Guide
The Ultimate West Loop BBQ Crawl
The West Loop packs more good BBQ into a few blocks than anywhere else in the city. Park once, walk the rest. Here is the route, who to hit, and what to order at each stop.
Start at Green Street Smoked Meats
112 N Green St. Hidden down an alley off Randolph, this is the anchor. Trays of brisket, burnt ends, and pulled pork sold by the half pound, plus jalapeno cheese sausage that sells out by 8pm most nights. Grab a tray, sit at a picnic table, and pace yourself. This is stop one of four, not a full meal.
Order: a quarter pound of brisket, one sausage link, one rib. Skip the sides for now.
Walk to Lillie's Q
Six blocks south on Bucktown, or a quick rideshare. Charlie McKenna's spot leans Carolina, not Texas, so you are tasting a different style on purpose. Pulled pork with their Carolina sauce, hush puppies, and the fried green tomato BLT if you have room.
Order: pulled pork sandwich with Carolina sauce, hush puppies to share.
Why this neighborhood
The West Loop runs on restaurants. Randolph Street alone has more critic darlings per block than any other strip in Chicago, and BBQ rode that wave in starting around 2014. Green Street kicked the door open, others followed, and the result is the rare Chicago neighborhood where you can walk between three or four serious smokehouses in an afternoon. If you only have one day for BBQ in the city, spend it here.
Texas style brisket is the headline. For the Chicago South Side rib tip experience, see our Chicago style rib tips guide.
West Loop BBQ spots in the directory
Filtered to West Loop addresses. Call ahead, weekends sell out early.
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