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If there’s one word to describe a summer Friday in Chicago, it might be crickets. Emails slow down, conference calls go unanswered, and chats disappear into the ether. OK, not for everyone, but the lucky ones who have summer hours, make their own hours, or have wisely slotted their extra vacation days for every Friday between June and August would much rather be eating, drinking, and spending time outside when the weather is finally at its long-awaited peak.
Fridays are also when some dinner-focused restaurants provide lunch service, patios are in full swing, and happy hours are happily still happening. You can also get a jump on traffic if you’re itching to leave town for the weekend, or feel a little less guilty ducking out of the office to meet with friends (bring your laptop if you must but we don’t recommend it). Here’s our guide of where to go for lunch, happy hour, golden hour, dinner, or to just get away for the weekend.
Must be 21 years of age or older to consume alcoholic beverages. Please drink responsibly.
For the loveliest lunches in the city…
Dimmi Dimmiopened on Armitage Avenue last year, and it’s still a hot reservation. The good news is the patio is open for walk-ins and serves lunch Thursday to Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Settle in under the oversized green umbrellas with a Caesar salad, or lean heavy with a chicken Parm sandwich or verdura verde pizza with pesto, pecorino, and zucchini. We suggest having an amaro sour or house spritz with limoncello in hand if you truly want to let the relaxing Lincoln Park vibes set the tone for the weekend.
At Longman & Eagle in Logan Square, lunch is served 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Fridays and the menu offers a mix of snacky share plates (think cashew sour cream and onion dip with potato chips and chicken liver mousse on parsnip bread) and handheld favorites like a Nashville hot egg salad sandwich and croque madame with strawberry mostarda, while Longman devotees will be happy to see the wild boar sloppy joe and smashburger represented as well. If it’s a drizzly day, settle into the cozy dining room by the bar or head to the side patio when the sun is out.
The West Loop has a summer Friday vibe all its own, and we recommend Monteverde, which is open for lunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sit inside or out and start your weekend over shared plates like burrata e ham, shrimp scampi on the half shell, Calabrian pimento cheese on Saltines. There are hand-cut pastas and heartier items like rabbit ravioli or lasagna al forgo, and beverages range from cocktails and wine to a bright orange blossom Belgian blonde by Moody Tongue, plus a zero-proof “senza” menu, too.
For an ideal post-work happy hour…
Happy hours are no longer relegated to slow weeknights, and you’ll often find the same specials offered on Fridays and into the weekend. If you’re a Loop worker bee, head to Bistro Monadnock in the financial district. The French bistro inside the historic Monadnock building from 1891 offers a bar side happy hour from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. daily Tuesday through Saturday with $12 gimlets and Sazeracs, $6 draft beers, $10 wines, $6 bistro sliders and beef fat fries, and $3 oysters.
You may think of HaiSous in Pilsen as a solid dinner spot (and it definitely is), but they also have a hidden-gem happy hour served 4 to 5:30 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday in the bar and dining room. Chef-owner Thai Dang’s Vietnamese restaurant’s beloved papaya salad, chicken wings, and grilled eggplant are all $10, as are cocktails like the espresso-tinis with coffee and plenty of CBD-infused and non-alcoholic sodas.
We love both the Logan Square and Lincoln Park locations of Parson’s Chicken + Fish , where you will find not only a fabulous patio but happy hour specials daily from 3 to 5 p.m. Take advantage of $5 wines by the glass, $8 frozen piña coladas, and $10 “little dipper” platters teaming with fries, chicken nuggets, pickles, and all the sauces for condiment lovers. The Lincoln Park location is also connected to a Dicey’s Pizza, so order a pie while you’re at it.
For a supremely satisfying 5 p.m. dinner…
Take advantage of the early end to your workday by trying your luck at a perpetually booked-out spot. This applies to Maxwells Trading, which is slammed most weekends. Luckily, they release patio seat reservations daily at 10 a.m. and it’s worth a try if you can get there by 4:30, when they open. Once you’re in, don’t miss the Japanese sweet potato with Thai green curry or half chicken a la brasa.
Omakase Box is a Logan Square newcomer with some of the best tasting menus in town — so good that the intimate chef’s counter books up fast. But there are usually reservations for the à la carte menu in the dining room starting at 4:30 p.m. After dinner, walk east on Armitage to Small Cheval for a boozy shake or hand-dipped cone for dessert, and if you’re keeping the party going, even further east for a nightcap at The Map Room.
The best way to experience River North’s Michelin starred Indienne without a reservation is to make a beeline to the stunning bar at 5 p.m for the à la carte options. You can’t get the full prix-fixe menu, but you can still try plenty of chef Sujan Sarkar’s modern Indian dishes with French influences like avocado behl, seasonal kulcha breads stuffed with goat cheese, and chicken gustaba with amul cheese fondue. Try a house gin and tonic or keep things alcohol-free with housemade pickled mango sodas.
For basking in golden hour…
The most magical part of a summer Friday might be the end of the day, when happy hour is winding down on sun-drenched patios but you’re not quite ready to settle into a dimly lit dining room just yet. We recommend soaking up what might be the most perfect light of the day at City Winery at The Chicago Riverwalk, where you’ll find front row seats to all the summer boat action, plenty of wine, and snacks like flatbreads and charcuterie (there are heat lamps and a covered area if the weather shifts).
We also love Goose Island at The Salt Shed to bask in the same vibe, and also to stay for a show at the indoor/outdoor music venue. Watch the sun cast its glow over the skyline as you settle in for pub chips with giardiniera dip or fish and chips right on the relaxing North Branch of the River.
