The Wesley Willis Tower
Unlike most of the central figures in Chicago’s mid-nineties alternative-rock gold rush, Wesley Willis’ legacy remains untarnished by time. As one of the city’s most beloved outsider musicians and artists, he was, figuratively and literally, a towering figure in the scene. In a town that’s been slow to acknowledge its African-American heroes, it’s time to pay tribute to Willis, who passed away in 2003, with a lasting memorial in Wicker Park’s eponymous green space. Make it a bronze, Sears Tower-shaped monument, featuring reproductions of his intricate sketches of local architecture, and emblazoned with his unforgettable call to arms: “Rock over London, rock on Chicago.”

Best of Chicago 2010

Wicker Park Fest

Wicker Park Fest offers a wide variety of delights. Given the neighborhood, this festival attracts who it attracts, but the music booking sets the fest apart from most summer fests. The talent ranges from local indie mainstays (Joan of Arc, Smoking Popes, Local H) to national touring acts (The Night Marchers, William Elliott Whitmore) to those old mainstream bands we thought had gone away but we still recall hearing from high school (SR-71, Polvo). And who better to gather acts than House Call Entertainment, the agency that books Subterranean, which is right around the corner. Local businesses open their sidewalks and welcome you in. It’s like visiting a familiar place for the very first time.

Milwaukee Avenue between North Avenue and Wood
(773)384-2672
wickerparkfestchicago.com

Best of Chicago 2010

Reckless Records

Pity the snap case, pity the jewel box. Pity the shiny silver data disk. Streaming data wants to have its invisible, non-tactile way with you. Even the Criterion Collection, the “film school in a box” that directors don’t have to die for to be included in has taken note of the change in collecting and viewing of movies past, cutting prices by ten bucks on most of their standard editions. Prices are even cheaper on good stuff on the racks at Reckless, and while the selection is serendipitous rather than title-specific, there’s not much choice when the electronics box stores continue to compact their CD and DVD sections to but a small portion of their floor plans.

26 East Madison
(312)795-0878

1532 North Milwaukee
(773)235-3727

3126 North Broadway
(773)404-5080
reckless.com

Audience choice:

Reckless Records

Best of Chicago 2010

Mr. and Mrs. Digz

We’ve gotta’ hand it to Mr. and Mrs. Digz in Andersonville. Housing everything from vintage couture Chanel jackets to costume jewelry from the 1950s, even the most seasoned vintage shopper can find treasures here. And for those that aren’t quite sure how to pull off the look, there’s owner Emilia Dlugolecka’s line, Tune Up Clothing. Taking vintage garments and nip/tucking them into modern masterpieces with newly cinched waists and heightened hemlines, she simplifies the market for the retro-challenged. All this in a charming space with an über-friendly staff.

5668 North Clark
(773)447-8527
mrandmrsdigz.com

Audience choice:

Una Mae’s Freak Boutique
1528 North Milwaukee
unamaesclothing.com/chicago

Best of Chicago 2010

Tacos de Panza at Big Star

From the taco ladies hand-patting masa balls for fresh tortillas to the spray-painted Spanish phrases on the building, everything about Big Star seems like an exploitative rip-off of Chicago’s corner taquerias by a bunch of white dudes: aka Paul Kahan, Donnie Madia and Terry Alexander. But what you realize while chowing down on scintillating mouth-coating pork belly slathered in tangy tomatillo guajillo salsa and a snow of salty fluffy queso fresco is that the corner taqueria itself is a rip-off. For as purveyors of over-steamed grayish mystery meats wrapped in a taco shell as big as your head, none of them has ever produced anything this tasty.

1531 North Damen
(773)235-4039
bigstarchicago.com

Audience choice:

Big Star

Best of Chicago 2010

Maude from Paper Doll

Between rows of hand-pressed cards and bamboo-scented candles roams Maude, a “house pug” with so much moxie that she once dressed as a mixtape for Halloween. The favorite leading lady—er, doggie—of this Wicker Park stationery outpost has a penchant for Thai food and skateboarders but hates the M*A*S*H theme song—and seeing her customers walk out of her shop. Don’t worry, Maude; we hate leaving you every time, too.

2027 West Division
(773)227-6950
paperdollchicago.com

Best of Chicago 2010

Semiramis

A couple of years ago this category would have been a slam dunk for Salam across the street, but ever since their upscale renovation, there’s been an inconsistency in their offering. Their neighbor across the street continues to be one of the most consistent purveyors of dreamy allspice-infused melt-in-your mouth shawarma and lemony sumac-dusted falafel.

4639 North Kedzie
(773)279-8900
semiramisrestaurant.com

Audience choice:

Sultan’s Market
2057 West North
(773)235-3072

2521 North Clark
(312)638-9151
chicagofalafel.com

Best of Chicago 2010

The Wormhole Coffee

As a new coffee shop in an oversaturated market, there aren’t a whole lot of ways to bring in business. Sure you can offer great food and gourmet coffee, you can hire a pleasant and professional staff, you can even offer free wireless service, but at the end of the day, the hardest part is just getting people in the front door. Wicker Park’s The Wormhole Coffee seems to have solved this problem by putting a life-size reproduction of the “Back To The Future” Delorean, complete with gull-wing doors and flux capacitor, on display in its front window. Step inside and you can sip some premium joe while looking over vintage movie posters, “Star Wars” paraphernalia and other relics of eighties pop culture. And while you’re there, don’t forget to try the Mocha Puffs (Cocoa Puffs with milk and added espresso), a Wormhole original.

1462 North Milwaukee
thewormholecoffee.com

Best of Chicago 2010

Mado

Like the butcher version of “The Candy Man,” chef Rob Levitt is one of a few dudes who can take a pig’s head or organ meat bits, cover them in cinnamon and clove and a miracle or two, and make the final product sing in your tummy.

1647 North Milwaukee
(773)342-2340
madorestaurantchicago.com

Audience choice:
Mado

Best of Chicago 2009

Myopic Books

The Wicker Park used-bookstore institution thrives on buying your books, and while it must enforce some restrictions—buying for only select hours Fridays and Saturdays, a three-boxes-of-books maximum for sellers—the store will surprise you with not only the amount it’ll pay in return, but also the range of literature it’s willing to take.

1564 North Milwaukee
(773)862-4882
myopicbookstore.com

Audience choice:
Myopic

Best of Chicago 2009