chicago Christmas day

Coming in on LSL and leaving for NOL on Christmas day. We have an 11 hour layover in Chi town providing LSL is on time. Wondering how to spend the extra hours, what will be open         and worth going to. Would like to get some food as not sure if City of New Orleans will have dinner.  Welcome all suggestions. Thanks.

You will get fed on the train, but the menu is limited.  I would have a nice dinner before departure.  The hotel restaurants are likely open.   I just stayed at the Hotel Allegro on Randolph- I can recommend their 312 Chicago restaurant. 

Weber Grill is traditionally open on Christmas.

The Lincoln Park Zoo is open on Christmas Day, and it's free! They have a really nice conservatory with a bunch of trains, and most of the animals will be out. (Some warm-weather animals, like the flamingos, will be in their shelters.) You can hop a Lyft or Uber from Union Station and get there pretty quickly.

There is a wonderful Jewish deli just a block or two away. The food is delicious, and I fell head over heels in love with the decor.

http://www.elevencitydiner.com/home

That's how I spent Christmas three years ago; it was wonderful.

I've always wanted to go to the Drake Hotel and attend their Holiday Tea.  I just checked out their website, and they have a section for what they will be serving on Christmas Day.  It was highly recommended years ago by a colleague, but I haven't had the opportunity to try it yet. 

http://www.thedrakehotel.com/dining/palm-court

More info specifically about the Holiday Tea:

http://www.thedrakehotel.com/dining/holiday-happenings/holiday-tea

http://www.thedrakehotel.com/dining/holiday-happenings/christmas

Some of the 'teas' are pretty elaborate, with up to 5 courses of snacks/Christmas breads/candies. 
The Dallas Arboretum has a Holiday Tea and it's extraordinary!

Best wishes, and let us know what  you do - vicariously traveling with you all!

http://www.chicagonow.com/show-me-chicago/files/2015/12/Draketree.jpg

greatcats said:

You will get fed on the train, but the menu is limited.  I would have a nice dinner before departure.  The hotel restaurants are likely open.

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This is what I would recommend as well.  By their very nature hotel restaurants don't typically observe holidays, at least in the sense of closing down and going home.  Chicago has a lot of amazing food but you're going to be visiting on a day when most of the better restaurants will be closed.  That being said hotel restaurants can be surprisingly good in a pinch and are likely to have fresher and tastier options than anything found on the CONO.  I'd personally consider heading toward the W Hotel, JW Marriott, or Club Quarters and eating at one of those since they're all near Union Station.

Another hotel restaurant: Fisk and Co. in the Hotel Monaco at 225 N Wabash. Not that close to CUS, but walkable or a fairly short Uber ride away 

Lincoln park zoo is great open 365 days a year. We did it last winter even on a 30 degree day there’s stuff to see. Its about a $7-10 dollar Uber but as mentioned admission is free. Willis/Sears Tower is open and it’s across the street from Amtrak. It all depends on the weather. Hopefully you’ll have an idea a couple days before on the forecast and can plan according.

If weathers crap and trains on time I’d look into getting a day room. Hotels and Airbnb’s will be dead on/around Christmas. Inn of Chicago and Holiday inn are within walking distance. This guy on Airbnb has 4-5 units a couple blocks from station. Fairly inexpensive for a good days rest/shelter. With a phone call your non standard hours should easily be able to be worked out with any innkeeper.

If Lou Mitchell's is open, it's worth the trip.  It's within walking distance from the station.  Here's their website.

jb

Lou Malnatti’s has some pretty ridiculous deep dish, so I highly recommend going there. And Cloud Gate, aka “The Bean”, is really cool. Like so cool that we literally spent like half an hour walking around it in February when it was 15º F out.

Downtown is very quiet on Christmas Day, with most restaurants closed - best bet for food might be either the CUS food court or a local hotel.  

Again, you should do well with a nice hotel dining room.  Trust me , it will beat the non-cuisine on the CONO.    Have a drink on the train.  Merry Christmas. 

cpotisch said:

Lou Malnatti’s has some pretty ridiculous deep dish, so I highly recommend going there. And Cloud Gate, aka “The Bean”, is really cool. Like so cool that we literally spent like half an hour walking around it in February when it was 15º F out.

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I prefer Lou Malnati’s as well, and find their pizza and salad ingredients to be tastier and higher quality than the likes of Gino's East, but since they're usually closed on major holidays I would advise against going there.  To the best of my knowledge Millennium Park is "open" year round, and so long as you can bundle up it should be fun.  Even though Chicago can be punishingly cold you can simply duck into various hotels and attractions along the way.  When you're done freezing you can stop in for a drink at The Blackstone before heading back to Union Station to relax and prepare for rest of your trip.

Line up the restaurants you are interested in on yelp.   Call on Christmas Day to see which are open.  The food service in the station was closed on thanksgiving when I was there.  

Downtown will be a ghost town on Christmas day with theaters dark, offices, retail and most restaurants closed. Art Institute is closed too.

