Curated City Guides by Your Favorite Designers and Tastemakers.
Chicago:
Meg Lewis
of Ghostly Ferns
Bars & Restaurants
Friends Sushi
My absolute favorite sushi place. The decor is slightly 2001 A Space Odyssey mixed with chic japanese. It's a super tiny restaurant in the heart of the Michigan Ave nonsense. Make sure to get the sweet potato tempura and a glass of plum wine for me! 710 N Rush St
Fountainhead
Amazing eatery. Amazing food. Really amazing beer selection. I'm a stout lover, this place has a huge list of stouts and porters. My dream come true! Their mac & cheese is pretty great too! 1970 W Montrose Ave
The Bad Apple
Delish! They have my one of my favorite beers on tap (Lefthand's Milk Stout). And they infuse their ketchup with beer. Good fries and even better burgers! 4300 N Lincoln Ave
Guthrie's Tavern
I live in Wrigleyville. It's dang hard to find a bar that isn't completely bro-tastic. However, Guthrie's remains the most cozy and cute hangout spot for the rest of us. They have a huge selection of board games and a giant bucket o' take out menus. They let you get food delivered straight to the bar! 1300 W Addison St
Wow Bao
My biggest guilty pleasure. They have a few locations in chicago. Bao are the best thing ever. Their fresh ginger ale is also pretty freaking amazing. Multiple locations
Wishbone
Soul food with a surprising amount of vegan & vegetarian options. Best cole slaw ever! 3300 N Lincoln Ave
Cafe Selmarie
Cute little french cafe in Lincoln Square. A great place to take your mom. I rarely ever see any men in this place. However, they have the best vegetarian chilli. It's the kind of place to duck in when it's raining. 4729 N Lincoln Ave
Shops
Orange Beautiful
A great letterpress company with a shop built-in! They sell the cutest cards and gifties. I'm not doing it justice. It's really great! 4658 N Damen Ave
Merz Apothecary
An amazing drug store of sorts in Lincoln Square. They sell great foreign or hard to find body products. It's also an apothecary (obviously). Expect to spend a lot and leave very happy. 4716 N Lincoln Ave
P+L
A great boutique. Not much else to say. The employees are always really nice, which is definitely a plus right? 2956 N Clark St
Twosided
Connected to P+L. Sells the most wonderful vintage gifties and new amazingness too. Their visual merchandising is out of this world. 2958 N Clark St
Sprout Home
My favorite home store in Chicago. They sell one-of-a-kind vintage pieces. Great if you're looking for old jars, mix-matched silverwear, or things for your garden. 745 N Damen Ave
The Paperboy
Great little paper store in my neighborhood. A better, more local version of Paper Source. They sell a lot of things from small presses. It's nice to see a cute, successful company supporting the little guy! Good for cards and gifts. 1351 W Belmont
Flight 001
I know other cities have Flight 001, but I have to recommend it any way. A travel store that sells really interesting products all while looking like a fuselage. Say wha? 1133 N State St
ETC.
Brew & View at the Vic
The Vic theatre turns into the Brew & View on nights they don't have concerts. You can see a double or triple feature for only $5. Cheap beer is on tap and crappy pizza too. Such a good time! 3145 N Sheffield Ave
Tree House Humane Society
The place I adopted my 2 kitties. I can't say enough about Tree House. An old victorian home that houses hundreds of cats. A no-kill, no-cage place for kitties to run free. Sometimes I go just to hang out with them. There are 2 locations in Chicago. 1212 W Carmen Ave