Cheap Eats on the Mag Mile

Mellonhubby and I had an unfortunate encounter with a burst water pipe last week. The insurance company put us up on the Mag Mile for the next 3 weeks while our condo is cleaned up and repaired.

We're looking for cheap eats - breakfast, lunch and dinner suggestions. We know of a few places that are that are great (cafe spiagia, china town offerings, fox and obel, etc...) - but we're going to be in the area for the next three weeks and I'm specifically looking for cheap and satisfying. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

thx,
mel

"Cheap eats" and "mag mile" are not normally used in the same sentence. Good luck. I'll be interested in seeing what our compatriots recommend for this one.

I'm a big fan of CND Gyros. You can find a description of it and some other places that might meet your criteria in the thread linked below.
http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=17294&highlight=gleacher

I'd take advantage of the opportunity to grab a few Billy Goat burgers, on lower Michigan. They're not exactly Kuma's, but those thin, greasy double cheeses (loaded with onion and pickles) have a charm all their own.

I'll second the Billy Goat on lower michigan. We were there yesterday.

They serve breakfast too besides cheeseburgers. Good coffee.

I enjoy that it's an affordable alternative to high price offerings up top on Michigan Ave., and I like the ambiance.

hmm...cheap and mag mile are not words that often go together. And of course...one man's cheap is another man's "too expensive!" It's all in one's perspective (for instance, Cafe Spiaggia may not be as expensive as Spiaggia but I would never think of it as a budget place)

Soupbox is up on Chicago Avenue near Michigan. Really good selection of soups -- might make yourself a nice lunch or a quick dinner.

Tempo Diner has pretty decent diner food -- good breakfasts, especially.
There's also a Pizano's Pizza up on State near Chicago -- that's a bit west of Michigan but definitely walkable. Great pizza, good pastas, very casual and fun. Not outrageously expensive but not dirt cheap.

There's a Whole Foods between Superior and Huron -- you could take out from their deli or just get cheeses and fruit some night. Definitely not cheap but certainly good eats. And less expensive than going to Roy's which is just around the corner from it. Although Roy's is awfully tasty.

There's a joint over by Loyola that I used to go to for lunch -- Flapjaws. It's not exactly the best burger in town but it's pretty good for what it is. A decent burger joint with good fries.

I believe that they've also opened up a Pompeii Bakery on Ohio, east of Michigan. It would be a good place for lunch.

Further north, gold coast wise there's the Ashkenazi Deli -- I haven't been there in years but they used to have pretty darn good food.

Maybe I'm off the mark here but I'm thinking of cheap and decent...Cheap and spectacular -- that's a much harder thing to do in that neighborhood, if not impossible.

Sucks about your pipes! But at least you're staying in a nice part of town!


Soupbox
50 E. Chicago Ave.
312-951-5900

Tempo Cafe
6 E. Chestnut St.
312-943-4373

Pizano's Pizza & Pasta
864 N. State St.
312-751-1766

Whole Foods
30 W. Huron Street
312-932-9600

Flapjaws Cafe
840 N. Wabash Ave.
312-255-1122

Pompeii PIzza
212 East Ohio
312-482-9900

Ashkenaz Deli
12 E. Cedar St.
312-944-5006

West Egg Cafe on Ontario/Fairbanks is pretty reliable as far as breakfast/lunch go.

If we're talking burgers, I still think Boston Blackie's (164 E. Grand) provides extremely good bang-for-your-buck in the immediate vicinity.

I'd recommend the Szechwan House if you needed a passable Chinese fix without heading to Chinatown but I heard they've now closed their doors

earthlydesire wrote:There's also a Pizano's Pizza up on State near Chicago -- that's a bit west of Michigan but definitely walkable. Great pizza, good pastas, very casual and fun. Not outrageously expensive but not dirt cheap.

Yup. Also Giordano's on Rush for double-crust "stuffed" pizza, and Gino's East on Superior and the original Uno's and Due as other good places for single-crust "pan" pizza.

A few more options...

- Heaven on Seven on Rush Street, for Cajun food.
- Sayat Nova for Armenian.
- Rockit's for burgers and other American food (although if you're just getting burgers, I agree with the previous poster that Boston Blackie's is a great choice)

There's also a Treasure Island at:

680 N Lake Shore Dr Ste 1
Chicago, IL 60611-4546
Phone: (312) 664-6590

if you need groceries and want to avoid the exoense of F&O.

foodlife, an extended food court in the Water Tower shopping complex at 800 N. Michigan would fit the bill as would Sammie's on the Water Tower building.

wow bao, also at Water Tower is a fast, inexpensive option. There's a little italian cafe in the plaza of the John Hancock building, L'Appetito, which is good for panini, coffee & pastries or gelato etc etc.

