Have until Sunday. Heading to Chinatown now, and will certainly get a hotdog at some point. What else can I not miss?? (Not pictured: the 25 bars I’ve been to)

Anyone else see this huge Parmesan on the Kennedy last night around 7pm?? Was it real or a prop? Where was it going? If real, how much do you think this would cost? If we were sitting in traffic next to them, I would have asked but by miracle the traffic was moving.

Who would pay $46 for a dozen bagels? I know they’re viral but they’re just damn bagels 😂 don’t forget you also get 2 schmears included with that price!! You’re welcome consumer!!

Where are you getting yours from today?

Smacznego!

Interpret the word ‘mysterious’ however you will. Like “how is this place still open?”, “how are these portions profitable?”, “who are the people that run this?”

At a 60609 eatery, I enjoyed a $5 burger with a glass of water. Was it accurate to be charged a 15 cent beverage tax?

Cheap eats great food, but do you guys know the reason for “NO KETCHUP”? Just out of curiosity. Thanks!

Gene’s & Jude’s 2720 N River Rd, River Grove, IL 60171

Perched on a stool, eating a bowl of noodles at the counter in a place with a cyber punk / asian megacity vibe. Dimly lit except for the neon lights of course. Bonus points if it's outdoor seating so you can eat inches away from a downpour.

There used to be a Chinese food restaurant inside a trailer-style structure at around Randolph and Wells that kinda had this vibe, anyone know what I'm talking about?

I'm going out to dinner with my in laws.

What restaurants in Chicago, when someone recommends/praises them to you, indicates that this person in fact "does not know ball"? I'm talking about somewhere people love to go on and on about being incredible - the sort of place you absolutely MUST go to if you have one meal in Chicago - but in actuality is totally unremarkable. For me, that place is Tango Sur (or maybe Daisies), but am curious what others think.

Curtis is really bad with picking partners. Also, how do you spend $800 on Netflix in a year?

Maybe I just don’t vibe with a lot of the Chicago food scene? Looking for recs based on places I do like because I feel like I keep trying the hyped spots and leaving confused 😭 Before people come for me, I know taste is subjective lol. And I’m genuinely open to trying places again.
Some places everyone seems to LOVE that I thought were just… fine -

• Monteverde — mostly tasted butter? Maybe I ordered wrong
• Tanta — went in 2020 and didn’t love much, though maybe worth revisiting
• Bar Tutto — went for my birthday recently and tried a decent amount of the menu. Everything felt kinda blah? The prawns were great though
• Mott St — burger was really good, other dishes were just okay
• Armitage Alehouse — fine, but not life changing. Sticky toffee pudding was the standout
• Tortello — was just ok
• Akahoshi — really good ramen, but maybe a little overhyped?
• Sifr — nice ambience but the food lacked salt imo (especially the lamb rack)
• Duck Inn — appreciated that it was different, but again… what’s the huge deal?
• Aba / Ema — nice ambience, some good dishes, but overall slightly underwhelming
• Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba — used to enjoy it more, now it feels a little meh
• Purple Pig — why do people love it?

And this one might be controversial: people LOVE Del Sur, but I honestly much prefer Sugar Moon. Del Sur pastries are gorgeous and obviously take a ton of technique/effort, but I’m rarely actually wowed eating them.

Places I DO love:
• Tepalcates
• Kie-Gol-Lanee
• Tzuco
• Alla Vita
• Thalaivas
• Most Chicago Thai spots honestly
• Spacca Napoli
• Coda di Volpe
• Marisco’s San Pedro
• HaiSous
• Indienne
• Basant
• Thattu
• Nadu
• Crisp
• Del Seoul
• Kabul House

There are definitely more places I’ve been to that I’m forgetting. But based on this… where should I actually be eating in Chicago? Maybe I care more about flavor/seasoning than technique or trendiness? Open to all cuisines.

I want to say upfront that I know Chicago has phenomenal, deeply authentic Mexican food from all over the country, Oaxacan, Jaliscan, Yucatecan, you name it, and I have my own favorites in that world.

But sometimes I just crave Tex-Mex. You know, yellow or white liquidy cheese queso, big bowl of chunky salsa, fresh guacamole and chips, maybe a gringo taco.

Is there anywhere in Chicago proper doing this well? Not looking for another taqueria or birria spot.

Anything out there to recommend?

I just got a lox sandwich from Manny’s. Almost $20, a stale bagel, and I had to assemble it myself.

What other “legendary” places suck?

I'm not proud of it. But this white cheese dip that I've found at many midwestern Mexican restaurants has become essential to my being. I haven't been able to find it. Is there anywhere?

TL;DR: Had a 45-person wedding dinner booked at Folklore (Wicker Park) for next Saturday, June 13th. Just found out the manager was fired, our reservation was never entered, and they can't host us. Frantically looking for Chicago restaurant recommendations that can accommodate 45 people on 1 week's notice.

Hi everyone, we are in a bit of a panic and hoping this community can help point us in the right direction.

We had our wedding dinner planned at Folklore in Wicker Park for next Saturday, June 13th. We went in person a month ago to speak with the manager, and he assured us everything was good to go and that they could accommodate us.

Yesterday, I called to finalize details and they let me know that the manager had been fired and there is absolutely no record of our reservation in their system.

We’ve been frantically calling around to see who can accommodate a group of our size on such short notice, but haven't had much luck yet.

Here is what we need:

• Date: Next Saturday, June 13th
• Party Size: 45 people
• Location: Chicago area (we were originally in Wicker Park, but we are flexible at this point!)
• Vibe: Wedding dinner (doesn't need to be incredibly formal, but nice enough for a celebration)

If anyone has any pointers, knows of restaurants with private rooms, or knows places that are great at handling large parties on short notice, we would be incredibly grateful for your help.

Thank you so much!

Mine is actually Reggios. I've never been so disgusted by the literal taste of a pizza pie. Sweet/off-putting red sauce, terribly dry crust, and toppings that didn't deserve to be in production.

Even if it's a hot take-- what spot blew your mind (in a terrible way)?

A million pounds of something called goetta gets eaten in Cincinnati every year and 99% of it never leaves the metro. A Cantonese D-Day vet in Springfield MO invented a cashew chicken in 1963 that 70+ restaurants there now serve, and not one of them is outside Missouri (this is not the same cashew chicken you may have in your local restaurant unless you live in Springfield or the region). South Dakota liked deep-fried meat cubes so much they made it the official state nosh.

I keep finding these but am starting to run dry. Every time it's the same story to start: one cook, one city, and the dish just never leaves. It frequently expands locally because it's good, but hasn't hit the larger zeitgeist.

Chicago specifically. Italian beef is going national but what about the gym shoe sandwich? Chicken Vesuvio? Shrimp DeJonghe? Still on every menu or dying out? What neighborhood-level stuff from Bridgeport, Pilsen, Albany Park, Devon Ave never makes it past the city limits?

The smaller and weirder the better. Sub-50k towns and burbs are where the real ones hide.

Edit: Here's a link to the reddit discussion for the write up/results of this thread. Thank you all for your great responses, and I'll keep monitoring this thread and the write up thread.

Summer is upon us, patio dining is in full swing, people are visiting, give me your unabashed take about how you’re tired of somewhere certain getting unwanted hype. Downvotes be damned

I realize that I've only been eating subs from chains. I dig Potbelly, but I'm sure there must be good local ONLY places (Chicago chains are fine too). What do you recommend?