Darmok and Jalad, at Tanagra

Old Chicago 

Home run in is good

https://guide.michelin.com/us/en/illinois/chicago/restaurants

If you want quintessential Chicago foods you need to track down a jibarito while you're here.

I'm pretty sure the cheapest Michelin star restaurant is goosefoot, $95 for a five course meal. They are also BYOB with an attached wine store and a short walk from the brown line.

I haven’t seen jibaritos outside of Chicago and they are really yummy. Check out Jibaritos y Mas.

Hi. Go to Birrieria Zaragoza for Cabeza tacos and La Chaparrita for Crispy Tripe tacos (15min away from each other, so bang bang).

For a tasting menu, Smyth, and then after dinner you can tick their burger at the Loyalist just under their dining room.

Johnnies Beef in Elmwood Park is the best Italian easily, and you can hit Alpine subs next door for the OG sub tick.

And, of course, go to Cluck-It for the best fried chicken sandwich in the city, and maybe the universe.

I haven't seen it here, but Kasama. Listed as one of last year's top 50 restaurants in the country and the only place that does a fine dining Filipino dinner in the US so far as I know. And dear god, does it ever live up to billing.

As a Chicagoan I recommend the following: •Navy Pier •Architectural boat tour of the city •the Magnificent Mile •go to the top of the Willis Center (which many of us will forever call the Sears Tower) •Gino’s East pizza •a good Chicago style hotdog

Have a great time! There’s a lot to see and do, so you’ll need to come back. Do you have any specific areas of interest?

Blazed Bakery in Chicago Logan Square is def a spot you want to hit up! They Infused & un-Infused options, great vibes and they do a lot of events!

As a local Chicagoan, I would recommend taking the architectural boat tour on the river. Really interesting and you get to see a lot of the skyline.

Visit The Bean, the Aquarium, the natural history museum, eat at Tattu Indian restaurant for the BEST SPICY, or Mazala Pizza for both great pizza & Indian

Oh man! Chicago is a BLAST!

Had a family vacation there a few years ago. We stayed in a nice hotel downtown on the riverwalk. So that dictated some of things we did... Some favorites...

Architectural tour on the river

Field Museum

Cindy's Rooftop Bar

Cubs game at Wrigley

Second City

Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder Company for pizza pot pies, a far more interesting and unique to Chicago creation than the Chicago-style pizza chains which aren't even that unique to Chicago any more.

Also if you can come down to the south side for a real tavern-style pizza. Lots of good options but Vito & Nicks is the place to try if you're visiting and can only try one.

For meat lovers I still don't think there's any better place here than The Publican. I'd rather go there than any of our fancy steakhouses for sure.

For just generally great and interesting food from a great local chef, Girl & The Goat is fantastic if available. Little Goat Diner is great as well.

It's not fancy but if you like seafood it's definitely worth a visit to Calumet Fisheries.

Also not fancy but a Chicago must is at least once having a good Italian Beef sandwich. Tons of places to get them all over the metro area but Mr Beef on Orleans is one of the classic options.

Likewise a Chicago-style hot dog is worth trying if you've never had one, and there's good ones all over, but Superdawg is a great place to try one.

Oh man that's a tough question, depending on your tastes and budget. It's such a big city with so many options.

• Pizza- Peaquod's (deep dish), Parlor (Naples-ish), Piece (New Jersey-ish)
• Steakhouse/French- Bavette's
• Peaking Duck/Chinese- Sun Wah BBQ
• Indian- Cumin
• Upscale South American- Carnivale
• Upscale cocktail bar with a view- Cindy's
• Burgers- Forbidden Root, Mott Street, the Loyalist, the Region, or Au Chival
• Italian- too many to name (Eataly, Spacca Napoli, Oggi)
• Italian Deli/Beef subs- Bari
• Mexican- Barco Los Mariscos
• New Orleans- Ina Mae Tavern
• Korean- Kimchi Pop
• Chicago hot dogs/char burgers/milkshakes- Fatso's Last Stand
• Ice Cream- Jeni's

I actually created a website for this specific purpose and launched it first here on this sub. Basically the site is: given only a few days in a city, whats the best spot to hit up in each "dish category" (pizza, burger, etc..)? And then people vote

Here's the site: https://tastejury.com/city/chicago

Budget? Also are you looking more for an experience or a place with great views or do you just want some good food and are willing to venture away from where you are staying. My major recommendation is get a jibarito since they were invented here. Go to either La Cocina Boricua or Jibartios y Mas for one.

Portillo’s - I think an Italian beef is worth having while in town and Portillo’s is consistent and great, also love the chopped salad, fries, honey mustard, hot dog or polish both Chicago style for me.

Lou Malnati’s(never took to Pequod’s)

Publican - My longest standing favorite restaurant, a spot I like to take out of towners to - their menu changes with what’s available. Their chicken dish is one of my faves, I know it’s chicken but it’s really good. Although if I had to choose their other meat specials are ones I’d opt for if we can’t order everything. If they have items with strawberries or some other seasonal items, get it. It’s always so good.

Avec - chorizo stuffed dates are a must here and really most all of their menu is great.

Au Cheval - burger is great, is it the best? Idk but it’s worth having and their bone marrow is delicious only because their beef cheek marmalade that comes with is ridiculous. Otherwise, bone marrow is the same for me everywhere.

Green Street or Smoque for bbq if you come from a city without good bbq.

Ming Hin for dim sum if you don’t have dim sum where you live either.

Lena Brava, Xoco or Tortas Frontera at Ohare if you want some Rick Bayless. LB is no longer RB and I haven’t gone since the switch but it’s a fantastic restaurant.

Hopleaf. Little Bad Wolf (Or Gretel). Wild Goose Wings. Pequods. Michael’s Pizza. Zam Zam.

