Where is river north area in chicago
RIVER NORTH, CHICAGO - Neighborhood Guide & Tour (Knowledge from a Local)
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what's good YouTube its Lewis gussto
welcome back to my channel today we're
in one of Chicago's most touristy
neighborhoods but it wasn't always the
most attractive destination and in fact
was once nicknamed smokey Hollow and
later became a haven for art galleries
that's right
we're in River North Chicago and in this
video we're gonna be sharing some of
River North's cultural institutions its
best food spots and majestic
architecture we'll also be answering
some questions like where is River north
is it worth visiting is it a good place
to move and is it Chicago's oldest
neighborhood if you want to skip two
things to do in River North go ahead and
click this time stamp but I have a
trivia question for you guys in River
North there are five streets named after
the Great Lakes in the comments below
let me know what those are with all that
out the way let's go ahead and explore
River North the borders of Chicago
neighborhoods are not an exact science
but in general River North is bounded on
the north by Chicago Avenue on the east
by Michigan Avenue on the south and west
by the Chicago River and is generally
considered part of Chicago's downtown
although officially it's the near
Northside community area there are so
many ways to get to River north but as
always I highly recommend taking public
transportation one of my favorite ways
to get down here is to take the CTA red
line and get off at the Grand stop it
was built in 1943 and is one of
Chicago's most beautiful subway station
other ways include taking the CTA Brown
Line and getting off at the Merchandise
Mart or Chicago stop the buses that
serve River north include the 22 6566
36 and 156 of course there are so many
other ways to get down to River North
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for thousands of years several Native
American tribes had settlements in this
area and they used the Chicago River as
a primary mode of transportation they
probably also ate a bunch of wild onions
as Europeans began to settle in Chicago
River North became the first
neighborhood fast forward to the late
19th century and this area became a hub
of Industry and manufacturing there were
so many factories here in fact that the
smog polluted the entire area some days
you couldn't even see the Sun earning
this spot the nickname smoky Hollow
right now we're in front of the Reid
Murdock building a perfect example of
the chicago school factory building that
once lined this river
up and down river north was also a major
railway and shipping hub there was even
a port on the chicago river and later
became a warehouse district and the best
example of that is the Merchandise Mart
which was built to hold an immense
amounts of goods even to this day it
sells home furnishings far as the eye
can see around this time many Italian
immigrants settled in river north given
it a new nickname little Sicily an
assumption church was the official
parish for all Catholic Italians from
Lake Michigan to the Mississippi River
the early 20th century saw most of the
industry move out of this area as the
city began to commercially and
aesthetically develop the Riverside as
well as clean up the polluted river
however a big side effect is that smoky
hollow went downhill and soon became a
Skid Row when it comes to architecture
in river north of course you're gonna
have your modern skyscrapers your
converted warehouses and your historical
buildings but if you look carefully
you'll find Italianate homes for in the
late 19th century all around you like
1:54 west superior sandwich right in
between these two modern buildings the
old Chicago Historical Society building
is a beautiful example of Richard
Sounion Romanesque architecture who was
built in 1892 and the Chicago Historical
Society called it home until 1931 when
they moved up to Lincoln Park since then
it's been the home of anything from the
Institute of design to Blues recording
studios and now a towel restaurant in
the 1970s a developer named Albert
Friedman began to buy up and restore
buildings in this area he renamed the
neighborhood River north and it became
an art gallery District River North now
has the highest concentration of art
galleries outside of Manhattan NYC
a great way to start the day in River
North is by coming to quarries and white
seed bagel any chance I get when I'm
down in River North come to NYC bagel
quarry hooks it up with a delicious
everything bagel egg and bacon about to
chow down for breakfast when it comes to
food and drink in River North let's go
ahead and state the obvious there are a
ton of national chains here which you
should absolutely avoid unless it's a
Chicago chain that's what we're gonna
start pizzeria Uno's is where deep-dish
pizza was introduced it was founded by
Ike swell in 1943 all across the river
north you can find all the other Chicago
deep-dish chains like Giordano's Gino's
East and of course Lou Malnati's
Portillo's is the other Chicago
restaurant that I highly recommend you
can get Italian beefs
Chicago hot dogs and all other sorts of
Windy City delights we come down the
river north so much for the great food
so here are my personal recommendations
for casual dining
they're sweet Green's Eataly and life
kitchen and for fine dining
you've got EEMA sushi san Sunda and GT
fish and oyster for lunch we stopped at
