What to do in Evanston and the surrounding area next week?
August 6, 2022 8:09 PM Subscribe
My partner and I are staying in a house in Evanston for a week this summer. We'll have access to a car, a couple of so-so bikes, and a good natured dog. We already have plans to ride up to the Botanic Gardens with a possible stop at the Bahai Temple and dinner at Blind Faith. Any other suggestions would be appreciated. Beaches, parks, trails, pools, restaurants, shops and what have you. Dog friendly would be a bonus. North or northwest is better than south since we don't get up this way very often.
You mentioned Blind Faith so I’m assuming that you have some non-meat dietary restrictions. But if not, Edzo’s has the best burgers in the city.
Spice House is always worth a stop for me when I’m in town. They have some really great and unusual blends.
posted by honeybee413 at 7:23 AM on August 7, 2022
Spice House is always worth a stop for me when I’m in town. They have some really great and unusual blends.
posted by honeybee413 at 7:23 AM on August 7, 2022
Shops: Evanston has quite a few bookstores, any of which are worth a visit; my favorite is Squeezebox, a (mostly used) book/music store with an eclectic selection and good prices. Stumble and Relish is a fun store if you like local artists' work.
Food: My favorite restaurant here is Shinsen; try the shallot fried rice, tamarind noodle (what they call their pad thai) or chirashi, but I've never had a bad dish there. Cross Rhoads is a very homey Greek place with great Greek fries. (Also note that Edzo's is still "temporarily" closed.) Sketchbook has a nice taproom in Evanston, and a more expansive one in Skokie with a large outdoor area, very nice when the weather is good; I've also seen people with their dogs in the outdoor area. The Skokie one also has free live music on the weekends, as well as food popups. Lucky Platter is especially loved for breakfast (their apricot flakey is very good). Cafecito, La Principal's walkup coffee window, is open Monday-Friday from 6:30am-10:00am, and has churros and breakfast tacos. Union Squared has great Detroit-style pizza. Soul 'n Smoke is a highly acclaimed barbeque place. The farmers' market on Saturday mornings is large and vibrant, with lots of prepared food options.
Evanston has a lot of great bakeries--Hoosier Mama for pies, Comfort Desserts Reimagined for key lime pie and bread pudding, Hewn for a bit of everything, Patisserie Coralie for French pastries.
Beaches: The most picturesque Evanston Beach is Lighthouse Beach (it is also the only one with its own parking lot), but they are all beautiful up here. All of Evanston's beaches do charge a fee to nonresidents (not unusual on the North Shore), so if you want a free beach, you have to go to Chicago. Definitely make a point to see the sunrise over the lake at least once, if you can.
Activities: On NU's campus, Dearborn Observatory has walk-in tours every Friday night at 10pm. The Shakespeare Garden (right by the observatory) is worth a visit (or perhaps a detour if you're biking up north). The Block Museum will unfortunately be closed while you're here, but they do provide an audio tour of the campus sculpture garden. The whole campus is lovely to explore by foot or bike. If you come early or late to the landfill area, you may spy the beavers that live there.
Further afield, the Fort Sheridan Forest Preserve is beautiful to explore, and is a lovely drive up Sheridan Road. The Illinois Holocaust Museum in Skokie is very good too.
There is very little nightlife in Evanston to speak of, but we do have a great music venue, SPACE; if there's a band you like playing there, it's a great venue to see an artist (I've seen Robyn Hitchcock, Bob Mould, and the Mekons there).
posted by carrienation at 8:38 AM on August 7, 2022 [3 favorites]
Food: My favorite restaurant here is Shinsen; try the shallot fried rice, tamarind noodle (what they call their pad thai) or chirashi, but I've never had a bad dish there. Cross Rhoads is a very homey Greek place with great Greek fries. (Also note that Edzo's is still "temporarily" closed.) Sketchbook has a nice taproom in Evanston, and a more expansive one in Skokie with a large outdoor area, very nice when the weather is good; I've also seen people with their dogs in the outdoor area. The Skokie one also has free live music on the weekends, as well as food popups. Lucky Platter is especially loved for breakfast (their apricot flakey is very good). Cafecito, La Principal's walkup coffee window, is open Monday-Friday from 6:30am-10:00am, and has churros and breakfast tacos. Union Squared has great Detroit-style pizza. Soul 'n Smoke is a highly acclaimed barbeque place. The farmers' market on Saturday mornings is large and vibrant, with lots of prepared food options.