I’ve lived in Chicago my whole life and get Lou Malnati’s deep dish at least once per month.

I once looked up on google maps the one near UIC, and I believe the menu at both that one and also on Devon are similar to each other. Had only eaten at the one on Devon, but not the one near UIC myself.

lol so these are the places i visit because i live in river north and also work in the restaurant industry so i do have an appreciation for the greats that are centrally located. i was trying to avoid naming random neighborhood spots that require a trip on the L.

but please, since you’re localer than thou, share with us some of your favorite restaurants. you seem to act like you know more than i do

Only had the one by UIC 👌🏼

Gibsons Italia, Tzuco, Obelix, Le Bouchon, Tacqueria Chingon, Maple and Ash, Etta, The Loyalist, Ralph Lauren, Little Bad Wolf, Ciccio Mio, too many to name.

just look up what’s bib gourmand currently. that’s a good start

Only Indian place I eat at in the city

• Etta for amazing but quick apps and cocktails

• devil dawgs, redhot ranch or Jimmy’s Red Hots for a dog/burger

• Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder for a fun and cheap lil experience that differs from the typical Chicago deep dish experience

• Momotaro for high end sushi (downstairs bar has an amazing burger) or Sushi Taku for all you can eat sushi

• Little bad wolf for a great burger

• Tacotlan for Birria

• Formentos for classic Italian

• offset for BBQ

• Queen Mary for cocktails (dollar oyster happy hour too)

• Joe’s stone crab for seafood

• sportsman’s or the California clipper for no frills beer and shots

• Chicago Brew Yards to try different breweries and get Lillie’s Q (really solid bbq joint in the beer hall)

• Humboldt House for sandwiches

• Chefs special for Chinese, or just go explore China town

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Birrieria Zaragoza, Kie-Gol-Lanee, Le Bouchon

Thattu is PHENOMENAL! I was actually more impressed by thattu than the tasting menu at Indienne. Rangoli is still my go to (for 10+ years) for unfancy Indian food.

I do not understand the love for this restaurant. It is certainly not bad but I’ve never had anything memorable there. And I’ve been there many times for brunch and dinner

I finally found my people! We’ve been twice and haven’t been that impressed.

That place has no business being in the top 10, let alone top 3.

Avec (OG location)

Mi Tocaya Antojeria

Red Hot Ranch

Should I sit at kitchen counter or dining room table at mi tocaya?

I have no idea why this is posted for top Chicago food. It’s so overrated. 

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So, I am in and out of the Bay Area quite a bit for work (SJ, PA, SF primarily), and I have been able to try very good representations of chinese, kbbq, sushi, mexican, chinese muslim, american, dim sum, etc, along a wide range of price points. If you don't mind I'd like to help steer you to places that aren't as well represented in the bay area as they are here in Chicago.

Italian beef. Do yourself a favor and drive to Johnnies Beef in Elmwood and get a "beef, sweet, hot, juicy" which comes with their sweet pep and giard. If you are hungry/stoned, order two. If you like lemonade, order an italian ice. DO NOT go anywhere else. This is the #1 Chicago regional specialty. Not deep dish.

Also poorly represented in the bay area? Pizza. If you must eat deep dish, and don't want the touristy shit from the big 3 (Lou Mal, Giordanos, Uno/Due), I recommend Millies Pizza in a Pan, but if you want to drive for the cult classic, Burt's Place is the spot. If you want generally just insane pizza, and want to make an event of it, drive up to Racine, Wisconsin just over the border and get a sausage pizza from Wells Bro's. They've been making pizza since 1921 (older by about 30yrs than any Chicago pizzeria). It is the best pizzeria in the midwest.

The Mexican food was okay for the most part in the Bay area, but the only place that stood out was El Gallo Giro. If you want to try our best Mexican, go to Birrieria Zaragoza. Bring your appetite. I recommend the cabeza (and machito, if they have it) tacos (have them griddle the meat in its fat), or a plate of birria (ribs are great). These are the best tacos I've had anywhere and IMO the best restaurant in the midwest. NOT FANCY.

Another great spot is Cluck-It, there is no analog for their hot chicken sandwich anywhere. They are closing for relocation soon, so make sure they're open before you go (I forget when they're done). They use different pepper powders for each different heat level, so just ask them to explain. Their collard greens are insane, as is the cornflake cream cheese cookie.

Chicago is good at:

• Regional Mexican food. (LA might be better for some regions, but we're better at other regions -- especially the regions where we have the most immigrants like Michoacan. I think we have better Mexican than the Bay Area.) Also not Mexican but jibaritos.

• Classic American food (deep dish pizza, Polish dogs, Italian beef, giardinera, fried steak sandwich etc.) Basically any thing Italian American or Polish American.

• Fine dining: Oriole, Alinea, etc. Not all cities have this class of fine dining. Seattle for instance lacks representation at this level completely, and SF is not known for fine dining either (outside of a few places).

Chicago has good soul food but it's not exceptional compared to the South. It has decent Asian food but again not exceptional compared to LA, NY or even Atlanta. I haven't had a lot of Asian food in SF, but my impression is that it is better than here (well, it's California after all). Vietnamese food is not exceptional in Chicago -- Houston is better. Indian food is good but not exceptional in Chicago -- New Jersey is better. Thai food is ok in Chicago (I've eaten at almost all the well-known Thai places, there aren't that many) -- Thai is better in Portland. Sun Wah is good for Chicago -- but the universe of roast duck places in America, it's probably only in the middle.

We're just not a haven for Asian food, despite having some serviceable options.

Gyros, pizza, fast food (burgers etc), and steak imo

Oh and Indo/Pak food.

Is kronos a Chicago only thing? I feel like i see them elsewhere too.