The closest hotel of note is the JW Marriott at 151 W. Adams, easy walking distance from CUS. They have a nice Italian restaurant The Florentine which is scheduled to be open on Christmas day. I've eaten there and it's fine.

Sometimes you can do a Web search for restaurants open Christmas Day at your target location.  My local paper and The Daily Oklahoman keep updated lists for Christmas, New Years and Thanksgiving.

thanks to all for replies- very intrigued with the Drake- tea is a bit pricey but may be worth the money. i also love the Deli idea, as well as the restaurants suggested. i will make a list call to make certain of open and discuss with the wife. Happy holidays to all

Given a near average delay of an hour and half to the LSL's arrival, you will have about 8 hours to wander and still be back without cutting it close.  My favorite first thing to do on a Chicago layover is get a Chicago Dog at a cart on the Loop, but there may not be any on a day as traditionally deserted as Christmas.  My favorite second thing to do is definitely an option:  ride the L!  It really is quite the railroad.  If the weather is tolerable, I also recommend simply hanging out on the Clark/Lake or Adams/Wabash platform for a bit, facing the adjacent junction and watching the elevated do its thing.  Red Line TO HOWARD (things get dodgy quickly south of downtown) and Brown Line are my rides of choice.  If you're a fan of watching planes come and go, the Orange Line goes to Midway.  Should trains with electric locomotives appeal, Metra's Electric Division terminates at Millenium Station, as does one of the US's last interurbans, the South Shore Line.  With a layover of your length, I would normally recommend a visit to one of Chicagoland's "hot spots" - http://trn.trains.com/photos-videos/hotspots/2006/07/chicagos-hot-spots - but traffic on Christmas Day will be a fraction of its normal self.

Alas, Christmas Day is about the only thing that actually closes most restaurants, and other every day open businesses.   You may even struggle to find a McDonald's or Subway that's open.

As noted, Jewish restaurants, Chinese places, and some hotel establishments will be open.   Traditionally, Ann Sather is open.   Some make a big deal out of dining in Chinatown on Christmas.

An interesting idea might be to call and see whether some of the Greektown restaurants are open.   After all, Orthodox Christmas isn't Dec 25.

As noted, museums are closed, but the zoos (Lincoln Park and Brookfield) and conservatories (Lincoln Park and Garfield Park) are open.  The conservatories have special Christmas flower shows.  And, of course, the lakefront, riverwalk, or parks can be a nice place for a walk if it's a decent day.

You might, also, just want to go see the city tree at Millennium Park.

buck1108 said:

I've always wanted to go to the Drake Hotel and attend their Holiday Tea.  I just checked out their website, and they have a section for what they will be serving on Christmas Day.  It was highly recommended years ago by a colleague, but I haven't had the opportunity to try it yet.

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That's a good idea that I'm going to add to my own Chicago wish list.

dedhd said:

thanks to all for replies- very intrigued with the Drake- tea is a bit pricey but may be worth the money. i also love the Deli idea, as well as the restaurants suggested. i will make a list call to make certain of open and discuss with the wife. Happy holidays to all

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Although I have no personal experience with The Drake Hotel the High Tea service they offer looks like a reasonable value to me.  That being said if you do end up going I'd be curious to hear what you thought of it.

SarahZ said:

The Lincoln Park Zoo is open on Christmas Day, and it's free! They have a really nice conservatory with a bunch of trains, and most of the animals will be out. (Some warm-weather animals, like the flamingos, will be in their shelters.) You can hop a Lyft or Uber from Union Station and get there pretty quickly.

There is a wonderful Jewish deli just a block or two away. The food is delicious, and I fell head over heels in love with the decor.

http://www.elevencitydiner.com/home

That's how I spent Christmas three years ago; it was wonderful.

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I believe that restaurant location is now closed.   They still have one at 11th and Wabash, however.  (An ironic photo on their website shows a Chicago flag just below a sign advertizing Junior's cheesecake: a New York institution.)

Perhaps Frances' Deli, near the zoo, would be open, however.  Call to check:

https://www.francesdeli.com

NorthShore said:

(An ironic photo on their website shows a Chicago flag just below a sign advertizing Junior's cheesecake: a New York institution.)

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Why did you have to mention Junior's, Tim? Now I just have to walk that full three blocks to the original location and get myself one!

Devil's Advocate said:

That's a good idea that I'm going to add to my own Chicago wish list.

Although I have no personal experience with The Drake Hotel the High Tea service they offer looks like a reasonable value to me.  That being said if you do end up going I'd be curious to hear what you thought of it.

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I would like to hear about it, as well.  That alone might make me make the trip.

A few yrs ago, we attended a high tea at the Adolphus Hotel in Dallas, and it was comparable in price.

cpotisch said:

Why'd you have to mention Junior's, Tim? Now I just have to walk a full THREE BLOCKS to the original location and get myself one!

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Now, I'm hungry.  Wonder whether I can get to Eli's before they close:

https://elicheesecake.com/#

NorthShore said:

I believe that restaurant location is now closed.   They still have one at 11th and Wabash, however.

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Oh, that's too bad. I wonder if the building issues we experienced forced them out. I really loved that place and looked forward to eating there again.