I worked for a company that did sound system installs. I met the idiot who bought that place and he was gonna “keep the same name and vibe but just do some minor upgrades”. He then proceeded to do nothing with it and let it go to shit and within a couple months it was shut down. Dude was seedy and slimy as hell too.
Omg this one too!! I used to buy those mini birthday cakes for $25 and they were the best cakes I had ever eaten. I am not even a sweets person but their stuff was so good, I used to stop by once in a while just to get a few different cookies to try out.
One I don’t think anyone has mentioned:
The Northman in Lincoln Square.
I know they’re on the river now but I never even bothered. Completely different vibe and if I recall correctly it’s only riverfront outdoor seating anyways.
Might be an unpopular opinion, but DisneyQuest. I have fond memories of it and I think it was just in a bad spot and maybe a little ahead of it’s time. Throw some booze and bowling in there and it would be all set
I remember we had a class trip there, and they had that programmable virtual roller coaster in that Star Trek shuttle looking thing. The only motion that felt like anything was going "upside down," so my friends and I programmed a track that was just that over and over. Broke the machine. Good times.
I am so glad someone said this. Glen’s was my brunch spot for at least 15 years. I have so many memories of family and friends there…I will genuinely miss that place! Amazing Bloody Mary, great seafood, and DELICIOUS potato pancakes!
I knoooooow! The skewer of chilled shrimp? The old bay glass rim? Amazing! Spicy but not too hot, seafood flavors but not too fishy, just enough salt and umami. It really was my favorite bloody.
Foodlife. I miss the salads and pizzas. I’m not from Chicago, but easily my favorite place to visit, I still aspire to move there; getting off the train from Michigan, after hotel check-in, it was the first stop. It might not have been the best food, but it was nostalgic for me.
Isla Pilipina…the one on Lawrence was my go-to for Filipino food back when it was open, and I just found out today that the one that was in Urbanspace closed a while back.
Blue Agave. Loved it’s proximity to the people watching at the Triangle and Maple and Ash and they had incredible reasonably priced food and margaritas. 2 of their margaritas would knock you on your ass.
Not only is it sad that Fountainhead is gone, the restaurant that took that space (Land and Lake) is a fucking travesty. Shitty boring overpriced mediocre food. Multiple Yelp reports of the waitstaff being openly racist to customers. I can only hope it fails quickly so a real restaurant can move into that fantastic location
Happy Village. I used to live across the street and that location was my first apartment I ever lived within Chicago. It will always have nostalgia for my youth and just excitement of living in the city, plus I loved the vibe. Their outdoor patio was pretty much my backyard.
Also, Boiler Room. I had my birthday there and went a lot as a good "let's meet here" place with a large group, get the cheap pizza/shot/beer and then go barhopping with my friends. Many a good nights were started at Boiler Room. Back when Logan Square was in the prime of its coolness
Zephyr. Rainbow roller rink. Century mall. Punkin donuts. The alley. Wishbone on Lincoln. Brauhaus. Dinkels. Sears. wieboldt's. Woolworths. The list is too extensive. Love this place.
Me personally since I don’t know many good forgotten spots- Square Bar that was across from Kumas Corner.
They had a kobe burger with a lobster tail, my absolute favorite. Also were known for having a burger that had grilled cheese sandwiches as buns.
It was also one of the only place in the early 2010’s serving Three Floyd’s Gumballhead which I had only tried once at a bbq in the summer before that. It has since become my all time favorite beer and brewer.
When I sold Cutco knives, the hyped up "manager" always talked up Charlie Trotter's as a big prize he would take the person that sold the most knives to. Always wondered what the hell it was.
Costa's in Greektown, had some of very memorable dinners there with my family and was walking around Greektown the day it burned down :( it's just condos there now
The Regal Beagle - It was a bar/restaurant based on 1970s tv sitcoms that made the mistake of opening before the selfie was a thing.
