Cheap eats River North Chicago

Cheap eats River North Chicago. Finding a great place to eat, on the cheap, is easy in River North. This area of the city probably has one of the highest concentrations of restaurants and more keep opening so there are many options. Here are the best quality, lower cost options.

All prices were valid at the time of this post and can change without notice. Prices stated don’t include beverage, tax and tip. Cheers!

2021 update: The following info may not be correct. I haven’t been to any of these places in over a year. And I haven’t been out looking for new deals in over a year. I have deleted all the locations that have closed. I have also started going out again so I will republish this once I have more info. Thank you for your patience.

Big & Little’s, 860 North Orleans Street, 312-943-0000. Cash only. Most everything under $10.

Brett’s Kitchen, 233 W. Superior St., 312-664-6354. Fresh, healthy and reasonably priced food. Limited seating gets crowded may be best for take out.

Bub City, 435 North Clark Street, 312-610-4200. Most entrees are under $15. Good lunch special. Join Frequent Diner program; Get $10 free.

Cafe Iberico 737 North LaSalle Drive, 312-573-1510. Excellent and cheap tapas. Have a sangria or two and you can still get out of there for less than $25.

Club Lago, 331 W. Superior St., 312-951-2849. Old, traditional Italian that’s been there for ever.

Doc B’s Fresh Kitchen, 55 E. Grand, 312-999-9300. Top quality, fresh ingredients. Most items are around $15 and below. Sign up for Doc B Rewards and get $10 free. Join Ritual for $10 free.

Hub51 51 West Hubbard Street, 312-828-0051. This Mexican, sushi and burger establishment makes a fine margarita. Most non-sushi menu items like tacos are around $15. Join Frequent Diner program; Get $10 free.

Kinzie Chophouse, 400 N. Wells St., 312-822-0191. Lunch entrees are a great deal at around $13. At dinner they offer a quarterly, seasonal prix fixe menu for $40. Call to confirm that the special menu is available on the date you plan to go.

L’Appetito, 30 E. Huron, 312-787-9881. L’Appetito is an Italian deli. Breakfast, lunch, dinner $6-around $10. Join Ritual for $10 free.

Cheap eats River North Chicago

Lou Malnati’s, 439 North Wells Street, 312-828-9800. Delicious thin crust pies, pasta, Malnati salad. Join Lou Malnati Rewards; Get $5 free.

M Burger 5 W Ontario, 312-428-3548. Burgers, fries and shakes. There’s indoor seating for maybe 20.

Mercadito 108 W. Kinzie, (312) 329-9555 Taco Tuesdays two tacos for $7.50. 3PM-6PM and 9PM to close. Join Ritual for $10 free.

Mr. Beef, 666 North Orleans Street, 312-337-8500. This may be rated the top Italian beef in the city and their fresh cut fries are good too. Beef sandwich $7. They also have a parking lot. No website.

Pizano’s, 800 N. Dearborn, 312-335-8833. Delicious entrees and thin crust pizzas.

Portillo’s, 100 W. Ontario, 312-587-8910. Okay so this is a fast food chain but everything is good including their burgers, crinkle fries and garbage salad. And of course the Italian beef and Chicago style hot dogs. Plus they have a drive-thru. Join Ritual for $10 free.

Quartino, 626 North State Street, 312-698-5000. Small plates made for sharing but you can also turn a couple of them into a low cost meal. You can order half portions of many menu items. Three course lunch for two for $25. Good wine sold by the fraction of a litre.

Ramen-San, 59 West Hubbard Street, 312–377-9950. This is probably not the best ramen joint in town but the prices are low, the ramen bowls large and the cocktails unique. $15Express Lunch. Join Frequent Diner program; Get $10 free.

Seoul Taco, 738 N. Clark St. 312-265-1607, Korean-Mexican tacos three for $8.

Silver Spoon, 710 N. Rush, 312-944-7100. Good cheap Thai just off Michigan Ave. Check website for coupon. Lunch special $9. Join Ritual for $10 free.

Shake Shack 66 East Ohio Street, 312-667-1701. Stick to the locally sourced dogs and sausages. Shakes $6.

Star of Siam, 11 E. Illinois St. , 312-670-0100. Cheap and delicious Thai at great prices. Most entrees are around $8. Join Ritual for $10 free.

3 Greens Market, 354 W. Hubbard St. (312) 888-9195. Hot and cold bar $10/lb., Small Cheval burgers $9-10, Dillman’s pastrami $12-14. Nice patio.

West Town Bakery & Diner, 15 E Ohio St, (312) 894-0935. The River North outlet for the Bucktown parent offers sandwiches, soups and salads everything under $12. Join Ritual for $10 free.

Xoco, 449 North Clark Street (entrance on Illinois), 312-334-3688. Rick Bayless’, always packed, torta, soup, salad and churro shop Everything around $8-12. Daily specials $12. On Wed. only after 5PM get three tacos for $11.50. Limited seating.