Lakeview

Lakeview is one of Chicago's biggest neighborhoods and one of its most loved. It runs from Diversey Parkway north to Irving Park Road, with Lake Michigan forming the eastern boundary. Inside that footprint you get three distinct areas: Wrigleyville (home of Wrigley Field), the Southport Corridor, and Lakeview East, each with its own personality and commercial strip.

Housing ranges from pre-war courtyard buildings and vintage six-flats to modern high-rise condos along the lake. The interior blocks are classic Chicago brick two-flats and three-flats, many renovated into spacious single-family homes or owner-occupied duplexes. The Southport Corridor, centered on Southport Avenue between Belmont and Irving Park, draws young families with its tree-lined blocks and independent boutiques.

Everything here revolves around the commercial corridors, the lakefront, and the Cubs. On game days, the blocks around Wrigley Field at Clark and Addison turn into a massive outdoor party. Rooftop decks, sports bars, street vendors. There is nothing else like it in American sports.

Lakeview's food scene covers a lot of ground. Crisp on Broadway has been doing its Seoul Sassy wings for over a decade and they are still worth the trip. Tango Sur on Southport is the BYOB Argentine steakhouse that remains one of the best dinner values anywhere in the city. Cafe Selmarie, the bakery and restaurant on the Southport strip, has been anchoring that block since 1983.

In Wrigleyville, the bar and restaurant scene naturally revolves around the Cubs. Murphy's Bleachers, the Sports Corner, and the Gallagher Way plaza next to Wrigley Field keep things going year-round. For a quieter evening, Schubas Tavern on Southport doubles as an intimate live music venue inside a converted 1903 Schlitz brewery tied house.

Clark Street through Lakeview East is where the diversity shows up: Thai at TAC Quick, sushi at Miku Sushi, and the Chicago Diner, the vegetarian spot that has been on Halsted since 1983. Dark Matter Coffee on Western and Metropolis Coffee on Granville keep the caffeine flowing.

Lakeview has some of the best transit coverage in the city. Brown Line stations at Southport, Paulina, and Addison handle the western side, while the Red Line at Belmont, Addison (Wrigley Field), and Sheridan gives you express north-south service. The Purple Line Express also stops at Belmont during rush hours.

Buses fill in the gaps: the #8 Halsted, #36 Broadway, and #77 Belmont provide solid cross-neighborhood coverage. The Belmont transfer station, where Red, Brown, and Purple lines all converge, is one of the busiest CTA hubs and connects you to pretty much every part of the city.

Lake Shore Drive, accessible at Belmont and Irving Park Road, gets you downtown or to the northern suburbs by car. The lakefront trail is both a recreational path and a genuine cycling commute route to the Loop, roughly 4 miles from central Lakeview.