Wondering where Chicago's in-the-know crowd is eating and drinking? It's easy to spot lines out the door, but some underlying trends are harder to see.
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp and SafeGraph, a dataset of commercial points of interest and their visitor patterns, to discover which eateries have been getting a notable uptick in attention this month.
To find out who made the list, we first looked at Chicago businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance. Then we analyzed foot traffic data from SafeGraph to validate the trends.
Read on to see which spots have the momentum heading into the end of the year.
Tzuco
Open since September, this Mexican and French spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Mexican" on Yelp.
Citywide, Mexican spots saw a median 1.8% increase in new reviews over the past month, but Tzuco saw a dramatic 127.8% increase, maintaining a sound 4.5-star rating throughout.
It's not the only trending outlier in the Mexican category: Old Pueblo Cantina has seen a 38.5% increase in reviews.
Located at 720 N. State St. in the Near North, Tzuco offers roasted beet, ceviche and snapper.
Tzuco is open from 5–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday, 5–11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 5–9 p.m. on Sunday.
Dakota 94
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Edgebrook's Dakota 94, the New American and breakfast and brunch spot, which offers burgers and more, is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "American (New)" on Yelp saw a median 1.4% increase in new reviews over the past month, Dakota 94 bagged a 16.7% increase in new reviews within that time frame, maintaining a strong four-star rating. It significantly outperformed the previous month by gaining 1.7 times more reviews than expected based on its past performance.
There's more that's trending on Chicago's New American scene: The Smith has seen a 10.8% increase in reviews.
Open at 5304 W. Devon Ave. (between Minnehaha and Spokane avenues) since May, Dakota 94 offers nachos, salads and tacos.
Dakota 94 is open from 8 a.m.–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday and Sunday and 8 a.m.–midnight on Friday and Saturday.
Pilot Project Brewing
Palmer Square's Pilot Project Brewing is also making waves. Open since August at 2140 N. Milwaukee Ave. (between Francis Place and Maplewood Avenue), the brewery, which offers coffee and tea and more, has seen a 40.7% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 3.1% for all businesses tagged "Coffee & Tea" on Yelp.
There's more than one hot spot trending in Chicago's coffee and tea category: Tous Les Jours has seen a 25.6% increase in reviews.
Pilot Project Brewing offers lattes, cortados and pastries. Over the past month, it's maintained a sound 4.5-star rating among Yelpers.
Pilot Project Brewing is open from 8 a.m.–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday, 8 a.m.–midnight on Friday and Saturday and 8 a.m.–9 p.m. on Sunday.
Parlor Pizza Bar
The Near North's Parlor Pizza Bar is the city's buzziest pizza spot by the numbers.
The popular pizza spot, which opened at 405 N. Dearborn St. in December 2018, increased its new review count by 14.9% over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 1.7% for the Yelp category "Pizza." It outperformed the previous month by gaining 3.2 times more reviews than expected based on past performance.
Parlor Pizza Bar offers Margherita pies, dessert tacos and more.
Parlor Pizza Bar is open from 11:30 a.m.–midnight on Monday, 11:30 a.m.–1 a.m. on Tuesday-Thursday, 11:30 a.m.–1:30 a.m. on Friday, 10:30 a.m.–1:30 a.m. on Saturday and 10:30 a.m.–midnight on Sunday.
This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
