'''Pilsen''' is a neighborhood on the Lower West Side of Chicago. Murals of Mexican cowboys notwithstanding, Pilsen is a lot like the Wild West: only a few minutes from the Loop by train, this working-class area is thick with riches in art and historic architecture, encircled by developers and speculators in search of the next hot neighborhood, and occupied by a community that's fiercely proud of where they live.
Understand
Pilsen was originally settled by Irish and German immigrants, who came to work at the factories and stockyards nearby. Those industries attracted Czech immigrants next, and in the late 1800s, the neighborhood was named in honor of the city back home in Bohemia. The streets of Pilsen still bear their mark — weathered stone castles like '''St. Adalbert's''' and '''Thalia Hall''' loom over buildings with colorful turrets and dashes of ornamentation completely absent of the Prairie School influence found elsewhere in Chicago.
When the communities of the Near West Side were shattered and scattered by the construction of the University of Illinois at Chicago, Pilsen's population shifted as well to absorb newcomers. With the city's once-thriving West Side Italian community mostly wiped out, the small '''Heart of Italy''' in the industrial '''Heart of Chicago''' neighborhood drew new focus as one place where it survived, remaining today as an alternative to the more heavily touristed Little Italy in the Near West.
The construction also displaced a community of Mexicans, many of whom resettled in Pilsen. Within a few years, they became the demographic majority. Never prosperous, the area had been in economic decline for several years, its fate tied to the transition of Chicago's economy away from cattle and manufacturing; poverty remains a serious issue in Pilsen today. Nevertheless, its residents have built a set of cultural institutions that far outpace many wealthier neighborhoods, crowned by the excellent '''National Museum of Mexican Art'''.
Fears of gentrification began several years ago when the Podmajersky company began converting the old warehouses of East Pilsen into cheap studios for artists from outside the community. Depending on who you ask, this was either intended to:
a) Revitalize the nearly vacant eastern half of an economically depressed neighborhood by creating spaces where exciting young artists could live, work, and exhibit, a "SoHo in Chicago";
b) Jump-start the process of gentrification that happened in Wicker Park several years earlier, driving up property values by exchanging low-income residents for wealthier ones looking to trade on that artistic "cool."
The exciting artists have arrived, and now people are waiting to see what happens. There is a sense that Pilsen could be the next big thing, but there is also a concern that few of the current residents will be there when that happens. Already, some businesses seem compelled to take sides: whether to appeal to the working-class Mexican community already here, or the affluent community that might be coming. Whatever direction Pilsen may be headed, what's there now is a neighborhood with a long history of re-inventing itself, rough in places and full of inspiration, and palpably on the edge of greatness.
Get in
By train
Pilsen is very easy to reach by train from the Loop. The key is to know which part you'd like to visit first: the arts district in East Pilsen, which is centered at 18th and Halsted, and the commercial center in West Pilsen, which is near 18th and Ashland. It's a long but manageable walk between the two areas, with a quiet zone in-between.
For the arts district, take the CTA '''Orange Line''' to Halsted, which is on the border of Bridgeport, and walk a few blocks north on Halsted (the street), crossing over the river almost immediately.
For the rest of the neighborhood, including the National Museum of Mexican Art, take the CTA '''Pink Line''' to 18th, which is right at the commercial center of Pilsen. (Even if you're just passing through, the astonishing murals at the 18th station are worth a look.) The Pink Line also stops in the Heart of Chicago neighborhood (Damen, Western) and then on to the Far West Side.
By bus
In the winter, knowing the transit options between East and West Pilsen is vital. The streets of Pilsen don't get the same tender, loving care from the snowplows as some other parts of the city, so the wind and the drifts can make walk between the two areas considerably more difficult.
'''8 Halsted''' runs the length of the arts district, coming from Bridgeport to the south and the Near West Side to the north. It connects with the Orange Line at the Halsted station.
'''9 Ashland''' will drop you at 18th and Ashland, near the taquerias and the Pink Line. It runs all night.
'''18 16th 18th''' runs, appropriately enough, down 18th street, connecting with the Pink Line at the 18th station.
'''49 Western''' runs down Western Avenue for nearly the full length of the city, passing near Pilsen and Heart of Chicago. It's an all-night route.
'''60 Blue Island/26th''' runs from the Chicago/Loop through the Near West Side, Pilsen, Little Village and South Lawndale all night long.
'''N62 Archer''' branches off to cover the same ground as the 8 Halsted while passing through the arts district. Note that the plain 62 Archer only stops within walking distance back at the Halsted Orange Line stop.
By car
If you're traveling within the city, the wide expanses of Western Avenue are always the fastest way to reach Pilsen. Otherwise, use the '''I-55''' exit at Damen Avenue for Pilsen, and the Canalport left exit off of '''I-90/94''' to get to the arts district on Halsted.