Summer Fridays can also easily be spent shopping, and if you’ve done so at luxury boutique Space 519 at Plaza del Lago in Wilmette, the Lago Room has your post retail refueling covered with a new golden hour menu. From 3 to 9 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, you can put down your shopping bags and free your hands for polenta fries with romesco dipping sauce and shaved beef on ciabatta with horseradish while you wait for the roving spritz cart to swing by your table.
Keep It in the Neighborhood
Summer Fridays in Bucktown and Wicker Park
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Lunch
A green awning marks Lucia’s, a 24-year-old family-owned Italian deli praised by The Bear’s Matty Matheson for its sausage, cheese, and pepper sandwiches and more. -
Happy Hour
From 5 to 6 p.m., find great deals on Asian fusion signatures at Lilac Tiger, like the Ferrani special (tandoori honey chicken with spicy honey and gochujang aioli) and vada pav, and $10 spicy margs and Old Fashioneds with Cynar and black cardamom. -
5 p.m. Dinner
Try to score a seat near the open garage doors facing North Avenue at Amaru (pictured here), a pan-Latin favorite with papas bravas, pork loin churrasco, and guava cheesecake, and bright cocktails like a mezcal cantarito.
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Golden Hour
There truly may be no better eastern view of Wicker Park and beyond from the top of The Robey Hotel, where The Up Room opens their 13th floor rooftop cocktail lounge to walk-ins at 5 p.m. Watch the sun set over the skyline as you sip a seasonal spritz or an N/A option like the lychee, mint, lime, and soda Mockingbird. -
Al Fresco Dining
Club Lucky, a circa-1940’s supper club stalwart in the heart of Bucktown, opens their side and alley patio as early as possible (there are heat lamps galore) for locals to settle in for the famously large and delicious martinis, grilled calamari, penne arrabiata, chicken marsala, and fantastic tiramisù.
For when you’ve got to be outdoors…
We’ve mentioned a lot of patios, and we’re not done yet. The Little Lark in Avondale is all about their “urban courtyard,” aka a dog-friendly, 35-seat patio with string lights, banquettes, and 16-seat bar dotted with cozy lamps. The team behind Meadowlark Hospitality proved their pizza prowess here with highlights like ’nduja with spicy soppressata and hot honey, and a crispy potato with cheese and pistachio pesto number. Order one, along with a few small plates like tuna conserva toast and boquerones, and pair it all with a smoky peach spritz or dirty pepper martini.
Find a French countryside-inspired oasis at the nearly 25-year-old Bistro Campagne, where cozy bistro tables are spaced out in a courtyard filled with flowers, twinkling lights, and trees. Expect seasonal French bistro classics like steak tartare, chicken liver mousse with cherry Dijon, and Basque cheesecake with strawberry relish. The beverage list is all about the French wines, but summer friendly cocktails include the Lemonade Sunset with raspberry-jasmine infused vodka, Kina Karo, lime cordial, Sauvignon Blanc, and club soda, or a zero-proof amaro spritz.
Not far is The Warbler, a nearly 10-year-old neighborhood mainstay with an always bustling side patio. You’ll find a mix of high- and low-top tables, black-and-white striped awnings, bright orange seats, planter boxes, and heat lamps for cooler nights. Start with a flatbread for the table (from salami and fig to gochujang chicken) then move onto summer-friendly pastas like a pesto cavatelli or shrimp and garlic cream fusilli. The small patio bar is a super cute spot to perch with a glass of wine, rotating draught beer, or a fun cocktail named after birds from the Hummingbird to the Regal Eagle.
For when you’ve got to get out of town…
If you can leave early-ish on a Friday, Milwaukee in the summer comes alive with fests, baseball, and events, but we recommend making a reservation at Odd Duck, which has been serving small plates from honey-drizzled eggplant fries to bison cheek Milanese since 2012. Also in Walker’s Point, Wis., is 1033 Omakase, helmed by chef/owner Ray “Worawit” Boonyapituksakul, who worked as a sushi chef in Chicago and New York before opening here in 2024. With only four seatings a night for 14 people, it fills up fast, but it’s worth the wait for the 14 courses that range from hand rolls to wagyu and sashimi.
Not quite as far as Milwaukee is St. Charles, Ill., where you should visit The Graceful Ordinary on the Fox River (the riverside terrace offers an awesome view of it). Chef Chris Curren turns out octopus carpaccio and lobster campanelle pasta and cider-glazed pot belly served in a stunning dining room dotted with lush greenery and drippy candles on every table. For something more casual, Ella’s Italian Pub in Geneva, Ill., (less than 10 minutes from St. Charles) is a fun, family-friendly all-day spot for Roman style pizzas and bar snacks like meatball sliders and bacon-wrapped dates.
If you’re looking for Michigan vibes, make the trek to New Buffalo, which is less than two hours from Chicago and worth it for a visit to Post Boy, where you’ll find a highly sharable menu including skewers, sweet chile wings, and halibut al pastor. The outdoor patio in front is the perfect place for an aptly named Out of Office slushie with tequila, strawberry, lime, and cream, or Leisure Suit Larry with yuzu and yogurt soju.
Liz Grossman has been a Chicago-based writer, editor and storyteller for 25 years. She’s the former editor-in-chief of Plate magazine and co-founder of the nonprofit storytelling series, Between Bites. Her writing has appeared in Newsweek, Chicago, Robb Report, Flavor & the Menu, and more. Follow her on Instagram. Follow Resy, too.