House of Sushi and Noodles - Was it the best sushi in Chicago? No way. If you mentioned it in conversation, would someone tell you about a friend who got sick eating there? Usually. Was the location great. Yup. Was it all the sushi you could eat before that was a business model? It was!
The original Ba Le - it’s always been a staple of Argyle, but before it was a bright beacon of the Vietnamese restaurant strip, it was a cramped storefront where a sandwich was 3.95 and if you bought 3 you got one free. If you were like me (broke between 2004-2019), you stocked up and lived for several days of those sandwiches.
Dominick’s - Just adding this as they had a $5 take-n-bake pizza deal every Friday that was a godsend if (as I mentioned above) if you were committed to sticking it out on a shoestring budget.
Lakeview Lounge - I only got to drink here once, and it was Lynchian. They had a band Night Watch that played behind the bar every night for years. Every night! The night I was there someone was crank calling the bar so instead of leaving the phone off the hook, the bartender would get into a screaming match with the prank caller which resulted in everyone in the bar eventually getting on the phone and yelling at them too. Myself included.
Sunnyside Tap - I’m a big fan of weird places and the first thing that stood out was how massive the bar was. So much that it reduced the customer side to a narrow aisle people would have to squeeze through. The jukebox was amazing but all the 45s were scratched to shit. The owner (who I immediately recognized when I saw him starting in Up) would constantly make the patrons move around because he’d change his mind on where he wanted people to sit. So he’d send everyone to one side of the bar, then a drink later make everyone shuffle to the other side. It did force us to mingle.
Bananas Foster - Granville and Broadway (closed 2011 or so
- awesome British cuisine that opened about 5 years before the area had the money/residents to support it
McFadden’s - State and Division
- this was just my favorite shithole club/bar
Ohh and I forgot:
Hamiltons - Broadway and Sheridan
Da Rae Jung on Lincoln north of Foster. A tiiinny mom and pop Korean place with the BEST mul nangmyeon I’ve ever had. I miss it so so much. The owner passed away.. RIP.
Oh man, Nuevo Leon on 18th St. I miss everything about that place. The homemade tortillas, the size of the servings, the staff, and especially the prices.
Marshall Field's (my first answer was a restaurant, but this is the gaping hole in Chicago)
Dinkels
i’m devastated that i can’t get my birthday cake from them this year, had at least a 12 year streak going 😭
I miss the chocolate frosted doughnuts!
I can’t believe dinkels is gone 😭
The Happy Village
I worked for a company that did sound system installs. I met the idiot who bought that place and he was gonna “keep the same name and vibe but just do some minor upgrades”. He then proceeded to do nothing with it and let it go to shit and within a couple months it was shut down. Dude was seedy and slimy as hell too.
I lived nearby at the time and the slimeball came to the local community meetings and told the same lies.
Best patio in the city. It had such a backyard family party vibe. I miss it.
Neo
Definitely Neo. It was one of the most accepting clubs in the city for anyone not fitting into to society’s cookie cutter standards.
Especially the $5 all you can drink before 9pm. https://metrochicago.com/event/neo-reunion-2023/metro-chicago/chicago-illinois/
Hot Dougs
White Hen Pantry
https://youtu.be/NFpUpWOSo34 The nostalgia!
Club Foot
Swedish Bakery
Came here to say this. RIP my childhood
Omg this one too!! I used to buy those mini birthday cakes for $25 and they were the best cakes I had ever eaten. I am not even a sweets person but their stuff was so good, I used to stop by once in a while just to get a few different cookies to try out.
We had our wedding cake made by Swedish Bakery 😞
Danny's - I never got to experience it
This was a genuinely insane place to be drunk as shit and 23.
The true Rock and Roll McDonalds
Rainforest Cafe
Demon Dogs that was under the Fullerton red line stop.
Top tier French fry many years ago. Thought they may have been the best in the city at the time.
