Best options around the baseball stadiums?

I know this is way too broad of a question, but here goes. I'll be in town for a few days, mostly centered around the baseball games on Monday and Tuesday. One game in each park, three people in my group.

Given that there are probably hundreds of places to eat within walking distance, can you guys recommend a few standouts for great Chicago food? Tex/Mex, pizza, thai, whatever. I'm thinking anything from hole-in-the-wall to $30-$40 a person.

I've been skimming the board to try and make a short list, but any tips are much appreciated. Thanks.

I'm an advocate of Chinatown before or after sox games (one stop north on the redline). Many options there, you could search or just go to the site's namesake, Little Three Happiness.

There is also a great hot dog stand that pumps out some of the better beef/hot dog stand french fries in the city - 35th Street Red Hots, just west of the ballpark.

Further down, you get to Halsted, where there are a bunch of old school places in Bridgeport. One is Healthy Food Lithuanian ( 3236 S. Halsted Street ) - you can do a search on Healthy Food here, there are some posts. The Ramova Grill is on Halsted as well. Schaller's Pump has been around since 1881, and is a great place to soak in the bridgeport/white sox vibe. 3714 S. Halsted St.

jerobi-

Welcome to LTHForum! You might try a search -- there has been discussion of ballpark-area dining options. Near Wrigley, you will find TAC Quick, a Great Neighborhood Restaurant, which would be a great spot. Keep in mind that TAC is closed on Tuesdays.

Enjoy!

-The GP

Since both Wrigley and U. S. Cellular are designated as "fields," I have to assume the only baseball stadium in Chicago that you could possibly be asking about is Thillens Stadium.

Just go a mile or so east on Devon and you'll find all sorts of Indian, Pakistani, and Russian/Jewish places to eat.

Yes, I know I can be a jerk at times.

You can get our delicious Chicago deep-dish pizza near Wrigley. My favorite is Giordano's for their double-crust "stuffed" pizza. Their location at 1040 W. Belmont is a half mile south of the ballpark.

If your going to a day game at Wrigley field and going out the night before then Hamburger King on clark is the spot to eat at before the game. Although its called the hamburger king, their specialty is Korean home cooking, try the bi bim bop or the aktagawa and a side of rice with gravy is a must. After the game there isnt much good food/drink spots, many drinking establishments but the food is eh. Yak-zie's has really good wings and is the best of the drinking/eating if your going to have the wings, never had anything else.

Comiskey doesnt have many places within walking distance but Freddie's pizza & beef on 31st, has the biggest beef sandwich in the city and wouldn't be a bad sampling of a IB, its large to enough to split and have something else. Also, Southside shrimp house seems to have closed down, every time I drive by it isnt open, if by chance it is, try their perfectly breaded fried shrimp. If your going to a day game at the cell, ramova grill is a great spot, they have good chili. Also connies pizza is a short cab ride from the stadium. Sorry im too lazy too search for all the address' but you should find them by googling the locations names

Places I go, I used to have season tickets for the Sox, and have been to over 100 games @ the Cell.

Morrie Omalley's
3501 S. Union - 35th @ Union

one of my favorite stops, to get a chargrilled Chicago style dog before the game

Catchers Bar
901 W. 35th Street

a local shot and a beer place full of Sox fans after the games. Good place for some cheap beer, and drinks to celebrate a White Sox winner, I watched game 4 of the World Series here and had a blast.

Schallers Pump
3714 S. Halsted

another good local spot, offering good bar food, and drinks.

As others have mentioned Chinatown is close, and we end up there alot after night games since alot of the restaurants are open late.

I cant help you with the Wrigleyville area since I dont go to that part of town.

Enjoy your visit to the S.Side.

I always enjoy getting a bag of deep fried shrimp or lobster from South side shrimp when my baseball watching takes me to Comiskey Park. Always crispy, hot and well seasoned. They're much preferred to popcorn. The shrimp here are much more lightly breaded than say, Goose Island's shrimp.

Southside Shrimp House
335 W. 31st St.
Chicago, IL 60616
312-567-0000

If I'm in the mood to sit down, Ed's Potsticker House is hard to beat for its excellent northern Chinese.

Ed's Potsticker House
3139 S. Halsted

http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=712

Hot Doug's is two miles west and a block south of Wrigley on California. Cab it there from wherever you're staying and then walk to Wrigley if it's a nice day. It's a good hike, but after filling up on a couple of Doug's specialties I always need it. Otherwise you can walk a block north to Addison, get on a bus, and just take that all the way to Wrigley.

