What to Eat in Downtown Chicago | Walkable Restaurant Reviews 🚶

Just made it to Chicago for Saint Patrick’s Day — never seen so many people dressed in green, so lively! Also caught the famous annual river dyeing 🍀. Stayed downtown this time and tried mostly nearby spots (except for Bridge Hot Pot), so a lot of blind picks — not all were amazing, but the standout was Nonnina! 🌟 In no particular order: 1️⃣ Cheesecake Factory First time trying it after all these years — and yes, the portions are famously HUGE. So full we didn’t even order cheesecake 😅 Must-tries: 🥑 Avocado Eggrolls (six rolls packed with avocado — so generous!) 🍤 Shrimp and Chicken Gumbo (rich, loaded with meat, super satisfying). Also enjoyed the Warm Crab Dip. Great value and tasty — solid pick! 2️⃣ Kyuramen x TBaar Ramen was just okay — passable but not memorable. The chashu was flavorful though. Tried the Tonkatsu Curry Ramen (chef's special) but it was a bit of a miss 💣. Cute honeycomb-style seating upstairs 🐝. Heard the omelet rice is good 🤔 — and the matcha cake is delicious! 3️⃣ Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ Tried it before in China — still love it! 👍 Gyu-Sushi — meat and rice are super fragrant. 👍 Beef Sukiyaki Bibimbap — sizzling and savory. Lunch special: 3 BBQ meats for $18 — great deal! Skip the Angus Beef Rib (tough and hard to grill), but the Prime Kalbi Short Rib is a win 🥩. 4️⃣ Nonnina Chicago Italian restaurants really deliver 🍝! Tried two pastas, a risotto, and an appetizer — no misses. 👉🏼 Squid Ink Spaghetti 👉🏼 Duck Garganelli 👉🏼 Torta di Chocolate — rich, gooey chocolate lava cake 🍫 📅 Reserve on OpenTable! 5️⃣ Eataly Actually an Italian marketplace — so fun to explore! But I’m obsessed with their cakes 🍰. The tiramisu is incredible — tied for first place with Whole Foods in my heart 💚. Recently tried the pistachio tiramisu — creamy, dreamy, and so satisfying! 6️⃣ Lao Sze Chuan (no photo) Not really recommended — Dan Dan noodles, spicy chicken, and cumin lamb were just okay and tasted quite Americanized (why so many bell peppers? 🫑). #Chicago #DowntownChicago #ChicagoEats #ChicagoFoodie #FoodReview #WalkableEats