Argyle Night Market

This first of the new Argyle Night Market is this Thursday the 27th and will run from 4 until 8 every Thursday until September 19th. The Market will be held on Argyle Street from Sheridan to Kenmore. Vendors will include Tank Noodle, Sun Wah BBQ, Tai Nam Market, Phoenix Bean Tofu, Inspiration Kitchens, Hai Yen Restaurants, Ba Le Sandwich, among others.

Hopefully it's a success and grows into a SE Asian version of Maxwell Street with numerous street food options.

Awesome. Thanks for the heads up! I will be there to support it. That's what one of the things I liked about SE Asia - night markets. I kind of wish it went later, but this is a good start. In SE Asia, I loved being able to go to a street at midnight and get a really cheap bowl of fried rice and grilled fish and eat it in the street where only bikes/motorcycles were allowed. I wish Chicago had something like that in the summer at least once a week I love Maxwell Street Market, but there is something to nightlife and this kind of stuff. Just imagine how much money they'd make if they were allowed to stay out there until midnight (or 2am if they got a special license) from all the people drinking not far away.

The information presented in Alderman Osterman's newsletter is a little outdated. The information from the city's website is this:

Argyle Market
June 27-September 5, 2013

Argyle & Broadway

Weekly, 5 - 9 pm

http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/de ... rket5.html

Now I'm really confused - at the City link, it says 4-8?

Either way, this Thursday I know where I'm eating!

Another vote for 4pm-8pm:
http://www.exploreuptown.org/uptown-uni ... ng-june-27

They need to make up their minds on the timing. But I'm guessing 4-8 is the new status quo.

BS that it ends so early, if you ask me.

lodasi wrote:BS that it ends so early, if you ask me.

Agreed. 8 is hardly night. More like "Late Afternoon/Evening Market." If it doesn't close after 10 or 11, then it's not a night market. They should really consider trying it out until 10, 11, or even midnight.

With all due respect to the previous posters. I have know idea how these businesses plan on doing this market, However I do know as an owner of a business just how hard it is to staff a booth for 1 weekend at a street fest. Most of these places will probably have to rent equipment and have more staff than usual. If they do stay open late, like 10 or 11 then they are going to either have to hire new folks or pay overtime to the current staff to make this work. It is a cool idea but for a 4 hour market a week it is a lot of logistics on those places to pull it off. Just my insight as to why maybe it is not later than regular business hours..I will be there to check it out for sure.

Danny

I love that they are being ambitious in trying this out but can someone clarify the cross-streets? Is the market itself taking place on Argyle and the East/West boundaries are Sheridan to Kenmore? That's only two blocks but that doesn't mean in can't be a success! The Andersonville Market on Berwyn is only one block but a really satisfying small community market.


bjt

jhawk1 wrote:With all due respect to the previous posters. I have know idea how these businesses plan on doing this market, However I do know as an owner of a business just how hard it is to staff a booth for 1 weekend at a street fest. Most of these places will probably have to rent equipment and have more staff than usual. If they do stay open late, like 10 or 11 then they are going to either have to hire new folks or pay overtime to the current staff to make this work. It is a cool idea but for a 4 hour market a week it is a lot of logistics on those places to pull it off. Just my insight as to why maybe it is not later than regular business hours..I will be there to check it out for sure.

Danny

I agree, but I should have clarified. I don't agree with opening it up at 4pm and I agree with it being four hours. I meant that it should start at 6 or 7 and go until 10 or 11. Same hours, but actually at night this time. Some of these places are already open until 10pm (i.e Tank Noodle on a Thursday, Pho 777, Pho 888, etc) in any case.

jhawk1 wrote:With all due respect to the previous posters. I have know idea how these businesses plan on doing this market, However I do know as an owner of a business just how hard it is to staff a booth for 1 weekend at a street fest. Most of these places will probably have to rent equipment and have more staff than usual. If they do stay open late, like 10 or 11 then they are going to either have to hire new folks or pay overtime to the current staff to make this work. It is a cool idea but for a 4 hour market a week it is a lot of logistics on those places to pull it off. Just my insight as to why maybe it is not later than regular business hours..I will be there to check it out for sure.

Danny

If you walk down argyle on a typical Thursday at normal dinner time, you will see many businesses completely empty. Many are struggling every day (not Tank or Sun Wah of course), and this could be a great way to get some exposure. More importantly if this market brings in a new crowd of people and gets them excited about Argyle changing for the better, maybe the area will come to life again as it once was.

laikom wrote:

jhawk1 wrote:With all due respect to the previous posters. I have know idea how these businesses plan on doing this market, However I do know as an owner of a business just how hard it is to staff a booth for 1 weekend at a street fest. Most of these places will probably have to rent equipment and have more staff than usual. If they do stay open late, like 10 or 11 then they are going to either have to hire new folks or pay overtime to the current staff to make this work. It is a cool idea but for a 4 hour market a week it is a lot of logistics on those places to pull it off. Just my insight as to why maybe it is not later than regular business hours..I will be there to check it out for sure.

