- Chicago
- (54)
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United States
Other towns nearby which are especially interesting include Riverside (winding streets, interesting home architecture), Oak Park (many Frank Lloyd Wright and other interesting homes), Evanston (home of Northwestern University) and the North Shore in general (take a drive up Sheridan Road after you do the Outer Drive northbound trip in Chicago).
The Hyde Park area (used to be an independent town a hundred or so years ago) is an urban village with the University of Chicago as a hub and, incidentally, near Obamaville. Especially see the Rockefeller Chapel, a lovely Gothic building with a magnificent organ and a bell tower that has free summer concerts. On their website you can check out events held there, too.
Hyde Park has a number of bookstores - the most interesting to me are the Seminary Coop Bookstore at 5757 South University (new books and other locations) and Powell & O’Gara’s, 1501 East 57th Street (used books to get lost in).
www.rockefeller.uchicago.edu
www.semcoop.booksense.com
www.powellschicago.com
For general information on restaurants, events, bars, shows see:
- Chicago Magazine (a mostly medium-to-upscale monthly)
- Chicago Reader (a free edgier Friday weekly)
- Metromix
- Chowhound’s Chicago Board (individual reviews and comments, but generally on target)
- WTTW Public TV’s Check Please (see restaurant list)
You can eat well and with a lot of ethnic variety in Chicago. There are too many good restaurants of all kinds and nationalities to name here. If it were up to me, I’d buy a copy of Chicago Magazine, check out Chowhound (which, by the way covers other areas in the US) and check out WTTW’s Check Please site if I was interested in eating well and interestingly (and I am).
www.chicagomag.com
www.chicagoreader.com
www.chicago.metromix.com
chowhound.chow.com/boards/7
www.wttw.com/main.taf?p=1,5
Chicago, my home town!
The highlights from my point of view, in no particular order:
Lake Michigan (including the Outer Drive and the many parks along it), ethnic foods and neighbourhoods, Hyde Park (yeah, yeah, we stole the name) and University of Chicago area, music of all kinds, architecture.
For many area and architecture tours, including the very popular Chicago River Cruise (seasonal, of course – brrrr!), and for architecture information, see the Chicago Architecture Foundation which has an office at 224 South Michigan Avenue in Chicago’s downtown (not technically in Chicago’s famous Loop which is defined by the elevated train tracks downtown). They are in the Santa Fe building; while in the downtown area see the Rookery (in both it and the Santa Fe building be sure to see the lobby areas inside), Monadnock Building, Carson Pirie, Scott Building.
The Chicago Architecture Foundation 'tour' pages will give you plenty of ideas for visits and their tours are high quality and reasonably priced.
University of Chicago: Situated around the Hyde Park area, this is a beautifully constructed university by industrialist John D. Rockerfeller
Capital Grille and Chicago Chop House really have to be experienced! Try the dry aged beef...
For a free zoo it's got a great selection of animals - if you're in town with kids, they will love it.
www.lpzoo.org
Just north of downtown, catch a number of buses from Watertower Place or walk along the riverfront.
Order the Swedish pancakes with lingonberries (anytime) or one of the Swedish specialties. Delicious!
909 W. Belmont
Chicago, IL 60657
(773) 348-2378
www.annsather.com/
One of the best delis in the world. Great pastrami and corned beef, wonderful steam table. Frequented by fireman, policemen and a diverse cross-section of real Chicagoans.
1141 S Jefferson, south of Loop (take a taxi)
Chicago's best tap beer selection. No pretension. Great neighborhood. You won't be sorry.
1949 N. Hoyne at Armitage, one block west of Damen.
Take the blue line from downtown, get off at Western, walk north to Armitage, turn east a couple of blocks to the Map Room.
The best 'real interactive tour' of Frank Lloyd Wright's buildings including his home, the temple and other prairie style architecture.
Take train to Oak Park from anywhere in Chicago and then short walk
Visit the bar on the penultimate floor of the Hancock Tower - there's no entry fee. You can have a beer and sandwich whilst enjoying the views, which in my opinion are better than those from Sears - and it's not too expensive either.
On the way out ladies must go and powder their noses for the most spectacular views ever from a skyscraper bathroom.
Hotel Sax Chicago is the most awesome new hotel in the city. It is just off Michigan Avenue and attached to the House of Blues. It has unbelievable technology including the Studio Experience by Microsoft. It's a game room for adults and it's amazing. The only problem is that you may not want to leave the hotel to see the fabulous city of Chicago because the hotel is so much fun. Next time you travel to Chicago, check rates for Hotel Sax and go there if you can. You won't be disappointed.
www.hotelsaxchicago.com
333 N. Dearborn St.
Chicago, IL 60610
312-245-0333
This restaurant situated on the Chicago River serves great sushi and modern Japanese cuisine. It’s very smart and tends to attract a rather beautiful crowd. You can choose between the red room or the green room, depending on what mood you’re in; or there’s also a wonderful river-front patio.
If you need a morning swim to pep you up, then you should book into the Intercontinental, which has one of the largest swimming pools you’ll find in a hotel – it’s junior Olympic size and heated (a leftover from when this used to be an athletics club).
If you’ve got a substantial budget, this is where you should be staying. The service is impeccable and they have a team of administrative assistants in the business centre that will take dictation, research things for you, organise your diary – in fact, anything you might need while in the city can be sorted out from this hotel. You also get to use their amazing spa facilities, which cover the top two floors of the building.
There’s an athletic club at the Hilton at O’Hare airport which offers day membership for about $10, and has a pool, sauna and gym – worth bearing in mind if you arrive at the airport to find a long delay on your flight.
Hilton at O’Hare airport
If you’ve got something to celebrate and feel like splashing out, the 23-course tasting menu at Alinea in the Lincoln Park area is a must. It’s an eye-popping $195 at first glance, but with the exchange rate as it is, it does represent excellent value. Everything is exquisitely presented and tastes wonderful.
Spend about an hour getting a real sense of Chicago's layout and history by cruising the rivers on an architectural boat ride. Make sure it is an authorised and well-reviewed outfit.
www.architecture.org/tour_view.aspx?TourID=8
www.chicagoline.com/
www.shorelinesightseeing.com/
While the airport’s accessibility is stellar, its usability is anything but. It has 168 gates, a sprawling mass of barely intelligible corridors, abysmal shopping, hugely long security queues and – worst of all – almost inevitable delays. My advice? Make absolutely sure you buy a fully flexible, premium class ticket – this will enable you to use the security fast track, the premium lounges and, even better, change your flight at short notice. Or avoid O’Hare altogether. If you’re flying within the US, try to fly into Midway or Rockford – they’re much smaller and significantly less hasslesome.
The closest Chicago comes to boutique chic is the W Lakeshore hotel and The James. The acceptable face of the Sheraton Group, the uber-hip W chain has a strong following among businessmen looking for something a little wacky after a hard day’s work with fellow suits. As you enter this particular W outpost, you’ll be greeted by blaring house music, hot staff and a not-so-subtle barrage of fluorescent lighting. It might sound a touch ghastly but it’s actually a magnificent hotel centrepiece and, cleverly, the owners have complemented the insolent noise downstairs with splendid silence upstairs.
The rooms are quiet, rich in minimalist, understated luxury with fabulous views of Chicago’s ultimate attraction – Lake Michigan. The Extreme Wow Suite, all 1,100 square feet of it, is a great way of blowing your budget.
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