It’s far from perfect — there aren’t enough protected lanes, and there are way too many crashes. But speaking as someone who’s been commuting on a beat-up hybrid for 22 years, I can say that biking in Chicago has never been better. There are more people on bikes, which improves safety for everyone, and more drivers have … Read more
A good way to explore many of Chicago’s 77 neighborhoods in one fell swoop is to venture along Western Avenue. It used to mark the western edge of the city, and at 24 miles, it’s an exceedingly long street — running from Howard Street on the north to 119th Street on the south — so there’s plenty to see. … Read more
You can smell the savory scent lingering in the air from at least three blocks away. Starting from 75th and Prairie and moving down the block, billows of fragrant smoke waft from Lem’s Bar-B-Q’s metal smokestack and hang appealingly over much of Chatham. As one of the originators of the iconic South Side barbecue aquarium … Read more
Chicago is already famous for its skyline, but its latest architectural wonders come with an added benefit: You can live in them. Well, maybe some of them. But one can dream of a place in the Gold Coast’s No. 9 Walton. The building’s 67 units start at around $1,320 per square foot , which gets you … Read more
The Chicago Sky rose from a No. 6 seed to win its first-ever WNBA title, ending its dominant playoff run with a comeback clincher at the cozy Wintrust Arena that thrilled attendees, including me, Chance the Rapper, and seemingly the area’s entire girls’ hoops population. The bad news is that the very existence of the … Read more
We Chicagoans don’t just love our music clubs; we feel ownership of them. Mere venues of entertainment? No, these are secondary homes where we create cherished, indelible memories. We know the best spots to sit and stand, have deep associations with the smells, can navigate the bathrooms with our eyes closed, and, best of all, … Read more
Admit it: When chirpy holiday melodies permeate your earbuds and you see Santa and his reindeer cruising toward you on a decked-out CTA train, you become just as giddy as the toddler standing next to you. What began as a small-scale operation 30 years ago — when the CTA modestly decorated an out-of-service train car and used … Read more
When I first moved to Chicago and looked out over Lake Michigan, I had the same thought as many people: What are those big round buildings out there in the water? Oddly located grain silos? Drums for a giant? They are the water intake cribs supplying Chicago with clean water. Back before the Chicago River … Read more
Housed in a century-old pork processing facility that once stood sentry at the southwest corner of the Union Stock Yards, The Plant is a collaborative community of small eco-minded food businesses. While that doesn’t sound exciting, hot damn if it isn’t a trip to walk through a building where overhead carcass tracks meet kombucha, hydroponic … Read more
In other major cities, catching your favorite team or band or dance troupe requires months of planning, alerts on your smartphone for the moment when the presale begins, brownnosing industry friends. Not so in our town. With more than 225 live-performance venues, at least six world-class sports teams, and a slew of spaces where national … Read more
