Worried about food options while at Kellogg? Within the precincts of the Chicago area, there are enough options to keep you well fed on your favorite Indian Cuisine for your two years here. Here's a quick summary:
What are the Indian options in and around Evanston?
Easy Indian food options are limited in Evanston. Mt. Everest (630 Church Street) is the only Indian restaurant within convenient reach of the Kellogg School. As the name suggests, it’s Nepalese owned but serves decent Indian options, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian. The daily lunch buffet offers a good spread of some of their best dishes and is excellent value for money. Most Indian students are also excited about the opening of another Indian restaurant on 1728 Sherman Avenue. Apart from these, Jacobs Centre (where you will spend the majority of your waking hours) has packaged Indian meals (rice, vegetable and / or meat options) that you can heat in the Atrium. Some people also hire Indian “aunties” who come home and cook a week’s supply of your choice of Indian food for $10 an hour. The Whole Foods Supermarket (1640 Chicago Ave) also stocks certain ‘heat and eat’ options. As one would expect, Chicago, in general, has a lot more Indian options. However, the ones which are easily accessible are mostly on Devon Avenue – the Indian bazaar of Chicago. It is a 10 minute drive and you can also take a direct bus (No, 93). Try Punjab Sweet House (6411 N Western Ave) for awesome samosas, Kamdar’s for amazing Bombay street food and chaat, Mysore Woodlands (2548 W Devon Ave) for South Indian fare, Hema’s Kitchen (6406 N Oakley Ave) for regular Indian, and Osmania (2244 W Devon Ave) and Sabri Nehari (2511 W Devon Ave) for awesome kebabs / Pakistani food. Another convenient Indian restaurant is Indian Garden (247 E. Ontario Street) in downtown. It’s very close to Kellogg’s downtown campus, where you can get to using the free Northwestern University shuttle.
Easy Indian food options are limited in Evanston. Mt. Everest (630 Church Street) is the only Indian restaurant within convenient reach of the Kellogg School. As the name suggests, it’s Nepalese owned but serves decent Indian options, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian. The daily lunch buffet offers a good spread of some of their best dishes and is excellent value for money. Most Indian students are also excited about the opening of another Indian restaurant on 1728 Sherman Avenue. Apart from these, Jacobs Centre (where you will spend the majority of your waking hours) has packaged Indian meals (rice, vegetable and / or meat options) that you can heat in the Atrium. Some people also hire Indian “aunties” who come home and cook a week’s supply of your choice of Indian food for $10 an hour. The Whole Foods Supermarket (1640 Chicago Ave) also stocks certain ‘heat and eat’ options. As one would expect, Chicago, in general, has a lot more Indian options. However, the ones which are easily accessible are mostly on Devon Avenue – the Indian bazaar of Chicago. It is a 10 minute drive and you can also take a direct bus (No, 93). Try Punjab Sweet House (6411 N Western Ave) for awesome samosas, Kamdar’s for amazing Bombay street food and chaat, Mysore Woodlands (2548 W Devon Ave) for South Indian fare, Hema’s Kitchen (6406 N Oakley Ave) for regular Indian, and Osmania (2244 W Devon Ave) and Sabri Nehari (2511 W Devon Ave) for awesome kebabs / Pakistani food. Another convenient Indian restaurant is Indian Garden (247 E. Ontario Street) in downtown. It’s very close to Kellogg’s downtown campus, where you can get to using the free Northwestern University shuttle.
Where can I buy Indian groceries?
While Fresh Farms or Patel Brothers on Devon are the best places to buy a whole range of Indian vegetables, masalas, and an assortment of groceries (Patel Brothers also has an online store from where you can get stuff shipped to anywhere in the US), Whole Foods and Jewel Osco (1128 Chicago Avenue) carry a whole bunch of “exotic” fruits and vegetables such as papaya, okra, aubergine, etc.
What non-Indian options would you recommend?
Evanston offers a lot of other options that can delight the Indian palate. Amongst the multitude of Asian options, Thai Sookdee (1016 Church Street), Joy Yee Noodles (519 Davis Street), Zoba Noodle Bar (1565 Sherman Avenue), Ruby of Siam (1125 Emerson Street), and Koi (624 Davis Street) are the most popular. For a not-so-far-off cousin of Keralite appam and stew, try Addis Abeba (spelt with an ‘e’, yes) which serves great Ethiopian food. The Mexican fare at Lupita’s (700 Main Street) is absolutely tasty and delicious, as is the food at Davis Street Fish Market (501 Davis Street). Try Buffalo Joes (812 Clark Street) or Buffalo Wild Wings (1741 Maple Ave) for finger-licking good, spicy chicken wings, Le Peep (827 Church Street) for yummy American pancakes and eggs, and Bravo – Cucina Italiano (1701 Maple Avenue) for wholesome Italian food.
My personal favourites, without which these two years would never have been the same, are Joy Yee Noodles, Addis Abeba, Le Peep and Buffalo Joes. Happy eating! :)
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