What long boulevard or street is best for seeing true neighborhoods Chicago on foot? (non Touristy stuff) (Evanston: restaurants, stores)

[matzoman]

I am looking for a street to walk on that goes through many ethnic neighborhoods, great deli,bakery,and variety of peoples to see. Gritty streets and neighborhoods with character I prefer. Nothing too polished or gentrified with lots of diversionary streets to wander down. What are your thoughts Native Chicagoans!

[RingWalk]

How long are you planning to walk?

If you're new to the city you can pretty much walk Clark from south of the Loop all the way to Evanston. That will give you a good cross section of many of the city's northside neighborhoods.

I biked a couple weeks ago from 47th street in Canaryville down Halsted, detoured up to Taylor Street and Little Italy, then kept on Halsted to the near west side and cut east somehwere and headed back downtown.

A short walk down Grand Ave from downtown to around the 2000 block is always nice... you can still see the few remains of what was once an Italian enclave.

[chet everett]

Maybe Halsted, but walking from the north or south sides would wear out any one. The Chicago Marathon generally has a route that hits many different neighborhoods - you really need to govern at least 10 miles or so...

[Irishtom29]

Western Ave. Start in Mt. Greenwood and head north to Howard. Walk fast, it's a long way.

At 63rd and Western you'll pass by where Frankie McErlane bushwhacked Spike O'Donnel; the first use of the Tommy-gun in bootlegger warfare. There ought'a be a historical marker there but the respectable people in charge of official history aren't too keen on real history.

[jsk1983]

Check out this blog: Vote with Your Feet

The author has walked the entire length of many of Chicago's major streets which sounds like what your interested in.

[Manigault]

Walk down King Drive from 35th street to 47th street. That's a quite historic area and you can get a feel for the community.

[SJaye]

As far as one street with a variety of neighborhoods, some gritty, maybe Roosevelt Rd. However, if you want to see a lot of neighborhoods in a timely manner, I would recommend going by bicycle. You'll still be going slow enough (and be outside) to physically experience the neighborhood, as opposed to driving, but you'll get around at 4-5 times the speed.

[matzoman]

Thank you everyone for your detailed replys. I will most likely be in Chi this summer and am looking forward to experiencing the city on foot and El Train.

[Mr Downtown]

A second vote for Clark St. That was the first "cross-section" street Chicago magazine highlighted in the series they did back in the 70s & 80s. It gets quite diverse north of Devon, and there are interesting stores and restaurants the entire way (except the short stretch past Graceland Cemetery). Safe for the entire length and easy transit options for returning.

A second choice might be Lawrence, from the lakefront to Jefferson Park.

[Visvaldis]

Fullerton, from Western to Pulaski!