Thanks to Aaron Cruz – http://www.elatlboy.com – for this guest post. Among other things, Aaron is a lover of shorelines and was on a recent trip to Chicago.

Chicago has Lake Michigan and Lake Shore Drive, the Cubs and Wrigley, great parks and skyline views everywhere you look, I could go on-and-on. In my time there, I’ve also come to know that they have their thriving food scene as well.

Nightwood Restaurant, located in the Pilsen neighborhood, offers fine dining inside and out, with an open kitchen. You never know what deliciousness you’ll have to choose from as their menu is hand-written daily after hitting the markets and coming up with new ideas. The wood-grilled chicken with potatoes in a chili sauce and topped with greek yogurt is a good choice, as well as any pasta they have to offer.

If you’re looking more for the sports bar scene, head right to the heart of the city and make a stop at Public House. Try their burgers and mac ‘n cheese. More specifically the kobe beef brisket sliders and caramelized onion mac ‘n cheese will leave you wanting for more.

You can’t have a Chicago foodie post without the legendary Chicago-style deep dish pizza mentioned. Lou Malnati’s, founded by the son of the originator of this style of pizza, is a place to get to. They have many locations throughout Chicago-land. The Malnati Chicago Classic was the choice on my recent stop, adding in extra onions and garlic for good measure.

If you are looking for a deep-dish pizza joint off the grid, checkout Exchequer Restaurant & Pub within the Downtown Loop. It’s a cozy and fun place to hang out and the cheese on their pizza is reason enough to stop in.

After you’ve grabbed some food, head on over to the rooftop of ZED 451 and enjoy one of their fruity mojitos. Beautiful city views and great drinks make for a fun nightcap.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg. To get a better feel for the Chicago food scene head to the Windy City in the summer to the biggest food festival in the world, The Taste of Chicago. I experienced it many years ago and remember, just one food vendor after another, with lots of entertainment options available.

Aaron, the elATLboy or “The Hispanic Atlanta Boy”, fell in love with travel and road trips at a young age, always having maps and an atlas in hand on one family trip after another. Aaron’s Blog, the Adventures of elATLboy, features his love of ATL, road trips, city skylines, COFFEE and shorelines –http://elatlboy.com. He will be trying to visit 100 non-chain coffeehouses in Georgia, Michigan, Chicago, Toronto and more in 2013: #ElCafeDe2013. You can also follow the hashtag on Twitter and Instagram to see all the delicious coffee Aaron consumes.