Evanston has a lot of great bakeries--Hoosier Mama for pies, Comfort Desserts Reimagined for key lime pie and bread pudding, Hewn for a bit of everything, Patisserie Coralie for French pastries.
Beaches: The most picturesque Evanston Beach is Lighthouse Beach (it is also the only one with its own parking lot), but they are all beautiful up here. All of Evanston's beaches do charge a fee to nonresidents (not unusual on the North Shore), so if you want a free beach, you have to go to Chicago. Definitely make a point to see the sunrise over the lake at least once, if you can.
Activities: On NU's campus, Dearborn Observatory has walk-in tours every Friday night at 10pm. The Shakespeare Garden (right by the observatory) is worth a visit (or perhaps a detour if you're biking up north). The Block Museum will unfortunately be closed while you're here, but they do provide an audio tour of the campus sculpture garden. The whole campus is lovely to explore by foot or bike. If you come early or late to the landfill area, you may spy the beavers that live there.
Further afield, the Fort Sheridan Forest Preserve is beautiful to explore, and is a lovely drive up Sheridan Road. The Illinois Holocaust Museum in Skokie is very good too.
There is very little nightlife in Evanston to speak of, but we do have a great music venue, SPACE; if there's a band you like playing there, it's a great venue to see an artist (I've seen Robyn Hitchcock, Bob Mould, and the Mekons there).
posted by carrienation at 8:38 AM on August 7, 2022 [3 favorites]
Walker Bros Pancake House has an awesome Baked Caramel Apple Pancake.
posted by getawaysticks at 12:22 PM on August 7, 2022
posted by getawaysticks at 12:22 PM on August 7, 2022
2nding Tapas Barcelona. They have really good sangria. I haven't been to sketchbook, but their beer is good and I've only heard positives reviews about their taprooms. Temperance (another Evanston Brewery) also has a dog friendly space.
I haven't been in a while, but after mentioning our recent move to Evanston I've had 3 people in the past week rave about the Farmer market (as in they come up from Chicago for it).
I've only had their grab and go stuff from campus, but Viet Nom Nom has tasty food with a storefront near the library. Celtic Knot is an Irish pub that pours a good Guinness and has live music sometimes. They used to do tea service, not sure if that's come back since Covid though.
Elephant and Vine is a fast casual vegan restaurant that recently opened. I haven't gone, but a vegetarian co-worker enjoyed a wrap she got there.
The Barn is a nice steakhouse with an early bird 3 course prix-fix dinner for $38 and good cocktails. Not vegetarian friendly (as far as I know. It seems like the kind of place that would make accomodations, but can't vouch how well they'd do). It's a cute space, so I think it'd be worth a stop by the bar just for a cocktail or two if that's your jam.
The whole campus at NU is pretty, with a fair amount of shade. There are a bunch of cicadas right now, but that's the whole Chicago area. You mostly just hear them anyways. People being their dogs onto campus all the time, so it's definitely a nice space to walk.
On Central Street (where Hewn and Spice House are located), Ten Mile House has a solid if small beer selection and decent bar food with some good vegetarian options (not an excessive amount though, so may want to double check the menu. I really enjoy the vegetarian stuffed peppers). Their brunch is also chill (unless there's a sporting event, then avoid at all costs). Comida has good tacos with a number of vegetarian ones (the mushroom tacos are my favorite hands down) and makes a good daiquiri. They both have outdoor seating that I think are pet friendly. In that general area there's also a couple of gift shops, coffee shops, and a bookstore. It's not the coziest of bookstores (they do a lot of curated subscription boxes that they ship to people), but they're friendly.
