Argyle Street Chicago Restaurants: Uptown Guide

Argyle Street Chicago restaurants cluster in the Uptown neighborhood on the north side, a few steps from the Red Line stop that shares the street's name. Vietnamese noodle rooms, bakeries, grocers and Chinese kitchens sit shoulder to shoulder, so one block can hold a bowl of pho, a baguette sandwich and a tray of pastries.

Read the strip block by block, start with the busiest counter and let the smell of broth and grilled pork lead you.

What makes Argyle Street Chicago restaurants worth a trip?

The street is compact, which is rare in a big city. You can step off the train, walk two or three blocks and eat three different things without ever getting back on. Signs are in Vietnamese, Chinese and English, windows show roast meats and baked goods, and the pace is quick. Most rooms are bright, practical and built around the kitchen.

It rewards a hungry visitor with a plan. Decide whether you want soup, sandwiches or a big shared table before you start, and the street will give you plenty of choices.

Where is Uptown Chicago Vietnamese food at its best?

On the blocks around the station, where the oldest shops sit beside newer arrivals. Vietnamese cooking dominates, with beef noodle soup, broken rice plates, spring rolls and rice-paper rolls on most menus. A good room will have a short list of things it does well and a long list of things it will cook if you ask.

Ask which soup is the specialty and which herbs come with it. Cooks are generally pleased to explain. For dish-by-dish advice, see our guides to pho in Chicago and banh mi in Chicago.

What is Asia on Argyle?

It is the name given to the streetscape and the business district around Argyle. You will see it on banners and in the way the street is marked. Some people also call the area Little Saigon, others use a Chinese name for the part with Chinese shops, and the old Chinatown on the south side is a different neighborhood altogether. The Chinatown guide covers it.

Use whichever name helps you find the train. The food matters more than the label.

How do you plan Argyle Red Line food in one visit?

Start with something light and shared, such as rolls or a pastry, then eat the main meal, then buy something to take home. Take the Red Line north, get off at the Argyle stop and walk the street from end to end before you choose, because the best-looking window is often further along than you expect.

If you are tired, ask for the dish to be wrapped. Most Vietnamese soups travel poorly, but sandwiches, pastries and rice plates pack well, and a bakery box makes a good second meal.

What should you eat first on Argyle?

A bowl of beef noodle soup is the classic first order. A baguette sandwich with grilled pork or pâté is the second, because it is cheap, fast and portable. A third dish could be a rice plate with grilled meat and a fried egg, or a bowl of noodles with herbs and sauce.

Share. Two or three dishes between two people covers the ground without waste. Add an iced coffee made with condensed milk to finish, a drink that suits the street.

How do you keep track of what you ate on Argyle?

Argyle is a street where the same menu item appears in ten places, so memory fails quickly. In Mosey you can rate a place with just stars, then add each dish by name: "rare beef pho, clear broth, lots of herbs" or "grilled pork sandwich, crisp bread". Tag the rating with the cuisine, such as Vietnamese, and rate five different Vietnamese places over time to start climbing a badge.

Make a list called Argyle with a note on what each kitchen does best, and share the invite link with a friend who has been before. They will add the places you missed.

How this works in the app: Make a list.

How do the bakeries and groceries fit in?

Do not skip them. The bakeries sell sandwiches, steamed buns, sweet rolls and drinks, and the grocers sell fresh herbs, noodles, sauces and snacks that let you cook the same flavors at home. A short stop in a grocery is a cheap way to learn the names of ingredients you have just eaten, and staff are often glad to point to the right jar.

Carry a bag, because you will leave with more than you planned. Fresh herbs and baked goods are best eaten within a day or two.

What else can you do near the stop?

Uptown is a music neighborhood, and a meal on Argyle makes a good start to a night out. Our guide to dinner before a show in Uptown shows how to time it. The US food guides cover other cities, and the rest of the city is gathered in the Chicago food guides.

One more habit helps on a street like this: take a photo of the menu board before you order. When you rate later, you will spell the dish correctly and remember what the number on the board meant.

Download the Mosey app, rate your first Argyle dish and start a list for the next visit.