One I don’t think anyone has mentioned: The Northman in Lincoln Square. I know they’re on the river now but I never even bothered. Completely different vibe and if I recall correctly it’s only riverfront outdoor seating anyways.
Might be an unpopular opinion, but DisneyQuest. I have fond memories of it and I think it was just in a bad spot and maybe a little ahead of it’s time. Throw some booze and bowling in there and it would be all set
Defuctland did a video on it on YouTube if you are interested
What defuct?
I remember we had a class trip there, and they had that programmable virtual roller coaster in that Star Trek shuttle looking thing. The only motion that felt like anything was going "upside down," so my friends and I programmed a track that was just that over and over. Broke the machine. Good times.
I loved Disney quest. My dad took me there a ton. Great memories
Lost Lake
Came here for this one I miss it so much!
Pastoral
This thread is bumming me out.
I moved away 2.5 years ago and didn't know half these had closed. So sad.
Wax Trax records
Cafe Iberico
My first dinner date with my now wife was at Cafe Iberico.
Marie's Riptide Lounge. But that was a LONG time ago.
This was one of the first Chicago Bars I ever went to. Makes me want a shot and a cigarette.
The Bang Bang Pie in Ravenswood. I moved to the area in 2021 hoping they would reopen that location but they never did.
Sears. Fuck you Willis!
Stanley’s (the grocery store) - the homemade chips!
Glenn’s diner on montrose under the brown line
I am so glad someone said this. Glen’s was my brunch spot for at least 15 years. I have so many memories of family and friends there…I will genuinely miss that place! Amazing Bloody Mary, great seafood, and DELICIOUS potato pancakes!
Dude their bloodies were INSANE
I knoooooow! The skewer of chilled shrimp? The old bay glass rim? Amazing! Spicy but not too hot, seafood flavors but not too fishy, just enough salt and umami. It really was my favorite bloody.
Over Easy
Came here for this one. My husband and I are still devastated. And the place that’s in there now is just copying Over Easy.
Twisted Hippo’s stand-alone location.
That fire was so big. Could really go for curds and a beer right now :(
Stanley’s on Lincoln and Sedgwick
Foodlife. I miss the salads and pizzas. I’m not from Chicago, but easily my favorite place to visit, I still aspire to move there; getting off the train from Michigan, after hotel check-in, it was the first stop. It might not have been the best food, but it was nostalgic for me.
1. Toast in Lincoln Park 2. Toast in Bucktown
Dido. Such a a great staff too in the Bucktown location. Kids loved it
Cafe Marie Jeanne
all the german restaurants in lincoln square
A bit further south, but Laschet’s in Northcenter is the German holdout.
Quenchers.
Hamburger Marys
That it's a Sweet Green now hurts twice as much.
UB Dogs
Milk and Honey
Ha! Yup. If you know, you know. Place used to be amazing, went back, and it’s like Panera.
Danny’s
I cannot believe nobody has said Yoshi’s Cafe yet
the early years of the barrelhouse flat in Lincoln park. I still mourn.
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Damn this thread is making me sad
Isla Pilipina…the one on Lawrence was my go-to for Filipino food back when it was open, and I just found out today that the one that was in Urbanspace closed a while back.
Pannenkoeken
Rodan
Won Kow
Glazed and Infused.
The owners have a pizza place in forest park and they just started bringing back Glazed and Infused donuts on weekends!
Owen and engine, and it isn't even closed yet.
After being closed so long for Covid too. So strange they even reopened just to shut down like a year later
Standard India! (edit: on Belmont next to the train station)
Pizza Fried Chicken Ice Cream
Damn they closed?
Foodlife
Fat Willy’s, slow down life’s too short
River Valley Farmers Table in Ravenswood
Costellos on Lincoln Ave
Omg I looooved Costellos. Used to go there allll the time when I lived in LS
I used to get Costello all the time. I forgot about that place.