Wilmette, the next city north, has a cute downtown and many of the restaurants have a fair amount of outdoor seating. I'm not positive which ones are dog friendly, unfortunately. There's also Heroines and Heroes, a local game store, if that's your kind of thing.
Oh! Pita Inn in Skokie is solid middle eastern food place. I wouldn't necessarily go out of my way for it, but it's our go to when we're lazy (they deliver). They also have an Impossible Kefta Kabob, in addition to standard vegetarian options (falafel and grape leaves).
Depending on your exact dates, Wilmette and Evanston have some low key out door events, like movies in the park. They're often family oriented, but if you check out their respective websites you should find the schedules for your trip to town.
posted by ghost phoneme at 1:22 PM on August 7, 2022 [1 favorite]
I haven't been in a while, but after mentioning our recent move to Evanston I've had 3 people in the past week rave about the Farmer market (as in they come up from Chicago for it).
I've only had their grab and go stuff from campus, but Viet Nom Nom has tasty food with a storefront near the library. Celtic Knot is an Irish pub that pours a good Guinness and has live music sometimes. They used to do tea service, not sure if that's come back since Covid though.
Elephant and Vine is a fast casual vegan restaurant that recently opened. I haven't gone, but a vegetarian co-worker enjoyed a wrap she got there.
The Barn is a nice steakhouse with an early bird 3 course prix-fix dinner for $38 and good cocktails. Not vegetarian friendly (as far as I know. It seems like the kind of place that would make accomodations, but can't vouch how well they'd do). It's a cute space, so I think it'd be worth a stop by the bar just for a cocktail or two if that's your jam.
The whole campus at NU is pretty, with a fair amount of shade. There are a bunch of cicadas right now, but that's the whole Chicago area. You mostly just hear them anyways. People being their dogs onto campus all the time, so it's definitely a nice space to walk.
On Central Street (where Hewn and Spice House are located), Ten Mile House has a solid if small beer selection and decent bar food with some good vegetarian options (not an excessive amount though, so may want to double check the menu. I really enjoy the vegetarian stuffed peppers). Their brunch is also chill (unless there's a sporting event, then avoid at all costs). Comida has good tacos with a number of vegetarian ones (the mushroom tacos are my favorite hands down) and makes a good daiquiri. They both have outdoor seating that I think are pet friendly. In that general area there's also a couple of gift shops, coffee shops, and a bookstore. It's not the coziest of bookstores (they do a lot of curated subscription boxes that they ship to people), but they're friendly.
Wilmette, the next city north, has a cute downtown and many of the restaurants have a fair amount of outdoor seating. I'm not positive which ones are dog friendly, unfortunately. There's also Heroines and Heroes, a local game store, if that's your kind of thing.
Oh! Pita Inn in Skokie is solid middle eastern food place. I wouldn't necessarily go out of my way for it, but it's our go to when we're lazy (they deliver). They also have an Impossible Kefta Kabob, in addition to standard vegetarian options (falafel and grape leaves).
Depending on your exact dates, Wilmette and Evanston have some low key out door events, like movies in the park. They're often family oriented, but if you check out their respective websites you should find the schedules for your trip to town.
posted by ghost phoneme at 1:22 PM on August 7, 2022 [1 favorite]
If you go to the farmer’s market, try to pick up string cheese from the cheese stand. It’s not cheap but it’s soooooo good.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 3:19 PM on August 7, 2022
posted by Lawn Beaver at 3:19 PM on August 7, 2022
If you're going to Ravinia consider taking the Metra. There's a stop right at the park.
La Principal, The Wine Goddess and Trattoria D.O.C. share an outdoor space on the weekends at Custer and Main. I don't think I've seen a dog there but you can always call one of the establishments to ask. The spaces are separate but it's easy enough to move to the Wine Goddess' section for a drink after your meal. La Principal is the most popular so show up early if you want tacos. Thursdays through Saturdays there are DJs providing dinner music, usually someone from Squeezebox down the street, although two weekends ago it was me.
