Food near Union Station

I recently got a new job near Union Station (Jackson and Wacker) and wanted some ideas about good places in the area. beef sammies, sushi, pizza, chicken, whatever! walking distance plz.

This thread's got some stuff about Abe's Deli and a couple of other places in it (though it's also about Uptown).

I think the place with the most character in that area-- the hardest thing to find-- is Bombacigno's, a genuine speakeasy-feeling deli joint with some very good Italian sandwiches and well-loved fried potato slices as the usual side. Spotty hours, sometimes surly service, go early as some things sell out, but one nice thing is that even when the downstairs is jammed there's upstairs seating that never is. (I think a lot of people have no idea it exists; the stairs are hidden by the front door.)

One secret of the Northwestern Station food court, which is otherwise as predictable as you might imagine, is that there's a little Japanese stand-- by which I mean there was one five years ago-- which is less greasy than the usual Chen's Express for Asian food. Mind you, the choices are pure 1965, I mean chicken teriyaki is about as out there as it gets, but at least it's sorta healthy.

Bombacigno's J & C Restaurant
558 W. Van Buren Ave.
312-663-4114

Here is another old thread that should help: what's around Wells and Van Buren.

ok, i once, or more, excoriated Rene G for "ruining" several places and things (1960s Old Mock bourbon at the Berhoff bar for one) by positing and, therefore, overpopulating some finds. I am in danger of doing the same here, but i will take the risk--i hope they will absorb the increased biz better than some places have and places near union and ogilvie do need some biz.

1> Bean Addiction is a coffee haven/restaurant that has the disadvantage of being hidden in Presidential Towers lobby. Serves verying types of excellent, fresh intelligensia coffee. Also, has fabulous pastries baked by a Frenchman, if i remember correctly (some sorry lth reporter i am, i'll get back to you on that). Also serve their own pizza and sandwich creations. Excellent hummus and pita. Great space! Hint of Japanese Garden with in-wall waterfall and edged with zen rocks. Jazz-type music. Comfortable couches. Much better than a slimy St^$@$ for a buisness group meeting. Am told when weather warms iced teas such as ginger-plum oolong will be available. Opens 6 am and closes 8 pm on weekdays. 8 to 3 on weekends.

2> Mexican food truck on so. east corner of monroe and canal. solid, good stuff like tacos and tortas CHEAP! Tortas come with lettuce and pico de gallo wrapped up and handed to you on the side so as to not soggy the sammich. Again bad reporting, they do have a name, but can't remember right now.

Unfortunately, harold's chicken is no more, but there is one on wells, just no. of madison.

also, J&C's Bambacigno is still on van buren, behind lou mitchell's, for those with 90 minutes for lunch.
BTW, HAHAHA, i just drank the last of the Old Mock last Friday- so pffftt!!
PS, i still have some Mao Tai left.

El Panzone wrote:2> Mexican food truck on so. east corner of monroe and canal. solid, good stuff like tacos and tortas CHEAP! Tortas come with lettuce and pico de gallo wrapped up and handed to you on the side so as to not soggy the sammich. Again bad reporting, they do have a name, but can't remember right now.

Sounds promising. What types of tacos and tortas do they offer?

Best,
Michael / EC

chicken and beef only. just solid stuff for biz people--no eyeballs, brains. maybe if you ask they will bring! the address on the truck, bad reporter, was in little village.

El Panzone wrote:Unfortunately, harold's chicken is no more, but there is one on wells, just no. of madison.

Actually, that particular Harold's has only moved. They are still open on Harrison just West of Canal near the new Post Office.

The taco truck is La Cabanita -- they have a menu and you are welcome to call in a special order the day before. The main restaurant is in Brookfield. They will hold it for you on the truck until you pick it up the next day. I plan to special order later this week and will report back.

Thanks, sdritz, you are correct! just had a tasty chicken torta for $4
family-owned, says their flyer

I am meeting a few friends for lunch who are coming into Union Station. Any ideas on where to eat?
I'm thinking of Soprafinas, Cafe Baci, Sears Tower?...

