The 18 best restaurants in Logan Square

On a stretch of Armitage Avenue, Topolobampo alums Brian Enyart and Jennifer Jones Enyart deliver inventive Mexican food like carnitas crowned with cabbage and grilled mushrooms and sweet chestnut corn bread anchored in earthy red mole. Finish off your meal with glazed plantains and queso fresco over cajeta, and sip on the Rosita, a Negroni reimagined with tequila and Amargo-Vallet bitters. And if you're in the West Loop, you can sample some of our favorite Dos Urban Cantina dishes (including the incredible chocolate cake) at Time Out Market Chicago.

At a Macanese fusion restaurant known for its sharable dishes, here's a given: You’re getting the arroz gordo. It’s a spectacle to behold, a paella-like thicket in which sausage, pork, clams and prawns are piled on a bed of rice—a dish worthy of sharing its name (which translates to fat rice) with the restaurant itself. There’s something about big, conglomerate dishes like this that makes them immensely pleasurable to eat. They’re the opposite of faddish: They’re dishes with long histories, things you don’t have to think about to enjoy. This sense of history and of place is what makes chef Abe Colon's approach at Fat Rice and his Time Out Market Chicago stand so successful.

Jason Hammel's farm-to-table restaurant essentially kickstarted the culinary scene in Logan Square when it opened in 1999. Since then, it has continued to offer approachable, delectable dishes with an emphasis on seasonality. You'll find a mix of standard diner fare and more experimental dishes on the menu, but the prices are reasonable and servers can always point you in the right direction.

You'll need a reservation (well in advance) to grab one of the 44 seats at Nightwood chef Jason Vincent's Logan Square restaurant. Though space is tight, Giant realizes its ambitions through shared plates of “simple, unpretentious Midwestern fare.” The menu is accessible yet adventurous, including fried uni shooters that are a perfect introduction to eating sea urchin and pecan smoked baby back ribs that actually deserve their own jingle. Accompanied by a glass of wine, Giant offers the kind of meal that should live up to your huge expectations.

The restaurant may be bare bones in terms of décor, but it’s serving some of the best bread in Chicago. Tony Bezsylko, Ethan Pikas and Justin Behlke, former coworkers at the Dill Pickle Food Co-op, change their menu frequently, so you never know quite what you’ll find. Crusty, slightly tangy bread forms the base for tartines, while at the counter, there’s a little case of pastries, like a perfect canele, its spongy center encased with a crunchy, caramelized exterior. You can buy pastries and bread to go, as well, and it’s not a bad idea to take a loaf home for dinner.

The fact that Quiote stands out in a neighborhood that is teeming with great Mexican restaurants is a testament to executive chef Ross Henke's inventive menu. Upstairs, you'll find guests devouring shared plates of regional cuisine, including an addictive avocado salad and lamb carnitas tacos with Japanese eggplant. Downstairs, mezcal bar Todos Santos serves potent drinks, like the Through Being Cool with tamarind, beer, fresh ginger, pimento dram, lime juice and ancho chile salt.

Regional Piedmontese cuisine is Osteria Langhe's focus, and that means ingredients like truffles, cream and eggy pastas appear on this streamlined menu. The plin, miniature agnolotti filled with cheese, are beautiful and light; the beef tartare is impeccably seasoned; and a rotating selection of salads are fresh and well-dressed. Osteria Langhe has quietly elevated Logan Square's Italian restaurant scene.

Back in 2016, Mott St's burger (which was only available at the restaurant's bar) was recognized as one of the best in the nation. Fast-forward two years, and that burger has its own spinoff restaurant in Logan Square. Mini Mott serves its patty with American cheese, hoisin aioli, sweet potato frizzles, pickled jalapeños, pickles, miso butter and onions. (Are you drooling yet?) The menu is rounded out with chicken wings, fries, sides, soft serve and brunch tacos. Pair your grub with a cocktail, local draft beers or a boozy Belgian chocolate milkshake.

With some three dozen rotating custard and plant-based ice cream novelties, this colorful Logan Square shop deliciously melds imagination and nostalgia on a stick. Starring cream from Lamers Dairy in Wisconsin and an ever-shifting cast of fruits sourced via Local Foods, the pops stand out most for their beautiful density and texture. Our go-to favorites are the tangy, chewy buttermilk bars and the Smurf-hued blue moon, a vegan homage to the Midwestern ice cream flavor.

