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Give me your Chicago rec’s.

PorscheGuy

By PorscheGuy
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Onboard 2.0

Onboard 2.0 9,083

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Fucking love Chicago, especially in the Summer.  Lots to do Cubs, River tours, great eats, great bars, Navy pier is cool. If you can plan it around the blues festival in June stay at the Chicago athletic club hotel right across the street from the bean, and hang out at their roof top, lake front bar, Cindys.

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irishtexan

irishtexan 11,414

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Was just in the Chicago area from Wednesday-Monday.   Let me start off with in fairness, I spent the bulk of my time in Naperville or there abouts but we did venture into downtown on Sunday and Monday.  I have also been several times before and stayed directly in downtown. 
  • O'Hare just flat out sucks balls.   It has to be the worst airport I have ever been too.  Traffic is horrific in the general vicinity and it doesn't matter what time of day or day of the week.
  • Traffic in Chicago generally sucks ginormous donkey balls.    Every single part of the Interstate Freeways are under some kind of construction.  Entirely too many tolls (how do they get away with Tolls on US Insterstates) and some of the plazas are set up right before a necessary exit (like coming in from the west to O'Hare on 190). 
  • Entirely too many Dunkin' Donuts and that place is terrible.  One morning I decided to go get some pastries.   The first local place I tried was a coffee/donut shop.   They had glazed donuts and one kind of bagel.   The second place I went to had two other kinds of donuts.   Ended up at Dunkin' and everything tasted stale. 
  • Navy Pier is a complete waste of time.   We went only because none of us had been before and it was just worthless.  
  • I'm not really sure what the allure of downtown is.   There are thousands of tourists walking up and down Michigan Avenue doing some shopping but most of the stores exist in any other medium to large city.   I guess if your from Podunk Iowa where there's a Family Dollar and a Dairy Queen as the center of town it has some kind of cool factor.   But I live in Houston.    It's just another downtown.
  • A friend up there recommended Giordano's or Lou Malnati's for pizza.   We ended up at Lou Malnati's because the Giordano's we tried to stop at were in places where street parking sucked and I was driving a Yukon XL.   There are around 50 Giordano's in Illinois with another 17 in 8 other states.   Malnati's has around 50 locations in the Chicagoland and around.  Not exactly a unique experience.
So overall, not enthusiastic about going back.  I can see where flying in on a Friday, catching a Cubs game (I've never been to Wrigley) and coming home Sunday would be fun but I don't see any reason to visit Chicago anymore. 

I’m surprised you didn’t enjoy all the impossibly lame touristy shit you chose to do or the chain restaurants you chose to eat at.
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Macanudo

Macanudo 12,791

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46 minutes ago, irishtexan said:


I’m surprised you didn’t enjoy all the impossibly lame touristy shit you chose to do or the chain restaurants you chose to eat at.

Hey....  the shitty chains were recommended by someone who lives there.   I didn't realize they were chains until after eating at Lou's. As for our touristy stuff....  I had kids in tow.

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Al_4_ISU

Al_4_ISU 12,323

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I'm from podunk Iowa with a Dollar General, A&W/LJS, and Subway to round out my national brands, and I find downtown Chicago lame.

The main touristy shit anywhere sucks.  In Chicago, it's all about getting into the actual inhabited city.  That's where the grit, soul, and fun exists.

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Onboard 2.0

Onboard 2.0 9,083

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4 minutes ago, Al_4_ISU said:

I'm from podunk Iowa with a Dollar General, A&W/LJS, and Subway to round out my national brands, and I find downtown Chicago lame.

The main touristy shit anywhere sucks.  In Chicago, it's all about getting into the actual inhabited city.  That's where the grit, soul, and fun exists.

In Engrish prease.

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JimmyHoffa

JimmyHoffa 1,188

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On 7/15/2019 at 12:57 PM, ajax said:

Was there last weekend. I can't speak to beer selection but we ate at the Purple Pig and Boka. Food was amazing at both.

In general, we never had to wait more than 5 minutes for a Lyft ride at various locations in the city.

 

My wife and I went to Boka a few weeks ago. Tasting menu was great. 

 

20 hours ago, Macanudo said:

Was just in the Chicago area from Wednesday-Monday.   Let me start off with in fairness, I spent the bulk of my time in Naperville or there abouts but we did venture into downtown on Sunday and Monday.  I have also been several times before and stayed directly in downtown. 

