Illustration: David Heo
MADE IN CHICAGO: GOODS & SERVICES
Best commercial snack cake invented in Chicago
Twinkies
Every fast-food addict (and former kid) has an enduring affection for Twinkies, the cream-filled sponge cakes produced by Hostess. Twinkies made their debut in Schiller Park in 1930, the creation of baker James Alexander Dewar. They were originally filled with banana cream; during a World War II banana shortage, vanilla cream was subbed in—and Twinkies never looked back. (Robert Rodi)
Best made-in-Chicago harps since 1864
Lyon & Healy Harps
Bostonians George W. Lyon and Patrick J. Healy walked up to the muddy intersection of Clark and Washington in 1864 and, realizing that Chicago was a growing city, opened a sheet music store. At that time Chicago had little in the way of culture and by the end of the year the business flourished with over $100,000 in sales. They expanded to building musical instruments, and in 1889 unveiled their first Lyon & Healy harp. Soon, they were recognized by symphonies around the world, and praise led the Steinway Company to grant them sole territorial rights to sell the world’s most coveted pianos. The company has made the instruments played by angels since 1890 at their facility at Lake and Ogden, and since that time their “Style 23” Harp and “Salzedo” Harp have become the most recognized in the world. The facility thrives, carving intricate patterns and adorning them with strings just as they have for 130 years. (David Witter)
169 N. Ogden, lyonhealy.com
Best bet to learn everything there is to know about buttons
Busy Beaver
A Chicago button store. The world’s only button museum. Busy Beaver has come a long way since Christen Carter started the business out of her college apartment in 1995. Learn all about buttons and their history—did you know they were first patented in 1896?—relive the time when you used to show off your style by putting pins on backpacks, hats and denim jackets, and even make your own. Busy Beaver is your one-stop for all your button needs after creating over 85,000 designs and producing tens of millions of buttons. (Vasia Rigou)
3407 W. Armitage, 773.645.3359, busybeaver.net
Best traditional snack cake invented in Chicago
The brownie
The brownie made its debut at the Palmer House when Bertha Palmer, wife of the hotel’s millionaire owner, ordered up a new dessert to serve at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. It’s an oddly aristocratic origin for so democratic a dessert, cherished and consumed by children, chocoholics and stoners alike. And fittingly, the Palmer House version—using the original recipe of semi-sweet chocolate, apricot glaze and crushed walnuts—ranks among the city’s finest. (Robert Rodi)
Palmer House, 17 E. Monroe
Best Chicago-made hypebeast
Joe Freshgoods / Fat Tiger Works
Over the last decade, Chicago streetwear companies have built a solid foundation to expand onto the worldwide scene. Joe Freshgoods made his name on quick turnarounds of cleverly produced T-shirts, sweatshirts, hats and other gear. His designs sway between the smooth classical and the disruptive, often using celebrity or brand likenesses until he gets a cease-and-desist. In the last couple of years he’s garnered collaborations with McDonald’s, the Chicago Bears and Snapple. With his Fat Tiger Workshop storefront on Milwaukee, he and a dedicated crew of creatives and designers dictate the next generation of street fashion in Chicago. (Jake Krzeczowski)
836 N. Milwaukee, 312.344.1070, Joefreshgoods.com
Best Chicago-made incubator
Brandon Breaux & Invisible Space
The artist behind Chance The Rapper’s “10 Day,” “Acid Rap” and “Coloring Book” album covers has been developing his message through his work and building a community around it. Breaux opened his Invisible Space gallery and retail outlet in 2018, which serves as an open platform for creative endeavors by locals and fills gaps in the surrounding area. Breaux introduced the concept behind his mental wellness-based initiative with a featured booth at this year’s Complexcon Chicago. Expect plenty more from this enterprising young Chicagoan. (Jake Krzecwoski)
GOODS & SERVICES
Best thrift store that doesn’t remind you of a dimly lit elementary-school hallway
The Brown Elephant
In addition to being bright, fun and funky, The Brown Elephant resale shops don’t hoard profits for CEOs. All proceeds from The Brown Elephant shops benefit LGBTQ health and fund care for the uninsured and underinsured at Howard Brown Health. Not only will you score a great deal on furniture or wardrobe pieces, your money goes to a good cause. The stores don’t feel claustrophobic or rundown: you stop in and you’ll want to spend time there. Plus, the staff members are amazing and the wares consistently topnotch. (Amanda Finn)
