Elston Avenue Diagonal streets are generally the reason traffic can get so snarled ‘round these parts, but Elston Avenue is the city’s true shortcut, rarely overcrowded, darting its way southeast to northwest, a transport to anywhere on the North Side. Lake Shore Drive has its visual perks, for sure, but there’s always an inherent “I’m risking my life” quality while you swerve up and down the Lake. Elston’s the practical choice, and along the way you witness the underbelly of Chicago—the grit, the smell, The Hideout.