This is great stuff! Thank you guys! Keep it coming - I'm going to print this whole thread on Saturday morning and take it with me.

nr706 wrote:Since both Wrigley and U. S. Cellular are designated as "fields," I have to assume the only baseball stadium in Chicago that you could possibly be asking about is Thillens Stadium.

Don't forget about Elfstrom Stadium in Geneva (home of the Cougars). A lot to choose from in downtown Geneva, and fireworks after the game.

Seriously, though, I don't get to too many Sox games, but there is a lot around Wrigley Field and in Lakeview...It depends what you're looking for. Get an early start at Murphy's or Bernie's.

Yes, I know I can be a jerk at times.

Baseball stadia, people.

I can be a bigger one.

Ahem. Taqueria San Jose, just down the street from Ed's, is another good choice on the South Side. 3253 S. Halsted. Fresh banana shake, tacos al pastor, queso fundido con chorizo.

Up norf, I agree with Hot Doug's. Dare I say Terragusto if you're seeking something upscale, delicious, and intelligence-insulting? More sanguinely, TAC Quick, a GNR, for wonderful Thai under the El at 3930 N. Sheridan.

There is a branch of Tuscany across the street from Wrigley on Clark. Although not quite up to the Taylor Street original, it's better than average Northern Italian. I used to live two blocks from the ballpark and Tuscany was in our regular rotation. Reservations for game day are highly recommended.

Tuscany
3700 N Clark St
Chicago, IL 60613
(773) 404-7700

Thanks again, everyone! I'm heading out in a few minutes, printout in hand.

IN WRIGLEYVILLE:
Don't overlook The Diner Grill on Irving Park, Tuscany, Higgins Tavern at Racine/School with better than average bar food, plus Uncommon Ground for coffee, or Mexican food at El Tapatio (Ashland and Roscoe).

I'm back from my Chicago trip and I had a great time. Both baseball fields are great with the atmosphere and loyal fans. The Red L construction going south threw us for a loop the first day but I quickly started factoring that in to travel plans. You guys have a great rail system, great food, and great people. I actually remarked on several occasions just how nice random strangers treated us.

I'm glad I hit this forum for food options. I didn't get to everything, but I did hit Mr. Beef, Gino's, Hot Dougs, Honey 1 BBQ, Ed's Potstickers, Taqueria San Jose, TAC Quick, and a few other spots. All of them were worth the trip. I'd also recommend the (mexican?) bakery right before Taqueria San Jose - I got four massive cookies from their 40+ item selection and a free slice of delicious pineapple cake for three bucks, all from one of the nicest guys we dealt with all trip.

Thanks again for all the excellent recommendations! I only wish I had time to hit more of the spots on my list. I didn't have time to hit Chinatown and I couldn't find Catcher's or Shaller's after the game let out. I'll have to come back soon for all the rest!

Just out of curiosity, where were you coming from?

thanks for the report back, you hit some good spots(Honey 1, Tac Quick, & Ed's stick out to me).

Glad you enjoyed the games and our city.

All of them were worth the trip. I'd also recommend the (mexican?) bakery right before Taqueria San Jose - I got four massive cookies from their 40+ item selection and a free slice of delicious pineapple cake for three bucks, all from one of the nicest guys we dealt with all trip

.

Thanks for the report, jerobi! That has been my experience as well, at both TSJ and "Panaderia," from which San Jose gets their bolillos for the fantastic milanesa and al pastor tortas.

The big sign on that bakery simply says "Panaderia Bakery Fresh Bread." The address is either 3249 or 3251 S. Halsted, and directories online call it either "La Baguette" or "Cardinale," neither of which seem to be the current incarnation. But it's been a Mexican bakery for years. Antonius or other friends more familiar with Bridgeport will hopefully correct me.

Santander wrote:Thanks for the report, jerobi! That has been my experience as well, at both TSJ and "Panaderia," from which San Jose gets their bolillos for the fantastic milanesa and al pastor tortas.

The big sign on that bakery simply says "Panaderia Bakery Fresh Bread." The address is either 3249 or 3251 S. Halsted, and directories online call it either "La Baguette" or "Cardinale," neither of which seem to be the current incarnation. But it's been a Mexican bakery for years. Antonius or other friends more familiar with Bridgeport will hopefully correct me.

