Evanston IL Restaurants Guide: Where to Eat in Town

An Evanston IL restaurants guide should start with three kitchens that appear again and again in local coverage: Hecky's Barbecue for Creole-style ribs and sauce, Blind Faith Cafe for vegetarian cooking and Campagnola for a romantic Italian dinner. Evanston sits on Lake Michigan just north of Chicago, home to Northwestern University.

Where to eat in Evanston Illinois if you only have one meal?

The honest answer depends on who is at the table. For a barbecue lunch with a story behind it, go to Hecky's. For a mixed group that includes vegetarians, Blind Faith Cafe is the safest bet. For a night out, Campagnola is the dinner reservation.

Evanston is a college town and a lakefront suburb with a lot of kitchens. We name only places we found in at least two recent sources, one of them local, and we leave out the rest. The Daily Northwestern's Best of Evanston issue and the Visit Chicago North Shore tourism list are the two we lean on most.

What is Hecky's Barbecue known for among Evanston barbecue and soul food?

Hecky's Barbecue stands at the corner of Green Bay Road and Emerson Street and has served Evanston for years. Cheryl Judice and Hecky Powell opened it, and the Daily Northwestern describes New Orleans-style barbecue inspired by Creole cooking, with baby back ribs and brisket as staples. Its slogan, "It's the sauce," is the reason people buy bottles.

After Hecky Powell's death, the family and staff kept the restaurant open. It won the Chicago Tribune's Readers' Choice Award for best Chicago-style barbecue, and the city recognized it in its legacy business program the same year. Judice added vegetarian and gluten-free options. Visit Chicago North Shore lists it as barbecue with a Creole family-recipe sauce.

Where are the best Evanston vegetarian restaurants?

Blind Faith Cafe, at the corner of Dempster Street and Chicago Avenue, is the local vegetarian institution, a long-running spot. The Daily Northwestern says it won the paper's Best Vegetarian category four years running and names Mongolian stir-fry, seitan marsala, spicy fried Brussels sprouts and Thai peanut noodles, with desserts such as tiramisu and apple-peach cobbler.

Visit Chicago North Shore calls it a certified green restaurant. It serves weekend brunch, which makes it a useful stop for a mixed group, since meat eaters tend to find something they like. Go with friends and order a few dishes to share.

What is downtown Evanston dining like for a dinner out?

Campagnola, on Chicago Avenue, is a small Italian restaurant. The Daily Northwestern gave it Best Splurge, praising pasta, salads and entrees that change with the seasons. The Infatuation reviewed it and called it a wholesomely romantic Italian joint, recommending the pork chop and short rib, the salmon and diver scallops, and the sticky toffee date cake.

Plan ahead for a weekend. The room is small, and a place that earns a splurge award fills up. Pair it with a walk through the downtown streets, where Visit Chicago North Shore lists restaurants and cafes along Davis Street, Main Street and Central Street.

How does this Evanston IL restaurants guide fit into a day out?

A simple day looks like this: a long walk by the lake, a barbecue lunch at Hecky's, an afternoon on Northwestern's campus and dinner at Campagnola. If you are traveling with vegetarians, swap in Blind Faith for lunch. Each stop is a different kind of meal, so you will not repeat yourself.

Big university weekends tend to fill restaurants, so call ahead for dinner then. A quieter weekday is a good way to see the town, and the downtown streets are easy to cover on foot.

What should you order on a first visit?

At Hecky's, order the ribs or brisket and ask for extra sauce, since the sauce is the point. At Blind Faith, choose one stir-fry or noodle dish and one appetizer, then share a dessert. At Campagnola, ask the server what the kitchen is cooking that week, because the entrees change with the seasons.

Ask about vegetarian and gluten-free options at Hecky's, which the Daily Northwestern says its owner added. A small group is easiest at all three rooms.

How do you keep track of an Evanston food list?

Evanston is small enough to cover in a weekend, and a list makes it easy to share. In Mosey you can rate a place with just stars, then add the dishes you ate by name, so "ribs" at Hecky's and "stir-fry" at Blind Faith stay attached to the right room. Tag a place Vegetarian or Date Night when it fits.

Make a list called Evanston, share an invite link with friends, and follow the people whose taste you trust. Badges follow what you rate, so a weekend of Evanston meals becomes a small collection of the kinds of place you have covered. How this works in the app: Make a list.

What is near Evanston?

Chicago's north side starts a few miles south: the Andersonville guide and the Devon Avenue guide are the nearest. For another barbecue tradition, read the rib tips in Chicago guide. Evanston's pages are gathered in the Evanston food guides, and other cities are in the US food guides.

Get the Mosey app, rate your first Evanston dish by the dish and start a list you can build on with every visit.