There's a Trader Joe at Ontario & Rush & Whole Foods on Superior between Dearborn & Clark IIRC. The Whole Foods has a pretty decent hot food buffet for carry out & a salad bar, which are reasonable options if you're not in the mood for a restaurant meal.

Also Chalfins' Deli at 200 East Chestnut - its been years since I've eaten there, but it used to be a great breakfast option.

Silver Spoon is a decent quality thai restaurant with pretty average prices despite the address. It's run by the owners of Spoon, but there is no "secret menu." I would never send anyone there explicitly for the food, but given your parameters, it's worth having on the list.

Given your situation, you might want more comfortable dining environs, but the Wow Bao on the first level of Water Tower Place is worth noting on this thread as being a place where you can get a decent snack for not too much money.

I had a heck of a polish once at Downtown Dogs. Again, not the supreme destination for food of its type, and I was only there the once, but it was very satisfying.

Silver Spoon
710 N Rush Street
Chicago, IL
312-944-7100

Wow Bao
845 N Michigan Ave
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 642-5888

Downtown Dogs
804 N Rush St
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 951-5141

Athena wrote:Also Chalfins' Deli at 200 East Chestnut - its been years since I've eaten there, but it used to be a great breakfast option.

Unfortunately, Chalfin's is no more. They were a nice little deli alternative to the expensive Michigan Ave. places. Their soup and deli sandwiches were quite good. There is another restaurant/coffee shop in that space at the Seneca Hotel, but I haven't eaten there.

Don't forget the Original Pancake House (mentioned in the GNR/breakfast thread). It's very busy Sunday mornings/early afternoon, but is probably much less crowded on a weekday, I would guess.

Good luck with your condo renovation!

Original Pancake House
22 E Bellevue
Chicago, IL 60611
312-642-7917

I'll third Wow Bao -- the 2 buns + broth combo is a light yet satisfying lunch, especially on a cold day. The new edamame buns are quite nice, and the ginger ale is for real.

Don't forget board favorite Hannah's Bretzel (two locations).

Coco Pazzo Cafe on St. Clair
636 N. St. Clair
http://www.cocopazzocafe.com/
Good casual Italian. Same mgt as Coco Pazzo's main restaurant in River North.

Ginza Tokyo Fish Market (Sushi, Japanese specialties)
19 E. Ohio
Looks like a total dive from the outside, but they serve very good sushi and have some nice inexpensive lunch specials.

Quartinos
626 N. State
http://www.quartinochicago.com/
Small plate Italian. Very broad selection.

Star of Siam Thai
11 E Illinois
http://www.starofsiamchicago.com/
Standard Thai, but reasonably priced and near the Mag Mile.

The food court in the Nordstrom building has some great choices for mexican, italian (Tuscany), and some decent Japaneses, along with Potbelly's and some others I can't remember off the top of my head. There is an Einstein's on Walton. Not terribly expensive and a great place for happy hour is Bandera's, on Michigan. Dublin's used to have some good lunch and dinner specials (Maple and State). If you're going to be in that neighborhood, I also enjoy Bistro Zinc for a nice salad and a glass of wine, and cheap Mexican at Blue Agave, also on Maple.

Go Roma
848 N State St
Chicago, IL 60610

Good pasta and pizza. I'd call it high-end fast food.

Quang Noodle
804 N State St
Chicago, IL 60610

Standard little Chinese/Vietnamese place.

Both are pretty affordable.

wak wrote:Ginza Tokyo Fish Market (Sushi, Japanese specialties)
19 E. Ohio
Looks like a total dive from the outside, but they serve very good sushi and have some nice inexpensive lunch specials.

Second the rec for Ginza Fish. I enjoy hitting it up when I have a yen for some homey comfort food like nabeyaki udon/curry/katsu-dons.

Word of warning, whatever you do, avoid the Chinese place next to it (I think it's called Yu Shan?) like the plague! Blech!

Hmm...I often go through the mag mile on my way home from school and sometimes stop for meals. My favorite things to eat are the pizza slices at Whole Foods pizza station = 2.99. On Wednesdays you can get a whole pizza for $7. Also I like their chili (3.99/12 oz.) and a big hunk of cornbread ($1.50-$2.00). The prices of the salad and hot bar at Whole Foods is ridiculously expensive. I see people in line spending over $12 on a container of potatoes and salad, but there are enough reasonably priced meal options at WF though (esp. if you stay away from stuff priced by weight). I second L'Appetito as well, as it's cheap and tasty enough, imo. Also, Trader Joe's... You can also get groceries to lug back to the hotel if you can make meals there (oatmeal, bread, cheeses, spreads, fruits/veggies, drinks, snacks, etc.)