Beyond the restaurants, that stretch of Main has some interesting shops, from Sherman to Hinman, straddling the train tracks and Chicago Avenue. Dave's Rock Shop has beautiful and/or nifty stuff at pretty much any price point and they don't mind if you're just looking--there's even a small paleontology museum in the basement.
Around the corner on Chicago Avenue are Few Distillery, which offers tours, and the Toby Jug Museum. A Toby Jug is a caricature in the form of a drinking vessel, and the museum is the happy result of an obsessive collector doing well in real estate. It's...overwhelming. Open by appointment only and well worth the effort.
If you're interested in history there's the Evanston History Center in the former home of Charles Gates Dawes, the only U.S. vice-president to have written a rock and roll hit song. There's also the former home of suffragist and prohibitionist Frances Willard, whose modest house I found a lot more interesting. The Women's Christian Temperance Union is still active, headquartered in a brick structure behind the house.
If you're on Central it's worth stopping in at the Evanston Art Center to take a quick look at their exhibitions (up until the 14th).
Evanston is full of beautiful and historic homes, so you should have no trouble finding interesting things to see while you walk your dog. Most blocks have alleys and I love walking through them to look for garages that still have barn doors or hay lofts, or inhabited coach houses, or other surprises like main houses or secret parks only accessible through the alley.
posted by hydrophonic at 9:55 PM on August 8, 2022 [1 favorite]
La Principal, The Wine Goddess and Trattoria D.O.C. share an outdoor space on the weekends at Custer and Main. I don't think I've seen a dog there but you can always call one of the establishments to ask. The spaces are separate but it's easy enough to move to the Wine Goddess' section for a drink after your meal. La Principal is the most popular so show up early if you want tacos. Thursdays through Saturdays there are DJs providing dinner music, usually someone from Squeezebox down the street, although two weekends ago it was me.
Beyond the restaurants, that stretch of Main has some interesting shops, from Sherman to Hinman, straddling the train tracks and Chicago Avenue. Dave's Rock Shop has beautiful and/or nifty stuff at pretty much any price point and they don't mind if you're just looking--there's even a small paleontology museum in the basement.
Around the corner on Chicago Avenue are Few Distillery, which offers tours, and the Toby Jug Museum. A Toby Jug is a caricature in the form of a drinking vessel, and the museum is the happy result of an obsessive collector doing well in real estate. It's...overwhelming. Open by appointment only and well worth the effort.
If you're interested in history there's the Evanston History Center in the former home of Charles Gates Dawes, the only U.S. vice-president to have written a rock and roll hit song. There's also the former home of suffragist and prohibitionist Frances Willard, whose modest house I found a lot more interesting. The Women's Christian Temperance Union is still active, headquartered in a brick structure behind the house.
If you're on Central it's worth stopping in at the Evanston Art Center to take a quick look at their exhibitions (up until the 14th).
Evanston is full of beautiful and historic homes, so you should have no trouble finding interesting things to see while you walk your dog. Most blocks have alleys and I love walking through them to look for garages that still have barn doors or hay lofts, or inhabited coach houses, or other surprises like main houses or secret parks only accessible through the alley.
posted by hydrophonic at 9:55 PM on August 8, 2022 [1 favorite]
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Northwestern University has a small island called the "lakefill" which makes for relaxing walks as well. You can take the bikes there and ride around, there's a bike path. On clear days you'll also get a view of Chicago's skyline from there.
Along Greenbay rd. you'll find the north shore channel trail which is nice for biking / walking, and has interesting sculptures scattered throughout.
Swimming at Evanston's beaches is relatively cheap (or used to be, it's been a few years since I've been there). There is a dog beach but from what I recall, it requires registration of the dog with the city (for rabies shots, etc.) and therefore isn't suitable for a short trip.
Skokie lagoons is nearby and nice for renting Canoes and exploring.
Tapas Barcelona is one of my favorite restaurants there, very tasty and at least as of 2-3 years ago had really good prices as well. But in general, the restaurant scene in downtown evanston is quite good, so you'll have no problem finding food of any sort.
posted by unid41 at 3:15 AM on August 7, 2022