A Charming Illinois Village On Chicago's Doorstep Has A Picturesque Downtown, Good Eats, And Friendly Community

Chicago's reputation precedes it. It's a lively city known for Al Capone, deep-dish pizza, and iconic architecture like the Wrigley Building overlooking the Chicago River and pro sports teams including the Cubs, Bulls, Bears, and White Sox. But among its lesser-known charms are cute and walkable next-door villages like Hinsdale, sitting 21 miles to the west of the Windy City.

This village in DuPage County, with a population of 17,000, is also viewed as one of Chicago's most desirable neighborhoods, making it arguably one of the best suburbs to live in the American Midwest (like Naperville). And for good reason: Hinsdale is full of stately homes with manicured lawns, charming green spaces like Burns Field and Katherine Legge Memorial parks, a good public school system, and excellent restaurants serving international cuisine. Plus, it's less than 40 minutes from Chicago Union Station on the metro. Such convenience means it can work well for vacationers hoping to avoid Chicago's tourist traps or for daytrippers seeking reprieve from the pace of life in the city.

Once an anonymous stop on the old Chicago railroad, Hinsdale has since bloomed into a pretty little neighborhood known for its welcoming community. The town also has an old-time atmosphere that has earned it two National Register Historic District designations, given to places deemed worthy of preservation by the U.S. National Park Service. To get a flavor of what Hinsdale was once like, head to the Hinsdale History Museum, situated within an old clapboard home surrounded by a picket fence. Here, you'll find restored rooms that collectively function as a day-in-the-life exhibition of a middle-class family living here in the late 19th century.

Be sure to wander through the Downtown Hinsdale Historic District, too, which dates to 1865 and features 73 preserved buildings between Maple, Lincoln, Garfield, and Second streets. Not only does the architecture around make the town wonderfully picturesque, but it also showcases the diversity of design styles present in old-world America, including Gothic Revival and Colonial Revival, as well as Queen Anne and Art Deco-style buildings. Arguably the most spectacular structure in town is the Hinsdale Memorial Building, with its red-brick facade, colonnaded entrance, bell tower, and front plaza. It was built in the 1920s to commemorate American war veterans — its rotunda is known as the Shrine of Memory — and now operates as a village hall and library.

Perhaps most impressively, the quality — and variety — of food in Hinsdale is a match for the village's architecture and scenery. Hinsdale has been described by some as the "Beverly Hills" of Illinois (sans the temperate weather), and this can partly be attributed to the booming culinary scene. Whether you're dining on plates of sushi at Nabuki or hefty breakfast combos at Page's, there's a lot on offer to keep foodie travelers busy during their stay. 

Fuller House, five minutes on foot from the Memorial Building, serves bar-food classics like wings, nachos, sliders, and brisket and has been voted the best neighborhood bar in Chicago's western suburbs. Vistro Prime is a popular steakhouse in downtown Hinsdale — think ribeyes, fruits de mer, and porterhouse pork chops paired with craft ales or in-house cocktails. Or for a brunch with an international flavor (this place is famous for its avgolemono, a Greek egg and lemon soup), head to YiaYia's, a family-run restaurant in Grant Square.