Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
57
Hwy. 90/94 and the surrounding blocks
are known as “Restaurant Row” for the
many dining spots that cluster ther e.
Nearby, on H alsted S treet betw een
Adams and Monroe streets, is Chicago's
old “Greek Town,” still the G reek culi-
nary center of the city. Much of the old
Italian neighborhood in this vicinity
was the victim of urban r enewal, but
remnants still sur vive on Taylor Street;
the same is tr ue for a fe w old delis and
shops on M axwell S treet, dating fr om
the turn of the 20th centur y, when a
large J ewish community liv ed in the
area.
Bucktown/Wicker P ark
Center ed
near the confluence of N orth, Damen,
and Milwaukee avenues, where the Ar t
Deco N orthwest Tower is the tallest
thing for miles, this r esurgent ar ea is
said to be home to the thir d-largest
concentration of ar tists in the countr y.
Over the past centur y, the ar ea has
hosted wav es of G erman, Polish, and,
most recently, Spanish-speaking immi-
grants (not to mention writer N elson
Algren). In recent years, it has morphed
into a bastion of hot ne w r estaurants,
alternative cultur e, and loft-dw elling
yuppies surfing the gentrification wav e
that's washing over this still-somewhat-
gritty neighborhood.
T
HE
S
OUTH
S
IDE
South Loop
The generically r echris-
tened S outh Loop ar ea was Chicago 's
original “Gold Coast” in the late 19th
century, with P rairie A venue (no w a
historic district) as its most ex clusive
address. B ut in the wake of the 1893
World's Columbian Exposition in Hyde
Park, and continuing thr ough the P ro-
hibition era of the 1920s, the ar ea was
infamous for its Lev ee vice district,
home to gambling and pr ostitution,
some of the most corr upt politicians in
Chicago history, and Al Capone's head-
quarters at the old Lexington H
However, in r ecent y ears, its pr ospects
have turned around. The South Loop—
stretching fr om H arrison S treet's his-
toric P rinters R ow south to Cermak
Road (wher e Chinato wn begins), and
from Lake S hore D rive w est to the
south branch of the Chicago Riv er—is
one of the fastest-gr owing r esidential
neighborhoods in the city.
Pilsen
Originally home to the nation 's
largest settlement of Bohemian-Ameri-
cans, P ilsen (which deriv es its name
from a city in Bohemia) was for decades
the principal entry point in Chicago for
immigrants of every ethnic stripe. Cen-
tered at H alsted and 18th str eets just
southwest of the Loop , it is no w the
second-largest Mexican-American com-
munity in the United States. One of the
city's most vibrant and color ful neigh-
borhoods, P ilsen has been happily
invaded b y the outdoor mural mo ve-
ment launched y ears earlier in M exico,
and it has a pr ofusion of authentic
taquerias and bakeries. The neighbor-
hood's annual Day of the Dead celebra-
tion, which begins in S eptember, is an
elaborate festival that runs for 8 w eeks.
The ar tistic spirit that permeates the
community isn 't confined to Latin
2
American art. In recent years a div erse
group of ar tists, drawn par tly b y the
availability of loft space in P ilsen, have
nurtured a small but thriving ar
tists'
colony.
Bridgeport & Canaryville
B ridgeport,
whose main intersection is 35th and
Halsted streets, has been the neighbor-
hood of two M ayor Daleys, father and
son (the son moved not too long ago to
the ne w Central S tation dev elopment
in the S outh Loop ar ea). After the old
Comiskey P ark was torn do wn, the
Chicago White S ox stay ed in B ridge-
port, inaugurating their ne w stadium
there. N earby Canar yville, just south
and west, is typical of the “back of the
otel.