Newcity's Best of Chicago 2012

Book excerpt: Best of Chicago is the definitive guide to America's third-largest city, created each year, for nineteen years running, by Chicago's only locally owned and operated alternative weekly, Newcity. Unlike other city guides that trot out the same-old same-old tourist traps, Best of Chicago is equally a resource for visitors, newcomers and lifelong Chicagoans. Readers will still learn the basics like who has the best hotdog, but so too, the best place to nonchalantly check out the opposite sex. Sure, Best of Chicago will tell readers who has the best holiday-themed theatrical production. But it also has the best hipster-free bar in Wicker Park. The best Middle Eastern restaurant, the best Montreal-style poutine in Chicago, the best place to drink in the forest preserves, the best unrecognized landmark to Chicago’s gay community, the best place to meet strangers over breakfast, and so on, through more than 500 entries. Entries are organized in five broad categories, including City Life, Culture & Nightlight, Food & Drink, Goods & Services, and Sports & Recreation. And not only will readers discover places to go in Chicago, but they'll learn about the city's history while enjoying a laugh or two throughout.