There's certainly an extremely upper tier price point in Chicago. Schwa cost me about 1/3 as much as Ever. So putting them together feels odd.

was not Navy in '92. It was a dorm bus trip we took to Wrigley in early April to sit in the next-to-last row and watch the Cubs play the Cardinals. People were hanging in the men's bc it was the only heated space and buying the terrible hot chocolate to pour on their hands just to stay warm.

And by "people" I mean me, but I wasn't alone.

Goes straight from “good lord this is miserable” to “good lord it’s hot” with nothing in between.

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The 2007 ND-UCLA game was a once in a lifetime experience, I hope

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I absolutely could not stand April. Partly because everyone I was related to was on the east coast, enjoying a full blown spring, and everyone I was friends with in California had spent all winter posting pics of all their outdoor activities.

I spent one early April evening digging my Jeep Wrangler out of an ice pack at the O'Hare long term parking that would have made the planet Hoth green with envy.

I attended an opening day where it was so cold that my beer was getting colder as it sat.

Just a horrid time of year.

But man do I miss that town from May thru Christmas.

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Sometimes I rhyme slow sometimes I rhyme quick.

If your March is anything like we get in Columbus, yeah it's May. October is honestly one of my favorite months and one of the most reliable here on weather, and even most of November is typically solid. But spring is fucking trash all the way around, occasional 75-degree teasers swallowed up by 45-55 + heavy rain

November and December are fun in Chicago. It’s really just that cold stretch in Jan-Feb where everything is grey that gets to me. And with climate change, winters seem to be getting shorter every year.

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At night, the ice weasels come.

from May to October...

Many have been mentioned below. I’m a big fan of Picolo Sogno - outstanding pasta, made in house. We also like Prosecco and Volare (on Grand) which are not too expensive.

There are some incredible sushi places if they want to spend some money. We like a spot called Kyoten, but there are 3 or 4 omakasi (SP?) places that are all outstanding. Aji Nagiri is great. The restaurant in the new St Regis is also really good and has great views.

For simple, I like The Gage on Michigan Ave and the Armitage Alehouse.

Not a yeast donut guy. But the ones at DV are amazing. They also sometimes do these ginger ones with fresh ginger. They are incredible.

I get Do Rite way more than DV just based on their locations.

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Now I really understand why some ND fans want games to end by 4:30 so they can make it to Chicago for dinner on Saturdays.

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The 2007 ND-UCLA game was a once in a lifetime experience, I hope

I am a Do Rite Fan

https://www.doritedonuts.com/

Some folks try to sell me on Stan's but I am not a cake doughnut guy.

Classic old school place, great food, no frills and just off the Chicago stop.

out of their kitchen and around the corner. It's called Donut Vault and is unbelievable. I'm a "less is more" donut person, and their stuff is just fresh and outstanding.

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High end – Swift & Sons (West Loop), Boka (River North)

Midrange – Gilt Bar (River North)

Basic/street – Billy Goat (River North), Cafecito (Cuban)(Loop E Chestnut)

Italian – Anteprima (Andersonville), Ciccio Mio (River North), Piccolo Sogno (River North), Bongiorno’s (basic/street)(River North)

To do – Art Institute, River Walk, neighborhood festival (depending on when coming, a lot of Oktoberfests)

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Unsure of the exact ranges we are using here. (Someone had Schwa as mid-range which, sure, compared to Alinea.)

Monteverde, for high-end Italian.
Chez Joel, for mid-range French.
Small Cheval, for (street) expensive, burgers.

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confession in the AM?

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Big time drinkers' bar (in addition to the ribs).

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There was a place (maybe on Randolph?) that was old school, and had the best chicken francese I've ever had. I need to remember which place that was.

But I did not make it.

college.

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guy. Looks like the type of place I would be a regular at.

Beef?

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I think the children like it when I "get down" verbally.

We moved back in 2018 but my wife and I loved the Stephanie Izard places--Little Goat Diner and Duck Duck Goat were probably two of our favorites in the city.

If you want an authentic Chicago meat experience, recommend Paulina Meat Market. It's a butcher shop where I swear every guy on the staff was the source for the Da Bears skit on SNL. I think they opened up a sandwich shop after we moved--never tried it but everything we bought from there was A+++ so if that sandwich shop is still open, it would be worth it.

Not unique, but if they want the deep dish experience, I really thought Lou Malnati's was the best. Avoid Giordanos like the plague.