  • O'Hare just flat out sucks balls.   It has to be the worst airport I have ever been too.  Traffic is horrific in the general vicinity and it doesn't matter what time of day or day of the week.
  • Traffic in Chicago generally sucks ginormous donkey balls.    Every single part of the Interstate Freeways are under some kind of construction.  Entirely too many tolls (how do they get away with Tolls on US Insterstates) and some of the plazas are set up right before a necessary exit (like coming in from the west to O'Hare on 190). 
  • Entirely too many Dunkin' Donuts and that place is terrible.  One morning I decided to go get some pastries.   The first local place I tried was a coffee/donut shop.   They had glazed donuts and one kind of bagel.   The second place I went to had two other kinds of donuts.   Ended up at Dunkin' and everything tasted stale. 
  • Navy Pier is a complete waste of time.   We went only because none of us had been before and it was just worthless.  
  • I'm not really sure what the allure of downtown is.   There are thousands of tourists walking up and down Michigan Avenue doing some shopping but most of the stores exist in any other medium to large city.   I guess if your from Podunk Iowa where there's a Family Dollar and a Dairy Queen as the center of town it has some kind of cool factor.   But I live in Houston.    It's just another downtown.
  • A friend up there recommended Giordano's or Lou Malnati's for pizza.   We ended up at Lou Malnati's because the Giordano's we tried to stop at were in places where street parking sucked and I was driving a Yukon XL.   There are around 50 Giordano's in Illinois with another 17 in 8 other states.   Malnati's has around 50 locations in the Chicagoland and around.  Not exactly a unique experience.

So overall, not enthusiastic about going back.  I can see where flying in on a Friday, catching a Cubs game (I've never been to Wrigley) and coming home Sunday would be fun but I don't see any reason to visit Chicago anymore. 

 

This post still has me laughing. It would be like going to "New York" staying in New Brunswick, NJ and going to NYC  to check out Times Square and eat at the Applebees. 

"parking sucked and I was driving a Yukon XL" might be my favorite part. 

Aside from O'hare sucking (which it does) you literally did everything in Chicago that even those people from Podunk, IA know to fucking avoid. So fucking great. 

 

 

 

 

 

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Al_4_ISU

Al_4_ISU 12,323

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2 hours ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

In Engrish prease.

The areas outside of downtown Chicago are way more interesting.  Even being from podunk Iowa, I find the downtown experience touristy and lame.  The neighborhoods all over the north side are cool as hell.  

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Onboard 2.0

Onboard 2.0 9,083

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7 minutes ago, Al_4_ISU said:

The areas outside of downtown Chicago are way more interesting.  Even being from podunk Iowa, I find the downtown experience touristy and lame.  The neighborhoods all over the north side are cool as hell.  

True especially from an architectural standpoint.  Downtown Chicago certainly has its tourist places, like every city large, and small, but Chicago has a great, and vibrant  downtown.  Not sure how lame is even a descriptor.

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Al_4_ISU

Al_4_ISU 12,323

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1 hour ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

True especially from an architectural standpoint.  Downtown Chicago certainly has its tourist places, like every city large, and small, but Chicago has a great, and vibrant  downtown.  Not sure how lame is even a descriptor.

I'm just not into it, I guess.  The central downtowns in most really big cities tend to be less interesting to me than the other neighborhoods.  There's a certain size range where the downtowns tends to be my favorite areas, and Chicago (like New York or LA) is big enough to go past that.  Personal preference, I guess.

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Onboard 2.0

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20 minutes ago, Al_4_ISU said:

I'm just not into it, I guess.  The central downtowns in most really big cities tend to be less interesting to me than the other neighborhoods.  There's a certain size range where the downtowns tends to be my favorite areas, and Chicago (like New York or LA) is big enough to go past that.  Personal preference, I guess.

For sure, it's all personal preferences.

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ajax

ajax 2,568

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3 hours ago, Al_4_ISU said:

The areas outside of downtown Chicago are way more interesting.  Even being from podunk Iowa, I find the downtown experience touristy and lame.  The neighborhoods all over the north side are cool as hell.  

I spent my high school years in Chicago, in a neighborhood called West Garfield.

The northside of Chicago really is cool as hell, just don't go to my old hood.

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Underdog

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16 minutes ago, JimmyHoffa said:

 

Agree 100% especially in the summer.

Yeah.  Last visit there was in November '17 and it was cold as shit.  Jr. and I were walking around bundled up like a couple of pussies and we'd see these young ladies from NW w/out any gloves or hats on.  

