A Taste of Lincoln Park (Final Project)
Chicago, in my mind, is a place with a great food scene. There are so many different restaurants to choose from that are rich with variety and authenticity. What’s even better is that restaurants in the city are walkable and convenient, enhancing the whole dining experience. By walking to a new restaurant, you are immersing yourself in a journey to discover the best eateries in Chicago. The encounters you make on that journey can leave a lasting impact on you, creating a certain connection toward that restaurant. I enjoy tasting new foods and making discoveries along the way and am on a journey in discovering the best food places in Chicago, Lincoln Park in particular.
My map’s purpose is to show others some of my favorite restaurants that I have encountered so far in Lincoln Park. The story of my map acts as a walking tour through the neighborhood and delves into what I thought of each of the places. Some experiences were good and others, not so much. My map includes my ratings of each of the restaurants traveled to based off of food quality/taste, atmosphere, and the walking experience to get there. The mood of my map is exploratory as it serves as a guide to the best eateries in Lincoln Park. The time frame of my map started when I moved to Chicago. When I first arrived, I was already on a search for the best places to eat. Lincoln Park is generally a nice place to walk, so my journey to some these places were quite pleasant. In the article, “Ce n’est pas le monde” Krygier and Wood express maps in forms of writing and comics. On page 125, they say that “Maps are propositions” and that “you have choices.” This was good motivation to get my personal map started. I had the choice to do whatever I wanted with my map to make it mine and to show what Chicago meant to me.
My first restaurant:
The first restaurant that I traveled to was Homeslice, which is a pizza place. This was a great start to my journey. It was a short walk from my dorm. The day I went was extremely sunny. The walk was enjoyable and I made many encounters. As I walked down Sheffield, the street was very vibrant. College kids passed me from left to right. A girl that crossed paths with me had a pizza to-go box from Homeslice that smelled heavenly. In fact, I asked her what she ordered. I ended up getting what she recommended, which was a good choice. Kio Stark, in her Why You Should Talk to Strangers Ted Talk, said, “When you talk to strangers, you’re making beautiful interpretations into the expected narrative of your daily life.” I am glad I made that connection with that stranger, because if I hadn’t, I might of not of been so pleased with Homeslice. You could tell that this place was definitely located near a university. It was down a street filled with bars. When I arrived to Homeslice, I got a hipster type vibe. Their name was spray painted on the side of the building and there were two students wearing flannels and glasses out front. I ended up eating in the back patio area of the restaurant and ordered the Special- K pizza, which was what the girl I ran into earlier suggested.It was phenomenal. Accounting for the walk, atmosphere, and food taste/quality, I give Homeslice 4.5 out of 5 stars.
My second restaurant:
My second restaurant that I traveled to was the Athenian Room, which is Greek food. This, so far, was probably one of my favorite walks. I passed streets lined with trees from both sides. It wasn't quite fall at the time, so the leaves were still green, but it was still nice. I passed so many dogs and even stopped to pet a German Shepard puppy, named Rick. As I continued to walk down Webster for a bit, I hit a row of beautiful flowers that lead to the restaurant. They were bright pink. I ended up sitting on the front patio to enjoy the weather (mildly warm). I ordered the gyro sandwich and did not regret it. I saw more adults here than Homeslice. They were dressed classy and held sophisticated conversations. I heard one women talk about her job as a lawyer to a man accompanying her. Accounting for the walk, atmosphere, and food taste/quality, I give this place 4 out of 5 stars.
My third restaurant:
My third restaurant that I travelled to was Jam ‘n Honey, which is a sort of brunch type place. It was a short walk and nothing too exciting happened. The weather was perfect that day though. Again, I sat on the outside patio. There were bright pink, yellow, and orange flowers next to me. It wasn’t too busy, so I couldn’t get a feel for the type of people that came there. I remember taking in the beauty of St. Vincent DePaul Church across the street as I ate my food (which was a BBQ chicken wrap). The sun reflected off the church’s mosaics, making it look majestic. Accounting for the walk, atmosphere, and food taste/quality, I give this place 3.5 out of 5 stars.
