Illinois

Some Chicago restaurants chase trends every season, and then there are the places that simply keep the lights…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 26

Illinois takes its Italian beef seriously, and everyone here seems to have a favorite spot they guard like…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 25

Some places feel like a doorway to a slower decade, and this little shop in the western suburbs…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 25

Saturday mornings in one small Illinois town have a rhythm all their own, and it starts with a…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 25

Illinois takes its hot dogs seriously, and nothing proves it like a proper chili dog piled high with…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 24

A tall column of water tumbles into a stone gorge in north-central Illinois, and getting there means earning…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 24

Some fall outings involve nothing more than a quick photo and a paper cup of cider. This one…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 24

There is a certain kind of Chicago spot that skips the fuss, the tablecloths, and the trendy plating,…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 23

Some breakfast counters do more than fill a plate. They keep a little slice of the past alive…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 23

There’s a spot in the Chicago suburbs where the ovens run hot and the dough gets treated like…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 23

Illinois has plenty of sit-down restaurants, but some of the best barbecue in the state comes from small…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 22

There is a restaurant in Chicago where the host might greet you with an insult, the waiter might…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 22

Some places ask for an hour of your time. This one quietly demands an entire day, and it…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 22

Some places in Chicago hide in plain sight, tucked beside an old drawbridge where the road meets the…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 21

Some places in Chicago have a way of pulling you back in time the moment you step through…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 21

There is a spot near the river in East Peoria where a burrito can reach the length of…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 21

Illinois takes its hot dogs seriously, and some of the best ones come from tiny counters and drive-ins…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 20

Some restaurants come and go, but a good diner just keeps flipping pancakes decade after decade. Illinois has…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 20

Roughly an hour north of Chicago sits a stretch of shoreline that surprises nearly everyone who finds it.…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 20

A working dairy farm in central Illinois has become a favorite weekend stop for families who want to…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 19

Illinois might be famous for deep-dish pizza and Italian beef, but the state hides some seriously good barbecue…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 19

Sunday brunch in Illinois is more than just eggs and coffee. It is the one meal where the…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 19

A little shop on a historic Main Street has been drawing treat lovers back for more than three…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 18

Some restaurants earn a loyal following not by chasing trends but by doing things their own way and…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 18

There is a corner of small-town Illinois where old pharmacy cabinets still line the walls and a soda…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 18

Illinois still holds onto a dining tradition that feels like a step back in time: the supper club.…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 17

Belgian waffles have a way of turning an ordinary morning into a good one. The best have crisp…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 17

There is a real difference between a burger made from a frozen puck and one built from beef…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 17

Central Illinois surprises people who expect nothing but flat farmland stretching to the horizon. Tucked between rows of…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 16

Living well does not always mean spending big, and Illinois has plenty of small towns that prove it.…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 16

Illinois has plenty of big-name bakeries, but some of the best fresh pastries come from small towns most…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 16

Some places make you work for the reward, and this one hides at the end of a bumpy…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 15

Some restaurants seem to run on a clock that stopped ticking decades ago, and that is exactly the…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 15

Some places hide their best surprise at the bottom of a staircase. In the far southern tip of…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 15

Illinois is famous for Chicago, but the state also hides dozens of small towns where the loudest sound…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 14

Some sweet spots earn a loyal following the quiet way, one warm cobbler at a time. Tucked into…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 14

Illinois is packed with old-fashioned roadside diners that fire up the griddle before the sun is fully awake.…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 14

Some places in a small Illinois town quietly earn a following that stretches back generations, and folks keep…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 13

Some restaurants get talked about for a season, then fade away. Others quietly become the place families return…

By Lincoln Avery · Sep 13