About how much is an Uber or cab from Hyde Park to O’Hare? Or does anyone have a better suggestion for car service from airport to our HP hotel (other than public transportation, which we have already researched and are also considering depending on flight times…)
We always rent a car or mini van at the airport to get around Chicago. Mini van is used to haul stuff for moving in and out of the dorm. With your own trans, it is easier to visit friends around the town or in the suburbs.
@Booklady123 Depends on the time but it’ll be expensive. Current price is $45, which sounds pretty typical. I’d recommend the CTA Blue Line to Jackson then an Uber to campus from Jackson.
@fbsdreams Doubling the recommendation of Lao Sze Chuan, not too expensive for some of the best Chinese in the Midwest. Plus Chinatown is fun and easily accessible from both Hyde Park and the Loop via public transit.
Affordable restaurants near campus popular with students
Right off campus:
Medici - the quintessential student restaurant. Try the spinach and goat cheese pizza, the sandwiches, and the Mexicana shake.
Noodles Etc. - Good pan-Asian noodles spot
Plein Air - Somewhat pricey but good cafe in the Seminary Co-op building, make sure to check out the bookshop if you decide to go
Farther north on 53rd:
Valois - Classic diner, cash only, dirt cheap, Obama’s favorite restaurant
Shinju - Has an all you can eat sushi option, decent Japanese
Rajun Cajun - Decent no-frills Indian
Harold’s - Fried chicken, no vegetarian options, even-fewer-frills South Side institution
Mikkey’s - Great burgers, wings, and shakes
Two popular Thai places farther east on 55th are Thai 55 and Snail Thai, which serve all the classics.
Stuff you won’t find in Hyde Park: Good Mexican or Chinese. For the former, Cemitas Puebla on 57th and Hyde Park Tacos on 53rd are both decent, but with very limited menus. For the latter, there aren’t any good options - go to one of the four Thai places (55, Snail, Siam, Eto’o), two Japanese places (Shinju, Kikuya), or Noodles Etc. instead, do not go to Nicky’s.
We always found a car to be a good idea for Move-In. If you fly-in you’ll still have regular luggage plus dorm stuff and will need to stop to purchase or pick up more stuff throughout the weekend. If you show up first thing on Move-In Day then parking is usually not a problem. Even during that busy weekend I managed to find a place to park - including right in front of the bookstore at one point (was sorry to give that one up). We’ve found that most cars - including the smaller Elantras and equivalent - fit the extra stuff just fine, but there’s usually been just two of us. If three or four, then upscale to a larger sedan or minivan (whichever is cheaper).
If you arrange for the rental six months before Move In you’ll get a find price. We are members of Costco so use that option and I ususlly get a decent price.
You can do the math using Uber estimate and google maps to see if a rental makes sense over Ubering - keep in mind that some Ubers X won’t take huge amounts of stuff so you might have to trade up to an XL. Hopefully that wouldn’t happen at the airport but you never know! My older daughter ran into this problem when she was moving out of her dorm in NYC so thought I’d mention it as a small risk.
^^Another reason for a car rental during Move-In - we ended up waiting in a “car line” before getting into BJ. That was first thing, however. Probably plenty of Ubers showed up later in the morning.
Lao Sze Chuan is awful, greasy, and Americanized and the owner was arrested for money laundering and fraud
I really like Szechuan Cuisine, Xi’an Cuisine, Strings, Chiu Quon Bakery and New Furama (not technically in Chinatown)
The Promontory serves relatively decent lunch and it is next to Hyde Park Bank building.
@uocparent @Booklady Next time when you come in town, see if you can get a room at Hyatt Place near Harper Court.
https://chicagosouthuniversity.place.hyatt.com/en/hotel/home.html
It is a standard Hyatt Place and it comes with full breakfast, The major advantage is that it is in Hyde Park and it provides a shuttle to take you to campus. Staying there will save you the hassle of commuting from the Loop.
A decent lodging option outside of HP is the Jaslin in China Town. I got a room there for about $80 on a weekend and had a spectacular panoramic view of the Loop from my window. This hotel caters to an Asian clientele so it was a great multi-cultural experience for me. I was only a mile or so away from South Loop where I was meeting my daughter and her friend for dinner. Parking is just down the street at the public lot and the L is over in that direction as well. There is a Star Bucks right around the corner and accessible through the hotel lobby. Via the Dan Ryan you are less than 15 min. away from any destination in HP, but the more scenic LSD (via Stevenson) is just a couple minutes longer in non-rush-hour traffic.
I went to Valois for the first time last Fall while visiting son in HP. It was, dare I say, a transformative experience. I’m a huge Obama supporter and just had goose bumps eating at his favorite restaurant. The atmosphere at Valois is amazing as it bridges the University and the working class neighborhood together.
Note to applicants, accepted students, and their parents reading this thread: Valois is not likely to be a transformative experience for everyone. Or, if it is, the transformation in question is likely to be transforming your clean shirt into a shirt with a gravy stain on it. Or maybe some maple syrup.
@85bears46, yes Hyatt place is where we stayed when we toured and is where we will stay for revisit in April. We are intentionally not renting a car this time because we want to poke around Hyde Park a bit more and are only there for a long weekend. We have friends who live downtown (Lake Shore East) who have a garaged car who might come grab us if we do dinner or something non-UChicago-related. And we will probably get a rental for the move-in trip, so we can make some shopping runs if needed, but really don’t want to rent a car to garage it for four days if we are staying in Hyde Park (for the April trip, I mean). I think Uber is worth it in lieu of public transportation in this particular circumstance since we are pressed for time.
@booklady123 I took an uber pool (shared ride) from UChicago to downtown for $6.70 a few weeks ago.
@JHS LOL
Uberpool is a smart option. My kid has taken Uberpool back and forth to Midway with other people form HP, mostly students.
re: post #49 I’m all in for a transformative experience at Valois, especially transforming from an empty tummy to a full one 
Gonna be honest, I find eating at any diner to be transformative. The bar is low right now.
I agree with @HydeSnark that the quality of Lao Sze Chuan has tanked since the owner went to prison. +1 for Harold’s Chicken. I enjoy visiting Robust Coffee Lounge, just south of the campus.
- Le Colonial (French - Vietnamese)
- Oriental Institute
- I dont recommend Giordanos
Potbelly at 54th Street and Lake Park and all over the Loop. This Chicago chain has decent sandwiches when they are fresh and you simply have to try a wreck on wheat with a Mocha shake