Heaven on Seven

This homegrown mini chain of Creole food is the closest you’ll get to New Orleans in Chicago. At Jimmy Bannos’s flagship, bottles of hot sauce take up as much tabletop room as the food, and the po’ boys (try the shrimp) are piled so high they necessitate a knife and fork. Soups like the hearty gumbo stick to the theme. If you’re still skeptical about the authenticity of it all, order one of the hurricanes served in a tall, curvy glass—you’ll start feeling like you would on Bourbon Street.