Where to eat near Museum Campus and/or Chinatown w/kids

Hello! My husband and I and our hoard of 4 (ages 5-13) are coming up to the Field with a friend and her 2 boys (11 and 13), who have never been to the city. We may just do lunch at the Corner Bakery in the museum (just easier with 6 kids and the heat), but we are thinking about Chinatown for dinner.
When we go to Chinatown, we ALWAYS go to Won Kow, because that's where my DH's family went. They have always been a good place to go with the kids (of course, you should have seen us in the past, lugging a stroller up those stairs!), but I am wondering if anyone has any other suggestions.
Also, if it is just too hot to travel that far, anything in the Field area?
Thanks for any help!

Caryn
Who has a list a mile long of places she'd go, if she were alone.

Caryn,

there's not too much right at the Museum campus, but what choices there are are discussed in this thread:
http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=8521

While you are there, stop by the Children's Garden south of the Field (the northeast corner of Soldier Field). The kids will love climbing on the dome there. It's a very cool little park.

I think just about anywhere in Chinatown would be a good place to go with kids. (Exception: Mulan -- look up the recent reviews.) It's funny that you mention Won Kow. I have never been there but our son's summer camp class went there for lunch yesterday (about 12 five year olds and two teachers). I guess they can definitely handle kids!

Would Mexican food be a possibility? You would also be not too far from Pilsen. Nuevo Leon is an excellent place to go with kids, and something simple like a plain carne asada taco would satisfy the pickiest eater, I think.

have fun,
Amata

Lucky for you, several of the LTH Great Neighborhood Restaurants are located in Chinatown. As someone else said regarding Devon, it's really more of a great restaurant neighborhood.

There's Mandarin Kitchen, Lao Sze Chuan, Ed's Potsticker House, and no rundown of Chinatown would be complete without mention of the Namesake, 'Little' Three Happiness. LTH doesn't have its own GNR thread where the discussion is conveniently condensed and linked to, and since it is the answer to the question, "Why is LTH called LTH?" searching for it is sort of tough. But looking for threads in Eating out in Chicagoland with titles like "Salt + Pepper Shrimp at LTH" will give you better results than, say, the thread titled "Goose Fat Popcorn" Here are some more LTH threads about the food: My Visit..., (look at the second page of this one, with the pictures of dinner)

.....

and it turns out I am a liar. LTH does have its own GNR nomination, which makes me wonder why I couldn't find it the first time. Here it is, with more links and discussion

Chinatown's been well covered above but there are some places nearer that ought to be mentioned for completeness' sake. All of these are walking distance from the Field Museum, though not necessarily a short walk from a kid's perspective.

In the Hilton on Michigan just south of Balbo there's an 'Irish Pub' with food: Kitty O'Shea's. On Wabash at 11th is the new shtick deli that has gotten fairly negative reviews here (11 City Diner).

In Printer's Row, there is Hackney's (Dearborn and Polk) and Blackie's (Clark and Polk; bar food and maybe too much of a bar for the kids). Maybe less kid-friendly (don't know -- haven't been) is the Italian restaurant Gioco (Wabash, a block or so south of Roosevelt).

That said, Chinatown sounds like a good choice, though Amata's suggestion of Nuevo Leon in Pilsen sounds good too. A nice family place, big, good food, friendly service...

Antonius.

You couldn't do better than Manny's ...a true Chicago institution and always fun for everybody. Only for lunch though. Probably the most ecclectic crowd of any restaurant in the city.

Manny's is also closed Sunday, FYI.

If you do go to Manny's, do make the jaunt over to Mario's italian lemonade over on Taylor street for dessert.