Devon st. info? (Chicago, Oak Park, Lincoln: rental, to buy, cost)

[sfcambridge]

I want to wander around Devon street and pick up some simple "street" indian food (ex. samosa chaat etc..) and to buy some cheap spices. I've never been there before, and don't know the far North side well.

Any recs on which train stop I should get out at/best direction to wander?

Any specific recommendations for the kind of food I'm looking for, or a specific grocer that has good deals on spices?

Thanks.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by sfcambridge

I want to wander around Devon street and pick up some simple "street" indian food (ex. samosa chaat etc..) and to buy some cheap spices. I've never been there before, and don't know the far North side well.

Any recs on which train stop I should get out at/best direction to wander?

Any specific recommendations for the kind of food I'm looking for, or a specific grocer that has good deals on spices?

Thanks.

To get there by public transit, there's a few options if you want to take the train. One is Red Line to Loyola, and then hop on the 155 bus. Another is Brown Line to Western and then take the 49B bus up. Honestly, most of the stuff is between Western and California, so that's why you have to take the bus portion of it as there's no train stop within short walking distance (WISH there was).

I'm going to be weird, but I am a fan of Hema's Kitchen up there. Also, this one place is not on Devon but Luzzat off the Jarvis Red Line is really, really good stuff too.

[sfcambridge]

Originally Posted by marothisu

To get there by public transit, there's a few options if you want to take the train. One is Red Line to Loyola, and then hop on the 155 bus. Another is Brown Line to Western and then take the 49B bus up. Honestly, most of the stuff is between Western and California, so that's why you have to take the bus portion of it as there's no train stop within short walking distance (WISH there was).

I'm going to be weird, but I am a fan of Hema's Kitchen up there. Also, this one place is not on Devon but Luzzat off the Jarvis Red Line is really, really good stuff too.

Thanks for the travel info. I'm coming from Oak Park, so that sounds like a long trip but I've been wanting to try...

Never heard of Hema's. Why does that make you weird?

Any other recs for places on the Devon strip?

[Thepreacherswife]

Originally Posted by sfcambridge

Thanks for the travel info. I'm coming from Oak Park, so that sounds like a long trip but I've been wanting to try...

Never heard of Hema's. Why does that make you weird?

Any other recs for places on the Devon strip?

Two words: Khan BBQ, right at Devon and Western. Get the chicken boti and the goat chanp (if it's available).

Khan BBQ -- Chicago -- Devon

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by sfcambridge

Thanks for the travel info. I'm coming from Oak Park, so that sounds like a long trip but I've been wanting to try...

Never heard of Hema's. Why does that make you weird?

Any other recs for places on the Devon strip?

Makes sense. It's a cool area...and try out Luzzat sometime Really good stuff....definite hidden gem of Chicago (but I haven't had it for a year).

It makes me weird because it's kind of cliche. They have a few other locations in the city (i.e. Lincoln Park). I think someone mentioned it but...Khan BBQ is good too.

[Thepreacherswife]

Also forgot to mention Ghareeb Nawaz (2032 W Devon Avenue, (773) 761-5300) which is a bit east of the main Devon corridor, but it has outstanding chicken hareem and hunter beef.

As far as markets, there are a ton between Western and California. Patel Brothers and Fresh Farms are certainly the biggest and probably have the most variety, although Fresh Farms isn't specifically an Indo-Pak market.

[linicx]

I think Devon is 6400 N., but I haven't driven that it in a looong time. It seemed like it took forever from Lincoln Park by car.

[nana053]

From Oak Park, I suggest driving rather than taking the train and bus. Parking can be a problem near the Devon strip though.

[Alicia Bradley]

Some guy I went on a blind date with back in 2002 or so took me to Devon St. for dinner (we both loved Indian food). Afterwards he took me to a video rental place where he bought some kind of legal street stimulant.. pink stuff wrapped in a leaf (I've since discovered the leaf was betel, still don't know what the contents were). I was willing to try it, but required 1.5 sweet lassis to get rid of the headache it gave me. I weighed about 90 pounds at the time.. so.. probably wasn't a good idea to chew the whole thing.

[emathias]

I'd also recommend driving. Taking the train from Oak Park will likely be a 90 minute trip by transit vs 30-45 minutes by car depending on traffic. Now if you made that part of a whole day in the city and could split the trip up, it might not be too bad. But that's still a lot of time on the trains.

Your other option is to take the train downtown and then take a cab to Devon. Train to the Loop from Oak park is like 30 minutes, and a cab to Devon form the Loop is 20-25 minutes. But that would push your cost to close to $50 or a little more for two people, round-trip, so that's kind of a lot of money - it'd only be about another $20 to get a ZipCar for a day at that point.