My fourth restaurant:
My fourth place that I traveled to was Holy Taco, which was Mexican food. I came here not too long ago, but it was raining at the time. My walk was very cold and my shoes were soaking wet. Only few were walking the streets at the time. Someone did, however, almost hit me with a huge gray umbrella. That wasn't cool. When I first arrived to Holy Taco, I noticed trash in front of the restaurant and dead flowers. Accounting for the walk, atmosphere, and food taste/quality, I give this place 3 out of 5 stars. (I would have given it 2 stars, but the tacos were decent).
My fifth “restaurant”:
My fifth placed that I travelled to was Devil Dawgs, which was a hot dog shack. This was an easy, straight-forward walk. All I had to to do was walk all the way down Sheffield from my dorm. The shack was close to the L, so it was pretty noisy. On my walk over though, a random yellow balloon passed by me. It was dark out, I was alone, and the Movie “It” had just come out, so I was pretty freaked out. After that, the rest of the walk was enjoyable. The night seems to bring me more piece. This feeling can be shown in the article, ‘Night Walks Are A Great Tonic for Urban Stress’: your stories of the nocturnal stories.” The statement that shows this, claimed, “It’s a wonderful sensation, going out in the dark, and having the city gradually reveal itself” (SuperbMeteor). I did feel that Devil dawgs revealed itself at night time. They were more people and the vibe was different. When I arrived, there were a bunch of college kids sitting down in the very limited seating area. I even saw a campus officer swing by to get a shake. I got a chocolate milkshake and a Chicago-style hot dog. The hot dog was good, but I really enjoyed the shake. Accounting for the walk, atmosphere, and food taste/quality, I give this place a 3.5 out 5 stars.
My sixth restaurant:
My sixth place that I traveled to was Cafe Ba-ba-Reeba!, which is a Spanish Tapas place. The walk was probably my longest, but the restaurant is my favorite on this list. The walk wasn’t as scenic as some of the others, but it was a peaceful one. The ground was wet from the earlier rain. I could hear splashing sounds as the cars slammed on their breaks. I distinctly remember seeing a man sitting in his parked car. The heater looked like it was running. It was cold, so I was tempted to hop in and join, but I didn’t. When I arrived to the restaurant, I saw a family of three out front. It was a husband and wife, with their little girl in the stroller.The stroller had plastic covering over it, to protect the baby from the weather. I had the feeling that this restaurant was more family oriented. I stepped inside, and noticed that it was pretty crowded. I saw large groups of people at each table. Some were families and others were friends. I sat next to a group of girls who seemed to be having a good time because of how loud they were. The food was delicious! I recommend the grilled squid and chocolate truffle cake. Accounting my walk, atmosphere, and food taste/quality, I give this place 5 out of 5 stars.
Overall, my journey has been very fulfilling. I still have a lot of places to try out, but I have a good start. The encounters I’ve made and and the walks I’ve experienced can all account for my personal Chicago; one of the world’s culinary epicenters.
Work Cited
Krygier, John. Wood, Dennis. “Ce n’est pas le monde.” https://d2l.depaul.edu/d2l/le/content/586175/viewContent/4157287/View. Accessed 23 October 2017.
readers, Guardian, and Francesca Perry. “‘Night Walks Are a Great Tonic for Urban Stress’: Your Stories of the Nocturnal City.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 15 Dec. 2016, www.theguardian.com/cities/2016/dec/15/night-walks-great-tonic-urban-stress-your-stories-nocturnal-city. Accessed 24 October 2017.
Stark, Kio. “Why You Should Talk to Strangers.” Kio Stark: Why You Should Talk to Strangers | TED Talk, www.ted.com/talks/kio_stark_why_you_should_talk_to_strangers?language=en. Accessed 25 October 2017.
