Midway to Union Station

I'm picking up out-of-town family this Sunday 1:30 at Midway and will need to deposit them at Union Station for a 5:00 (?) train. This is both too much and too little time for me to decide what to do with them!

I'm sure they'll be hungry. Probably wouldn't pass up an adult libation. Money IS an object and little Ramonita will likely be in tow.

My first thought was Manny's, but they are closed on Sundays. But I see that Manny's has a location IN Midway Airport. Is it as good .. or even good? Can I get in there without a boarding pass?

They would love Maxwell Street, but wouldn't it be too late? A Jim's/Express faceoff is probably too low rent, but I will arrange if time becomes tight.

Maybe homey Polish or German or Italian or Mexican? I'm really at a loss here. We need to hang a wee bit further south than my accustomed wheelhouse. Thank you.

-ramon

Well, Pilsen is the most obvious suggestion to me. Family friendly, cheap, tasty. Nuevo Leon, Taqueria Tayahua, or a number of others in the area would be good. TT has a liquor license but Nuevo Leon doesn't, so you'd want to BYO or go dry.

I'm not sure of the hours at Steve's Shish Kabob, so I dunno if they're open sunday afternoon, but it might also work.

There's always Bobak's or Szala's, also.

Don't know if it's any good, but I do know you will need a boarding pass to get to the Manny's at Midway...

Ramon wrote:I'm picking up out-of-town family this Sunday 1:30 at Midway and will need to deposit them at Union Station for a 5:00 (?) train. This is both too much and too little time for me to decide what to do with them!

I'm sure they'll be hungry. Probably wouldn't pass up an adult libation. Money IS an object and little Ramonita will likely be in tow.

My first thought was Manny's, but they are closed on Sundays. But I see that Manny's has a location IN Midway Airport. Is it as good .. or even good? Can I get in there without a boarding pass?

They would love Maxwell Street, but wouldn't it be too late? A Jim's/Express faceoff is probably too low rent, but I will arrange if time becomes tight.

Maybe homey Polish or German or Italian or Mexican? I'm really at a loss here. We need to hang a wee bit further south than my accustomed wheelhouse. Thank you.

-ramon

Chuck's Southern Comforts Cafe is only about a mile or two up the road from Midway, at 5557 W. 79th Street in Burbank. Nice, homey southern food, one of the few places on the Southwest Side that I enjoy dining at. Definitely worth a visit.

For homey Polish food, there's Bobak's on 5275 S. Archer (Archer East of Cicero), it's almost literally a stone throw's away from Midway and has excellent Polish all-you-can-eat food at dirt cheap prices. I'm not a buffet kinda guy normally, but this place rocks.

For Mexican, there's a couple places I really enjoy. One is the mariscos (seafood) place on about 54th and Pulaski, on the east side of the street across from the Jewel. I have no idea what its name is, but it has quite a good reputation in this part of town, and I vouch for it. If you do go there, make sure to have the camarones rancheros.

The other is more fast-foody, but have the best tacos I've had so far in Chicago: Zacatacos on 5925 S. Pulaski.

Isn't Chuck's still closed? Good suggestion, but make sure to call first.

gleam wrote:Isn't Chuck's still closed? Good suggestion, but make sure to call first.

Lamentably, yes. They were shooting for a late Nov. opening, but now it says "Christmastime". Once Chuck's re-opens, I plan on returning right away.

gleam wrote:Isn't Chuck's still closed? Good suggestion, but make sure to call first.

Whoops. I apologize. I thought they had reopened.

Once again - Greektown should be considered. Wide array of menu options for different palates, adult libations available, gets you very close to Union Station so you can dawdle up till close to the train time (it can be such a crap shoot on the expressway). Prices can be kept quite reasonable (combo plates are great deals, the one at Costa's is a staggering amount of good food) and children are welcome at pretty much all of the Greektown places.

You might also consider Ed's Potsticker House for something different, with parking nearby.

pd

Thanks to all for your suggestions. I left this morning with a sheaf of notes and maps.

We ended up at Bobak's, and while I didn't find it worthy of pulling out the camera, it was just what the doctor ordered. Lots of plentiful and tasty food. I was happy that we were not pressured to quickly abandon the table. You all helped make this brief family engagement memorable.

-ramon