The new “Mean Girls” movie adds musical numbers and updated Gen Z fashion, but it is set in the same North Shore suburb: Evanston.
Northwestern University was founded before Evanston itself and has remained influential on the north suburb. A dry town for more than a century, Evanston’s population grew after the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and a residential boom in the 1920s. More recently, Evanston has made headlines for being the first U.S. city to pay reparations to Black residents and the controversial decision to rebuild Ryan Field.
Longtime Evanstonian Tom Snydacker first moved to the area more than a decade ago as a Northwestern graduate student. He shares some recs.
Something to Eat
- 🍽️ Lucky Platter is an institution on Main Street. Come for the diner classics. Stay for the eclectic art collection.
- 🍖 While Soul and Smoke’s dine-in spot in Avondale opened to great fanfare in 2022, you can still order barbecue from its original location in Evanston.
- 🧁 Serving baked goods for more than 80 years, Bennison’s is Evanston’s classic bakery.
- 🍻 Catch karaoke, trivia, and live music along with your beer at Sketchbook Brewery. They also offer sketch sessions on the first Saturday of the month.
Something to See
- 🖼️ Located on Northwestern’s campus, The Block Museum of Art features unique exhibitions, programs, and film screenings.
- 🕰️ Groups of 10 or more can book tours at the Halim Time & Glass Museum.
- 🏠 Check out the historic Dawes House, which is home to the Evanston History Center.
Split Single at Space in Evanston in 2015. (Jamie Bernstein / Flickr)
Something to Do
- 🤸 Learn to juggle, tumble, or fly through the air at the Actors Gymnasium.
- 🎼 Space is an intimate music hall where you never know who you might catch. It also has a recording studio.
- 🤯 In addition to the usual gym and meeting rooms, the Robert Crown Community Center features two ice rinks, a dance studio, and a whole library branch. (Fun fact: You can use your Chicago library card at Evanston libraries.)
