The 10 best restaurants in Evanston

These are the 10 best restaurants in Evanston right now, picked for residents, Northwestern families and Chicagoans riding the Purple Line north for dinner. The list covers downtown, Chicago Avenue, the Main-Dempster Mile, Central Street and the west side, and our Evanston town guide has more on the city.

The ranking favors Evanston restaurants with staying power, including five that have been open 30 years or more, plus a few newer kitchens that earned attention fast. Costs vary widely. A fried chicken meal or barbecue combo runs about $10 to $20, most sit-down entrees fall between about $18 and $40, and steaks at the top end cost $47 to $83.

How we chose

The order comes down to track record: years in business, weighed against how often independent outlets, including Time Out Chicago, the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Magazine, the Evanston RoundTable and The Daily Northwestern, have recommended each restaurant. Kitchens with a clear specialty got the edge in close calls. Price did not help or hurt, and national chains were not considered.

Hours and prices below come from each business and change without notice. Call ahead if you are making a special trip.

Oceanique

Chef Mark Grosz opened Oceanique on Main Street in 1989, and the French-American seafood restaurant is still a family operation. Grosz trained under the French chef Jean Banchet, and his menu adds a light Japanese touch to French technique, with prime filet mignon and duck confit for anyone skipping fish. The chef’s five-course menu is the way to go on a first visit. Thirty-seven years of cooking at a fine-dining level earn Oceanique the top spot. The restaurant serves dinner only, so call ahead to book.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 505 Main St, Evanston, IL 60202

Why they made the list

• The restaurant says Wine Spectator has given the Oceanique wine list, which runs past 900 bottles, a Best of Award of Excellence every year since 1994.
• Time Out Chicago’s January 2024 Evanston guide recommended the oysters, the wild-caught swordfish and the lobster.
• The dining room fills a 1920s Spanish-style building a few blocks from the Main stops on the CTA Purple Line and Metra.
• Grosz runs Oceanique with his wife, Renée, who is the general manager.

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Soul & Smoke

Chefs D’Andre Carter and Heather Bublick met in a Chicago fine-dining kitchen, started a catering company before the pandemic and grew that business into Soul & Smoke, a barbecue counter with a flagship in Evanston’s 5th Ward. The order here is the $32 prime brisket dinner with mac and cheese, collard greens and a brown butter cornbread muffin. A 2021 Chicago Tribune review called the brisket the best the critic had tried outside Texas, and that brisket is why Soul & Smoke ranks second. Meats are smoked fresh daily and sell out, so preorder online if you have your heart set on something.

Hours: Sun-Thu 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; Fri-Sat 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Address: 1601 Payne St, Evanston, IL 60201

Why they made the list

• The Evanston location keeps a 24/7 community fridge stocked with free meals for neighbors.
• Soul & Smoke does not take tips; an 8% service charge on counter orders is shared among staff, and the company says everyone earns at least $20 an hour.
• Half a pound of brisket costs $22 on its own, and house cocktails are $14.
• Dining room tables book on Resy, and the owners also run locations in Avondale and the West Loop.

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The Barn Steakhouse

Down an alley between Davis, Church, Maple and Oak, The Barn Steakhouse fills a brick stable built in 1883 for a milk company’s delivery horses. Owner Amy Morton opened the restaurant as a tribute to her father, restaurateur Arnie Morton, and the dining room has 20-foot ceilings and a chandelier lit with hundreds of small lights. Split the Grand Central Caviar Sandwich ($28.95), cut in four, then a 16-ounce bone-in ribeye ($72.95). A classic steakhouse menu in a room with real history puts The Barn at No. 3. Look for the green-blue barn door next to the entrance.

Hours: Tue-Thu 4:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Fri-Sat 4:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.; Sun 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.; closed Mon; lunch 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on select Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays.

Address: 1016 Church St (rear), Evanston, IL 60201

Why they made the list

• Chicago Magazine’s March 2019 list of the 30 best restaurants in the suburbs included The Barn.
• Happy hour runs 4 to 5 p.m. daily, with a half-dozen oysters for $10 and deviled eggs for $5.
• A three-course pre-theater dinner costs $59.95 and is served from 4:30 to 6 p.m.
• Valet parking runs Friday and Saturday evenings, and the city’s downtown garages charge $1 for up to an hour.

