abby’s chicago

While this post of Abby’s Chicago was made in 2014 These places are all still in business today as of 01/21/2021. Thank goodness!

If you are looking to head to some fun shops outside of the Chicago area there is my friend Mark’s store just a short car ride away!

ok brace yourself this is going to be a lengthy one.  i am going to list off every amazing place i went to last week in chicago. there was so much goodness packed into one week that you might be here a while. these will go in order by days and areas traveled.

ready?

let’s start with wednesday.  i went down for a conference for work a day early to do some exploring. here are some places i hit up

this area was very easy to access by car. traffic was moderate. but each store provides free parking.

jayson home
1885 N Clybourn Ave, Chicago, IL 60614
(773) 248-8180
this is one of the most amazing home stores i have ever seen. there is a healthy mix of vintage and modern and garden. the prices are a little steep for this west michigan gal but they are very fair considering the quality of the items. there are great accessories though that are in reach. i bought some amazing cement planters and gold accents for the house. they apparently have a flea market once a year that i have to come check out!
* Jayson Home has free parking for customers*

just up the road you will find;
west elm (HUGE) , pottery barn, CB2, Crate and Barrel, William Sonoma, Restoration Hardware, and Anthropologie (among other shops like VS, Jcrew etc). I really like this area because the parking is free for customers and everything is walkable. it’s also not as busy as the stores off michigan ave.

Green Street Smoked Meats
112 N Green St, Chicago, IL 60607
(312) 754-0431
DELICIOUS you walk through this back door alley type thing (near little goat and across from the soho house) and they have well…smoked meat. my friend shelley and i split the pork ribs and the brisket. the meat is served without sauce and you can add that by yourself. it’s served with wonder bread and you can order additional sides. we ordered coleslaw (delicious) beans (decent) and macaroni salad (AhMAZing). the drinks as well as the entrees are very well priced. our meal with a drink each came to about $25. which is amazing for the amount of food you are served.

SOHO House chicago
113 N Green St, Chicago, IL 60607
(312) 521-8000
i headed here for a quick drink and a slice of cake before meeting my friend for dinner. the wine was good but i would drink boones farm just to sit and look around. the floors are amazing, the warehouse feel is stunning and i love the vinagesque velvet furniture lining the lounge. they had an amazing cocktail list and if i was not driving home that night i would have tried one 🙂 this is directly across from green street smoked meats.

ok so thursday was conference now friday night my friend lisa and i headed back into town.

eataly 
43 E Ohio St, Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 521-8700
we spent literally 3 hours in this place called eatalys. if you are staying in downtown it’s not far for you. it’s a two story italian food department store with multiple restaurants located in the second level. we went back twice and ate at four of the restaraunts. the pasta, the pizza, the seafood and the pub. everything was absolutly fabulous. the best part? you can order from their wine bar and walk around and shop while you wait for your table. the cheese department was super impressive. they also had coffee bar, gelato shop (sweet milk – amazing), meat counter, pasta section, amazing italian cookbook section, kitchen tools, sauces, vinegar section, oils section. it seriously is a MUST stop for foodies. also you can shop online!

 

saturday morning we woke up early and took a cab to breakfast.

little goat diner
820 W Randolph St. Chicago, Illinois
(312) 888-3455
i know i have written about this place a million gagillion times but this is one of my favorite breakfast spots in all the land.  i have had the specials, the breakfast burrito and the biscuit and gravy (not all at once) this place is located next to green street smoked meats and the soho house. they are also open for lunch and dinner and their other higher end restaurant, girl and the goat is located just across the street. this is an amazing place to kick off a long day of shopping.

 

after breakfast we were so full we walked the (almost 2 miles) back into the downtown to find our car.

we jetted off to andersonville. we were in search of these amazing antique stores we have heard so much about. this is the mecca of amazing small business. this neighborhood took about 15-20 minutes of drive time to get to but we spent almost the entire day there. BTW parking is $4 for every 2 hours.

la colombe
5158 N. Clark St. Chicago, IL 60640
1 773 942 7090
we fueled up with some coffee before we hit the streets. this coffee shop had yummy coffee and beautiful flowers. this coffee will def give you the energy shot that you need. plus everything was so pretty.

brimfield chicago 
5219 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60640
(773) 271-3501
sigh. this was the first and absolute favorite shop i went to…in a long time. lisa and i walked around in amazement of the intense displays, superior merchandising and one of a kind upholstery and vintage items. we had a great time chatting with the owner and talking about her vision and process. then walked around for at least an hour. every nook and cranny is filled to the brim here. the basement, the ceiling and even the freight elevator. this shop is absolutely stunning. if you are in the market for a one of a kind piece and some inspiration…you need to come here. she also has a location in michigan which is now on my list of must visits. packed full of paintings, blankets, elves, christmas, campy items and perfection, i found my two collie paint by numbers and lisa bought some ornaments and vintage linens.

roost chicago 
5634 N Clark St. Chicago, IL 60660
(773) 506-0406
we walked the street and finally went to this little shop on the corner that has also been on my list for a really long time. roost chicago. they had a lot of cool primitive and industrial furniture packed to the ceiling but still merchandised. it was a little less campy than brimfield but i loved that each vintage/antique shop in the area has their own look and feel. i bought an amazing painted wood cabin sign from a boy scout camp for $20! i thought that was a steal. i thought it would look so adorable in the pentwater cottage. we strolled around there for a while and chatted with the owner who was hilarious. we then continued walking.

 

 

marguerite garden
5059 North Clark Street
Phone: (773) 506-6295
remember those beautiful flowers that were on the table at the coffee shop? they came from this adorable little flower shop in andersonville. the flowers were all out in buckets and organized by color. the shop was well curated with a mix of fresh flowers, arrangements, little gifties and plants (succulents, cacti and topiaries). we had a good time walking around and smelling everything. the shop is a little breath of fresh air.

 

i could go on for days but here are some other amazing shops that we visited located on the same street.

brown elephant  – a thrift store basically. the finds were meh but the building it was in was awesome. prepare to rummage.

found vintage living – an amazing collection of mid century modern at great prices. a beautiful mint condition credenza for $495 ex.

brownstone antiques – packed to the gills and low prices. you can find some decent things but prepare to dig

yayas antiques – meh finds another digging store

FOURSIDED gallery – LOVED this store. tons of repro vintage christmas ornaments and hilarious tongue and cheek cards. i bought a few christmas cards here.

room service – yet another perfectly curated mid century store

scout – a great curated selection of midcentury industrial

hopleaf bar – delicious selection of wine, cider and beer. also had an amazing salad and cheese platter. great prices.

 

after a long day of shopping we went well back to the jayson home neighborhood, back to west elm and of course back to eataly.

hope you enjoyed my mini chicago. if you are thinking about checking out andersonville check out this site. has a full list of all shops, bars and more!