one of my favorite restaurants in all of
river north true foods kitchen they're
known for their healthy yet delicious
food options right here we've got the
spaghetti squash the KLA juice and the
unbeatable burger which is a plant-based
burger with beet yuzu and all kinds of
other amazing yummy delicious vegetables
were about to chow down at true Foods
kitchen see you we're stopping for
coffee at Big Shoulders its founder Tim
Coonan started out roasting coffee in
his garage
he shared it with family and friends his
neighbors and now Chicago Big Shoulders
is the official coffee roaster of Midway
International Airport and it was one of
the many amazing Coffee Roasters
in Chicago
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of the many amazing things to do in
River North Ward Park is one of the best
it's 3.1 acres of green space right
along the North Branch of the Chicago
River the Chicago Park District actually
worked with two major architectural
firms to develop this space and it's
quite beautiful the comedy bar is
Chicago's only downtown comedy club they
have a main stage and a B stage you can
enjoy some delicious Gino's East
deep-dish pizza and Gino's Brewing
Company beer while you laugh to some
hilarious comedians and this building is
a super historic it's one of the only
relics of Chicago's electric streetcar
system we're in front of a LaSalle
Street powerhouse we're now in front of
the DRI House Museum which is located in
the restored Nickerson mansion that was
built in 1883 they do give tours but you
can also explore on your own it is one
of the best things to do in River North
and we highly recommend it the House of
Blues is a popular concert venue that
regularly hosts performers from every
type of musical genre it's actually part
of Marina City designed by Bertrand
Goldberg and the interior is modeled
after the s the Bosque Opera House in
Prague Holy Name Cathedral is the seat
of the Archdiocese of Chicago
it's a Gothic Revival church that was
built in 1875 and is a national
registered Historic Landmark for all you
gym rats and muscleheads you'll find
plenty of places to work out in this
neighborhood from River North Jim in the
Merchandise Mart to the east bank Club
one of the biggest gyms in Chicago at to
full city blocks there really are so
many things to do in River North way too
many to cover in this video the Poetry
Foundation and Museum of Broadcast
communications offer fun and informative
experiences when it comes to shopping in
River North you are close to the
Magnificent Mile River North is also
known for its high-end shopping like art
pieces home appliances and kitchen and
washroom fixtures
if you guys are enjoying this River
North guide go ahead and finesse that
like button and if you're new to my
channel it would mean the world to me if
you subscribe over the years River North
has undergone several major changes but
I feel like that's true of any area in
Chicago there's more than meets the eye
when it comes to River north and it has
some of the best of what Chicago has to
offer if you're a visitor to the city
make sure you don't limit yourself here
but with that said River North is one of
the greatest neighborhoods in all of the
city of Chicago River North is a great
neighborhood to live in there are luxury
buildings converted warehouse condos and
you're close to so many major points of
interest it's perfect for busy people on
the go who want to be part of the action
keep in mind that it is gonna be busy
all day and all year round
not only for the people that live here
but from tourists and visitors and also
be prepared to pay significantly higher
rent and you may miss out on what some
of the other Chicago neighborhoods have
to offer so what's the vibe like in
River North well whether you're visiting
or you live in Chicago there's a good
chance you're gonna find yourself in
this neighborhood at some point there
are so many restaurants and nightlife
close proximity to Magnificent Mile
River North is pretty much jumping at
all hours of the day
so for nightlife in River north there
are so many options like the green door
tavern which was established in 1921
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did you guys get the answer to the
trivia question the streets in River
North that her name for Great Lakes
include superior Huron Ontario area and
Michigan shout out to the folks that
requested the River North neighborhood
guide be sure to let us know in the
comments what neighborhood you want
covered next
of course this was just a sample of what
River North has to offer I hope you
enjoyed this neighborhood guide if you
did make sure you finesse that like
button and if you're new to my channel
subscribe to join the gusto gang I will
see you guys next time have a fantastic
rest of your day we're out of here peace
but it wasn't always the most attractive
destination and in fact was once
nicknamed smokey Hollow thank you guys
thank you there were so many factors in
this area that River North became
polluted from the smog and earned its
nickname the smokey Hollow oh it blocked
out the Sun even to this day it sells
home furnishings far as the eye can see
let this little hullabaloo pass and
we'll go and we'll do it the early 2000
K blah blah blah blah the earlier 27
earliest there are a ton of national
chains here which use it that motorcycle
ruined it okay guys get the answers at
the trivia question the streets in River
North names four Great Lakes include
Ontario Erie
Ontario Michigan Erie Huron
