10 cheap eats rooms in Chicago, editor-picked. the best low-budget rooms in Chicago — the places editors actually return to. All Chicago food.
Johnnie's Beef ★ 4.6
elmwood-park · 7500 W North Ave, Elmwood Park, IL 60707
Johnnie's Beef in Elmwood Park is the suburban-edge Italian-beef counter on North Avenue since 1961, known for the combo (beef and sausage) and the Italian lemonade.
Tip: Cash only. Two lines: one for sandwiches, one for Italian lemonade. They are not the same staff.
La Chaparrita ★ 4.6
little-village · 2500 S Whipple St, Chicago, IL 60623
La Chaparrita in Chicago is the Little Village taqueria off 26th Street with handmade-tortilla tacos from a small storefront counter, run by the Loera family.
Tip: Cash only. The salsas at the counter are unmarked; ask which is the hottest and start there.
Gene & Jude's ★ 4.5
river-grove · 2720 N River Rd, River Grove, IL 60171
Gene & Jude's in River Grove is the 1946 hot-dog stand on River Road, west of Chicago: no ketchup, no tomato, no cheese, no chairs, just dogs, fries and drinks.
Tip: Fries are tucked into the same paper as the dog. Eat them off the dog as you go, that is the point of the design.
Calumet Fisheries ★ 4.5
east-side · 3259 E 95th St, Chicago, IL 60617
Calumet Fisheries in Chicago is the East Side smokehouse on the 95th Street bridge since 1948, with smoked chub, fried perch and shrimp wrapped in butcher paper.
Tip: Cash only, no seating. Walk to the bridge and eat the chub on the railing watching the boats; that is the meal.
Vito & Nick's Pizzeria ★ 4.4
ashburn · 8433 S Pulaski Rd, Chicago, IL 60652
Vito & Nick's in Chicago is the Ashburn tavern serving the canonical tavern-cut thin pizza on South Pulaski since 1949, family-owned across four generations.
Tip: Cash and the bar are the rhythm; first come first served. The kitchen closes at 22:00 sharp; arrive by 21:00.
Mr. Beef on Orleans ★ 4.4
river-north · 666 N Orleans St, Chicago, IL 60654
Mr. Beef on Orleans in Chicago is the no-frills Italian-beef counter that inspired The Bear, opened by Joe Zucchero in 1979, with a sandwich line out past the kerb.
Tip: Cash only and counter only. Closes by 16:30 on weekdays, earlier on weekends.
Al's Beef (Taylor Street) ★ 4.3
little-italy · 1079 W Taylor St, Chicago, IL 60607
Al's Beef on Taylor Street in Chicago is the original 1938 storefront opened by Al Ferreri, the Italian-beef sandwich on Gonnella bread that defined the genre.
Tip: Eat standing at the counter with the lean-rail. The sandwich does not survive a sit-down booth structurally.
Superdawg Drive-In ★ 4.3
norwood-park · 6363 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL 60646
Superdawg in Chicago is the 1948 Norwood Park drive-in on Milwaukee Avenue, with car-hop service and a pair of giant Superdawg-and-Maurie figurines on the roof.
Tip: Use the car-hop. It is the same price as the counter and the experience is the point.
Portillo's Hot Dogs ★ 4.2
river-north · 100 W Ontario St, Chicago, IL 60610
Portillo's in Chicago is the Ontario Street flagship of the chain founded 1963 by Dick Portillo, with Chicago hot dogs, Italian beef and the chocolate cake shake.
Tip: Drive-thru is faster than the counter. The chocolate cake shake is a chocolate shake with a slice of chocolate cake blended into the cup.
The Wieners Circle ★ 4.2
lincoln-park · 2622 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60614
The Wieners Circle in Chicago is the Lincoln Park late-night hot dog counter on Clark Street, open since 1983, famous for the staff-and-customer banter past 02:00.
Tip: The shouting is the show. If you are not up for the banter, the daytime queue is exactly the same dog without the audience.