March Madness visit; staying in N. Loop - where to eat?

My son and I will be in Chicago from Friday afternoon until Monday afternoon for the NCAA tourney, our third visit to the city in the past five years. On previous visits we loved Bavette's Bar and Boeuf, Publican, Girl and the Goat and Spacca Napoli and also had very good meals at Boka, Naha (for lunch), the Purple Pig, Frontera Grill and Xoxo.

Since we're arriving mid-afternoon Friday and plan to be at the United Center when doors open at 4:40 PM with a 6:05 pm tip-off (Go Virginia!), we are not likely to eat before the game as we won't have all that much time once we get to out hotel, which is one block west of Michigan and one block south of the river. If we do have a little extra time, I thought we might hit Au Cheval at an off-peak time for some burgers before the game.

The only certain eating plans we have (we only knew we'd be coming this past weekend) is a repeat visit to Bavette's at 5 pm Saturday to grab a couple of seats at the bar -- it was my 13-year-old son's favorite spot our last visit and I loved it too.

That leaves us breakfast and lunch on Saturday, some combination of breakfast/brunch/lunch on Sunday -- there will be a second basketball game Sunday late afternoon or early evening -- and breakfast and lunch Monday before we leave.

I am thinking about Publican Quality Meats for brunch Saturday or Sunday; our last visit, we made the rounds for donuts, and while they were good, I think we'll want something more savory.

As to the rest of our meals, while we will be taking transit during our visit, all things being equal, ease of access will be a factor in deciding where to go. As for personal food preferences, I have a broad love for food, have eaten my way through cuisines from around the world, and the only thing I am not fond of is products with blood -- I've had it in sausage and certain soups. My son is nearly as adventurous with just an odd aversion to cheese.

I would love to try something Asian with assertive flavors -- we love Thai, Vietnamese and various regional Chinese. We will probably stay away from the ultra high-end and high-cost places. Other than that, I am wide open, and would welcome suggestions.

As a native New Yorker who now lives near Toronto, I should mention that I have been consistently impressed with what Chicago offers, both in terms of food and culture/activity/neighbourhoods.

We have great breakfast/brunch focused restaurants, and we have great Asian restaurants.

IMHO the very best of our breakfast/brunch restaurants is Jam, in Logan Square, at the LS stop on the CTA Blue Line. Imagine what a chef with a creative fine-dining background could create for an inexpensive, casual breakfast/brunch restaurant, and that's what Jeffrey Mauro has done at Jam. It works for both breakfast and lunch. Other excellent contenders in this category include M. Henry in Andersonville, Southport Grocery in Lakeview, and for gigantic unusual pancakes, Bongo Room (multiple locations). For an upscale Sunday brunch from a James Beard Award winning chef, at a moderate price in an exquisite, uniquely Chicago setting in the park, consider North Pond in Lincoln Park.

The United Center has upgraded some of its food options. For Asian cuisine, Urban Belly/BellyQ has opened nearby, on that end of Randolph Street, so that's an obvious option for you. For additional Asian options around town, Fat Rice in Logan Square has achieved widespread acclaim for its Macanese cuisine, and it is open for weekday lunch and weekend brunch. (Disclaimer: I have not been there yet.) I love Yusho in Avondale, but it is not open for breakfast or lunch, except on Sundays, when it serves a ramen menu. Speaking of ramen, check out this list for some of our best. Also, some new Thai restaurants (e.g. Andy's Thai Kitchen, Rainbow Thai, and others) have gotten lots of praise here on LTH. For regional Chinese, I enjoyed a recent Szechuan meal at Chengdu Impression in Lincoln Park.

Fat Rice as mentioned above has Saturday brunch/lunch and the advantage of taking reservations - though walk-ins are definitely possible. It's a short walk from the Blue line CTA.

leek wrote:Fat Rice as mentioned above has Saturday brunch/lunch and the advantage of taking reservations - though walk-ins are definitely possible.

They're also open for brunch on Sundays. Closed Mondays though.

Fat Rice is great.

I also highly recommend Dove's Luncheonette -- it's immediately by the blue line stop at Damen, and is from the same team as Publican/PQM. I bet you and your son would dig the feel of the place.

Thanks for all the great suggestions. Here's the lineup so far:

Saturday brunch - Publican - 10
Saturday early dinner - Bavette's - 5

Sunday brunch - Fat Rice - 11:15

We still have time for a meal Sunday afternoon but since I won't know until late Friday the time of the Sunday game -- likely 6-ish or 8-ish -- I will likely come up with two options, one for mid-afternoon, the other closer to 5:30.

I'd also need to settle on a spot for lunch Monday and will definitely consider all the excellent options you all have suggested.

The lhtforum is excellent. All Toronto has is Chowhound, whose moderators, policies and format changes have driven away some of the best contributors.

+1 for Dove's--it's terrific for brunch/lunch and late night, if you end up looking for food after the game.

If you feel like venturing to Chinatown for lunch on Monday, Go 4 Food is excellent--for info on don't miss menu items, see the threads on here: http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?p=357440 or http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=36869

Uber is also great here if you're looking for an easy transportation option.

Have fun--I'm still trying to get tickets for tomorrow's games!

