Im off to Chicago (25th March 2006) on business. Can anyone how lives there or has visited before give me some suggestions for sightseeing and also good restaurants / pubs for my night out. Any help would be appreciated
I spent a few days there last summer. Great place. Try the Sears Tower or The John Hancock Centre for panoramic views. Head to one of the neighbourhoods - Chinatown (metro: Red Line to Cermark), Bucktown, Wicker Park. The Magnificent Mile - shops and restaurants There's loads of restauants and drinking holes. It depends where your accommodation is and how far you can be bothered to travel.
Chicago is great. As for sights, the Sears Tower and Hancock are great. Although the Sears tower is taller (highest occupiable floor in the world - not just some big spire) the Hancock is generally held to have a better view because of its location in the city. Also, don't pay to go to the observation deck. There's a bar on one of the top floors that has the same view and really expensive drinks. But, if you're going to pay 15$ to go to the top, you might as well pay 15$ and get a drink. As for bars, it really depends on what you're looking for and where you're staying. There are a high concentration in Wrigleyville that are easy to get to by public transport in the Clark/Addison or Belmont-Irving Park/Southport area. Also be sure to check out Clark/Belmont for people watching. I can recommend a sushi place that is much better than anything I've had in London, including Zuma and Nobu. Matsuya 3469 N. Clark. Not much to look at, but great fish. http://www.planet99.com/chicago/restaurants/1814.html I would recommend you check out some improv comedy. Chicago is the birthplace of long form improv comedy. For normal top-tier stuff go to Second City where many SNL stars have gotten their start. There is a best-of show on Mondays that is much cheaper and often funnier than that main stage weekend shows. Whatever you do don't see "Second City, ETC.." the ETC stage has been bad EVERY time I've seen it. http://www.secondcity.com/?id=theatres/chicago/mainstage I, however, prefer Improv Olympic where the young people not yet ready for the minor leagues perform. Because of this the shows can be spotty, so be warned. However, I think it's a much more "authentic" experience. Cheaper too... http://www.iochicago.net/ For a completely different experience see "Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind": http://www.neofuturists.org/ The museums in Chicago are world class. I'd recommend the Art Institute, Science and Industry, The Field, The Adler, and The Shedd. Museums are not usually free in the states, but one day a week is usually free with longer hours. http://collaboratory.nunet.net/museums/pages.cfm Also Chicago has the largest free Zoo in the States, it's quite good for a nice walk around. http://www.lpzoo.com/index2.html Is there anything specific you're looking for? What type of restaurants are you looking for?
What kind of places are you looking for? Fine dining? Clubs? Trendy? As far as sightseeing goes, you should check out Millenium Park downtown. Navy Pier is also cool, but it gets awfully cold at the top of the ferris wheel, so hope for good weather. There are two world renowned museums as well as one of the most comprehensive aquariums in the world. The real shame is that you're two weeks too early to catch a baseball game at Wrigley Field (something everybody should do before they die). So my advice is figure out what kinds of stuff you'd like to do/eat and then let us know so we can be of better help (you can even shoot me a pm if you like). Ooh, and don't forget to check out the river, which will still be green
I would like to point out that the Improv Olympic is not the miner leagues of Second City. Impro Olympic does long form imporv while Second City does a Review Show. I also refer Improv Olympic now known as IO since thaey were sued by the real Olympics.
i am really open minded when it comes to sight seeing. i love music (all kinds bar rap and pop), art, history and buildings. i will be seeing lots of buildings as i work in real estate (have got appointments in the CBRE building, sears tower and with the people who own navy pier already) so preferably cultural things. i will be going with a greek chap so im sure we will be visiting greek town one evening. i quite like the idea of the zoo and aquarium. as for food, i like pretty much every kind of food i have ever eaten. thanks for all the great suggestions so far
I didn't mean that there is a formal "farm team" idea. Simply that the newer (younger) performers often start there. There is a long history of performers being picked up and moving to "more professional" venues - like Second City. I didn't know they were sued by the Olympics...But, I do remember a new paint job last time I was there...
Lincoln Park Zoo is free. Navy Pier is a lot of fun too (admission free, but everything else is overpriced). There's a place called Demon Dogs under the Fullerton el stop; really good place to grab a Chicago-style hot dog. Most of the museums and whatnot have one free day a week, but they fall on weekdays, so if you're there for a weekend, that won't help you much. There's the Adler planetarium too, that place is fun and I'm not sure if anyone else mentioned it. Also, just walking by the lake can be nice.
I heartily recommend a pizza at Pizzeria Due downtown. Every Chicagoan will have a different preference in terms of where to get a good deep dish pizza, but all will agree that there's nothing like it. I could recommend some more local stuff if you knew which part of town you were staying in.
im staying in the Best Western Inn of Chicago, 162 E Ohio Street. Im not sure if that helps. its pretty close to the navy pier by the looks of things.
I am bringing back this thread because I am going to Chicago. I was there a year ago for business. I visited Improv Olympic and Second City which I recommended earlier obviously which I will be doing again. This time I want to continue my MA training. I really don't care what ma. Preferably BJJ but aikido, ninjutsu or systema but I am open to anything that will let me get 2 or 3 classes in for the week.
