Cheap eats in Logan Square

We love the pie at Bang Bang, but we love the biscuits even more. For just a few bucks, get a fluffy biscuit topped with your choice of butters and jams. Or, get it with bacon, sausage, or gravy. Or pimento cheese. The options are endless, but every one is terrific.

The standing room only Red Hot Ranch has a menu that's just as spare as its interior. There's Depression Dogs, which are a stripped down version of the Chicago dog: there's mustard, onions, relish and sport peppers, plus a handful of fries, and paper bags of fried shrimp, which you can get with regular or spicy cocktail sauce. The fact that Red Hot Ranch is open till 4am on weeknights and 5am on weekends means it's your best bet for late-night food in the neighborhood.

For dinner on Tuesdays, you can get two pizzas for just $20, but prices are affordable at all meals. In the morning, snap up a bagel or a pastry on the way to the train and be the object of much jealousy at the office.

When a Topolobampo vet opens his own taqueria, you expect certain upgrades from a typical counter-service taco-slinger, and here, you get them: chunky guac dotted with pomegranate seeds accompanied by fresh-from-the-fryer chips sprinkled with sea salt; fish tacos with a perfectly fried filet, crunchy cabbage, fresh pico de gallo and a hint of serrano aioli; the most impossibly tender chunks of chicken in its pollo adobado taco; and maybe the least saccharine horchata in Chicago. One thing you’d expect from a fancier taqueria that you don’t get here: inflated prices.

Making Parson's killer patio even better is a menu thick with affordable dishes. Bar snacks are mere dollars, cocktails are just $6–$8, and a burger sets you back $9.

This place is adorable, with tall mint green bar stools, lots of wood and windows for light, plus dishes served on mismatched china that you can’t help but photograph before diving in. The menu includes 21 sandwiches, divided into hot, cold, fried and grilled cheese sections. It’s a lot to choose from, but the clam belly is a good pick—clam bellies aren’t easy to find around Chicago, and the ones here come tucked into a batard with crisp strips of bacon, butter lettuce and a squiggle of zippy lemon aioli. The reuben has great flavor, with corned beef, muenster, bread and butter pickles and Russian dressing layered on rye bread, though the soggy bottom layer turned it into a fork and knife sandwich. 

Owners and partners Adrienne Lo and Abraham Conlon of Fat Rice and the Ladies' Room opened up Fat Rice Bakery with a plethora of both savory and sweet Asian baked goods like coconut tarts, Chinese pig buns and Portuguese egg tarts. Coffee and milk tea are served while diners can grab a table and work or catch up with friends. In the evenings, your large group reservation at Fat Rice may just end up at a table in the bakery.

Conveniently located steps away from the California Blue Line stop, Taqueria Moran is usually packed with diners preparing for an evening out or recovering from the previous night. Affordable tacos and burritos are the house specialties, filled with delicious carne asada, carnitas or al pastor and accompanied by salsa and pickled carrots.