CHIGuide
The Best Restaurants In Logan Square
photo credit: Kim Kovacik
Logan Square isn’t hurting for great places to eat—there are a lot of incredible restaurants here. So many, in fact, that you could keep yourself busy eating in this area for days. That honestly isn’t the worst idea, but in case you don’t have that kind of time on your hands, we’ve narrowed it down to the best options. Next time you can’t figure out where to go, consult this list.
THE SPOTS
photo credit: Kirsten Kaiser
Yes, Taqueria Chingon is technically in Bucktown, but it’s right on the border, so in the interest of telling you about delicious things, we’re including it on this guide. It’s not a sit-down restaurant, but this casual counter-service spot has a little patio where you can sit and eat some of the best tacos in Chicago. They’re all made with chewy handmade tortillas, and have a variety of flavorful fillings—like the morcilla (sausage made with blood, bread, onion, and apples before getting topped with brown butter salsa macha), crispy pig head carnitas, and tender al pastor. It’s a great place to agree to meet up with a friend or two you haven’t seen in a while—and if all the seats are taken, you can just say goodbye and head home to your cat.
photo credit: Christina Slaton
We’re big fans of Giant, and we tell people to eat here as much as we can. It’s consistently exciting, and we have yet to find something on the menu we don’t like. They somehow manage to make a dish like broccoli with smoked pepper dressing a must-order, and you’ll also want to try their pastas, like saffron tagliatelle with dungeness crab and chili butter. The casual space has a lot of upbeat energy—it works equally well for date night or a small group dinner.
Akahoshi Ramen evolved from a hard-to-get-into pop-up into a full-fledged, hard-to-get-into restaurant. Reservations are booked five weeks out, and a line forms outside 30 minutes before they open. But once you’ve finagled your way into a seat and had your first taste of their ramen, it’s clear why. Each of their four bowls is distinct, with only a handful of toppings, giving every ingredient room to showcase its flavor. But the must-order is their namesake dish, the Akahoshi Miso. Without even factoring in tasty wok-fried bean sprouts, pork chashu, and springy housemade noodles, we’d happily wait in line just for the rich garlicky broth.
photo credit: Sandy Noto
Mi Tocaya serves delicious Mexican small plates, ranging from tetelas to some very good tacos. We love the upbeat atmosphere, and the fact that there’s a good chance the chef/owner will come to your table and ask how everything is. Plus, there’s a great outdoor patio, and if you can get a seat there, you should take it. This place is the definition of a feel-good neighborhood restaurant.
photo credit: Kyoten Next Door
Kyoten Next Door is omakase-only, and it’s one of the best sushi restaurants in Chicago. At $159, the 18-course menu also happens to be significantly less expensive than dinner at the original Kyoten. The omakase here involves phenomenal nigiri made with high-quality fish, heavily seasoned large-grained rice, and a piece of blowtorched wagyu that puts your favorite steakhouse to shame. Just don’t plan on eating here without making a reservation first—there are only 10 seats, with two seatings per night.
photo credit: Kim Kovacik
Gyukotsu ramen is hard to get a hold of. But not only is Monster Ramen one of only two places in Chicago that serves this beef-based soup—their ramen also happens to be some of the best in the city. The short menu only has nine bowls of ramen, and our favorite is the Monster Bowl, which has beef jam, beef chashu, and wagyu rib roast, along with menma and wood ear mushrooms that give an extra boost of umami. This place is walk-in only, but even at its busiest, you won’t have to wait too long to grab a seat at a table or at the kitchen counter.
photo credit: Clayton Hauck
Union is from the same team as Lardon and this bar really wants to feed you. The dishes here all have little twists that make them stand out from the usual pub food suspects—like lightly breaded fried olives filled with mortadella, or juicy lamb and pistachio meatballs swimming in a caper salsa verde. We’re also huge fans of their wonderful burger: a thick brisket and chuck patty topped with crispy onions, bone marrow aioli, and thinly sliced pickles to cut through the richness. To remind us that this is a bar, they have a long whiskey list, which they use to make a variety of creative Old Fashioneds.
photo credit: Derrick Koch
Daisies is a fantastic vegetable-focused and also “Midwestern pasta-focused” restaurant. This basically means that every dish uses fresh, seasonal ingredients. It’s definitely not vegetarian, however—animal parts make an appearance in most of the dishes (although you can easily ask for adjustments to avoid them). There are always a few non-pasta mains like chicken, beef, or fish, too, and while those are good, you should mainly be coming here for the pasta.
photo credit: Kyle Kissel
Lula Cafe has been in the neighborhood since 1999, and has been serving fantastic farm-to-table food since before that was really even a thing. Lula works for all sorts of occasions, whether it’s weekday brunch, a casual weeknight dinner, or date night.
photo credit: Kim Kovacik
It takes Ramen Wasabi 45 hours to make their tonkotsu broth, which is admirable considering we get impatient watching a 15-second ad before a Youtube video. This long process creates an incredibly silky pork bone broth, that when served with thick noodles, tender pork belly, and a gooey soft-boiled egg, is some of the best tonkotsu ramen in the city. Though most of their bowls are pork-based, they also have mushroom-based ramen which is a perfect vegan option. Grab a solo seat at the bar, or come for a chill date night where you can slurp a comforting bowl of noodles along with a well-curated indie and hip-hop playlist.