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Campagnola

Three decades in, Campagnola still runs a short Italian menu from 815 Chicago Ave. in the Main-Dempster Mile. Start with wood-fired radicchio wrapped in bacon ($12), move on to pappardelle Bolognese made with veal and pork ragu ($27), and save room for the balsamic-braised short ribs with mashed potatoes ($39). Lasting 30 years on the same stretch of Chicago Avenue, with plates that stay fairly priced, lands Campagnola in fourth. Reservations are by phone at (847) 475-6100.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 815 Chicago Ave, Evanston, IL 60202

Why they made the list

• The Evanston RoundTable marked the restaurant’s 30th anniversary in a September 6, 2026 story.
• Time Out Chicago’s 2024 Evanston guide pointed diners to the octopus with gigante beans, now $17.
• Pastas run $25 to $27, including linguini diavolo with shrimp, bay scallops and chili flake.
• Every dessert is $13, from vanilla bean bread pudding with caramel sauce to tiramisu.

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Hecky’s Barbecue

Sauce is the headline at Hecky’s Barbecue, where the motto is still “It’s the Sauce” and the recipes come from founder Hecky Powell’s New Orleans Creole grandmother. Powell and his wife, Cheryl, opened the shop on October 13, 1983, at the northwest corner of Emerson Street and Green Bay Road, and the shop has never moved. Get the rib tips, or the $19 Chicago Combo, which piles a hot link and a pound of tips over fries. More than four decades of Chicago-style barbecue and community work put Hecky’s fifth. Call (847) 492-1182 to order ahead for pickup.

Hours: Tue-Sat 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sun 3 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Address: 1902 Green Bay Rd, Evanston, IL 60201

Why they made the list

• The $15 Mutt adds half a hot link and two smoked wings to half a pound of rib tips, and the menu credits the 44th president with making the combo famous.
• Hecky’s says Anthony Bourdain wrote about the restaurant in one of his books.
• Powell started the Forrest E. Powell Foundation in 1994 to fund scholarships for young people seeking technical training.
• Slabs of St. Louis or baby back ribs cost $29 and serve three.

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Tapas Barcelona

Since 1995, Tapas Barcelona has served Spanish small plates and pitchers of sangria on Chicago Avenue downtown. Order the Datiles a la Sevillana ($11.50), bacon-wrapped dates with red pepper sauce, plus grilled squid with garlic and lemon ($13.50), then a paella Valenciana ($31.25) with chicken, seafood and chorizo that feeds two or three. Three decades of fair prices, in a downtown that keeps adding chains, earn the sixth spot. The restaurant recommends booking ahead.

Hours: Mon-Thu 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.; Fri-Sat 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.; Sun 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Address: 1615 Chicago Ave, Evanston, IL 60201

Why they made the list

• Sangria, red or white, is $8.50 a glass or $33 a pitcher.
• The Daily Northwestern included Tapas Barcelona in the paper’s 2025 Best of Evanston look at locally owned restaurants.
• The restaurant hosts private lunches Monday through Thursday.
• Two grilled baby lamb chops with couscous cost $18.50, near the top of the tapas list.

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Zentli

The name comes from the Nahuatl word for corn on the cob, and corn is the whole idea at Zentli, where the tortillas start with heirloom masa. The Mexican restaurant opened on Dempster Street in 2023 and cooks antojitos, tacos and a weekend brunch. Order the quesabirrias ($30), three blue corn quesadillas stuffed with short rib and chuck and served with consomé, or a three-taco platter with rice and beans ($25). Zentli is the newest restaurant here and still lands at No. 7. Brunch runs 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekends, with chilaquiles for $16.

Hours: Tue-Thu 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.; Fri 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.; Sat 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.; Sun 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.; closed Mon.

Address: 1813 Dempster St, Evanston, IL 60201

Why they made the list

• Time Out Chicago’s 2024 Evanston guide recommended the housemade chorizo tacos and the Chicha cocktail.
• The $14 Chicha mixes mezcal with purple maize, hibiscus and pineapple.
• Several antojitos can be made vegan for $4 more, and the oyster mushroom tinga tacos are vegan as listed.
• OpenTable lists a private parking lot, and reservations go through Resy.

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Kansaku

Sushi is the reason to book Kansaku, which owner and chef Yoon Jae Kim opened on Sherman Avenue on November 13, 2006. The chefs order their fish from overseas, and the kitchen also turns out teriyaki, katsu and rice bowls for anyone who wants something cooked. Try the Kansaku roll ($21), shrimp tempura and freshwater eel with cream cheese wrapped in soybean paper, or the 12-piece chef’s choice sashimi ($43). Nearly 20 years of dependable sushi downtown keep Kansaku at No. 8. Weekday lunch bento boxes start at $17 and come with miso soup, salad and a California roll.