3020 N. Lincoln, 5404 N. Clark, 217 Harrison in Oak Park
Best ninety-nine-percent-off sale
Cards Against Humanity, Black Friday
From the flight suit Bill Pullman wore in “Independence Day” for $39.95 to a twenty-dollar bill for only twenty cents, Cards Against Humanity offered an absurd item for ninety-nine percent off every ten minutes on Black Friday last year. Previously, the company has raised its prices for the consumerist holiday, sold literal bullshit in a box, and relaunched as a potato chip brand, Prongles. At press time, we’re waiting to see what hijinx might be in the works for Black Friday this year. (Tanner Woodford)
Best dog beach
Montrose Beach
We mere persons look for isolation in a beach; the more room we have to spread out, the more we like it. But our canine companions love to rub elbows and this is the place for them to do it. The city’s first legal off-leash dog beach is large enough to welcome multiple stampeding packs of tennis-ball-chasing visitors, and it’s sufficiently owner-friendly to furnish free poop bags and a dog-wash zone. It’s open during regular Park District hours, and it’s always happy anarchy. Admission is free—though Dog Friendly Area (DFA) tags are required. You can get them from your vet for five bucks. (Robert Rodi)
4400 N. Lake Shore Drive, 312-74-BEACH, chicagoparkdistrict.com/index.php/parks-facilities/montrose-beach
Best thrift store in Chicago
Village Discount
It’s all about Chicago thrift. Whether Bucktown or Uptown, there’s a cavern of castoffs waiting to get a second chance at life, as someone’s favorite party dress or a decade-appropriate costume piece. Hats off to Village Discount on Milwaukee, and keep the vibes high, places like this are sacred spaces. (Kaycie Surrell)
Village Discount, 2032 N. Milwaukee, 708.388.4772
Best plus-size-focused clothing shop
Inside popular Chicago shop Lost Girls Vintage (the 1976 RV-turned-vintage boutique) you’ll find Luvsick Plus—a heavenly selection of plus-size vintage curated by Britteny Riordan. Not only do they carry “plus-size vintage for all fearless fat babes” they host fun events. (Kaycie Surrell)
1947 W. Chicago, lostgirlschicago.com
Best gift shop to bring your friends laughs
Steel Petal Press
There’s just no way you won’t find a perfect gift at Steel Petal Press. And it will likely make your giftee laugh—while costing less than fifty bucks. Steel Petal Press carries all those non-necessities people love getting, such as: bath bombs by Whiskey River Soap Co., with scents such as “Margarita Pool” and “Sad Birthday Cake” ($9); Broad City coloring books ($15); Twin Peaks candles ($18); wine glasses that say “Self care” and “Welcome to the shitshow” ($15); pocketbooks with titles such as “RGB wisdom” and “Michelle Obama wisdom” ($10); a whole section dedicated to pet-related knickknacks; another featuring tasteful Chicago-inspired souvenirs; decor objects, cards, games, mugs, pouches, stationery…. “Our goal is to share beautiful items that help people laugh, and to spread a little joy in the world,” says owner Shayna Norwood. Mission accomplished! (Isa Giallorenzo)
2321 N. Milwaukee, 773.234.7758, steelpetalpress.com
Best Illinois hotel right on Lake Michigan
Illinois Beach Hotel
Situated just sixty miles from the Loop, Illinois Beach State Park and the Illinois Beach Hotel provide a serene and surreal weekend getaway for Chicago city dwellers. Serene, because the hotel is within steps of the beach, and you can have a quiet, undisturbed walk along the shore or through the park. Surreal, because the beach’s concession stands and shower facilities were abandoned years ago, and make you feel like you have survived the apocalypse. Feeding that vibe is the fact that the beach and park are in Zion, near the site of a decommissioned nuclear power plant. The hotel is also the only hotel on the Illinois shore of Lake Michigan, but has a pool, comfortable rooms and is reasonably priced. The state park has camping facilities too. (Bart Lazar)
Ilresorts.com
Best new community resource
The Chicago Tool Library
Everyone could use a power screwdriver once in a while, but not enough to justify finding the space in a city apartment to stash it. That kind of luxury purchase could even be out of reach entirely. Enter the Chicago Tool Library, which opened in late August in Bridgeport. For a modest, sliding-scale membership fee, you can borrow everything from a sewing machine to a power washer to a camping tent, with instruction on proper use. Founders Tessa Vierk and Jim Benton share a vision of a brand new commons that became a success in its first months. Thanks to plentiful donations, the library’s collection boasts over 500 tools. Their biggest need: knowledgeable volunteers to sharpen blades, repair power cables and clean gunk out of mechanical bits. Need a tool? Swing by and browse. Know about tools? Lend your skills to training a patron or maintaining a tool that will be put to good community use. (Sharon Hoyer)
