Top 5
Places for afternoon tea
Aion
2135 W. Division St.
773-489-1534
This year-old Wicker Park spot serves tea every day (except Monday, when it’s closed) from 11 a.m. to early evening, offering more than 100 varieties of loose-leaf teas.
Atwood Cafe
Hotel Burnham
1 W. Washington St.
312-368-1900
Reservations go fast at this restaurant’s popular tea service, available only during the holiday season (November and December, Mondays through Fridays). This a perfect place to rest up after gawking at window decorations.
Joy of Ireland
700 N. Michigan Ave.
312-664-7290
Tea and pastries are all they do at this third-floor shop, which naturally specializes in Irish and British tea blends and imports its breads from Ireland.
Park Hyatt
800 N. Michigan Ave.
312-335-1234
In the NoMI lounge, whose windows offer seventh-floor views of the Water Tower and surrounding area, afternoon tea is served daily from 3:30-5:30 p.m. No reservations accepted.
Peninsula Chicago
108 E. Superior St.
312-573-6760
One of the most elegant teas in the city, accompanied by a harpist or pianist, is served in the Peninsula’s glorious lobby. The traditional tea, offered daily, includes an assortment of finger sandwiches, quiche and pastries — all first-rate.
Top 5
Restaurants near Soldier Field
Chicago Firehouse
1401 S. Michigan Ave.
312-786-1401
This classy steak-and-seafood house is built into an old fire station. Open from 2-10 p.m. Sundays; at press time, a Sunday brunch was “in the works.”
Gioco
1312 S. Wabash Ave.
312-939-3870
First-rate rustic Italian cuisine is served here; the urban-distressed decor hints at the building’s onetime existence as a speakeasy.
Opera
1301 S. Wabash Ave.
312-461-0161
Across the street from its sibling, Gioco, Opera offers upscale and inventive Chinese dishes in very contemporary surroundings; try for a “vault” table.
Oysy
888 S. Michigan Ave.
312-922-1127
Great for a quick bite, this izagaya, or Japanese bistro, serves traditional and inventive sushi plus small-portion cooked dishes in a contemporary, minimalist environment.
Room 12
1152 S. Wabash Ave.
312-427-9972
Pre-game breakfasters can fuel up on terrific pancakes and omelets at this sequel to the Bongo Room in Wicker Park. And they can walk to the stadium.
Top 5
Fall Colors Destinations
Bistro 157
157 W. Lincolnway
Valparaiso, Ind.
219-462-0992
If you’re wandering Indiana, make time for this unique restaurant, which routinely offers sushi, risotto and paella –plus American dishes — on the same menu. (Also check out Clayton’s, an excellent contemporary American a block to the east.)
Courtright’s
8989 Archer Ave.
Willow Springs
708-839-8000
Surrounded by forest preserve and boasting large picture windows, this accomplished American restaurant allows you to enjoy the fall colors, and Jonathan Harootunian’s inventive cuisine, simultaneously.
Gilbert’s Restaurant
327 Wrigley Dr.
Lake Geneva, Wis.
262-248-6680
Hugging the Geneva Lake shoreline in downtown Lake Geneva, this 19th-Century Victorian mansion is a splendid setting for Ken Hnilo’s Asian-influenced American and French food.
Le Vichyssois
220 W. Ill. Hwy. 120
Lakemoor
815-385-8221
A short distance south of Fox Lake, this northwest suburban jewel offers spectacular French food at relatively modest prices; the wine list is loaded with bargains.
Moxie
15430 Red Arrow Hwy.
Lakeside, Mich.
269-469-6545
Heading to southwest Michigan? This delightful contemporary American, formerly known as Jenny’s (same owners), is an appealing stop.
Top 5
Restaurants with Live Music
Green
Dolphin Street
2200 N. Ashland Ave.
773-395-0066
There’s live music Tuesdays-Sundays at this place, which encompasses a quiet dining room and a separate performance space. Cover charge ($5-$7 weekdays, $10-$15 weekends) is halved if you dine here.
Pete Miller’s Seafood & Prime Steak
412 N. Milwaukee Ave.
Wheeling
847-243-3700
If you think jazz and steak are a great combination, beat a path to this northwest suburban hotspot or its Evanston twin; both feature live jazz Mondays-Saturdays.
Rumba
351 W. Hubbard St.
312-222-1226
Lively Latin bands fill the dining room with pulsing dance music Wednesdays through Saturdays. Need a lesson? Get one on Salsa Mondays, which feature deejay music and a light, appetizer-rich menu.
Smoke Daddy
1804 W. Division St.
773-772-6656
The ‘cue is great at this Wicker Park hangout, but you can forget conversation once the live blues music (featured every night) starts up around 10 p.m.
Souk
1552 N. Milwaukee Ave.
773-227-1818
Things are really shaking at this Middle Eastern restaurant on Wednesdays and Saturdays, when a belly dancer takes the floor around 10:30. There’s music those nights, too, and music-only on Thursdays and Fridays.
Top 5
Up-and-comers
About-to-open or recently opened restaurants to watch for. (At press time, phone numbers were unavailable.)
Fuse
71 E. Wacker Dr.
Don Yamauchi (ex-Le Francais) returns to Chicago in this contemporary dining room inside the Hotel 71. The restaurant, owned by Rich Mott (North Pond) and designed by Nancy Warren, hopes to be open in time for the holiday season.
Isabella’s Estiatorio
330 W. State St.
Geneva
This new Mediterranean restaurant in the western suburbs should be opening in just a few days.
Jason’s at Gray’s Mill
211 N. River St.
Montgomery
Ex-Harry Caray’s vets Jason Tsoris and Diane Cole are behind this steak, seafood and risotto concept, located in a 150-year-old mill in this southwest suburb; at press time, it was aiming for an early October debut.
Pluton
873 N. Orleans St.
Jacky Pluton is opening the restaurant of his dreams sometime in mid-November, a fine-dining palace in which customers will pay $45 to $99 for a multi-course dinner.
?????
1307 S. Wabash Ave.
This place had not acquired a name by press time; it’s a Japanese steak-and-sushi restaurant by Jerry Kleiner and Howard Davis (who own Opera next door and Gioco across the street) and it’s aiming for an October opening.
