Chicago Style

The AAO returns this year to Chicago for the first time since 2011, with the annual session scheduled to run April 21-24. Here is JCO’s yearly preview of attractions, events, and restaurants in the convention city.

Weather should be cool during this unusually early meeting, with highs in the low 60s and lows in the mid-40s. Rain or even snow is possible.

Taxi fares from O’Hare International Airport to McCormick Place Convention Center run $30-40, although shared cab rides are available for a flat $24. Taxis pick up at every terminal, but rideshare services (Uber or Lyft) are restricted to terminals 2 (between doors 2A and 2D) and 5 (door 5B). The Blue Line station of the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) train system—called the “L” because of the elevated tracks—can be accessed by pedestrian walkways from each terminal; the standard fare is $5 each way. Midway International Airport offers similar options, but is closer to downtown: shared taxi rides are a flat $18. Rideshare companies pick up outside door 4, or the CTA Orange Line is available for a $2.50 fare. One-, three-, or seven-day CTA passes can be purchased with a Ventra transit account (transitchicago.com).

Attractions

Chicago’s architecture ranks among the most noteworthy in the world. Start your exploration at the Chicago Architecture Center, a Mies van der Rohe building right on the Riverwalk; its Model Experience showcases more than 4,000 buildings, with interactive features. The center also sponsors a 90-minute river cruise and a number of walking tours, including one of the iconic Frank Lloyd Wright homes in Oak Park. The Frank Lloyd Wright Trust provides interior tours of Wright buildings in both Oak Park and Chicago. An inspiration to the young Wright, the 1887 Glessner House offers tours and a museum.

Two of Chicago’s tallest skyscrapers feature public observation decks, both recommending advance ticket purchases. Skydeck Chicago, on the 103rd floor of the Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower), has a glass-enclosed ledge extending four feet out into space. The 360 Chicago deck, offering panoramic views from the 94th floor of the former John Hancock Center, includes a CloudBar and the Tilt thrill ride—a downward-facing view from 1,000 feet up.

Several of the city’s leading attractions are just north of McCormick Place along Lake Shore Drive: the Field Museum of natural history, presenting “Death: Life’s Greatest Mystery” and “Native Truths: Our Voices, Our Stories”; Adler Planetarium, the nation’s oldest planetarium; and Shedd Aquarium, featuring a shark-feeding tour and a beluga encounter.

The august Art Institute of Chicago is offering exhibits of Salvador Dalí, Lygia Pape, and Himali Singh Soin, along with kingfisher headdresses from China. The Museum of Science and Industry has a new show on Pompeii and a juried exhibition of African American art (closing April 23). The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago is spotlighting the art of Duane Linklater and exhibits on “Art in the Caribbean Diaspora” and “Interiors” (both closing April 23).

Nature lovers can visit the Lincoln Park Zoo and Lincoln Park Conservatory, the Chicago Botanic Garden, the Garfield Park Conservatory, or the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, as well as Millennium Park with its 3.5-acre Lurie Garden (don’t miss Anish Kapoor’s “Cloud Gate” sculpture, popularly called “The Bean”).

Shoppers will want to stroll the Magnificent Mile on Michigan Avenue, still a nexus of department stores and boutiques despite pandemic-­related closures. The Navy Pier off Lake Shore Drive offers not only a promenade of shops but also rides, tours, and cruises.

Events

The celebrated Chicago Symphony Orchestra has an intriguing program scheduled for April 20-23: young Russian virtuoso Daniil Trifonov will perform Sergei Rachmaninoff’s thorny Third Piano Concerto, conducted by Fabien Gabel, with Anatoly Liadov’s Kikimora and Igor Stravinsky’s Petrushka also on the bill. The Joffrey Ballet, in residence at the Lyric Opera House, is presenting The Little Mermaid (John Neumeier’s version, not Disney’s), April 19-30. The Harris Theater in Millennium Park showcases local artists—in this case, the Ballet 5:8 company, performing BareFace on April 22. Also on April 22, the Auditorium Theatre offers a tripleheader of dance troupes: Dorrance Dance, Trinity Irish Dance Company, and M.A.D.D. Rhythms.

Celebrity chef Rick Bayless is still operating Frontera Grill and the adjacent one-star Mexican restaurant, Topolobampo. On the seventh floor of the Park Hyatt Chicago, NoMI now contains three spaces—Kitchen, Lounge, and Garden—pairing chef Terence Zubieta’s elegant cuisine with fine wines. Longtime favorites Girl & the Goat (American, with goat specialties), Lula Café (a contemporary diner), and Piccolo Sogno (pasta and pizza) are other holdovers from the 2011 annual session.

Of course, deep-dish pizza is a Chicago hallmark; locals’ top-rated pizzerias include Pequod’s Pizza and Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria. Unfortunately, the South Loop near McCormick Place is not a dining mecca, although there are neighborhood eateries like The Chicago Firehouse Restaurant and Il Culaccino are available if you need a quick bite.

Blues clubs are the mainstay of Chicago nightlife, and most of them have reopened since the pandemic, either nightly or on weekends. The top spots are Blue Chicago, Buddy Guy’s Legends (featuring the 86-year-old founder), the renowned House of Blues Chicago, Kingston Mines, and Rosa’s Lounge. For a broader jazz idiom, try Epiphany Center for the Arts (in a former church) or FitzGerald’s in Berwyn.