1048 W. 37th, chicagotoollibrary.org
Best place to learn about pre-internet dating services in Chicago
“A Gentleman’s Guide to Single Women in Chicago”
Head over to Sulzer Regional Library in Lincoln Square (or pick up a used copy online) to page through “A Gentleman’s Guide to Single Women in Chicago.” Advent, a bygone Oak Brook firm published this text, attributed to Robert J. Brennan, bearing a single rose on the cover in 1982 to spotlight Windy City bachelorettes. To be considered for inclusion, bachelorettes submitted a lengthy application vetted and scored by the Gentleman’s Guide board, who weighed accomplishments, aspirations and each bachelorette’s “feelings toward masculinity.” The top 150 scores made it in. Profiles feature bachelorette photo, basic stats (height, weight, occupation), a one-page personal statement, and contact info, typically through the publisher. “The Gentleman’s Guide” author and publisher recommends interested gentlemen include a photo of their own along with correspondence, with the caveat, “It would be my hope that you are all intelligent enough individuals to judge yourself accordingly.” (John Moss)
Sulzer Regional Library, 4455 N. Lincoln, REF, HQ800.N624 1982
Best store to buy trinkets and doodads
Foursided
Need succulent candles? Chicago-inspired paraphernalia? Chortle-worthy greeting cards? Miscellaneous animal trinkets you absolutely must have? Get to Foursided. You’ll walk in thinking you just need a card for your friend’s birthday and walk out with at least seven grab bags. Don’t worry, grab bags save you money, right? They stop me from grabbing every item off the shelf and spending a whole paycheck. Their inventory is always changing, which means there is always a fresh reason to drop by. With three locations there are more places to explore. Get your doodad treasure hunt on! (Amanda Finn)
5061 N. Clark, 2958 N. Clark, 2939 N. Broadway, foursided.com
Best Analogue Apparition
The Persistence of Central Camera
It’s not the neon signage beneath the El on Wabash that makes Central Camera Company—“Chicago’s Most Complete Photographic Store,” 1940s-style window lettering boasts—a beacon for a bastion of old-school authenticity: it’s the sustenance of a culture of analogue media—not limited to 35mm film and new and used equipment—for generations of students from nearby institutions as well as hobbyists, artists and anyone who wants to get offline for one stop-shopping and have the goods defined and explained and handed across in a bag: hands are held as much or as little as necessary. It’s been that way for 120 family-owned years. (Ray Pride)
230 S. Wabash, 800.421.1899, centralcamera.com
Best place to go when you’re supposed to go somewhere else
Ralph’s Cigars
For more than two decades, Ralph’s Cigars has been as much a fixture on Taylor Street as Mario’s Italian Lemonade and Rosebud’s. Ralph’s stocks a range of quality handmade cigars, does a brisk business in flavored cigars and keeps prices sane. But anybody who spends time in cigar shops knows that what makes a great cigar shop is the people. It starts with Ralph Rubalcava, who grew up in the neighborhood and when prompted will give lively accounts of the retail history, the major and minor hoods, the celebrities, the politicians, the tragedies and the triumphs. Ralph knows everybody and everybody knows Ralph. His daughters Maddy and Marisa, along with a rotating lineup of part-timers, mind the counter. The regulars range from ex-cons to cops of all variety—SWAT, detectives, beat patrols, security guards. There are lots of veterans, as well as preachers. A real estate guy and a printer. Car washers and school counselors. Writers and cartoonists. Construction workers and house flippers. You’ll see local sports stars, musicians, aldermen, too. Studs Terkel used to stop in to grab his smokes. All these people are stationed in front of one or the other TV, lounging in one of the vinyl chairs, or out back on the patio. When somebody needs a mechanic, or an opinion on the best beef sandwich, or a line on tickets to the playoffs, all you have to do is ask around the shop. Ralph’s, over the years, has been the site of celebrations—birthdays, holidays, going-away parties, the annual Thanksgiving dinner—as well as respectful memorials to mark the passing of those who were part of the extended Ralph’s family. As Ralph will tell you, “Relax. You’re living the life.” (Don Evans)
1154 W. Taylor, 312.829.0672, ralphcigars.com
