Chicago’s citizens are fiercely proud of their culinary traditions and will go to any lengths to defend the fact that the cuisine in their city is the best. A cruise round Chicago’s downtown with a charter bus, coach bus, party bus, mini bus, passenger coaches or school bus hired from Bus Company Chicago will readily prove this. Chicago’s past history as a terminus for the beef trade has long meant that its food has tended to be meat heavy, but as rental bus visitors are finding out, there is another side to dining in Chicago’s downtown.
When you have a restaurant that is rated as one of the 10 best in the world, you either are serving very good food, or offering a dining experience like no other. In the case of Alinea, it happens to be both. As you step off your rental bus and walk through the doors, you will have to wait for a secret panel to open at the end of a pine tree lined hallway. This sense of fun and surprise continues on into Alinea’s menu. As you sit down in the understated dining room, your choice of food as art menu, 24 or 12 course, is revealed to you. Yes, you don’t actually know what you’re getting till it arrives at the table. The menu changes regularly, so no 2 dining experiences are ever the same, but suffice it to say, you and your rental bus group will not soon forget the sensory experience.
For something a little down market, and less pretentious, head over in your charter bus to Hot Doug’s. Billing itself as a sausage superstore, this eatery celebrates everything there is to do with sausages. Aside from the traditional Chicago dog with green relish, Hot Doug’s also serves a range of sausages and encased meat ranging from the exotic, saucisse de Toulouse, roasted garlic aïoli, and Belletoile triple-cream cheese, to the wildly eccentric, goji-berry pheasant sausage, jerk mayonnaise, and cheese-stuffed sweet peppers. Best visited on a Friday or Saturday, when owner Doug Sohn makes duck-fat fries. Lines can be long, so a little patience will be called for from your charter bus group.
Long a fixture of Chicago’s downtown dining scene, and easily reached by rental bus, Ann Sather is an old world, European style cafe that is reminiscent of Scandinavia. This diner is famous for its Swedish meatballs that taste like they’re home made, and their signature cinnamon rolls are a constant takeaway favorite. You can find a branch of Ann Sathers in most parts of Chicago. Of note is their recent opening in Andersonville, offering a homey atmosphere that encourages you sit back and enjoy the meal.
If your group is planning to dine in downtown Chicago, give Bus Company Chicago a call to find out how they can help you organize your trip. Choose from their fleet of rental bus that can suit any size group, and take advantage of their friendly, personalized service.