Will you have access to public transport? If you take the #66 bus west on Chicago, there are plenty of cheap good places to eat along the way.

I personally like the croissants at King Cafe at 900 N. but I'm a sucker for croissants with cheese inside, admittedly...

http://kingcafechicago.com/

The grilled chicken sandwich (#10 meal) is quite good at J's Dog and Burger on the corner of State and Pearson.

You must specify that you want french bread or else it comes on a hamburger bun.

It comes with the typical chicago hot-dog toppings (and mayo), which work surprisingly well with the thin, tender, mildly-marinated grilled chicken.

Enjoy.

Mr J's Restaurant
822 N State St
(between Chicago Ave & Pearson St)
Chicago, IL 60610
(312) 943-4679

^ Hmm... something tells me I'd hate that place.

I absolutely second that Mr. J's suggestion...that marinated and fire grilled chicken sandwich is fantastic. Especially with all those hot dog toppings (hot peppers, saur kraut, etc). And be sure to get a shake with it...they are the super thick kind. mmmm

Also at the Foodlife Food Court is a small grocery-type store. They sell soups and sandwiches, and there is a salad bar. They also have prepared meals, such as roasted chicken, etc. The Mity Nice Grill in the back of the Food Life court is a sit down restaurant with lots of "regulars" from the area.

The Drake has a cafe on the lower level. The only time we ate there, or tried to eat there, the service was horrendous and we finally got up and left after not even getting menus after 10 minutes. (They were not particularly busy.) But their clam chowder is really good. It is a bit pricey.

Over on Clark is Frankie Z's. They have bar type food, but a good Reuben as a lunch special on Tuesdays. I think it is $4.95.

Mr. J's (mentioned above) is really a love/hate place but if your feeling like "grease food" the chicken sandwich is actually quite good 9 times out of 10. Everything else at this dump is total garbage (avoid the similar place across the street at all costs, its really bad) and the fools behind the counter can be downright annoying when they are speaking in Spanish laughing at you about something, I found the best way to deal with them, much like the ladies at wiener circle is to just fire back at them.

I recently had lunch at the new Prentice Hospital cafeteria and it was satisfying and cheap. Fettucine bolognese and foccacia bread with a soda for less than $7. Other options looked appetizing, as well. The dining area is very pleasant, too, if a bit plain.

The cafeteria is on the 2nd floor, looks like they also have a small tea shop on the 1st floor:

http://prentice.nmh.org/nmh/prentice/ab ... nities.htm

earthlydesire wrote:There's a joint over by Loyola that I used to go to for lunch -- Flapjaws. It's not exactly the best burger in town but it's pretty good for what it is. A decent burger joint with good fries.

Flapjaws Cafe
840 N. Wabash Ave.
312-255-1122

I used to live around the corner from the old underground Flapjaws that was on Wabash, and then we lived across the street from the next Flapjaws that was on Pearson St., just west of Wabash, when Bobby Lissanti and his ex-wife Josie ran the place (we didn't move, Flapjaws did, repeatedly). But the new place that bears the name just doesn't have the same energy or great food at low prices. The new place on Wabash tries too hard to be "upscale" bar food, at least as far as prices go. Food's not bad, but it's no longer the best burger for the buck like it was for the twenty years prior to its new iteration. I sure miss the old Flapjaws. We were generally there for lunch at least 2-3 times a week on Pearson St.

Puppy wrote:Second the rec for Ginza Fish. I enjoy hitting it up when I have a yen for some homey comfort food like nabeyaki udon/curry/katsu-dons.

Word of warning, whatever you do, avoid the Chinese place next to it (I think it's called Yu Shan?) like the plague! Blech!

Tried Yu Shan today, and while I wouldn't go quite so far as to liken it to the plague, it wasn't particularly good. Mapo tofu had pretty decent sauce, but the slices of pork in it were full of gristle and fat without a hint of flavor.

Mapo Tofu at Yu Shan:



65 Chinese, on Michigan Ave just south of Wacker, will continue to be my go-to in this area.

I'll support what "Athena" said. Wow Bao is quick, inexpensive, and pretty tasty.

Is the Fluky's on Mich. Ave. still open? It wasn't the same as the one my grandparents took me to on the north side, but when I worked nearby, I made frequent stops. It was in one of the malls around there, 500 block, west side of the street. Also had a Lego store. Now that I think about it, all I ever wanted as a kid was Fluky's and Legos. Kinda all I want now, too. That's my kind of mall.