Any ideas?

One possibility, for a meal almost like home-cooked Italian:

Bombacigno's J & C Restaurant
558 W. Van Buren Ave.
312-663-4114

There's always Lou Mitchell's. They're famous for their breakfasts/omelets, but their lunch items are really good, too. I can highly recommend the burgers as well as any of the daily specials.

Lou Mitchell's
565 W Jackson Blvd
Chicago, IL 60661-5701
(312) 939-3111

If you've got a little time, go over to Greektown. Artopolis Bakery and Cafe is lovely. Or my personal favorite, Santorini. Also -- there's a place called Meli, which is like a really good Greek diner -- but pretty. I'd totally recommend any of those for a great lunch. They're all within a block of each other.

Meli Cafe
301 S. Halsted St.
Chicago, IL 60661
312-454-0748

Santorini
800 W. Adams St.
Chicago, IL 60607
312-829-8820

Artopolis Cafe & Bakery
306 S. Halsted St.
Chicago, IL 60661
312-559-9000

Thanks! They sound good. I'll mention these and see where my friends would like to go!

This is not such a great idea for you and friends, but when you need to grab a quick bite, there's a SoupBox in the Ogilvie station. Their Lobster Bisque is quite yummy.

Pie Lady wrote:This is not such a great idea for you and friends, but when you need to grab a quick bite, there's a SoupBox in the Ogilvie station. Their Lobster Bisque is quite yummy.

This is a good call. Also, if you're looking for the taste of lobster bisque but are in the market for something with a bit more texture, they will give you half lobster bisque/half clam chowder on request. I've had this mix a couple times in the past, it's pretty tasty. Their sourdough bread bowls are pretty decent too...they'll give it to you separately if you order your soup to-go, with the cut-out cap intact for dipping.

Blackies. Also Venice Cafe (in the Sear's Tower).

Takumi in Presidential Towers for a nice Japanese sit down place.
555 W. Madison

Presidential Towers also has My Thai, which is your standard "Ameri-Thai" sort of place. The quality is good, and if you call ahead & go pick it up, they get their take-out orders ready really fast. That way if you can treat yourself to some pad khee mao even if you don't have time to sit down & eat it there.

Presidential Towers also has Presidential Market, a small-scale grocery store with a deli, salad bar, hot lunch counter, soup station & pre-packaged food cases. I'd describe it as "serviceable", or to borrow from a recent thread, "two thumbs blandly sideways". The meats at the deli aren't Boar's Head (the "premium" stuff is mostly Sara Lee), the hot lunch is cafeteria quality, the soups are predominantly from the Campbell's & Knorr food service catalogs, and the pre-packaged stuff is usually not that exciting...but the salad bar usually has fresh-looking veggies, and for a while they had some unusually excellent corned beef (unfortunately, that's no longer the case). I'm never all that excited to go there, but they can't all be winners, right? But if you're in the mood for a quick build-your-own salad, are in the mood for something snacky, or need to grab a quick box of cookies, chips & salsa, or hummus & pita or whatever before a meeting or work potluck, it's a handy place to go.

My Thai
555 W Madison St (right behind Takumi, they're actually connected)
Chicago, IL 60607
(312) 669-1999

Presidential Market
555 W. Madison Street (past My Thai, by the Jefferson St. entrance)
Chicago, IL 60607
(312) 902-2800

Hi there,

I've been working near Union Station now for the past 5 weeks and have yet to find a really good, satisfying lunch spot. Granted I haven't tried all of them, which could take me 6 months, but does someone have a special tasty suggestion which is within walking distance to Union Station (near Willis Tower). Meal prices should be reasonable between $8 to $12 and I'd like to stay away from the run-of-the-mill chain eateries.