See
Monday is the only day to avoid when visiting Pilsen, with both the National Museum of Mexican Art and the few non-appointment art galleries closed. Both halves of the neighborhood have annual open-doors festivals — see below.
West Pilsen
If you're walking down 18th Street from East Pilsen, it's at 18th and Racine that you'll begin to notice the change. Stores have cheerful skeletons in their windows, and inevitably some Spanish-language dance music is bumping off in the distance. By the time you reach 18th and Blue Island, take a break to enjoy the scene. Those are the speakers of community radio '''WRTE''' [http://www.wrte.org/] broadcasting from the corner, across the street from the Rudy Lozano Library (see Contact). Welcome to West Pilsen.
Quite a lot of artists have studios in West Pilsen, but only the excellent '''Prospectus Art Gallery''' and the '''A.P.O. Cultural Center''' have regular open hours. Check there and at the cafes for information on exhibit openings.
A.P.O. Cultural Center. 436 W 18th St. 8th Pink Line. 1 773 780-1495. ours vary. The enormous, foreboding stone edifice of the A.P.O. Building houses some worthwhile art exhibitions and the occasional concert along with community programs (such as the pool downstairs). Exhibits are usually free and open to all, but stern old ladies will keep you from wandering elsewhere.
CTA 18th Station. 710 W 18th St. 8th Pink Line. AM-1AM daily. 2 to ride the train, free to view if getting off/back on a train. Art and the CTA have had a bad relationship over the years, with relentlessly awful results nearly every time the CTA commissions a mural for a station or subway wall. This one, however, is a gem. The youth outreach efforts of the Museum of Mexican Art (below) and other community programs have borne fruit here, creating a walk from the station house to the platforms is nothing short of awe-inspiring (albeit distracting if you're in a hurry to catch a train).
National Museum of Mexican Art. 852 W 19th St. 8th Pink Line. 1 312 738-1503. u-Su 10AM-5PM, M closed. ree. ttp://www.nationalmuseumofmexicanart.org. The National Museum of Mexican Art is a lovely, small gallery full of vibrant colors and well exhibited installations focused on understanding Mexican as well as Mexican-American history and culture through art. The museum serves as Pilsen's ground zero for the annual '''Day of the Dead''' celebration in the fall — this is a great time to visit to see all the brightly painted, skull-filled, and often humorous Ofrendas.
Prospectus Art Gallery. 210 W 18th St. 1 312 733-6132. -Su 12-5PM. ree. Fascinating exhibitions of modern and traditional Latin American art, about halfway between the East Pilsen galleries and the Mexican swing of West Pilsen.
St. Adalbert Church. 650 W 17th St. 1 312 226-0340. Built in 1914 for the area's Polish community, St. Adalbert's still features murals of rousing crowd favorites like Queen Jadwiga's wedding and the time Our Lady of Czestochowa beat the hell out of some invading Swedes. It now includes a shrine in honor of Our Lady of San Juan de los Lagos and a few other touches for the Mexican Catholics who live in the neighborhood today.
St. Procopius Church. 641 S Allport St. 1 312 226-7887. ttp://www.stprocopius.com/. This towering stone church overlooking 18th Street was built in 1883 for the Czech Catholics in the area. Today, it's impressively weathered and gloomy from the street, but bright and austere if you manage a peek inside. Masses are held in English, Spanish, and Croatian.
Thalia Hall. 215-25 W 18th St. 1 773 342-7430. This ornate former theater was built as a replica of an old opera house in
Budget
Carnitas Uruapan. 725 W 18th St. 8th Pink Line. 1 312 226-2654. -W,F 8:30AM-5PM, Sa-Su 7AM-6PM. 6. The best carnitas (stewed pork) around. (Kids will love the cartoon pigs on the wall as long as they don't connect them to what they're eating.) The cactus salad comes highly recommended, too, but runs out early in the day. As for the rest of the menu, well, you either want a big sheet of fried pork rinds or you don't, and nothing this guide tells you is going to change your mind one way or the other.
El Paraiso Bakery. 156 W 18th St. 1 312 733-8616. AM-9PM daily. Take-out only — that's because walking into El Paraiso is like entering a huge, busy kitchen, with towering stacks and tray after tray of bread, buns, and cookies of all kinds there for the taking. You'll see determined local mothers and grandmothers loading up in here, so be careful not to get in their way.
Panaderia Tortilleria Nuevo Leon Bakery. 634 W 18th St. 1 312 243-5977 . -F 5:30AM-9PM, Sa-Su 6AM-9PM. 1-4. Tasty bakery run by the Nuevo Leon family, who run the fine restaurant a block down. They serve Mexican bread, pastries, coffee, and other early morning essentials under the watchful eye of a 1986-87 Chicago Bears team poster.
