distinctive character--or isolated pockets where there's not much else to justify the visit. (For instance, Hot Dougs is legendary, but it's isolated, with no good transit options. :( ) But here are some recs I would make to anyone:
- The Chicago Architecture Foundation architectural boat tour is a wonderful way to get oriented about the history, layout, and architecture of the city. They offer walking tours also, but the river is such a beautiful resource, right through the heart of the city, I find the boat tour much more enjoyable. There are "tourist" boat tours too, but for an appreciation of the buildings as art/architecture the CAF tour is a must.
- Millenium Park has tons of free events in the summer--concerts, dancing lessons with live music, movies under the stars. We saw Andrew Bird there, incredible! Also the symphony, a lot. Their web site will give you the schedule for when you're here: Millenium Park
- The Green City Market - every Wednesday and Saturday, the showpiece green market for the city. Check out the schedule of cooking demos especially--Rick Bayless will be there on June 23rd, but the list of others doing demos will give you some more names of chefs who are just as great, but not as famous outside the foodie world, and the names of their restaurants.
- If your visit includes a weekend, brunch is a great way to try an amazing restaurant for less money.
- Chowhound Discussion Boards for Chicago: invaluable resource for restaurants, food culture, asking questions
- I tend to like restaurants that are on the quiet side and lean toward local and seasonal produce and meat from humane sources. Or are cheap ethnic places that are totally oriented toward people from that region, with very authentic food. We have tons of both here!
Restaurants in the first category that I've loved recently:
LM (French, Lincoln Square)
Big Jones (New Orleans, Andersonville)
Great Lake (OMGpizza, Andersonville, tiny and small-capacity, basically the only way to do it is get there when they open, BYOB, life-altering)
Lula (Local/organic, Logan Square)
Spacca Napoli (thin crust Neapolitan-style pizza, Ravenswood)
Ones I haven't been to yet but eagerly anticipate:
Hot Chocolate (sounds like a dessert place, but isn't)
The Publican (pork + beer, this is one of Paul Kahan's restaurants, also of Blackbird fame. Has been on Top Chef but he may not be the one you mean. Is it Grant Achatz? I need to catch up on the TiVO!)
Mado
Sola
And now Volo, thanks to delphica for the rec!
If you have a desire to try ethnic cuisines, the Chowhound threads are the best resource. I could go on and on but I'll spare you!
- For art stuff, Chicago has several gallery districts but the most concentrated one is River North. Chicago Gallery News will have news about openings. First Friday of each month is usually a big one. Wicker Park/Bucktown is an interesting neighborhood in its own right, with architecture from the just-post-fire period, lots of interesting shops and art galleries. Paul Kahan just opened a taco place there, right at the center at North and Damen called Big Star, which sound like a great place to sit outside and have a beer and eat while the el goes by, which I plan to do as soon as possible. (Um, this was an art-related one. How did it come back around to food?)
cestovatela asked for food and art-related insider tips for those visiting Chicago.
THE TIPS, IN UTTERLY RANDOM ORDER
It can be hard to give recs in Chicago, because the city is vast and has amazing food culture! Also the neighborhoods where restaurants are located can be fun destinations in themselves, with their own distinctive character--or isolated pockets where there's not much else to justify the visit. (For instance, Hot Dougs is legendary, but it's isolated, with no good transit options. :( ) But here are some recs I would make to anyone:
- The Chicago Architecture Foundation architectural boat tour is a wonderful way to get oriented about the history, layout, and architecture of the city. They offer walking tours also, but the river is such a beautiful resource, right through the heart of the city, I find the boat tour much more enjoyable. There are "tourist" boat tours too, but for an appreciation of the buildings as art/architecture the CAF tour is a must.
- Millenium Park has tons of free events in the summer--concerts, dancing lessons with live music, movies under the stars. We saw Andrew Bird there, incredible! Also the symphony, a lot. Their web site will give you the schedule for when you're here: Millenium Park
- The Green City Market - every Wednesday and Saturday, the showpiece green market for the city. Check out the schedule of cooking demos especially--Rick Bayless will be there on June 23rd, but the list of others doing demos will give you some more names of chefs who are just as great, but not as famous outside the foodie world, and the names of their restaurants.
- If your visit includes a weekend, brunch is a great way to try an amazing restaurant for less money.
- Chowhound Discussion Boards for Chicago: invaluable resource for restaurants, food culture, asking questions
- I tend to like restaurants that are on the quiet side and lean toward local and seasonal produce and meat from humane sources. Or are cheap ethnic places that are totally oriented toward people from that region, with very authentic food. We have tons of both here!
Restaurants in the first category that I've loved recently:
LM (French, Lincoln Square)
Big Jones (New Orleans, Andersonville)
Great Lake (OMGpizza, Andersonville, tiny and small-capacity, basically the only way to do it is get there when they open, BYOB, life-altering)
Lula (Local/organic, Logan Square)
Spacca Napoli (thin crust Neapolitan-style pizza, Ravenswood)
Ones I haven't been to yet but eagerly anticipate:
Hot Chocolate (sounds like a dessert place, but isn't)
The Publican (pork + beer, this is one of Paul Kahan's restaurants, also of Blackbird fame. Has been on Top Chef but he may not be the one you mean. Is it Grant Achatz? I need to catch up on the TiVO!)
Mado
Sola
And now Volo, thanks to delphica for the rec!
If you have a desire to try ethnic cuisines, the Chowhound threads are the best resource. I could go on and on but I'll spare you!
- For art stuff, Chicago has several gallery districts but the most concentrated one is River North. Chicago Gallery News will have news about openings. First Friday of each month is usually a big one. Wicker Park/Bucktown is an interesting neighborhood in its own right, with architecture from the just-post-fire period, lots of interesting shops and art galleries. Paul Kahan just opened a taco place there, right at the center at North and Damen called Big Star, which sound like a great place to sit outside and have a beer and eat while the el goes by, which I plan to do as soon as possible. (Um, this was an art-related one. How did it come back around to food?)