The Resy Guide to Dining in Logan Square

You can’t pen a guide to Logan Square without mentioning Lula Cafe, which has anchored the neighborhood’s emblematic square since 1999, offering farm-to-table fare before that was even a thing in Chicago. For now, our interactions with Lula are confined to carryout orders at the walk-up window, bedecked in sweet window art by pastry chef Emily Spurlin. The comforting breakfast burrito remains, as does the never-repeating farm dinner. Much like its always-packed dining room and patio, orders fill up fast. Pre-order online.

Since the pandemic, few concepts citywide have pivoted as elegantly as this Midwestern pasta restaurant, which leaned into its very close farmer relationships to morph into a weekly market and, more recently, a quick-service lunch spot. We’ll always return for the gorgeous handmade pastas, like toothsome stracchi with lamb sugo, and pappardelle ribbons with mushroom ragu. But now we find ourselves additionally dropping by for shishito peppers, Michigan wines and conservas on Sundays, or grabbing a turkey pastrami Rachel sandwich on marble rye for a satisfying workday lunch. This already special spot is more of a neighborhood restaurant than ever. Limited indoor and back patio seating are available; order online for carryout and delivery.

Before or after pizza sustenance, pop by Lobo’s stylish triangular sibling bar for a luscious, Latin-tinged cocktail on the tight yet well-spaced patio — or to take home. As fall descends, we’re feeling the vegetal, bittersweet Tequila and sotol negroni, with Cocchi Rosa, Campari and grapefruit bitters. High-top and patio seating are available via reservation.

The newest-comer on this list, this Heisler Hospitality joint actually has two years of pizza testing under its belt, with superb, blistered-edge results. Its 10- or 16-inch pies join an expanded menu of snacks and salads, all from former Bad Hunter executive chef Dan Snowden. Start with chopped antipasti with bitter greens and truffled buttermilk dressing, then dig into our current fave: amatrice’ yo-self pizza, with roasted tomato, Calabrian chiles, red onion and pancetta. Drink in fall weather on the 4,000-sq.-ft. back patio. If ordering for carryout or delivery, 32-ounce half growlers of beer, aka howlers, make ideal pizza companions. Patio seating is available; order online for carryout and delivery.

This twee Tex-Mex spot trades in reliably tasty borderlands fare, like nachos, oozy quesadillas and burritos, with fillings like picadillo beef or tinga de garbanzo and cheese. You’ll want to add guac and chips — and one of Lonesome Rose’s excellent cocktails. There’s a stable of margaritas, from classic to spicy to frozen. Or as temps drop, consider a toddy with brandy, Swedish punsch, Fernet, honey and lemon, or warm sangria. Patio and rooftop seating are available. Order pickup and delivery online.

These long-nomadic brewers built a loyal following over the past nine years with their deliciously weird beers, and support of a bevy of social-justice causes with half their net profits. Middle Brow made a permanent home in 2019, debuting an airy all-day brewpub offering an oft-changing mix of beers alongside whimsically topped toasts and chewy, bubbly pizzas made from excellent, slow-fermented dough. Since the pandemic hit, Middle Brow keeps evolving — into a daily farmer’s market grocery store, a beer-and-bread CSA, a bread donation hub for hungry families, a tipless pizza delivery restaurant. The sprawling patio is finally back open on weekends, with hot pizzas (ahem, sausage and olive) and cold beers (hint: toasty Mozart Vienna-style lager) — totally contactless of course. More info here.

An absolute must for breakfast when in Logan Square (not least because of its awesome back patio), these days this pint-sized bakery offers to-go orders only for weekly, contactless pickup. So get your fill of scratch biscuits by the half dozen, half and whole pies from key lime to apple cider, and custardy quiches. There are delicious accoutrements, too — like pimento cheese, vegetarian sawmill gravy, compound butter and michelada mix. If you’re craving a proper Saturday breakfast, there’s BYO biscuit sandwich kits, with sausage, pimento cheese and pepper jelly, and gravy biscuits. Pour a cup of coffee, and pretend you’re crammed in at one of the boisterous communal tables with the smell of buttery biscuits in the air. Pre-order pickup online.

A few paces west of Middle Brow you’ll find a more dressed-up option for an evening out. Aldo Zaninotto and Cameron Grant’s inviting osteria specializes in the rich, meaty fare of Piedmont, Italy, in a casual atmosphere with bare wood tables, rustic bar and cheery little sidewalk patio with cherry-red tables and chairs. Dishes exude elegant simplicity: vitello tonnato with poached beef and arugula in citrusy tuna caper aioli; prosciutto-wrapped rabbit loin; and the now-famous plin, or cheese ravioli in buttered thyme sauce. Regional Italian wines beautifully complement the celebratory fare.

This inconspicuous storefront churns out consistently good Northern Indian food for carryout and delivery (at least for now). With winter looming, we’re already getting in the weekly habit of ordering its heady, comforting saag paneer and fiery lamb vindaloo to warm us from the inside. While we’re at it, we’ll start with a few crisp samosas and the Indo-Chinese classic, gobi manchurian, with crispy cauliflower and scallions slicked in ruby-hued, vinegary-sweet sauce. Order online.