Truth is, you can't go wrong with Longman & Eagle. No matter the occasion or time of day, this Logan Square restaurant serves stellar fare and cocktails. If you're going for dinner, arrive ready to eat something adventurous (yes, this probably involves organ meat). If you're going for a weekend brunch, prepare to kill time waiting for a table at the bar next door, where you'll find cocktails, beer and delicious doughnuts.

You'll find lines of people in front of this popular Logan Square shop waiting for two things: pie and biscuits. While the pie list is streamlined (around six slices a day, that's it), the biscuit menu is much bigger, with biscuit sandwiches, biscuits drowning in gravy and biscuits piled with eggs and candied bacon, among other iterations. The ambiance is just as charming as the food, with picnic tables and blue and white checkered papers atop faux paper plates that are ideal for Instagramming. Enjoy a biscuit (and some dessert, naturally) on the outdoor patio if the weather is decent—and you need caffeinating, the iced coffee is dispensed via tap.  

Beyond a handful of day-one dishes, the menu at Daisies in Logan Square is constantly changing. That's mostly thanks to Frillman Farms, operated by chef/owner Joe Frillman's brother, Tim. The restaurant and farm work together to put the freshest produce in front of diners. Taste the difference in seasonal dishes like the seared lake trout with hen of the woods mushrooms and creamy mushroom hollandaise sauce. No trip to Daisies is complete without a bowl of handmade pasta: try tortellini with lentils and pork sausage or pappardelle with mushroom ragu, basil and Parmesan.

The trifecta of carbohydrates that is the base of Reno—bagels, pasta and pizza—commands fanaticism on its own. It's the execution of each dish makes this a place worth coming back to (perhaps multiple times a day, if you can stomach all that gluten). The Montreal-style bagels are chewy and savory, and can be topped with shmear or hummus. Woodfired pizzas arrive covered with fresh toppings on a thin, not-too-hearty crust—and you can score two for $20 on Tuesdays. Leave room for some pasta, which is house-made and usually comes smothered in melting cheese.

A regal-looking English coat of arms hanging over the entrance to Owen & Engine bears family crest of Bo Fowler, the brains behind this Chicago pub. You'll feel like you've been whisked away to England as you begin working your way through the menu, which includes classic dishes like bangers and mash, fish and chips or vegetable korma. It's also located directly across the street from the Regal City North movie theatre, so you can pop in for some charcuterie and a cask beer before seeing the latest Marvel movie.

Imported from Brooklyn, Paulie Gee's boasts two massive Stefano Ferrara ovens from Napoli, Italy. That's where the magic happens. Choose from the restaurant's iconic bubbly, thin-crust pies or try one of the "Logan Squares," a Detroit-style pizza that has a caramelized crust. With creative ingredients like maple syrup, house-pickled pineapple, bacon jam and kimchi, these pies are some of the best in Chicago.

From the folks who brought us Parson's Chicken & Fish, Lost Lake and Longman & Eagle comes this bubbly, light-filled café that specializes in Tex-Mex fare. Offering margaritas by the pitcher, Baja fish tacos, a fried chicken torta, street corn, queso and paletas, Lonesome Rose is an easy-to-love spot for breakfast, lunch and dinner. 

This sibling location of Clybourn Avenue’s popular Cuban carryout joint is nearly a spitting image of the original—same toasted Cuban sandwiches, same flaky empanadas, same garlicky yuca chips, same potent café con leche. But even if the tiny interior, with its newspaper-covered walls, elicits the same claustrophobia, the big draws here are the spacious front and back patios, tropical ambience and mixers to turn BYO liquor into mojitos.

Sporting the (modified) sign of the laundromat that formerly occupied this storefront, Same Day Cafe is similarly utilitarian, offering a place for drinks, a meal or a quiet spot to finish some work. The centerpiece of the menu is the grilled cheese, served on thick rosemary bread—it's made to accompanied by a cup of rich tomato soup. A soda fountain offers a variety of sodas concoctions, like a spicy ginger and a tart Michigan cherry, egg creams, phosphates and lactarts. There's also a daily $10 blue plate special that's usually a steal for the price.

A casual, affordable lunch spot in west Logan Square, Wyler Road is a sandwich place/bar from the team behind the nearby Burlington. This place is adorable, with tall mint green bar stools, lots of wood and windows for light, plus dishes served on mismatched china that you can’t help but photograph before diving in. The menu is divided into hot, cold, fried and grilled cheese sections, with toppings life clam belly, fried green tomato and bacon (you can tell we like the fried options). Paired with a beer and some fluffy fried cheese curds, it's a hearty meal that should leave you satisfied—at least until dinner.