Chicago, Illinois
Guide to Chicago: how to get there and where to stay, what to see and where to go in the evening. The most interesting in Chicago: fresh reviews and photos, places to see, branded entertainment and shopping.
It’s hard to find a more American city than Chicago, which lies on the south shore of Lake Michigan. This large metropolis is the eternal rival of New York and the second most important center of business, financial and cultural life of the country. It is not without reason that it is called the “Broad-shouldered City” – Chicago is, indeed, immense.
The main city thoroughfare is Michigan Avenue, whose northern end rests on the lake. A stretch known as the Magnificent Mile is a shopaholic’s paradise, home to upscale boutiques, high fashion stores and giant malls. Architecture lovers will be interested in the business center, where most of Chicago’s skyscrapers stand, and the streets are decorated with works by Marc Chagall, Henry Moore, Jean Dubuffet, Juan Miro and Pablo Picasso. Places of rest for the whole family are parks with fountains, variety venues and the world’s largest indoor aquarium.
According to toppharmacyschools, Chicago is no longer associated with Prohibition era gangsters. It is known for its museums and musical traditions. This is a city of rock, jazz and famous blues clubs – a place of attraction for those who like to rock cool.
Chicago Hotels
The best places to live are downtown Chicago, where museums, concert halls, parks and shopping centers are concentrated. It is here that the prestigious “five-stars” are located with chic rooms, expensive restaurants and other pleasures available to those who are willing to pay 500-1000 USD per day for a double room.
A 4-star life will cost half as much, you will have to sacrifice a restaurant, a neighborhood with Hollywood celestials, a spa center and a personal fitness trainer. The most popular and numerous are 3 * hotels costing from 100 USD. For example, Hampton Inn Majestic Theater District, which combines a convenient location, good service and reasonable prices.
Regardless of the number of stars, all hotels in downtown Chicago have free Wi-Fi and, alas, outrageously high parking prices.
The cheapest accommodation is motels and apartments at a distance of 10-15 km from the center: 58-90 USD per night.
What to try
Chicago is a real culinary jungle, where you can become both the top of the food pyramid and the victim of local culinary predators. As you head to the shores of Michigan, get ready for an exciting hunt for delicious breakfast, lunch, and dinner. First, about the dangers.
Firstly, street fast food is not a Chicago invention, and you can’t buy anything “branded” on the street, but you can get poisoned with no less probability than whites at the Kazansky railway station. In Chicago, you need to eat in small cafes and restaurants, where prices are not much higher than at street vendors of hot dogs.
Secondly, if you want to try the local cuisine, you should not buy analogues of English fish and chips, standard donuts and hamburgers. There are a lot of them in Chicago, but what’s the point of going here to live on what handymen and blue-collar workers all over America eat for lunch? You can choke on overdried cod with french fries anywhere in the States.
Third, contrary to the claims of pale-skinned street barkers, no Indian food was invented in the Great Lakes region. If you want something authentic, order game dishes at the nearest restaurant. For example, only here you can taste bison meat, which is bred on local farms, including on Indian reservations.
And now for the goodies. There are several dishes that are prepared only here. The local pizza “Chicago Style” does not even look like an Italian one. This is a 4-layer pie: bottom thin dough, thick cheese layer, filling, top thin dough and sauce layer.
Chicago borders the state of Wisconsin, where ethnic Swiss and Germans produce some of the best cheeses, milks and meats in the Western Hemisphere – the ingredients used in Chicago pizza.
An average pizza is designed for 2-3 people, costs from 10 to 25 USD in the city center, it is prepared in almost all establishments with the word “pizzeria” in the title. For those who are strong in spirit and stomach, there is even a special bus tour of the main pizzerias of the center ( 55 USD ): you can try different varieties that differ in sauces, toppings and cheese.
Signature dishes associated with two world-famous teams in Chicago – the Red Bulls basketball and the White Sox football (football, of course, American). There are $25-$100 Michael Jordan steaks at Michael Jordan’s Steak House and a $17 Chicago White Sox signature pizza at Phil’s Pizza in Bridgeport.
You can also call “Chicago hot dogs” a local dish, but you need to buy them only in bars and cafes, and not in trailers. They come in two varieties: “Polish” (Maxwell Street Polish), which necessarily contains a thick “Polish” sausage, fried onions, peppers and mustard, and a less strict “Chicago hot dog” where the sausage can be thinner and more ingredients. But the main thing – you can not add ketchup and simple mustard. It is believed that the sugar contained in them interrupts the taste of beef sausage. (Ask for ketchup – they can beat you.)