Chicago's Quaint Neighborhood Is A Pedestrian-Friendly Spot With Diverse Shopping And A Renowned Oktoberfest

Is it a quaint European neighborhood you've wandered into? A 3,000-square-foot landscape mural created with German paint unfurls from the Rhine, Black Forest, and Alps to Bavarian villages and Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, depicting majestic old-country castles and cathedrals along the way. The pedestrian-friendly cobblestone stretch leads you to Merz Apothecary, homeopathic elixirs in antique pharmacy jars and herb canisters exuding its 150-year-old Swiss-founded legacy. A few doors down is Polish deli Gene's Sausage Shop, plying smoked sausages crafted from family recipes and other specialties from the homeland for more than half a century.

But then, just steps away, the statue of Abraham Lincoln reminds you're in Chicago's Lincoln Square. Settled on the prairie in the 1850s by farmers from Switzerland, Germany, and England who employed Polish workers, this North Side spot really bloomed when the iconic Chicago "L" transit arrived in 1907, rapidly connecting the area to downtown. More immigrant families — mostly German – flowed in to make Lincoln Square home, establishing the community as the Windy City's German-American base where its renowned Oktoberfest has taken place every September since 1920.

Yet, the district has always evolved multiculturally, reflecting Chicago's proudly cosmopolitan attitude. You'll see this in the lively cornucopia of diverse shopping along its main artery of Lincoln Avenue and adjacent streets, from local makers and artisan jewelers to independent booksellers and art galleries. There's an old-timey movie theater and even a spirits distillery honoring the owner's grandfather's Austrian techniques. Niche boutiques specializing in clothes, sports, toys, and lifestyle and wellness products are why Lincoln Square feels like a charming village that's a universe away from the elegant and upscale Magnificent Mile shopping destination of high-end glamour and luxury labels, just 7 miles downtown.

While modern-day Lincoln Square is one of Chicago's most multiethnic melting pots, local rituals like schnitzel and spätzle at Himmel's, costumes at Rare Dirndl, the city's go-to Black Forest cake and tortes at Lutz Continental Cafe, and the Dank Haus German American Cultural Center are intricately tied — like a pretzel knot — to the neighborhood's heritage. Proud of its prost, this is a close-knit community that banded together to reopen the landmark Chicago Brauhaus when it closed after seven decades of serving overflowing steins. 

Which is why no detail is spared when it hosts the weekend-long German-American Oktoberfest each fall, anchored by sprawling tents serving Bavarian food and drink, traditional singing and dancing, a family-friendly carnival, a German mass, and a 1.2-mile parade. Admission is free, and sausages, brewskis, wines, polka dancing, and all sorts of lederhosen- and dirndl-clad revelry flow freely, drawing thousands of oompah celebrants.

Although fellow Midwest city Cincinnati is dubbed the "Oktoberfest Capital of America" for its accompanying massive beer festival, Lincoln Square's joyful juggernaut of Gemütlichkeit (the German expression of pure and authentic hospitality), is why it's an under-the-radar Chicago gem that deserves a spot on every traveler's itinerary.