Goin' to Chicago

[mrgreencu]

I will be venturing to Chicago for the first time for a wedding with my gf. We've scheduled a couple of days of fun and I'm looking for recommendations for dinner. I prefer to stay away from tourist traps if possible. I'm looking for a nice dinner, in the 50ish range per person, and I would appreciate any recommendations from some locals. Thanks,

[mrgreencu]

I just wanted to report on our trip to Chicago. We tried Terragusto and loved it. It was the type of local restaurant we were looking for. We ordered the 3 course meal and substituted the meat for an additional pasta. The homemade pasta was fantastic! I was worried about the quantity size, but we barely touched our last pasta we were so full. Thanks for all the recommendations.

[bullygirl]

I highly recommend Frontera Grill. I went with a party of four and had one of the most memorable meals of my life. For a party of two you probably can't make a reservation, but go early, put your name in and have drinks at the bar. If a table at the bar opens up than you're all set, if not, you can enjoy excellent drinks while you wait.

Honestly, every dish we had (and I think we sampled most of the menu) was to die for and the food prices were incredibly reasonable.

[aaronsinger]

Ditto. It gets a lot of hype, but it's well deserved. Perhaps my favorite meal, ever, but then again I'm a lover of mexican fare. I got there with two others at 5:30 (getting there 15-30 mins beforehand, helps; or possibly lunch); we had absolutely fantastic service at a bar table. I can't wait to go back.

[Dedalus]

Whereabouts are you staying? Downtown?

[mrgreencu]

We're going 1 day early and staying at the Wyndham hotel downtown somewhere, and then we're going to a wedding in Des Plaines. I'm gonna start looking into everyone's recommendations.

[jbentley4]

On the North Side, maybe 15-20 minutes from the Loop, I'd recommend:

1. Yoshi's Cafe on Halsted (http://www.yoshiscafe.com/yoshiscafe/

)

2. Erwin (http://www.erwincafe.com/

)

3. Terragusto Cafe - http://terragustocafe.com/ Fantastic, authentic North/Central Italian featuring pasta made daily in the shop, seasonal local organic ingredients etc. (BYOB)

[emaline412]

My boyfriend took me to a place in Lakeview/Boystown a few months ago called Socca. It's at Clark and School. I haven't been to too many other places, but there's a French restaurant near my new apartment on Lincoln a few blocks north that looks delicious too. It's called Bistro Campagne.

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Socca Restaurant
3301 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60657

Bistro Campagne
4518 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL 60625

[happyscrappy]

Cafe Absinthe
1954 W North Ave
Chicago, IL 60622
[phone]

It's been one of my favorite 'special occasion' places for years, right in the heart of hipster-haven Wicker Park. Easy to get to via the blue line. Deeeeelish.