Thanks,

taiga

Bombacigno's has been recommended at least twice in this long-running thread, and I'll bring it up again just in case. It seems to meet your needs perfectly. When my office was in that area, Bombacigno's was the one place of any real, special significance for lunch in the neighborhood.

Pinging this topic for more recent intel. I have about 1.5 hours to kill at Union Station between trains. I can't travel very far due to a very large backpack. What, if any, are decent takeout food options within about 4-5 blocks?

Wisco wrote:Pinging this topic for more recent intel. I have about 1.5 hours to kill at Union Station between trains. I can't travel very far due to a very large backpack. What, if any, are decent takeout food options within about 4-5 blocks?

I'd go to the French Market. It's 3-4 blocks north of Union Station, in the street-level concourse of another of Chicago's commuter train terminals. It has lots of booths including some of our very best: Lillie's Q for barbecue, Pastoral for cheese and sandwiches, Vanille Patisserie for pastry, Saigon Sisters for pho and banh mi, etc, so there's plenty of variety to choose from. And most of the booths do a great job of packing their food for carry-out. Closed Sundays. It's not the easiest to find, so you may want to check out the directions on their website at frenchmarketchicago.com.

EDIT: knitgirl

My sister works near there and likes this place: http://frenchmarketchicago.com/vendor/aloha-poke-co/. I think it's more like a 1/2 mile, so it might be a little far for you. The pro of that location is that the French Market has a whole bunch of food stalls, so you can see what appeals to you that day.

Oh that's funny, I was just typing a similar suggestion to Nxstasy's.

Blackwood BBQ on Clinton is a must stop. Brisket is top notch - plain, sandwich or salad versions with choice of sauce/dressing.

stoutisgoodfood wrote:Blackwood BBQ on Clinton is a must stop. Brisket is top notch - plain, sandwich or salad versions with choice of sauce/dressing.

I second Blackwood. Their brisket is as good as any I've had in Chicago (and better than the *few* places I've tried in TX).

Habibi wrote:

stoutisgoodfood wrote:Blackwood BBQ on Clinton is a must stop. Brisket is top notch - plain, sandwich or salad versions with choice of sauce/dressing.

I second Blackwood. Their brisket is as good as any I've had in Chicago (and better than the *few* places I've tried in TX).

I'm confident Blackwood would win a blind taste test against any of the other briskets in this city.

nicinchic wrote:Takumi in Presidential Towers for a nice Japanese sit down place.
555 W. Madison

This is an ancient post, but since we now live a block away...

My Thai and Takumi are closed for an extensive remodeling until late August. No word if the rather unchallenging menu is continuing as is or they're going to get deeper into things like Jungle Curry or Thai fried chicken.

With all the predictable Loop fast food on Clinton for the lunch crowd, it would be nice to have a place that's a little more adventurous given the large local Asian population at PT, as well as the overall growing of Loop and West Loopers within walking distance.

We do 75% of our non-home dining in the Fulton to Greektown rectangle, or hit Lincoln Square for Thai and the neighborhoods for other ethnic, but it would be nice to have more than Dylan's or Madison Tavern for local go-to...which is a nice way of saying that Blaze Pizza and Epic Burger only take you so far..,.

sdrucker wrote:it would be nice to have a place that's a little more adventurous given the large local Asian population at PT, as well as the overall growing of Loop and West Loopers within walking distance.

I know Embeya closed (again), but no love for either location of Saigon Sisters?

nsxtasy wrote:

sdrucker wrote:it would be nice to have a place that's a little more adventurous given the large local Asian population at PT, as well as the overall growing of Loop and West Loopers within walking distance.

I know Embeya closed (again), but no love for either location of Saigon Sisters?

Maybe I'm jaded because I work across from the NWH location of Saigon Sisters and eat their pho and vermicelli salads about once a week, but other than the pho variants, I find the restaurant on Lake (like Bang Chop) to be not interesting enough for dinner or dine-in compared to Cafe Hoang in Chinatown or a ride to Argyle for Vietnamese. But that's just me. It's better than fast food, regardless.