Somewhere for lunch - destination Hyde Park

Going to Museum of Science and INdustry Weds...plan on getting there early afternoon, so want somewhere down there maybe 11 am for late breakfast/early lunch. Am relatively open to ideas of type of food, not too expensive or fancy as we dont want to take a long time or be dressed up. Will be doing Big Jones for dinner around 5.

First thought was swing by Hot Dougs on the way down the highway, or somewhere in Chinatown (soup dumplings?)...

If you want soup dumplings, you can go to Ed's Potsticker House at Halsted & 31st.

Some campus-centered options in Hyde Park itself for cross-reference:
http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=37599

Valois, Rajun Cajun, Chant, The Nile, and Cafe Corea (Seoul Corea) have some interesting history in the area (the first two cafeteria style and the latter three sit-down). Recent opening A10 is not live for lunch at this point; Promontory and Yusho 2.0 are still not running, Bergstein's Deli Hyde Park location also not ready.

On the way south, Pleasant House and Zaytune are worth a slight detour and do lunch well. In Chinatown, you might consider Ahjoomah's Apron or Lao Hunan. Will come back to add links later (probably).

Medici on 57th is worth a look too.

I've lived and worked in Hyde Park for years.

I support all of Santander's suggestions. I used to love going to Rajun Cajun and getting fried chicken with Indian side dishes. However, sadly, the last time I ordered the fried chicken (about 2 weeks ago), it was greasy. The collard greens were terrible-overly sweet and just had a really weird taste, and the mac and cheese taste like it came out of a box.

If you're in the mood for Thai, there is also Snail, Thai 55, and Siam, all on east end of 55th street. The owners of Snail are super sweet and food is good. If you love deep fried chicken pieces in a sweet and spicy sauce, Bangkok chicken at Thai 55 is nicely done. Siam is where I experienced my first Thai good so I have a sweet spot for it. If memory serves me correctly, their Green Curry and Tom Yum are well done; as is the deep fried catfish in red curry.

If you want cheap Mexican, there's Maravillas on 55th and Lake Park. I haven't been to that location so i can't vouch for service. In terms of quality, I used to go to it when it was located on 53rd street several years ago. Hopefully, quality is the same.

For cheap Greek diner food, there's Salonicas on 57th street.

I've also heard good things about Z&H Cafe on 57th street: http://zhmarketcafe.com/

A10, the brand new restaurant in Hyde Park from Matthias Merges of Yusho, is open for lunch.

EDIT: No it's not, not yet; thanks for the note Santander and correction Rene G. Their website says it's open and that's what threw me. My bad.

A10
1462 E. 53rd St. (at Harper Ave.)
(773) 288-1010
a10hydepark.com

I think we'll go with Medici- mostly because of the varied menu and that it is open all day. If we get there before 11am it will be open, as opposed to most of the other choices. Eds Potsticker doesnt open til 1130, so thats a bummer.

Have penciled in Big Jones for dinner- tho we are actually ending up around Lawrence/Lincoln that evening. I looked around that area and there are so many choices, got over whelmed and picked Big Jones tho it is farther north.

Z&H was tasty the last time I was there, and fun to walk around too.

Santander wrote:Recent opening A10 is not live for lunch at this point;

nsxtasy wrote:A10, the brand new restaurant in Hyde Park from Matthias Merges of Yusho, is open for lunch.

As Santander mentioned, A10 is not yet open for lunch (even though their website prematurely lists lunch hours). They’re aiming for early December.

aviva5675 wrote:I think we'll go with Medici- mostly because of the varied menu and that it is open all day. If we get there before 11am it will be open, as opposed to most of the other choices.

Probably a good choice. Even though I haven’t been in ages, I like Medici in the mid-morning hours. Squeeze-your-own OJ and espresso eggs are longtime Medici breakfast favorites. Consider stopping at their bakery next door for a loaf of bread to take home. The Wednesday special of rye has never been a favorite of mine (and the bagels have never been quite right) but there will still be many excellent varieties to choose from.

Thirding or fourthing Medici. It may be kind of "middle of the road" and it may never be anyone's idea of most memorable meal ever, but we've never been disappointed and always been pleased, and for a lunch that is basically part of a plan instead of the focus of the plan, it's ideal.

Additionally, there's an intangible vibe to the place that supports a good mood.

We did go to Medici. Got there at about 4 minutes to 11, so just missed breakfast. Had a burger and fries, very good...husb had a turkey sandwich of some kind which he really liked. The star was the pumpkin shake, though. very yummy and thick. Went mistakenly first into the bakery part- wow, good thing we were not focused on that, it smelled and looked delicious. I did throw it out there as we were leaving, how bout us taking something home? He nixed it, which was good, as it would be hard to have so much wonderful breads in the house. I very much enjoyed the vibe of the place. You could see the beats of yore lingering in that spot.

Also did go to Big Jones for dinner. We were there when it opened, so it was empty. I had the duck 2 ways, enjoyed it alot, husb had shrimp and grits. We almost filled up on the corn fritters to start. They were great, would have taken more home. Would make a good breakfast item. Had the pots du creme for dessert, thick and chocolatey. Would return for sure.

Thanks for the suggestions.

And thanks for the report! Good data on both counts.