Danny

If you walk down argyle on a typical Thursday at normal dinner time, you will see many businesses completely empty. Many are struggling every day (not Tank or Sun Wah of course), and this could be a great way to get some exposure. More importantly if this market brings in a new crowd of people and gets them excited about Argyle changing for the better, maybe the area will come to life again as it once was.

If you've ever been by the fountain in Lincoln Square on an early Thursday evening in the summer, you'd see the hordes of people that show up for the small concerts and to buy beer, sausage and pretzels. That crowd overflows . . . into Paciugo, the yogurt store, etc. And if you're not sure of the effect, compare that to your typical Wednesday night in Lincoln Square.

So I not only find the concept personally appealing to me, but I think it has a great potential to benefit the local businesses/restaurants -- and even make people slow down, turn, and take a second look when getting off the L, assuming it just doesn't bring new people into the neighborhood, which I think it will.

Also, as to Laikom's point, if a restaurant is unable to otherwise lure traffic into their restaurant, perhaps they can do so by offering a $2 bite on the street. I've had similar reactions to restaurants at the Green City Market BBQ and others -- i.e., I may not have otherwise visited them but for something delicious they offered at an event . . . a sign that there's talent in the kitchen. So I think it's a great thing . . . and probably goes late enough into the evening where most people will get the chance to find out what Argyle can offer.

If it's a success, maybe they'll extend the hours; if not, then it's still a cool idea and is worth a shot.

Anyway, I'm going to try to get out of work early and be there tonight. The weather has cooled down a bit, so hopefully I won't be overdressed.

Does anyone want to meet me over there around 7:30?

laikom wrote:Does anyone want to meet me over there around 7:30?

I was over there before the storms had a couple bites, went home while the storm blew over, and just went back to try a couple more things but quite a few of the vendors were gone or were packing it up.

On the plus side, both Tank and Sun Wah seemed to embrace the street food concept. Tank had a skewered curry chicken, fish balls, and shrimp, papaya salad with dried beef (good), a SE Asian version of elite, and a great looking crawfish dish that I was stretched too thing to try. Sun Wah was live grilling some whole pigs on Argyle as the storms rolled in but was packed up and gone when I went back.

AlekH wrote:

laikom wrote:Does anyone want to meet me over there around 7:30?

I was over there before the storms had a couple bites, went home while the storm blew over, and just went back to try a couple more things but quite a few of the vendors were gone or were packing it up.

On the plus side, both Tank and Sun Wah seemed to embrace the street food concept. Tank had a skewered curry chicken, fish balls, and shrimp, papaya salad with dried beef (good), a SE Asian version of elite, and a great looking crawfish dish that I was stretched too thing to try. Sun Wah was live grilling some whole pigs on Argyle as the storms rolled in but was packed up and gone when I went back.

Thanks, I'm glad you posted before I left, or could have wasted the trip out there. Hopefully we can meet up next week for a few bites!

Guessing they won't be doing it next week, being July 4 . . . was headed over there last night when the storm came in, turned around and went home. July 11th it is!

AlekH wrote:

laikom wrote:Does anyone want to meet me over there around 7:30?

I was over there before the storms had a couple bites, went home while the storm blew over, and just went back to try a couple more things but quite a few of the vendors were gone or were packing it up.

I'm glad I saw this also as I was set to head out. I was excited to hear you say Sun Wah had a whole pig and that there was actual street food. I'll hopefully see you on July 11.

A friend and I went after the rain blew through. It seemed sparse with vendors, but obviously the weather impacted them. We shared a ba la lot (grilled marinated beef and pork wrapped in an aromatic hawaiian leaf) from Hai Yen and a shrimp roll and a veggie roll from Ba Le. We both took home soup from Karl's Craft Soups. I hope it catches on -- that stretch could use the love.

There won't be an Argyle Night Market next Thursday on July 4th. The next one will be July 11th.

I went after the storm and it definitely was sparse, but I figured some of the vendors had packed up because of the rain. I'll go again when it's not like that again. I did see that Tank Noodle was embracing the street food thing which is great. Hopefully more follow suit

The thing I was kind of disappointed in was the fact that there were "others" there. Now, this isn't bad, but when I go to a SE Asian market, that's what I want to see. I don't want to see the fact that I can get some wild boar sausages from downstate Illinois (no offense to them).

Didn't actually make it last week - I got caught in the downpour while walking the dog, and then decided to wuss out and stay indoors. I'll try again next week.

Bumping this because it is tonight and the weather fine.