If you’re craving warm-weather vibes and soul-soothing ropa vieja, this is the spot. For over 10 years, 90 Miles has offered up easygoing, authentic Cuban fare, from pressed Cubano sandwiches to empanadas, in upbeat, tropical environs. Bring your own booze and take advantage of its dual patios as long as the weather holds; the sprawling front patio goes the extra mile with curtain separators between tables. Call ahead to check wait times at 773-227-2822. Online ordering is available.

The proverbial anchor of a mini bar empire at Kedzie and Armitage — which also includes the Moonlighter and Outside Voices — this gin-forward cocktail den is a favorite for deliciously potent cocktails that change frequently. Since COVID, the bar debuted a secluded backyard patio with socially distanced tables. We’re bundled up and sipping the autumnal Extended Play (gin, Carpano Bianco, amaro and chocolate bitters) on repeat. If you’re staying in, they’re offering a handful of cocktails to go in sweet, red-capped medicine bottles. Indoor and patio seating are available; or order online for delivery or pickup at sibling spot the Moonlighter.

Head a few blocks east of 90 Miles for dessert at this iconic 1920s ice cream parlor outfitted with time-warp decor; regardless of the time of day or year, you’ll no doubt wait a long while for the housemade sundaes (hot fudge banana split!), thick shakes (mint chip!), ice cream sodas, phosphates and hand-dipped candies and fudge. Heads up: Margie’s also offers delivery, to an understandably small radius, and pickup. Order online.

A few doors down from Go Tavern, this pint-size restaurant has a big reputation for its fun-loving, modern American food (think onion rings with chili salt and Parm and saffron tagliatelle with Dungeness crab and chilies), and a bustling atmosphere  we sorely miss. Since COVID, Jason Vincent’s beloved spot is doing things a little differently — open just Wednesday to Sunday for patio and to-go dining. The to-go menu is smaller, and rounded out with a focused list of low-intervention wines and superfun bottled cocktails, like Hot Pants, with mezcal, cointreau, cocchi rosso and Thai chili). Patio seating is available by reservation; order online for takeout.

A package goods shop has lived continuously at this address since 1952, when it opened as Dorothy’s Liquors to serve workers coming off factory shifts. Since 2012, it’s been Go Tavern, run by Mike Stellatos, whose family has owned it since the early 1990s. Stop in this no-frills half-bar, half-liquor store for a pint on the secluded back patio, then grab a six-pack of beer (there’s a sizeable craft selection) or bottle of whiskey to go (Go’s rare whiskey lineup is among the city’s finest). More info here.

If Logan Square isn’t quite the taco destination some other neighborhoods are, you’ll find some exceptional options tucked throughout the area: L’Patron for top-notch carne asada and delish vegetable tacos, El Taconazo El Tio for stellar burritos and salsas. And then there’s unassuming Taqueria El Heredero, tucked across the street from Giant, for positively mouthwatering pastor tacos. It’s hard to go wrong with taco, tostada or torta fillings at this cheerful storefront, but we also love the pollo and chicharrones (right?). Heads up, breakfast lovers: They open at 10 a.m. and make solid chilaquiles. Order online for pickup and delivery.

The smoke-kissed, Alpine-leaning fare at this all-day spot is the delicious result of a Spiaggia vet cooking nose-to-tail in a custom, 3,000-pound smoker that had to be installed by busting through a wall. That means nearly everything chef and co-owner Brian Bruns makes passes through said smoker — from house-smoked salmon on the lox breakfast sandwich, to porchetta, to pimento peppers in the tapenade that’s slathered over lamb chops. By the way, spiked apple cider season is back, and co-owner/beverage director Taylor Bruns is juicing the apples fresh daily in house, so grab one on the patio before they’re gone. Patio and limited indoor seating are available.

After a long hiatus, this progressive cafe and bakery reopened with daily curbside pickup of its  delectable whole-grain pastries for breakfast, inventive seasonal dinners and low-intervention wines. By day, pre-order crackly lardo or chocolate croissants, flaky freeform galettes filled with ground cherries or buy Cellar Door’s pastries across the street at Four Letter Word, which is, by the way, an excellent coffee shop and worth a trip all its own. By night, Cellar Door offers up sweet potato tahini dip, chicken-fried mushroom sandwiches with seaweed mayo, and pastrami-smoked salmon tartines. Ordering details here.

Chef Diana Dávila’s menu is a deliciously nuanced love letter to her travels around Mexico, featuring favorites like pozo pollo, red pozole with chicken based on her mother’s recipe; and cochinita pibil slow-roasted in banana leaves. What better way to complete the meal than with a round of cocktails that similarly reverberate with deep meaning? The Chicana, a term for Mexican Americans that Dávila has embraced, is a complex, aromatic cocktail featuring Tequila, bergamot liqueur, clove and cardamom liqueur, lime and lip-smacking jamaica. Patio seating is available by reservation. Order online for carryout.