photo credit: Kim Kovacik
Eathai is a cute little Thai spot in the neighborhood. And like the ‘96 Bulls, its menu is a roster of nothing but standouts. Randomly point at any dish and you’ll hit something worth ordering. That said, there are a few dishes you should focus on. In particular, we like the crispy duck wontons, the wonderfully sweet and spicy khao soi, and the fantastic pad see ew–which has perfectly chewy noodles lightly coated in a not-too-sweet sauce. The restaurant is small and brightly lit, but our favorite place to sit here is when we can sit on their quiet, colorful sidewalk patio.
photo credit: Kim Kovacik
Gretel is from the team behind Little Bad Wolf in Andersonville, which you might know because of its incredible burger. And Gretel has become one of our favorite spots in the neighborhood for a casual dinner. The food is great: They also have a fantastic burger, along with shareable things like vegetable gyoza and pork belly nachos. But it’s also just a nice place to hang out for a few hours. It’s cozy and dark (seriously—the walls are painted black) and will immediately soothe your screen-fatigued eyes. Plus, it has a long drink menu and a wall of liquor bottles that necessitate the bartender using a rolling ladder like Belle in the library from Beauty and the Beast.
photo credit: Paulie Gee's
Paulie Gee’s came to Chicago from Brooklyn, and initially, we were a little self-conscious about how much we liked it. This is the land of deep-dish pizza, after all. But now we’ll happily admit that the inventive Neapolitan pies here are awesome. We like the rustic ambiance, too—everything besides the ceiling is made of wood, and it feels like a tavern as much as a pizza place. As a bonus, they have vegan options that actually taste good. Get anything with their spicy honey as a topping.
Nomonomo comes from the same team as Ramen Wasabi, just around the corner. And this dark, intimate izakaya means they can add “binchotan grilling” to their resume skills column. While larger dishes like okonomiyaki or soba noodles are solid, focus mainly on the skewers. Beef tongue with fragrant scallion sauce, chicken meatballs with ume, salted pork belly—they’re all great. They pair especially well with some sake or a crisp Asahi, whether you’re having a solo meal at the bar or with friends at a table.
photo credit: Veda Kilaru
We could hang out at Bang Bang Pie & Biscuits forever, especially in the summer on the picnic benches in their backyard. The housemade biscuits and breakfast sandwiches are fantastic and almost as good as the excellent pies. If you’ve never had pie for breakfast, it’s time you changed that.
photo credit: Sandy Noto
Middle Brow Bungalow looks a lot like your friend’s Pinterest wedding board, but it also has tasty food and is an excellent place to hang. It’s a cute brew pub with a huge patio, reclaimed wooden picnic tables, and decorative plants in birdcages, and it’s perfect for small groups. As far as the food goes, get anything with the housemade bread (like the toasts and spreads), plus pizza. Then plan to talk about this fictional wedding over plenty of light and hoppy beers.
One of the best BYOB places in the city for a large group dinner, 90 Miles serves Cuban food in a fun and relaxed setting. The back patio is enclosed and heated in the winter, and the friendly waitstaff and colorful artwork make it an enjoyable place to hang. Make sure to bring some wine or rum for the excellent sangria and mojito mixes they offer.
photo credit: Kim Kovacik
Jibaritos y Mas is a Puerto Rican spot with locations in Logan Square, Lincoln Park, and Dunning. And they specialize in, well, jibaritos and more. And the jibaritos are some of Chicago’s best. They come with all sorts of fillings—three types of steak, octopus, shrimp, and juicy roast pork. But what completes each sandwich is a potent garlic spread that adds flavor, and also ensures that no one will want to ride the elevator with you. For the “more” there are at least 12 types of mofongo, plus entrees like carne guisada and chuleta frita.
photo credit: Veda Kilaru
The line for this takeout-only bakery, one of the best in Chicago, starts forming at least 30 minutes before they open at 9am. By 8:50, there will be no less than 25 people happily waiting, rain or shine. It’s worth spending a precious weekend morning standing on a sidewalk to get one (or hopefully, many) of Sugar Moon’s curried cauliflower croissants, Nutella-pear brioche buns, or craggy jalapeño-cheddar corn scones. There’s no seating in the shop, so be prepared to eat straight out of the box on the sidewalk, which is fine because there’s a 0% chance you’ll wait until you get home.
This upscale Greek restaurant is busy, spacious, has good food, and you can usually get same-week reservations. You’ll find appetizers like the must-order kataifi cheese pie (shredded filo layered with cheese, baked, then topped with honey and pistachios), entrees like prawn saganaki in a rich tomato sauce, and a very tasty spanakopita. They also have a big patio, which is exactly where we want to spend a summer night eating some baklava froyo.
There aren’t many places to get Malaysian food in the city. In fact, there are only two, and Serai is one of them. This casual, sit-down restaurant is perfect for a date or low-key dinner. Besides Malaysian specialties like char koay teow and nasi lemak, the menu has a bunch of Chinese, Thai, and Indonesian-influenced dishes. Most are well-balanced and toe the line between sweet and spicy, like the roti pratha that comes with a mild (but flavorful) curry, or the sambal eggplant which has a pleasant, slow-burning heat. For more aggressive spice, there’s the three pepper fish—and no one will notice the sweat rolling down your face thanks to the dimly lit dining room.
La Victoria is a big, boozy Mexican spot in Logan Square with food that’s better than you might expect from a place decorated with neon cursive and plant walls. The menu has tacos, tlayudas, and entrees like mariscos veracruzana that’s not shy with the spice. Anything with the handmade corn tortillas (like the Mexico-city style quesadillas filled with lamb birria) will be reliably good. The sprawling space has a giant bar, a back patio, and an angled mirror above the tortilla station so you can watch the action. Service is friendly but hit-or-miss, which is to be expected for a quasi-party restaurant that’s good for fun brunches and loud dinners full of margaritas.
