Honeymoon in Chicago (Lincoln, Washington, Burnham: best cities, calculating, floor)

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by aragx6

Cheap lunches can also include some of the fast food type places around here like
Portillo's (which has great Chicago-style hot dogs) You could easily eat there for less than $12 total.

if you are going to get fast food at least quality local stuff. The extra couple of bucks you can make up by coasting on the downhills on the interstate back to your home!

[NearWestSider]

Originally Posted by turpin.josh

Hey guys, please don't get agree with me about the low-budget lunch ideas. My fiancé and I are both college students on a budget. I don't see nothing wrong with eating low-cost lunches and pretty nice meals for dinner. What is the Chinatown like in Chicago? Do they have the rip-off purses like in NYC? The lady wants to know.

The point is, you don't have to settle for McDonalds, unless you want to. Chicago is the junk food capital of the U.S. (if not the universe), and any of the following will give you a low-budget, authentic, down-to-earth "taste" of Chicago:

Al's Beef: Italian Beef is one of the three primary food groups in Chicago, and nobody does it better. Get the hot giardeniera, its worth it.

Jim's Original: Tucked away behind the UIC campus is the best Polish sausage on the planet, served Maxwell Street style, 'cause it used to be on (you guessed it), Maxwell Street.

Greektown Gyros: I personally prefer the souvlaki, but either way you can't go wrong, and if you want to visit Greektown on a budget, nothing tastes more quintessentially Halsted Street than a slimy gyros or souvlaki dripping with tzatziki.

Fontano's Subs: Hidden away on Polk Street in Taylor Street just west of UIC is a Chicago institution. Jimmy and his sister still work there, serving up their supersized superstuffed subs, always ready and willing to shoot the breeze.

Lawrence Fisheries: if deep-fried catfish or shrimp is your thing, this place is hard to beat. Its a little far, and a little off the beaten path, but worth it if you are out and around.

Taqueria Los Comales 2 (18th near Ashland): tacos bien chingones. What else can I say? If you are out and around Pilsen, the tacos are $1.50 each and well worth it.

Manny's Deli: Another Chicago institution. The sandwiches are expensive, but too big to eat in one sitting, so split it! I am fond of their pastrami and chopped liver, but the corned beef also kicks.

And yes, Chicago's Chinatown is a nice plce to visit and easily reached via CTA.

[myrc60]

Originally Posted by NearWestSider

Manny's Deli: Another Chicago institution. The sandwiches are expensive, but too big to eat in one sitting, so split it! I am fond of their pastrami and chopped liver, but the corned beef also kicks.

And yes, Chicago's Chinatown is a nice plce to visit and easily reached via CTA.

Many great suggestions, nearwestsider! Hubby loves the Pastrami at Manny's too. Manny's is off of Roosevelt Rd. on Jefferson St. and is extremely busy at lunchtime.

[Attrill]

A good option if you re trying to save money is to go to restaurants that have fixed price specials (includes appetizer, main course and dessert) - La Bouchon has a great $25 one (http://www.lebouchonofchicago.com/specials.html - broken link) on Tuesdays, Buena Terra has a great $20 one on Thursdays, Marche has one for $30 on Mondays and Wednesdays. LTH forum is a great place to research Chicago restaurants.

[Avengerfire]

Originally Posted by turpin.josh

...Is the Chinatown in Chicago like the one in NYC that sells the knock-off purses? My fiancé loves those lol

Maybe try the Maxwell street market. 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Sundays only.


New Maxwell Street Market - Little Italy/University Village - Chicago, IL 60607 | Metromix Chicago

[Avengerfire]

Mr. Greek 234 S. Halsted St. or Pete the Greek 1217 S Ashland Avenue has way better Gyros than Greektown Gyros 239 S. Halsted St.

[Avengerfire]

Originally Posted by myrc60

Yes, McDonald's dollar menu is in Chicago too...

Not in most downtown locations.

[turpin.josh]

Tuesday Itinerary

Contemporary Art Museum
Lincoln Park Zoo
Lunch at Portillo's

Night-time: Wicked!!!

Dinner: Italian Village

Does this sound good? What else could we do during the afternoon? How early should we get to the Ford Performing Arts for Wicked?

[turpin.josh]

Also, what Chinese/Thai restaurants do you recommend for Wednesday night? Has anyone had Aloha Eats, the hawaiian place? Any museums free on Wednesday?

[jdiddy]

Originally Posted by turpin.josh

Tuesday Itinerary

Contemporary Art Museum
Lincoln Park Zoo
Lunch at Portillo's

Night-time: Wicked!!!

Dinner: Italian Village

Does this sound good? What else could we do during the afternoon? How early should we get to the Ford Performing Arts for Wicked?

I don't think you can squeeze anything else in there. That's a pretty full day (thumbs up on the itinerary, by the way). Although, realistically, if you guys are walking around at the zoo and the MCA in the morning and mid afternoon, you won't be going back to Portillo's for lunch. That's just a bit out of the way and that's enough walking to work up an appetite. There's a reasonably priced cafeteria in the zoo (or you could always pack a lunch) or if you eat in the MCA, Wolfgang Puck has a cafe in there.

Museum of Contemporary Art

Costs a little more than Portillo's but not by much. Or there's also a decent hot dog place (Might be gold coast dogs, I can't remember) on Chicago ave and Rush st, about two blocks from the MCA. Same food as Portillo's.

And arriving at the theatre 30 min early would be plenty of time.