Hours: Lunch Mon-Fri 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.; dinner Mon-Thu 4 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Fri-Sat 4 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.; Sun 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Address: 1514 Sherman Ave, Evanston, IL 60201

Why they made the list

• Chef signature nigiri cost $5.50 to $6 a piece, including seared yellowtail with jalapeño and wasabi tobiko.
• Most maki can be made with black or brown rice for $1 more.
• The bar pours hot and cold sake, imported Japanese beer and a specialty Saketini.
• The restaurant sits near Sherman Avenue and Grove Street, a short walk from the Davis stops on the Purple Line and Metra.

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Evanston Chicken Shack

Open until midnight or later six nights a week, Evanston Chicken Shack on Ridge Avenue has been frying hand-battered chicken for more than three decades. The shop says nothing is precooked and no warmers are used, so every order comes out of the fryer fresh. Get the fried chicken and the rib tips, or try the $9.99 Chicken Stack, a recent addition the shop says customers asked for. Doing one thing well at carryout prices is enough for ninth place. Order online or call (847) 328-9360 to order ahead.

Hours: Mon-Tue 10 a.m. to midnight; Wed-Sat 10 a.m. to 12:30 a.m.; Sun 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Address: 1925 Ridge Ave, Evanston, IL 60201

Why they made the list

• Time Out Chicago’s January 2024 guide to the best restaurants in Evanston included Evanston Chicken Shack.
• Fried fish is on the menu too, along with buckets and party pans for gatherings.
• The shop’s website marks 36 years of serving Evanston, Northwestern and the North Shore.

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Comida

Up on Central Street, Comida is a modern Mexican and Latin American cantina with a full bar and a seasonal rooftop deck. Start with the Elotes Rangoon ($15), corn and cream cheese with cotija and chipotle aioli, then an ahi tuna tostada ($18) and a bowl of Papa’s Pozole ($14). Comida rounds out the top 10 as the pick for the Central Street district, and the restaurant pitches itself as a stop before a Northwestern game. For a rooftop table, reserve and write “rooftop seating” in the note.

Hours: Check current hours before you go.

Address: 1928 Central St, Evanston, IL 60201

Why they made the list

• Comida is a short walk from the Central Street station on Metra’s Union Pacific North line.
• Happy hour runs 5 to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and 4 to 6 p.m. Friday, and the bar stays open an hour after the kitchen closes.
• The restaurant is a preferred caterer for Northwestern University Athletics.
• Most dishes can be adjusted to be gluten-free or vegan, though the kitchen is not a gluten-free or nut-free facility.

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Also worth knowing

Campagnola’s sister restaurant, Union Pizzeria at 1245 Chicago Ave., bakes Neapolitan-style pizzas in a hand-built brick oven that burns wood. The fall 2026 menu lists a margherita for $22 and ‘nduja dates stuffed with Calabrian sausage for $17, and bar and lounge seats are walk-in only.

Downtown on Davis Street, Taco Diablo sells any three tacos for $18.95 with red rice and black beans served family style. On Tuesdays from 8 to 10 p.m., most dine-in tacos drop to $3.25 each.

Amy Morton’s other Evanston restaurant, LeTour at 625 Davis St., has a three-season covered courtyard patio with fire pits and a weekday happy hour from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Park in the Sherman Plaza garage, take the elevator up and cross the courtyard to the entrance.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best restaurants in Evanston?

Oceanique, Soul & Smoke and The Barn Steakhouse lead this list, followed by Campagnola and Hecky’s Barbecue. The rest of the top 10 covers Spanish tapas, Mexican, sushi, fried chicken and a Central Street cantina with a rooftop deck.

Where can you eat cheaply in Evanston?

Evanston Chicken Shack’s Chicken Stack costs $9.99, and Hecky’s Barbecue sells the Mutt combo for $15. At Taco Diablo, most dine-in tacos are $3.25 each from 8 to 10 p.m. on Tuesdays.

Where do you park for dinner in downtown Evanston?

The city runs three downtown garages, at 1800 Maple, Church Street and Sherman Plaza, and parking for up to an hour costs $1. LeTour sends guests to the Sherman Plaza garage, and The Barn Steakhouse has valet parking on Friday and Saturday evenings.

See a place we missed or a detail that has changed? Send us a correction.