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Tours and Towers: Eat the City – Chicago 2022

Chicago is known for many things and food is definitely one of them. While there I ate at very different types of restaurants each time so I could experience a wide range of Chicago food. This was a delicious adventure and I look forward to my next trip to try more of what Chicago has to offer.

Fred’s Garage

Located in Winnetka, IL, Fred’s Garage is a bit north of Chicago, about an hour drive. It is housed in an old service station and still has the garage bays from its previous life. Since I was in the area for an event anyway, and it had 4.4 stars on Google, I decided to give it a try. The first thing I noticed when I pulled up was a large patio for outdoor seating, it was well-lit, covered, and had bushes to block some of the wind and space heaters for use when needed. When I walked inside, I was quickly greeted and sat at a table even though it was right at dinner time, and they were rather busy.

heir menu is one page but still manages to have something for everyone: appetizers, salads, burgers, tacos, pasta, fish, and a few desserts if you save some room. I prefer restaurants with smaller menus because that generally means that the dishes, they do have are more perfected and the cooks have time to make meals fresh because there aren’t 100 options. After looking through their menu I decided on the Chipotle Chicken Tacos. And I must say that they were delicious!

When my food was brought out, I knew I made the right decision – about the restaurant and the dish. The salad was true mixed greens, not just iceberg and romaine tossed together. The vinaigrette dressing paired perfectly with the flavor from the chipotle sauce on the chicken tacos. The tacos themselves were filled with the chipotle shredded chicken, tomatoes, lettuce, onion, and cheese. They had wonderful flavor and weren’t lacking on toppings at all. By the end of the second taco I was completely full. For a total of about $22, including tip, this was a great meal. If you ever find yourself in Winnetka or anywhere nearby, make Fred’s Garage one of your stops.

Nix

Friday morning, I opted to eat at the hotel restaurant for ease and convenience. Situated just off the lobby of the hotel, Nix was easy to access and had a decent street view from almost any table. There wasn’t any obvious theme of the restaurant, though it continued the hotel lobby decor nicely.

I ordered the hot chocolate and baked apple pancakes, which when ordering I didn’t realize that it was only the pancakes, no sides came with it. The service was a little slow for what I ordered and how busy they were. When my order was delivered, everything was a bit lackluster: the hot chocolate whipped cream was melted into the drink and the pancakes were just pancakes, they didn’t come with any eggs or other side. While the hot chocolate was creamy and delicious and the pancakes were fluffy and had baked apples on top, the meal was not worth the cost of $25, including tip.

Dash of Salt and Pepper Diner

While walking through the Lincoln Park Neighborhood to my first tour I found a small diner on one corner of a 6-way intersection. After a quick search and seeing they had 4.7 stars, I was sold. When I walked in I was quickly sat at a table near a window with a gorgeous view of Oz Park. I ordered biscuits and gravy with 2 eggs – while at a diner you need to eat comfort food and biscuits and gravy fit that bill perfectly.

After ordering the food was served quickly, within about 5 minutes, but in that time I was able to watch the busy street outside. While not much to look at, biscuits and gravy was the perfect meal for me. The biscuits were flaky, toasted, and buttered before being covered with a generous serving of sausage gravy.

The diner was small, cozy, and a little quirky. The service was quick and friendly. Between the food, atmosphere, and service, finding Dash of Salt and Pepper Diner was a happy accident. If you find yourself in the Lincoln Park Neighborhood, you would do well to make this a stop on your trip.

Giordano’s Pizza

The review for this meal will be a little different as I did not eat in the restaurant and ordered online. After a recommendation from a friend, I knew I had to make a this a stop; and you can’t go to Chicago without having some deep-dish pizza. One thing to know when you are looking for deep-dish is that it takes about 45 minutes to bake once you order it. Keeping this in mind, I ordered ahead so that it would be ready when I got there. The service for pickup was fast and courteous – I was able to walk in, pay, get my pizza, and walk out within about 5 minutes.

I enjoyed my pizza as I walked down Michigan Ave, which was perfect as the night was a bit chilly and the pizza was nice and hot. Sadly, I didn’t get a picture of my pizza as I was walking while eating, which is especially difficult with deep-dish pizza. The crust was thick, buttery, and flaky and held in the beef, peppers, cheese, and sauce. If you are looking for a good deep-dish, Giordano’s is a great choice!

I hope next time you are in Chicago that you can check out one of these spots. If you do, be sure to let me know! Thanks for joining me. Be sure to come back next week for more adventures.

See you next time! Sami

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