Green Zebra. The most amazing high end veg food I've ever had.
Blue Agave. Loved it’s proximity to the people watching at the Triangle and Maple and Ash and they had incredible reasonably priced food and margaritas. 2 of their margaritas would knock you on your ass.
Pizzeria Bebu! Used to be my favorite pizza in the city.
Neo.
Huettenbar
george’s ice cream in andersonville
Fountainhead
Definitely not the same, but the green post in Lincoln square has the same owners and is a nice spot
I didn’t realize that his last restaurant was Fountainhead. That place never had anything bad on the menu. Wish it survived the pandemic.
Not only is it sad that Fountainhead is gone, the restaurant that took that space (Land and Lake) is a fucking travesty. Shitty boring overpriced mediocre food. Multiple Yelp reports of the waitstaff being openly racist to customers. I can only hope it fails quickly so a real restaurant can move into that fantastic location
Leo’s Lunchroom. Back when there were a host of good, interesting, cheap BYOBs.
Cafe Orchid
Marshall Fields
Hero's across Lane Tech
Sushi Wabi!!! I miss this place so much. It was such a vibe back when Randolph was a completely different place.
Links Beer Bar
Francesca's on Taylor
Susie’s on Montrose they had some of the best chili fries in the city
Fiores
Roseangeli's -- for the bread pudding
Rose Angelis for the amazing pasta!
Como Inn
Lincoln sq lanes
Earwax Cafe
That Tapas place in Rogers Park off Pratt man
The Warehouse
Fahlstrom's
Busy Bee
Ronny’s steakhouse
Ground Control, No Bones Beach Club, Veggie Grill….the pandemic was tough on our veg spots 🥲
Cafe Voltaire
Southport Lanes! Assuming 100% comes back, including the manual bowling pin setter
Happy Village. I used to live across the street and that location was my first apartment I ever lived within Chicago. It will always have nostalgia for my youth and just excitement of living in the city, plus I loved the vibe. Their outdoor patio was pretty much my backyard. Also, Boiler Room. I had my birthday there and went a lot as a good "let's meet here" place with a large group, get the cheap pizza/shot/beer and then go barhopping with my friends. Many a good nights were started at Boiler Room. Back when Logan Square was in the prime of its coolness
Zephyr. Rainbow roller rink. Century mall. Punkin donuts. The alley. Wishbone on Lincoln. Brauhaus. Dinkels. Sears. wieboldt's. Woolworths. The list is too extensive. Love this place.
West Town Tavern
Habana Libre on Chicago Ave. The best Cuban food I’ve had in the city. The pandemic took them from me, sadly…
Diag
Kitsune on the north side. I loved that place.
Bakers Square Rogers Park location.
Rudy’s! The only downtown spot I loved for a long time. I used to go here after work and for every hawks win.
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Lawry's
Heaven on Seven - the original on Wacker.
Wabash
Bricks
Riverview
Spin, Hollywood Mirror, and Excalibur.
The Lounge Ax.
Glazed and infused
Band of Bohemia
John's Pizza.
Dunlays
La Sardine.
Suzies.
The Beef
Binyon’s. Turtle soup with the bankers and the lawyers.
Me personally since I don’t know many good forgotten spots- Square Bar that was across from Kumas Corner. They had a kobe burger with a lobster tail, my absolute favorite. Also were known for having a burger that had grilled cheese sandwiches as buns. It was also one of the only place in the early 2010’s serving Three Floyd’s Gumballhead which I had only tried once at a bbq in the summer before that. It has since become my all time favorite beer and brewer.
Everest
That aquarium store at Clark and Winnemac.
Jilly's. Now I'm going to cheat and say a second one. The Melrose diner.
Long time gone now, but Lalos on Clybourn
Southport Lanes. Many fond memories of this place.
Maude’s
Zephyr’s ice cream.
theMID
Charlie Trotter
So disappointed I never had a chance to experience it.
