Goose Island

I wouldn’t really consider Goose Island to be its own neighborhood, but it is an island in the middle of the city! The actual island has nothing of interest on it – it’s industrial and smells bad. Waste Management has a facility on the island, so that should give you and idea as to what the smell is like. The river over there is extra dirty too.

The area surrounding Goose Island to the North is filled with newly built condos, a lot of chain stores and strip malls, and yes, the Goose Island pub and brewery. This is where you can taste all of the beers that aren’t usually sold in the liquor store – they have so many varieties to choose from, all seasonal and always changing. If you drink 45 beers you get your name on a plaque in the restaurant. I only have THREE more to go!

To the west of the island is Cabrini Green, or I should say what WAS Cabrini Green. This was one of Chicago’s most notorious public housing projects. They kicked out all the residents a while ago, and actually just demolished the very last building a few months ago. It was a pretty emotional moment for those who lived in Cabrini or who have any connection to it at all. The projects have been replaced by high-priced condos and yuppies, which is VERY weird. Of course, they don’t call it by the same name anymore – I’m sure some real estate “genius” came up with something more flashy.

The name "Goose Island" might lead you to believe that Chicago has a tranquil island within it that is full of green grass, rolling hills, and lots of beautiful geese. Well, if you believe that, you are at least partially correct. Chicago does have a small island, albeit an artificial one. This island is right on the Chicago river. However, you won't see a lot of nature, nor will you see actual geese. In fact, this area has a bit of an industrial feel.

This small part of Chicago has a lot of pretty nice, upscale homes. You will find a lot of new and modern real estate. This is also an area that is pretty accessible to popular neighborhoods like Wicker Park. You likely won't even notice that you are on an actual island due to the fact that the streets look pretty typical.

You might have heard of "Goose Island brewery." This is a restaurant/bar that is located in both Wrigleyville as well as the Clybourn corridor. Goose Island does indeed have some pretty decent beer. It is a pretty big restaurant that has a lot of beers on tap. Also if you go on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, you can get a tour of the brewery and a taste of the beer!

Goose Island is one of my favorite Chicago Neighborhoods. I'm not a big beer drinker personally, but I love pubs and pub food, which you will find in abundance here.

Obviously, there is a fair amount to drink here, but it also has some of the nicer homes in Chicago. I guess some people think it's isolated from the rest of the city because of the river, but not really. Still, the homes and condos here are spectacularly nice, and while not exactly affordable, if you have the means, you should definitely give it a look.

Probably one of the more attractive things about Goose Island is it's relative proximity to so much that's going on in the city. It's right nearby the Loop, as well as Wicker Park and the Ukrainian Village. Those are a few of my other favorite parts of the city, so it's nice to have such a good overall area.

Real estate developers have descended on this, the only island in the Chicago River, as there were somehow a number of empty lots still here during the 80s. The island also has a number of industrial things going on, like the production of beer, which for some reason - to me, at least - seems to clash with the upper class residencies that have gone up here in recent years.

There continues to be some argument over whether new industries or new condos should be put up on Goose Island– but in the meantime visitors can check out some pretty decent places to dine out. Goose Island Shrimp House has awesome takeout shrimp dishes – maybe the best in the entire city. And since the island is home to breweries, you can stop into places like the well-named gastropub Goose Island and leave very happy. Goose Island Wrigleyville offers a much better sampling of pub food than competitors like Buffalo Wild Wings – and there is no way to overstate how outstanding the beer is. If you like beer, you’ll enjoy Goose Island immensely.

Residents of the island are lucky enough to enjoy a slice of Chicago that is near enough to the tourist action of the Near North Side and the epic area that is the Loop. (And if you ask me, the closeness to the brewery action makes this one of the best Chicago neighborhoods.)