Tastiest streets

The magazine called Good published an article in their current issue called "America's Tastiest Streets." It's got some cute graphics, but is hardly an in-depth piece of editorial journalism. (Sorry, the article is not yet online).

Their Chicago entry is Broadway, clocking in at #4 behind Roosevelt Av (Queens), Travis St (Houston), and Fremont Ave N (Seattle). The specific places they mention on Broadway are Ethiopian Diamond, The Green Mill, La Fonda, Silver Seafood, and Thai Pastry. I like all of these establishments, but it seems odd that they excluded what is probably the board consensus favorite Vietnamese restaurant, Tank Noodle. And not so odd, because it is so much less known than ED, is the exclusion of my personal favorite for Ethiopian, Sheba Cafe.

I know there are great detailed threads about specific streets (47th, Clark, Lawrence, Devon) and favorite square blocks, but I couldn't find a tastiest street thread. It's ultimately an exercise in arbitrariness, I guess, but could spark some fun conversation.

Among GNRs, a few streets have multiple entries (counting 1/2 if located on a corner): Western (5.5), Roosevelt (4), Cermak (4), California (3), Kedzie (3), Clark (3), 18th (3), Devon (2.5), and two apiece for Taylor, North, Belmont, River, Fullerton, Halsted, Archer, Irving Park, Milwaukee, Sheridan, and Pulaski (1.5). The number of poll options is limited by the software, so some notable streets have been excluded. I went by number of GNRs to help decide (hence the exclusion of 47th and Lawrence). I included Broadway because the article was what inspired this post.

PS--I voted for Kedzie

Though I live just a block from Broadway and think very highly of it, I am astonished not to see an entry for Lawrence or even Milwaukee. Ya wanna talk diversity, well...golly! (I know, I know: ya can't be listin' every street in Chicago. )

Believe me, I love both Lawrence and Milwaukee. I had them both on the list, among others, but as I said above, the software limited the number of choices. I was surprised that there were no GNRs located on Lawrence.

Another funny quirk which tells volumes about why I love LTH--only one GNR is located on Michigan Avenue and it's Old Fashioned Donuts.

Marie's Pizza isn't a GNR?

Marie's Pizza and Liquors
4127 W Lawrence Ave
Chicago

LynnB wrote:Marie's Pizza isn't a GNA?

Aw heck, it ain't even a GNR!

My bad - edited for typo.

No, no; I liked it! Really. I was trying to think of an appropriate explanation for a GNA. Now it's gone forever.

LynnB wrote:Marie's Pizza isn't a GNR?

Marie's Pizza and Liquors
4127 W Lawrence Ave
Chicago

Don't forget, nominations open up in the fall. Marie's has been on my list as a place to nominate since the first round of GNRs. Somehow, I have not gotten around to it yet.

ARGYLE!!!!!

I cast my vote for Grand Ave. Maybe it's the hometown bias, but with Coalfire, Bari, D'Amato's, Twisted Spoke and Salerno's all within a 3 block radius I think it would be tough to beat. When you add on Jimmy's Red Hots, you have verifiable powerhouse street. I'm sure there are some restaurants east of the river that I'm forgetting, but just from this list I think it would make a worthy contender.

Randolph....

Okay, so what is a GNR? I see it all over on here but don't know what it means.

Liz in Norwood Park wrote:Okay, so what is a GNR? I see it all over on here but don't know what it means.

GNR = Great Neighborhood Restaurant

Click on this link to read about all the GNRs.

Liz in Norwood Park wrote:Okay, so what is a GNR? I see it all over on here but don't know what it means.

There is no such thing as a dumb question...especially one so much fun to answer, because you'll be one more person introduced to the beauty that is LTHForum's Great Neighborhood Restaurants.

Somewhat biased, but I vote for 18th St...especially if you can annex Chinatown (Lao Sze Chuan and LTH) as part of the general geographic tastiness. Cheating, I know.

I voted for Western Ave.

Honey 1 & SSGS are some of my favorites.

I have to vote for Devon since I live just over a block away from it. My family eats and shops there all the time. Hashalom is our place to go when I'm too tired to cook or we just crave a bowl of their great homemade soup; it's inexpensive and comfortable. Khan's is well celebrated on this forum and needs no further praise from me. The Argo Georgian Bakery, Tel Aviv Kosher bakery (great rye bread), and Levinson's are all excellent, and how many streets have three bakeries within a few blocks? When the wind is from the south, my kids like to say that they can "smell Devon," and what a spicy, luscious smell it is. How good do your nominated streets smell?

Clark Street should get special mention because of its variety. Few streets can match it for presenting a multi-ethnic tasting tour.

I started to create a list of cuisines/restaurants/markets by sections -- Howard to Devon, Devon to Lawrence, Lawrence to Belmont, Belmont to North Avenue, North Avenue to Roosevelt Road -- and had to quit. There are too many tastes to tally.

Just let your mind drift south along this route and conjure up all of the topics and threads that you have read about places and tastes on Clark Street. So many ethnic neighborhoods. So many good restaurants. So many markets with "destination treats".

If the vote is for the "Tastiest" street in Chicago, it's tough to argue against Clark Street.