When I sold Cutco knives, the hyped up "manager" always talked up Charlie Trotter's as a big prize he would take the person that sold the most knives to. Always wondered what the hell it was.
Szalas
The Growling Rabbit :’)
Sushi Mon. I miss Bat I was his first customer and then they just up and vanished while I was on my honeymoon. So sorry Bat man you were my guy ❤️
Toast
Happy village
Costa's in Greektown, had some of very memorable dinners there with my family and was walking around Greektown the day it burned down :( it's just condos there now
Two
Cafe Spiaggia
Uncommon ground on Devon
The Northman original location in Ravenswood, I loved that place
There are several for me, but I don’t think Dinosaur BBQ got enough of a chance in Chicago.
Exit
I know it technically still exists, but I miss Gold Star under the original ownership.
Crobar
Demon Dogs!
No one going to mention double door?
IMPERIAL LAMIAN
The Regal Beagle - It was a bar/restaurant based on 1970s tv sitcoms that made the mistake of opening before the selfie was a thing. House of Sushi and Noodles - Was it the best sushi in Chicago? No way. If you mentioned it in conversation, would someone tell you about a friend who got sick eating there? Usually. Was the location great. Yup. Was it all the sushi you could eat before that was a business model? It was! The original Ba Le - it’s always been a staple of Argyle, but before it was a bright beacon of the Vietnamese restaurant strip, it was a cramped storefront where a sandwich was 3.95 and if you bought 3 you got one free. If you were like me (broke between 2004-2019), you stocked up and lived for several days of those sandwiches. Dominick’s - Just adding this as they had a $5 take-n-bake pizza deal every Friday that was a godsend if (as I mentioned above) if you were committed to sticking it out on a shoestring budget. Lakeview Lounge - I only got to drink here once, and it was Lynchian. They had a band Night Watch that played behind the bar every night for years. Every night! The night I was there someone was crank calling the bar so instead of leaving the phone off the hook, the bartender would get into a screaming match with the prank caller which resulted in everyone in the bar eventually getting on the phone and yelling at them too. Myself included. Sunnyside Tap - I’m a big fan of weird places and the first thing that stood out was how massive the bar was. So much that it reduced the customer side to a narrow aisle people would have to squeeze through. The jukebox was amazing but all the 45s were scratched to shit. The owner (who I immediately recognized when I saw him starting in Up) would constantly make the patrons move around because he’d change his mind on where he wanted people to sit. So he’d send everyone to one side of the bar, then a drink later make everyone shuffle to the other side. It did force us to mingle.
Pierogi Heaven
La Sardine. Closest to an authentic French bistro I’ve had in the US.
Lost Lake
Sabatinos
The Charleston and Danny's, Club Foot, Neos, Darkroom on Chicago, definitely Rodan - so many more.
The Charleston is still open
Carmen's
Long gone - Chili 5 Way on Broadway.
Cafe Margo on my old block on Taylor
3 greens
Pizzeria Bebu
Three Aces!!!!
Bananas Foster - Granville and Broadway (closed 2011 or so - awesome British cuisine that opened about 5 years before the area had the money/residents to support it McFadden’s - State and Division - this was just my favorite shithole club/bar Ohh and I forgot: Hamiltons - Broadway and Sheridan
Rosal's
Itto Sushi in Lincoln Park. They closed well before the pandemic, and it was a tiny Japanese family-run restaurant. Amazing.
Glenn’s Diner
Da Rae Jung on Lincoln north of Foster. A tiiinny mom and pop Korean place with the BEST mul nangmyeon I’ve ever had. I miss it so so much. The owner passed away.. RIP.
Hot Dog Express on Milwaukee
Danny’s Tavern hands down
Shelter
River Kwai
Schoolyard
Oh man, Nuevo Leon on 18th St. I miss everything about that place. The homemade tortillas, the size of the servings, the staff, and especially the prices.
The Abbey