No problem! I always like hearing back from people after they ask for advice so I figured I would post with my results. I remembered your advice on TSJ and its banana shake - the al pastor taco (only had room for one after Ed's up the block) and the shake were both excellent.

My wife actually stopped in the italian bakery up the street for a cookie to bring to the game. I don't know why I decided to check out Panaderia right after we had come out of another bakery, but as usual my curiosity paid off. I also enjoyed using the tongs to fill up a pizza tray with my cookies. The total came to $3.26 and the guy handed me $17 even back in change. He tried to refuse my extra buck several times until I told him to give me another slice of the (free) pineapple cake and call it even.

Now I'm searching online for a mexican bakery nearby. Anyone living near that two-block section of Halsted sure has some great food in a small radius!

nr706 wrote:Just out of curiosity, where were you coming from?

NJ. And yes, we are fans of a certain NY baseball team that everyone hates. I enjoyed the mostly good-natured ribbing and the palpable Cubs/Sox rivalry depending on what side of town you were in.

jerobi wrote:

nr706 wrote:Just out of curiosity, where were you coming from?

NJ. And yes, we are fans of a certain NY baseball team that everyone hates. I enjoyed the mostly good-natured ribbing and the palpable Cubs/Sox rivalry depending on what side of town you were in.

not everyone hates the Yanks. Gotta respect 26 World Series Titles.

jerobi-

Thanks for reporting back. This is a great food and baseball town. I appreciate your sense of adventure in trying so many different places.

jerobi, great report and excellent choices on your food stops.

We were at Comiskey (or whatever it's called now) last night. Yes, cheering for the Yankees -- and there were plenty of other Yankee caps and Jeter jerseys all around us.

By the way, what happened to the quality of the food there? The brats Antonius and I had were Wrigley-level bad... We drove home past an open Taqueria San Jose and might have stopped for a second, better, supper if we hadn't had a deeply asleep little boy in the back seat.

Santander wrote:The big sign on that bakery simply says "Panaderia Bakery Fresh Bread."

jerobi wrote:I don't know why I decided to check out Panaderia right after we had come out of another bakery, but as usual my curiosity paid off.

"Panaderia" is not the name of the place; it's the Spanish-language word for bakery.

We know that, nsx, but check out Google Street View or a drive by the place. The main sign just says exactly what I typed above, hence my quotes, and hopes for correction from someone who has actually asked the owners, or seen a smaller sign on the door with a business name. As I mentioned, directories online give older names for the business that don't seem to match with the current iteration.

Amata wrote:jerobi, great report and excellent choices on your food stops.

We were at Comiskey (or whatever it's called now) last night. Yes, cheering for the Yankees -- and there were plenty of other Yankee caps and Jeter jerseys all around us.

By the way, what happened to the quality of the food there? The brats Antonius and I had were Wrigley-level bad... We drove home past an open Taqueria San Jose and might have stopped for a second, better, supper if we hadn't had a deeply asleep little boy in the back seat.

No problem. And as someone that spent some time reading up about the parks last week, I can tell you that the same food service company runs both parks and has no competition or local food vendors inside. It was recommended that we eat outside and I'm glad we did. Although the inflated stadium beer price was no shock, I was surprised by the beer options: MGD or Miller Lite. Or some premixed margaritas and mai tais. That's it.

It's a good thing they still let you bring in outside food! I have my doubts about the new Yankee Stadium continuing that policy when it opens next season.

The GP wrote:jerobi-

Thanks for reporting back. This is a great food and baseball town. I appreciate your sense of adventure in trying so many different places.

We all found it kind of amusing that the bulk of our non-baseball time was spent traveling to various eateries. It was fun, plenty of walking, and well worth it.

Santander wrote:We know that, nsx, but check out Google Street View or a drive by the place. The main sign just says exactly what I typed above, hence my quotes, and hopes for correction from someone who has actually asked the owners, or seen a smaller sign on the door with a business name. As I mentioned, directories online give older names for the business that don't seem to match with the current iteration.

Ditto. I had checked out the Google Maps Street View too in hopes of helping with the name!

Santander wrote:We know that, nsx, but check out Google Street View or a drive by the place. The main sign just says exactly what I typed above, hence my quotes, and hopes for correction from someone who has actually asked the owners, or seen a smaller sign on the door with a business name. As I mentioned, directories online give older names for the business that don't seem to match with the current iteration.

I know that, Santander, from your previous post. However, jerobi's post made it sound like he thought Panaderia is the name of the place.