Chicago's Food on the Street

Chicagoans complain about not having as many food choices such as New York City but Chicago does have several great food items prepared as you wait for a quick lunch or snack throughout the day. Some of the Windy City's best will blow you away. Chicago style street food vendors can be found all over the city near large centers of employment such as downtown and near Northwestern University. Sometimes it's best to look where the lines are around lunchtime or find an outdoor market.

Rico's Huaraches on the famed Maxwell Street Market serves up meaty Mexican food every Sunday in conjunction with one of the world's largest flea markets. Sit down and get a plateful of food for around five dollars as shoppers flock to find other great bargains near Little Italy on Deplaines and Roosevelt. Try chicken or beef piled high with cheese and beans. Whatever you get a Rico's it will be a mouthful so don't plan on talking for about ten minutes.

Three J's takes Jamaican food the extreme. Three J's circles the Loop in downtown Chicago delivering meals in a flash including their wonderful jerk chicken. The owners are Jamaican and are popular proprietors of a solid restaurant and a mobile truck that arrives a few moments after you call. Chicken and beef are their specialties, and if you like perfectly seasoned meat this is your stop for lunch. Be quick about when you meet the truck because your food won't last long if you miss his stop.

Thunderbird Catering takes delivery to an art form. For breakfast or lunch you can have a hot meal for not a lot of money. Have a tortilla or pizza alongside your ice cold drink or hot coffee. Breakfast sandwiches with plenty of eggs are their morning specialties and Mexican food is their trademark for lunch. The most probable place to find the Thunderbird truck is near Northwestern University serving food to the many medical personnel working at the hospital.

While Chicago still lags behind in other great cities as far as mobile eateries, you can still get a decent lunch for a good price. Street vending is all about food you can get for less money than if you sat down and had a meal in a restaurant so enjoy what Chicago has to offer. Mostly street vendors will cook up popular and quick Mexican dishes but more and more places will branch out into savory dishes as Chicago's street food grows more popular.