Sabas Vega. 808 S Ashland Ave. 1 312 666-5180. -F 8AM-5PM, Sa-Su 6AM-5PM. 6. Another good option for carnitas, with more seating than Uruapan. If it's cold outside, take note: they brag that their cauldron runs at 266 degrees Fahrenheit!
Tacos Palas. 700 S Halsted St. 1 312 733-0433. AM-8:30PM daily. 1.50-4. Tacos Palas is perhaps the best taqueria in Pilsen, so if you don't intend to have a sit-down multi-course meal, head straight here to grab some dirt cheap, incredible tacos.
Taqueria Los Comales #3. 544 W 18th St. 8th Pink Line. 1 312 666-2251. ttp://www.loscomales.com/en/locations.aspx. u-Th 7:30AM-1AM, F-Sa 7AM-3AM. 5-8. A local chain that's almost certainly the quickest draw among Pilsen taquerias, with food made fresh and ''very'' fast, and served by a friendly waitstaff.
Mid-range
Cuernavaca Restaurant. 160 W 18th St. 1 312 829-1147. 0AM-midnight daily. 10-15. One of the more authentic Mexican restaurants in Pilsen, with dishes ranging from basic combination burrito platters to more interesting, obscure dishes and great moles. The leafy decor manages to be festive and elaborate, without descending into over-the-top Mexican camp (even the Virgin Mary shrine). There's a full bar for the latest futbol.
May St. Cafe. 146 W Cermak Rd. 8th Pink Line. 1 312 421-4442. ttp://www.maystcafe.com. u-Th 5PM-10PM, F-Sa 5PM-11PM, Su 5PM-9PM. 12-32. This recent sensation offers Mexican, Cuban, Puerto Rican, and "traditional American" fusion cuisine, served to a lively BYOB crowd. It's out of the way, but still within walking distance from the Pink Line.
Mundial Cocina Mestiza. 640 W 18th St. 1 312 491-9908. ttp://www.mundialcocinamestiza.com/. 1AM-10:30PM. 12-18. BYOB and a lovely dining room for delicious, Latin-fusion/Mediterranean-influenced cooking, one of the highlights of Pilsen cuisine.
Perez Restaurant. 163 W 18th St. 1 312 421-3631. -Sa 6AM-8PM. 9-15. Heaping plates of Mexican food and powerful margaritas, with outdoor seating when the weather permits. Not to mention easy parking; hard to come by with restaurants in the area. Get the Lime (limon) Margarita. You won't regret.
Pizza Nova. 842 W 18th St. 1 312 666-3500. u-Th 11AM-midnight, F-Sa 11AM-1AM. 5-20. Great stuffed pizza just across the park from the Museum of Mexican Art.
Playa Azul 1. 514 W 18th St. 8th Pink Line. 1 312 421-2552. -Th 8AM-midnight, F-Su 8AM-2AM. 10-15. Family-run Mexican restaurant with high quality seafood dishes at prices no one else in the city can beat, and a mermaid emerging from the wall to bless the proceedings.
Restaurante Nuevo Leon. 515 W 18th St. 8th Pink Line. 1 312 421-1517. AM-midnight daily. 6-14. A nice family-run restaurant serving good, authentic Mexican food, including some excellent fish dishes as well as superb tacos. Even if you're not hungry, stop by to have a look at the gorgeously painted building.
Heart of Italy
These are tricky to reach, but if you like Italian food, it's well-worth the trip. Take the Pink Line to Western, walk a few blocks blocks south and then turn right to reach the 2400 South block of Oakley. The huge variable in the price of your meal is the kind of wine you choose.
Bacchanalia. 413 S Oakley. estern Pink Line. 1 773 254-6555. ttp://www.bacchanaliachicago.com/. -Th 11AM-10PM, F 11AM-11PM, Sa 4-11PM, Su 3:30-9PM. 14-22. A warm, old world atmosphere and a busy kitchen.
Bruna's Ristorante. 424 S Oakley. estern Pink Line. 1 773 254-5550. -Th 11AM-10PM, F-Sa 11AM-11PM, Su 1-10PM. 16-25. Opened in 1933, and currently owned by an immigrant from
Stay safe
Smash-and-grab robberies have been reported for cars parked in East Pilsen during the 2nd Fridays art walk, so park in a well-lit area if possible and take any valuables with you (or, better, leave them at your hotel). Many Chicago residents overstate the crime rate in Pilsen, but it's still a low-income area, and has problems to match. After dark, stick to well-lit major streets like 18th, Ashland, and Paulina, and be aware of your surroundings.
Get out
The majority of Chicago's Mexican-Americans live in Little Village to the west and near Marquette Park and Back of the Yards on the Southwest Side.
The other major gallery scenes are in River North and the West Loop, albeit with far higher rents. Pilsen's potential antecedent Wicker Park also has some small galleries worth notice, as does Rogers Park. You'll find a gallery scene even further off the beaten path in Bridgeport.