I intend to be there, probably early. Will wear a tie dye, so feel free to say hi.
-ramon
(hate posting from my phone)

I'll probably make it, too.

I'll be there.

Could have sworn I read 9pm. Very disappointed, was looking forward to it. As it stands, I'd get there just as they were closing. Agreed with the poster above who said 4-8 is not a night market.

Turkob, Snap203 and I checked out the market last "night". The weather couldn't have been better and there were a lot of people walking about and rocking it Gangnam Style. Sadly, it was a total bust. Most restaurant booths were serving packaged food. Noodle dishes were sad and sweaty locked up in plastic containers. Plastic wrapped banh mi steaming in the evening sun. Most food was marked up from what you could get at the mother restaurants just down the block, or in some cases right behind the booth. The only booth we noticed actually cooking food was Tank, and at the prices they were charging we could have eaten at least 2x what they were offering in their own restaurant, or 4x at Nha Hang. I glanced at someone's plate and I think they were selling a couple (maybe 3) small chicken wings for $5, other skewers looked like even smaller portions at similar prices.

Other stuff included: The same produce you could buy in their grocery stores, white people with fake smiles selling things like bacon, pickles and popcorn. Some herb plants for your garden with no Asian herbs, just things like basil "good for making pesto!" and parsley.

We decided to forgo eating at the market and instead decided to add another Pho bowl to our knowledge database. We had a mediocre bowl of Pho at the relatively new and highest yelp rated argyle spot, Pho Tau Bay. The pho was thin and heavy on the fennel and had nothing to offer us. The salad was boring bland and sweet. We decided that it must be the highest rated on yelp due to the snazzy decor and free ice cream you get at the end of your meal.

We ended the night at Hon Kee where we had some excellent roast duck served with a giblet gravy (1/2 duck for about $7 or $8) and some even more excellent crispy skin pork for a whopping $3.50 for a decent size portion.

Like laikom, I was underwhelmed by the market. I had an egg roll (don't remember the vendor) for $1, but it clearly had been made hours earlier, and was served room temp, no sauces offered. I'd expected a mini version of the night market I'd been to in Beijing; instead, it was a small farmers' market with only a few Asian-specific stalls. Watching the crowds dance the wobble didn't much contribute to the Asian-ness of the evening.

I couldn't make it there Thursday, and with the GCM BBQ this Thursday, I'll have to wait another week. I could see where this might be considered a disaster for those here on LTH, where many of us have actually traveled in Southeast Asia and visited fantastic real night markets. But even as described, I guess I'm still believing (though I haven't observed the crowds) that this could be good for Argyle. It just has to draw people into the area to check it out, i.e., people who will return and visit these restaurants. And a beautiful Chicago summer night is the real draw.

But I wouldn't expect this to come anywhere close to replicating what you'd find in Asia, and I could see where that might be considered a loss for people on this board. Most of the vendors in SE Asia don't have restaurants outside of what they do at the markets - the small, mobile booths, the massive woks, the carts they haul on motorbikes or peddle . . . those are their restaurants and they've gained great experience making it work, as the jack-of-all trades: the proprietor, chef, sous chef and bus boy. Yes, the restaurants on Argyle should be plenty capable of delivering that same experience, but I just wouldn't expect that. And yet, I still believe it's a great concept and could fulfill at least a decent purpose.

BR wrote:I couldn't make it there Thursday, and with the GCM BBQ this Thursday, I'll have to wait another week. I could see where this might be considered a disaster for those here on LTH, where many of us have actually traveled in Southeast Asia and visited fantastic real night markets. But even as described, I guess I'm still believing (though I haven't observed the crowds) that this could be good for Argyle. It just has to draw people into the area to check it out, i.e., people who will return and visit these restaurants. And a beautiful Chicago summer night is the real draw.

But I wouldn't expect this to come anywhere close to replicating what you'd find in Asia, and I could see where that might be considered a loss for people on this board. Most of the vendors in SE Asia don't have restaurants outside of what they do at the markets - the small, mobile booths, the massive woks, the carts they haul on motorbikes or peddle . . . those are their restaurants and they've gained great experience making it work, as the jack-of-all trades: the proprietor, chef, sous chef and bus boy. Yes, the restaurants on Argyle should be plenty capable of delivering that same experience, but I just wouldn't expect that. And yet, I still believe it's a great concept and could fulfill at least a decent purpose.

BR-

Thank you for putting my thoughts into better words than I would have. I think it's great to have some activity on a stretch of Argyle that needs it. I've gone both weeks it's been held and have enjoyed food from Ba Le, Hai Yen as well as entrepreneurial vendors such as Karl's Kraft Soups and Uptown Brownie. (loved the mexican chocolate brownie) Could I get the same food in the actual establishment? Sure, but I'm willing to support their efforts to do something new in the neighborhood.