Shasson wrote:Fat Rice is great.

I also highly recommend Dove's Luncheonette -- it's immediately by the blue line stop at Damen, and is from the same team as Publican/PQM. I bet you and your son would dig the feel of the place.

Seconded. Dove's is special. And super-accessible on the Blue Line.

Yeah, Dove's. Another fantastic breakfast/brunch places is Cellar Door Provisions. Awesome bread & pastries and fantastic breakfast items across the board. From the Loop, you can get there via the Blue Line in under 30 minutes, or a lot faster by car. Notably, it's about a minute walk from Fat Rice, so even if you don't stop in for a meal, stop by for bread and/or pastries (but be warned, weekend runs can be crazy and they tend to run out of many things quickly -- it's that good).

If you like Italian subs, JP Graziano's on Randolph (just over a mile from the UC) is a great option. It's not open on Sundays though.

For Thai, so many great neighborhood spots to visit. If you'll be taking the L, some of the easiest to reach (and best) are Aroy, Rainbow and Andy's Thai Kitchen.

Interestingly, Stephanie Izard (of Girl & the Goat) has just opened her take on Chinese food, Duck Duck Goat (I think today actually). The menu looks interesting, though I would anticipate long waits.

Food at the UC has gotten much better in the last year too, but it depends somewhat upon what level you're on. Publican Quality Meats offers some of their sausages, Lillie's Q offers excellent bbq (including their wonderful smoked tri tip) and bone-in fried chicken (next door at LQ Chicken shack) on the 200 (Club) level. Big Star (same group as Publican Quality Meats and Dove's) is on the 100 & 200 levels offering tacos, nachos, margaritas, etc. The quality varies, sometimes just as good as that offered at the main restaurant locations, and sometimes falling a little short but not terribly. I can't comment on the 300 level . . . though I have tickets there for Sunday (assuming I'm not staying home and watching my Hoosiers).

I really like what I see of the menu at Dove's Luncheonette. What are some of your favorites?

As for the U.C., we will be in the 300 level. Anyone know how hard it might be to get access to the 200 level for PQM and Lillie's Q? We plan to be there 90 minutes before tip-off and get food before the game starts. Might a heart-felt smile and a cute kid get me past the club level ushers?

NorthernExposure wrote:I really like what I see of the menu at Dove's Luncheonette. What are some of your favorites?

As for the U.C., we will be in the 300 level. Anyone know how hard it might be to get access to the 200 level for PQM and Lillie's Q? We plan to be there 90 minutes before tip-off and get food before the game starts. Might a heart-felt smile and a cute kid get me past the club level ushers?

Here's the thread on Dove's: viewtopic.php?p=487607

Normally, you can't access the 200 level without tickets for that level. But they might have different procedures for the NCAA games where season ticket holders who pay Club Level fees are not granted their ordinary rights to obtain 200 level tickets . . . but I wouldn't bet on it.

Might a heart-felt smile and a cute kid get me past the club level ushers?

Realistically? Not a chance in Hell. People in the 200 level are paying big coin for those tickets - Crain's noted that the center court 200 level full-strip tix are going for $825 a pop. The security people manning the doors are as zealous as the guys who kept the steerage people out of the lifeboats on the Titanic.

Not a chance--sorry!! I've had 100 level seats and couldn't get up there. And the lines will be looong for the Big Star on 100 level.

Too much good food and not enough time for you to waste stomach space on even hip brand name junk food at the arena (don't go to Roost either--it was awful!).

Instead, I'd suggest fueling up before you go and then getting a post-game snack -your son will love being the cool guy eating at the late night place --I say this as the stepmom of 16 and 17 year old boys (of course they probably haven't actually agreed to do this since they were your kid's age so enjoy it )

In addition to Dove's, you could try getting lucky at Au Cheval which is on your way back, or one of the Boka group's hot spots in the west loop-- Momotaro Izakaya which is open til 2:00 a.m and has a lot of fun stuff (http://www.momotarochicago.com/img/izakaya.pdf uni toast!! skewers!!) or the new steakhouse, Swift & Sons (http://www.swiftandsonschicago.com/menu.html) in the Google building. You and your son are going to have a blast, no matter what!

boudreaulicious wrote:Too much good food and not enough time for you to waste stomach space on even hip brand name junk food at the arena (don't go to Roost either--it was awful!).

I think you mean Leghorn on the 100 level, and I agree.

BR wrote:

boudreaulicious wrote:Too much good food and not enough time for you to waste stomach space on even hip brand name junk food at the arena (don't go to Roost either--it was awful!).

I think you mean Leghorn on the 100 level, and I agree.

Ugh--yes I did!

NorthernExposure wrote:I'd also need to settle on a spot for lunch Monday and will definitely consider all the excellent options you all have suggested.

If I had to choose only one place for a Monday lunch in Chicago, it would be Jam, which I mentioned above. They serve breakfast/brunch items all day, and they serve from their lunch menu after 11 a.m. I've been there for both, and they knock them both out of the park. Click here for their current menu.

Another worthwhile option is the French Market. It's a food court in one of the commuter train stations downtown, and the booths include some of the very best restaurants of their type in the city.