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irishtexan

irishtexan 11,414

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On 7/17/2019 at 11:44 PM, Macanudo said:

Hey....  the shitty chains were recommended by someone who lives there.   I didn't realize they were chains until after eating at Lou's. As for our touristy stuff....  I had kids in tow.

You could have gone on the architectural boat tour, had a drink at the signature room at the top of the Hancock building, taken a water taxi down to china town, gone to the art institute which is one of the best art museums on earth, gone to the museum of science and industry, or the Adler planetarium. Instead you went to Navy fucking Pier. Don’t blame your poor decisions on the city. That’s all on you buddy. 

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Underdog

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18 hours ago, Brew said:

This, we go 1-2 times a year most years. Saying that, I wouldn’t want to live there, but I’ll visit.

We used to do multiple trips out to Vegas a year and we love Vegas, but wished we had used some of those trips for Chicago, NYC or Boston when we were younger.  

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Underdog

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I'm pretty Pollyanna/Clark Griswold like on trips, try to find good things about all places.  Love the vibe of Chicago, the architecture, the L trains running through DT, I wonder what it's like to live DT and having to grocery shop every other day because your fridge may not hold that much food, all of the sports teams in the area.  

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ChiTownDoc

ChiTownDoc 20,890

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1 hour ago, irishtexan said:

You could have gone on the architectural boat tour, had a drink at the signature room at the top of the Hancock building, taken a water taxi down to china town, gone to the art institute which is one of the best art museums on earth, gone to the museum of science and industry, or the Adler planetarium. Instead you went to Navy fucking Pier. Don’t blame your poor decisions on the city. That’s all on you buddy. 

My man...

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Spankytoes

Spankytoes 1,787

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On 7/17/2019 at 11:56 PM, irishtexan said:


I’m surprised you didn’t enjoy all the impossibly lame touristy shit you chose to do or the chain restaurants you chose to eat at.

It's a chain, but eating at Nando's is a must. They need to expand beyond D.C. and Chicago. 

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Brew

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20 hours ago, ajax said:

I think it's a chain but Eataly was really good. I didn't sit at the restaurant, but the charcuterie, cheese and cannoli were so damn good. 

We stay a block away from it, so we usually stop in at least once on a trip for lunch. Everything we have tried has been really good and it’s usually a quick in and out. If the kids are with us, it makes it easy because there is enough variety to cover something different for everyone and we’re not having to mess with reservations and planning everything out.

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ChiTownDoc

ChiTownDoc 20,890

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17 minutes ago, 6th Street said:

If any of you assholes are going to the Cubs game today I'll be at Casey Moran's in about a half an hour pounding Old Style, 

Taking the metra out to Wheaton for our CMO’s 65th birthday.  FML

Ill be back to rage at night.  Enjoy the game.  Have a few for your fallen comrade.  

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ChiTownDoc

ChiTownDoc 20,890

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2 hours ago, Underdog said:

I think they've ruined it with all the buildup in and around the stadium, seems to have lost it's cozy neighborhood feel to it. 

Ruined only compared to what it was...For sure but still beats every other park out there for neighborhood feel.  

Back to the city.  Wish my liver luck.  

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Stunns38

Stunns38 3,275

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I spent my high school years in Chicago, in a neighborhood called West Garfield.
The northside of Chicago really is cool as hell, just don't go to my old hood.


The West Side? This is where the United Center is. Gentrifying now but was rough as shit 10 years ago.
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mdmost

mdmost 42,459

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18 hours ago, ChiTownDoc said:

Ruined only compared to what it was...For sure but still beats every other park out there for neighborhood feel.  

Back to the city.  Wish my liver luck.  

Right. The interior, aside from scoreboards, is pretty nice. The exterior reminds me of what they did around the Braves Stadium. Still, the charm of taking the Red up there and the walk down from the Addison station really can’t be beat. Seeing the front of Wrigley and walking the outside with the rooftops right there, just can’t be beat. Fenway is close but it’s so compacted. But the interior of Wrigley is so much better.

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Onboard 2.0

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13 minutes ago, mdmost said:

Right. The interior, aside from scoreboards, is pretty nice. The exterior reminds me of what they did around the Braves Stadium. Still, the charm of taking the Red up there and the walk down from the Addison station really can’t be beat. Seeing the front of Wrigley and walking the outside with the rooftops right there, just can’t be beat. Fenway is close but it’s so compacted. But the interior of Wrigley is so much better.

Been to both. The inside of Fenway as you enter from the brown of the street into the green of The field, the Greenwall, and bleachers  is amazing, like a religious experience.

The area around Wrigley with the bars, and rooftop set ups is uber cool.

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