Have a rough week at work? You should probably just veg out this weekend. Not by sitting on the couch, but by chowing down on some meatless fast-food at a new Wicker Park eatery. Once you've got your energy up, don't waste it; there's plenty to experience, from hyped-up hip-hop to polished Polish artifacts.
Dig in
Veggie Bite (Wicker Park)
Philly cheese steaks, Italian melts and burgers aren't unusual to find on the menu of a fast-food restaurant or diner in Chicago. In fact, they are downright ubiquitous. But what's unusual about the offerings at Chicago's second Veggie Bite location is that these items—and all the items on the menu—are vegetarian. Step into this counter-service joint and order up meat-free junk food from BBQ nuggets to veggie-meat gyros, but remember to practice moderation. Meat or no meat, deep-fried is still deep-fried.
Imbibe away
The Spread
Like the bar's name, everything here has a subtle sports theme, from the menu (salads are found under "On the Green" and desserts are called "Overtime") to the plasma screens and shuffleboard table. Even non-sports fans will find something to like, as the exposed brick walls, hardwood floors and huge fish tank create an ambiance not often found in the city's seemingly endless array of sports bars.
Listen here, now
All Natural, Pugslee Atomz, Decay, Astonish, Rashid Hadee 10 p.m. Saturday at Morseland; $8
All Natural performs with such regularity that it's easy for local fans to take the crew for granted. But this is one show you won't want to sleep on. The group released a new album, Elements/Fire, on Monday, and the tension- and anger-filled songs are sure to come alive on stage in a way not seen before. If seeing Cap D get fired up isn't enough, stick around for new Molemen recruits, Decay and Astonish, and Rashid Hadee, who should bring the house down with his Southern crunk.
Get cultured
Polish Museum of America
Unlike other museums filled with scores of children oohing and aahing, this cultural center typically remains low-key, except during peak times like Casimir Pulaski Day and during Polish Heritage Month in October. So there’s no excuse not to explore the collections of WWII soldier-recruitment ads, rooms dedicated to Pope John Paul II and the novelist Joseph Conrad and galleries featuring classic landscape paintings. When you’ve completed your tour, buy a painted egg in the gift shop for one of your Polish friends; in this city, it’s almost impossible not to have at least one.
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