If you're looking for a cheap neighborhood eatery spot, we lived down the block from Commonwealth Tavern on Damen, it's not world class or anything but it's a Notre Dame bar with good food.

If you end up over by Wrigley, we loved Corridor Brewery and Tuco and Blondie over on Southport.

Staying at the Zachary at Wrigley and catching the Cubs game on Sun so I am looking for a spot to eat after the game.

Alinea and Next are obviously the top of the top end, but his 3rd restaurant Roister (next to Next) also rules. You can go to the Aviary afterward.

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in Chicago any more.

Rosebud is obviously the red sauce institution. I was always partial to Tuscany. Both are (were) great at different things. Club Lucky was a good spot.

The last time I drove through Little Italy, I was shocked. There wasn't really a hole in the wall type place to be found.

There are lots of excellent Italian fine dining destinations in River North and Streeterville. But I don't know who is doing great homestyle Italian any more.

a more reasonable pricepoint than the elite steakhouses. It's a different vibe than the likes of Gibson's, CC, etc. -- a little more low-key. One of my Dad's favorites for business dinners.

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More of a old school Sinatra-era bar with a dining room. It was one of Sinatra's hangouts in town. And (as you probably noticed) it's a couple hundred yards from Second City, so it was a fairly famous (if not infamous) post-show spot for the Second City originals. I'm pretty sure that the filming of Blues Brothers pretty much took the place over for an extended period of time.

but did not make it. Qood BBQ I heard?

Topolobampo for high range, Frontera Grill for midrange (don't do both, though.) Almost can't go wrong with anything on the menu.

Midrange would also be Pequod's, as others have said, or Twin Anchors (to be followed by an evening show at Second City). So classically Chicago, you'll plotz.

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definitely very old school Italian, though I don't know if I'd recommend going to Little Italy just to eat there.

steaks/italian.

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but for "scenic dining," Italia is awesome.

Love the place.

Was recommended by a coworker who lived above it for 8yrs and worked there years ago.

Always loved that location.

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And I don't mean to step on Mike B's toes but IIRC, most of the docents are architecturally trained. Might be a little more expensive than others.

https://www.architecture.org/rclb?gclid=CjwKCAjwgZCoBhBnEiwAz35RwhwEdFuzqZCxNixUAQiuSWV...

I think there's some criticism that Alinea may have lost some of its magic, but they've been operating at an extremely high level for a long time. It was certainly the first thing that came to my mind.

Ever is also good, but trails Alinea for me.

For mid range? Schwa is very good and a better price point, but it's certainly a different vibe than Alinea.

For lower end - Bonci is the only US location from Rome pizzaiolo Gabriele Bonci. It serves Roman style pizza and is worth a stop when you're in Chicago.

I can dig up more also.

But my high end would be Alinea. Steakhouses are popular in Chicago so I'd recommend Chicago Cut.

https://www.alinearestaurant.com/
https://www.chicagocutsteakhouse.com/

Other recommendations that probably are low to mid range: Pequod's or Chicago Pizza Oven Grinders. Figure if you're in Chicago, you have to go for some unique pizza offering.

https://pequodspizza.com/chicago/
https://chicagopizzaandovengrinder.com/

And lastly, one of my all time faves: the Half Shell. I guess low end with mid to high end pricing.

http://halfshellchicago.com/

https://www.chicagoline.com/

If so, the links for "Learn More" and "Purchase Tickets" seem to be broken

Worked there in some capacity or another for 11 years. Got married on that boat. They have by far the most rigorous standards for docents.

As far as restaurants here are a few:

- for casual/distinct I'd go Middlebrow Bungalow. Make their own beer/wine/bread in house. Great vibe, really fun

- will plug Thattu (www.thattuchicago.com) in the building we own across from Guild Row. Incredible Keralan food (the southern, most tropical part of India). Not sure what dates you are looking at but we may have something fun going on at GR if they want to make a night of it

- Buddy of mine who is a food writer has had great things to say about Warlord in Avondale

We have some friends visiting Chicago for the first time (from the UK). I'm putting together some recommendations for them. First up was the architectural river tour, but when I google it I'm now seeing multiple companies operating boat tours. Is one of them the original/best?

Also, it's been a minute since we've lived there, and I'm trying to come up with some restaurant recs. Some of our old favorites are gone/closed, and I'm sure there are new ones on the can't miss list.

If you had to recommend 3 Chicago eateries -- one high end, one midrange, one basic/street -- what would they be?

Tags:
travel, food