We’re continuing to show off Chicago through a local’s point of view (in case you missed it, we’ve shared hot spots around Lincoln Park & Old Town). This month we’re heading over to Wicker Park and Bucktown with neighborhood favorites from one of my very first Chicago friends, Alison of Brown Eyed Style.

Her go-to spots around Wicker Park & Bucktown:

Before I moved here, I knew I’d live in Chicago after the very first day that I visited. The Loop and downtown areas are so breath-taking and clean and have an energy that drew me in like a magnet. And when I visited Wicker Park, I loved that it felt like a distinct neighborhood, and was walkable to bars, restaurants, shopping, and a quick commute back to The Loop for work and big-city livin’. Here are my favorite spots that make me proud to call Wicker Park my home.

When Your Favorite Meal Of The Week Is Brunch:

• Milk & Honey // Really cute little place with outside seating. And anything you could want from a brunch menu, orange brioche french toast for the sweet tooth to huevos rancheros for the savory seeker. They make their own granola and it tastes like a maple cinnamon oat explosion in your mouth. In the most delightful way.

When It’s A Happy Hour Kind Of Day:

• Violet Hour // Handcrafted hipster cocktails. Rumor has it, if you wear your Nike high tops (or your boyfriend wears his favorite baseball hat) into Violet Hour, the high-class hipsters will force you to take a shot of Malort then kick you out the back door immediately. Don’t even ask what they do if you take out your cell phone. Really, do go check it out on a week night when you’ll be able to be seated at the bar right away and enjoy the artisanal libations worthy of Alice In Wonderland. You’ll understand that reference when you go.

Shop Therapy: 

• Penelope’s // This shop is a staple of the neighborhood. The vibe in the shop is low key and understated. They carry both mens and women’s and in a lovable mix of brands from A.P.C. and Hill-Side to Rachel Comey and Pendelton. I love stopping in here for gifts. And the cutest part of all, sometimes the owners have their pugs running around the shop.
• Eskell // The most delightful shop staff in the hood. The girls are all super sweet and helpful. They carry housewares and candles from brands like Lucia and Voluspa. The clothing they carry is eclectic with well curated vintage to new and more modern styles with their own label, Eskell, and brands like Courtshop, and Jolie Jolie. My favorite find from there is my collection of three decanters for my bar.
• P.45 // Tricia opened P.45 in 1997, and she was really a pioneer for the ‘hood. Their selection refined and eloquently curated. The brands they carry range from emerging to well-established lines. The selection includes edits from Lizzie Fortunado, VPL, MM6, and my favorite, Rachel Comey. When I want some inspiration of the fashion variety I always find it here. This is the place to go to indulge in what will very likely become your next favorite pair of jeans or that necklace you’ll never take off for years to come.

Flowers and Beautiful Things:

• Asrai Gardens // The smell of a flower shop. Lovely. Combine that with the look of the back room inside the secret garden with dark walls, elaborate wall shelving and everywhere you look you feel you need to hold your gaze to capture all the details in just right.  Their bouquets are what dreams are made of. Besides being a world-class flower shop, they carry beautiful jewelry, unique housewares, soaps and candles from all over the world. I could spend hours in there.

A Girl Needs Her Tacos: 

• Antique Taco // There’s a debate. Is it Big Star or Antique Taco? Antique wins for me. While Big Star patio and their surprisingly-strong margaritas are great, I go there for a people-watching experience instead of the tacos. First of all, you’ll love the rustic decor like the sweet southern belle of a Grandma you never had. The menu is inventive in just the right ways. My personal favorite is the taco salad, made with kale and strawberries. And their margarita is of the sweet variety and finished with rosemary. They change up special tacos and keep you guessing. Go there with an appetite for dessert because it’s Bang Bang Key Lime pie, made especially for them and made with tequila.

When you need caffeine and some sugar:

• Worm Hole // Three words: Honey bear latte. Trust me on this one. It’s as tasty as the name is adorable. Speaking of adorable, who doesn’t love the Stay Puft Marshmellow Man? He, along with an abundance of 1980’s paraphernalia line the walls of Worm Hole. Worth a visit, for java and a giggle.

Date Night or Dinner With The Ladies:

• Mana // Vegetarian fare fit for the meat-lover. They have my favorite arugula and avocado salad that’s dressed with a slightly-spicey garlic vinaigrette. Their menu has a mix of comfort foods and asian and ethnic-inspired dishes. The perfect spot for a quick bite and a cocktail. And if you’re the cocktailing type, try the fresh squeezed juice combos with a shot of sake or their almond horchata sake cocktail that, upon first sip, will immediately make you smile.
• Trencherman // Tucked away a few steps below street level is the Trencherman bar. In the bar, it’s modeled after the original use of the building a Russian Bath-house, so it’s the right amount of cozy for the winter and clean, white tiled-wall fresh for the summer. The brunch and dinner menu alike are stacked with crowd pleasers. For brunch, a Beermosa, beer, grapefruit, and honey, and the breakfast sandwich is the perfect weekend indulgence. For dinner, share the pickle tots (trust me), kale salad, and tuna tartare or the wagyu carpaccio. Really everything I’ve had there is worth trying, and I’ve tried just about everything on the menu. Go hungry, leave happy. Bon Appetit!
• Black Dog Gelato // Ever on a date around Wicker Park? End it here. They have THE most inventive flavors and combinations and by the way, the creamiest gelato in all the land. Goat Cheese Cashew Caramel, Sesame Fig Chocolate Chip, Mexican Hot Chocolate, Rosemary Irish Cream, and Cucumber Rosewater Sorbet, just to name a few. Even if you haven’t had dinner yet, just go over there and start with dessert. It’s time we all lived a little, eh?

Caffeine and Sugar:

• Stan’s Donuts // What happens when you wrap up donut dough like a pretzel and dust it with sugar and cinnamon? You have the cutest donut tasting pretzel of your life, that’s what. That along with a very large variety of other surprising and some not-so-surprising flavors are available any time of day (or night, all the way until 9pm!) over at Stan’s Donuts. When this LA chain opened their first shop here on Damen, we all came to find out what the fuss was about. And we were pleasantly surprised. Go find out for yourself, my personal favorite is the pistachio old fashioned.

What are some of your favorite spots in Wicker Park and Bucktown? Have you been to any of the places on Alison’s list? Which neighborhood should we cover next?