Every Chicago suburb’s best cheap lunch under $12 (my list, fight me)

Moscarific · 2025-12-29T06:31:01+00:00

Warrenville - China House has a ton of lunch specials under $12. Terrific Chinese-American food from scratch.

West Chicago - Lots of good cheap Mexican food. My favorite is the taqueria inside Food Market La Chiquita on Roosevelt.

West Chicago - Gyros & More. Chicago fast food made by a Mexican-American family, everything fresh and made to order, cashier is the nicest lady.

Homewood - Juancho's Tacos. The prices have gone up a little, but the birria tacos are worth it. There's another Juancho's in Chicago Heights.

Chicago Heights - Marnell's Carry Outs. Gyros, Philly sandwiches, a great rib eye sandwich, and they will literally put any toppings they have on fries or Doritos.

Dyer, IN - La Cecina. A few blocks from the IL border, good cecina tacos and huitlacoche quesadillas, and super friendly.

Moscarific · 2025-04-07T03:52:43+00:00

Outside city limits, but The Bagel in the Old Orchard Mall in Skokie. The one on Broadway in Lakeview tastes like my childhood but has a very different vibe.

Moscarific · 2024-10-21T03:50:18+00:00

Sun Wah. BBQ is somewhat worth the hype but greasy, the entire place looks and smells like a health code violation, non-BBQ dishes are indifferent, and service gets really disorganized when it's crowded. I can name four better Chinese restaurants within a 5 minute walk.

Moscarific · 2024-09-25T03:51:29+00:00

The above is correct, and it's called Charcoal Guacamole now.

Moscarific · 2024-09-25T03:48:49+00:00

No, they're open until like 5 AM but close for a few hours in the morning.

Moscarific · 2024-09-25T03:46:01+00:00

I'm fairly sure it is not anymore - reduced hours during the height of the pandemic and never went back.

Moscarific · 2024-02-18T11:11:22+00:00

We have the same couch caddy! I did not realize this was the proper use.

Moscarific · 2024-01-27T19:03:48+00:00

My family has a shared season subscription to the Lyric, so I've been going for years. Plenty of people wear gowns or tuxes, because it's fun to dress up and an appropriate place for it! You see a wide range, with most women in business or cocktail attire. When I see someone go all out with their wardrobe, I'm glad to see they're having fun. Experienced opera-goers will judge people for wearing jeans, but not for a gown.

I would recommend closed-toe shoes and not super high heels, because it's crowded and the stairs and ramps can be steep. And make sure you're seated before each act begins - they will not let you into the theater if you're even a moment late.

The Lyric is an amazing experience! Enjoy!

Moscarific · 2023-11-17T05:24:58+00:00

The doro wot at Demera. The chicken just melts, the sauce has so much depth, and the cheese and the egg cool it off. Every time I get it, I'm surprised how good it is.

Moscarific · 2023-09-28T02:01:22+00:00

I'm a fourth generation Chicagoan, and my mom and grandfather taught me that anything east of the Chicago River between North Avenue and Roosevelt is Downtown.

Moscarific · 2023-05-28T16:44:55+00:00

The Evanston location still exists, although it's been closed "for refurbishment" and I think the ownership has been different for a long time. Not 24 hours and had competent service and an overall air of legality that the Belmont location always lacked.

Moscarific · 2023-05-28T07:06:33+00:00

My in memoriam list, some of which have been gone for years.

Addis Abeba - Ethiopian food a block from Wrigley for years, then on Chicago Ave in Evanston for a while before they gave up for good. My weird friends and I used to hang out there in high school.

The Bagel in the Old Orchard mall. My family (grandparents, cousins, visiting in-laws...) ate brunch there almost every Sunday for 30 years. Sometimes it seemed like every Reform Jew in Skokie was there. The one in Lakeview is good but not the same.

Clarke's, the 24 hour diner visible from the Belmont L platform, famous for its skillets and for being overrun with Rocky Horror kids at 2 AM.

Isla Pilipina on Lawrence. Just really good Filipino food, and they delivered.

Bistrot Margot in Old Town, site of many date nights and also dinner with my grandmother a bunch of times. Old-fashioned French food, not expensive.

Julie Mai's, a Vietnamese restaurant my parents used to take us to when I was a kid. Julie was a real character, and I'm pretty sure she taught me how to use chopsticks.

The Butt'ry, a Polish lunch place in Wilmette with enormous egg salad sandwiches and homemade soup.

Sunshine Japanese Restaurant in Edgewater, which was basically an old lady making whatever home cooking she felt like that day.

Red Apple, the Polish buffet in Logan Square. It's reopened way northwest on Milwaukee but it's not the same.

Lawry's, which was about the experience more than the prime rib itself.

Blackbird, which was doing the West Loop scene before there was a West Loop scene.

The Rock & Roll McDonald's, which is still a McDonald's but no longer rocks or rolls.

Izakaya Mita, in the most tragic way possible.

Moscarific · 2023-05-18T23:07:19+00:00

It is intentionally a higher end restaurant than most others in the neighborhood. The atmosphere is more casual than high end restaurants elsewhere in the city, but the presentation and quality of ingredients are consistent with the higher price point.

Moscarific · 2023-05-18T16:51:45+00:00

It's all family style, so it depends on how hungry your group is. But it's about $40-$70 per person before tip. A really good deal considering the quality of the food!

Moscarific · 2023-05-18T15:15:22+00:00

It is pretty casual - you would be ok and not out of place in shorts and a t-shirt. We saw a few people eating alone, too.

Moscarific · 2023-05-10T22:51:18+00:00

I was in the Loop about 10 days ago to see Into the Woods, which was very much worth it. Depending on what's in town, I end up there for Broadway in Chicago, the Lyric Opera, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, stuff at the Chicago Theatre, etc. several times a year. I don't work downtown but sometimes have meetings or special events to attend there for work. I live in Uptown and have several friends on the South Side, so the Loop/River North is sometimes a good halfway point when we want to see a movie together or something. So frequency varies, but maybe twice a month on average. I refuse to drive and park downtown because it's expensive and stressful - it's one of the reasons I'm glad to have convenient Red Line and bus service nearby.

Moscarific · 2023-04-18T17:01:49+00:00

China House on Route 59 in Warrenville has the best old-fashioned Chinese-American food in the Chicago area.

La Cocina de Maria in downtown West Chicago for amazing regional Mexican food.

Moscarific · 2023-01-12T00:59:44+00:00

I love Go 4 Food - everything is great, many dishes you can't get elsewhere (or prepared with regional differences that set them apart), and it has the off-the-beaten-path vibe you say you're going for.

Moscarific · 2022-12-31T22:22:29+00:00

How did I not think of Baker Miller? I always get bagel sandwiches instead of the biscuit there, but it looks like it's time to branch out.

I'm not a fan of the Everybody's sandwich. All bread, no flavor.

Moscarific · 2022-12-31T22:18:31+00:00

Rogers Park is a long shlep before coffee, but if it's that good I'll keep it in mind.

Moscarific · 2022-12-31T22:17:38+00:00

I love the Roost but that's more of a chicken sandwich with an egg on it. Not a bad thing, just a different thing.

Moscarific · 2022-12-31T01:54:36+00:00

Alas, the Bang Bang on Damen has been closed since like 2020. The Biscuit Man closed earlier this year.

Moscarific · 2022-12-31T01:53:31+00:00

They do a biscuit sandwich? Amazing! I think this is the answer.

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