Solo in Chicago for one night - where to go?

So I find myself solo tonight in Chicago. I'm here for 5 days with others, but on my first night tonight, I'm alone. It's my first time visiting Chicago. Where would you guys (and gals) go for dinner and a beer? I'm staying near Kinzie St. and LaSalle St.

Revolution Brewing & Hop Leaf

Looking for food? beer bars? breweries? any of the above? Looking to keep it reasonable, or do you have some money to spend? Trying to keep walking distance from your hotel, or are you comfortable jumping on a train?

You are fairly close to Haymarket brewing. Their beer is pretty good and the food is solid.

Revolution and Hopleaf are great ideas as well. Half Acre is pretty good.

For breakfast tomorrow, go to Donut Vault. It's close to where you are staying, and it's worth the wait in line

This place is a couple blocks away from your hotel. Had a work outing there a few months ago, they have a good beer menu and if you by chance like arcade games you might really enjoy it:

http://hqbeercade.com/rivernorth/

We were there on a weeknight and I didn't pay for anything, so no clue how crowded it will be on a weekend or what you might spend there.

EDIT: Meh, farther than i thought it was, now that i think about it, it was a bit of a hike from our office!

TallDan said:

Looking for food? beer bars? breweries? any of the above? Looking to keep it reasonable, or do you have some money to spend? Trying to keep walking distance from your hotel, or are you comfortable jumping on a train?

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Food and good beer that are appropriate for a solo traveler are tops on my list. Money isn't an issue not because I'm a baller, but because I'm on vacation. I'd jump a train without hesitation.

HarborTownBrewing said:

You are fairly close to Haymarket brewing. Their beer is pretty good and the food is solid.

Revolution and Hopleaf are great ideas as well. Half Acre is pretty good.

For breakfast tomorrow, go to Donut Vault. It's close to where you are staying, and it's worth the wait in line

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Thanks. I was also looking for breakfast tomorrow, so you knocked it out if the park.

HarborTownBrewing said:

For breakfast tomorrow, go to Donut Vault. It's close to where you are staying, and it's worth the wait in line

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So, minor threadjack attempt, how would you compare Donut Vault to Glazed and Infused?

CadiBrewer said:

So I find myself solo tonight in Chicago. I'm here for 5 days with others, but on my first night tonight, I'm alone. It's my first time visiting Chicago. Where would you guys (and gals) go for dinner and a beer? I'm staying near Kinzie St. and LaSalle St.

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So many options nearby... I lived in River North for two amazing years.

For something off the beaten path, but which you might really like I'd go to Reza's, an Iranian place all the way west on Ontario (I think). You could walk there from La Salle, probably 10 minutes.

http://www.rezasrestaurant.com/

When you think ethnic, your first thought will probably be a cozy hole in the wall. Not Reza's. It's a big place.. kind of like Maggiano's only, Iranian.

Anything with lamb will be great. But so are any of their kabobs. The dill rice they serve on the side is perfection. They do these roasted potato planks in butter that are ridiculous. Get plenty of the house feta cheese and pita bread too. And to drink? The sangria is awesome.

Most places in Chicago will be more enjoyable with company than alone, but I wouldn't hesitate to go here.

My favorite breakfast spot has always been Tempo (a greek diner). They make this marmalade that I can't get out of my head.

Revolution isn't too far off the Blue line. Half Acre's tap room is great but it's about a 10 minute walk from the Brown line. The Bad Apple is right across the street from Half Acre. Great local beer selection and awesome burgers. Uber is always an option if money isn't tight.

Also, the west loop isn't that far from you. Haymarket brews some awesome beer not too far from the Morgan green line. Also Kaiser Tiger is only a couple blocks from the Ashland green line.

Clark and Lake, which has access to pretty much every El line, is only a couple blocks south from your hotel so you got easy access to just about anywhere in Chicago.

Also, if you feel like pizza, go to Piece Brewery and Pizzeria. Not far off the Damen Blue line.. there's usually a line to get a seat though, but it's been worth it every time I've gone there.

Thanks for all of the suggestions, guys. I'm thinking Revolution Brewing is the place for me tonight. I'll see where the night takes me from there. Plenty of nights to try out the rest of your suggestions when I have company the rest of my trip.

Forget beer for a minute. Buddy Guy's Legends. Thank me later.

Food - Chicago Oven Grinder and Pizza Co, on Clark. Get a pizza pot pie with meat and mushrooms. 1/2 pound or full, up to you. Again, thank me later.

TallDan said:

So, minor threadjack attempt, how would you compare Donut Vault to Glazed and Infused?

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Well, as a donut connoisseur, you happened to have asked the right person.

My favorite donut places in Chicago, in order, are as follows:

1) Doughnut Vault
2) Stan's Donuts
3) Glazed and Infused

Glazed and Infused has some good stuff, but I always feel like there is just a tad bit of something missing. Plus, the sizes are a little small, so I find myself wanting 1.5 of their sized donuts, which means I have to order 4 or 5, just to be on the safe side

Doughnut Vault by far has the best donuts I have tried. No matter which special donut of the day they feature, I always favor the vanilla/chocolate donuts. They are a good size, but I'd still recommend getting 3 or so for yourself. Actually, I've sold some on the street after DV closed one day

Stan's is good - to me it's like Glazed and Infused, but with a bit more refined flavors and less craziness. Portions are good, and they are located right next door to La Colombe, whose coffee I like the best.

Back on topic though, if you are looking for something outside of beer/pub food, I've heard fantastic reviews of Little Goat Diner http://littlegoatchicago.com/. It is a more informal version of Girl and the Goat, which I can tell you has fantastic food (and took me 4 months to get a reservation for). I'm guessing you could walk in for dinner tonight or lunch tomorrow and likely get a seat at the bar or something.

Just another thought if you are thinking of something more than pub food.

+1 to the hop leaf I love that place it's right down the street from my sister's house in Chicago!

Ridire said:

Food - Chicago Oven Grinder and Pizza Co, on Clark. Get a pizza pot pie with meat and mushrooms. 1/2 pound or full, up to you. Again, thank me later.

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This place is good, and worth a visit, but if you want traditional deep dish, head to Pizzeria Uno or Due. It's where deep dish was invented.

Also make sure to get an Italian Beef sandwich. Outside of Chicago, people know about the hot dogs and the pizza, but the Italian Beef is heavenly. If you like spicy, be sure to get it with hot giardinera...

I moved away before craft beer was a thing, so unfortunately can't say much about the brewing scene...

bwarbiany said:

I moved away before craft beer was a thing, so unfortunately can't say much about the brewing scene...

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Me too. Goose Island was about the only game in town when I lived there.

Thanks for the suggestions. Ended up at Revolution Brewing. It was awesome. Great beer and good food to boot.

CadiBrewer said:

Thanks for the suggestions. Ended up at Revolution Brewing. It was awesome. Great beer and good food to boot.

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I was going to ask if that was convenient to get to. I've has their beers and really liked them. Never been to the brewery, though.

Revolution Crystal Hero

If you can get another night, try the Stout barrel house usually has zombie dust on tap, and gumbhall head

Ridire said:

I was going to ask if that was convenient to get to. I've has their beers and really liked them. Never been to the brewery, though.

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It would have been convenient to take the El from where I'm staying. It was my first night in town and it was raining, so I opted to cab it there instead. $15 each way.

I'd say it was worth it. The beer was really good. I had their schwarzbier, their pilsner, and their saison. All were really excellent examples of the styles. That being said, the food and the atmosphere made the beer tastier in my opinion.