Rogers Park

Rogers Park is Chicago's northernmost neighborhood, and like Albany Park to its southwest, one of the most ethnically diverse in the country. The shores of Lake Michigan make up the neighborhood’s entire eastern border, making it a popular summer destination for Chicago visitors and residents. Nearly every major east-west street terminates at a sun-swept, sandy beach. Rogers Park's diversity, coupled with its large geographic area, makes it an area that offers something for everyone.

The southern portion of Rogers Park is home to Loyola University’s main campus with many restaurants, shops and bars catering to the students that make up a sizeable percentage of the neighborhood population. The area’s attractions include coffee shops, like Royal Coffee, which serves pure Ethiopian coffee and breakfast, pastries and Ethiopian treats; the New 400 Theaters, which screens first run films at discount prices; The Armadillo’s Pillow Bookstore, where readers can find mainstream books alongside used, hard-to-find ones; and Uncommon Ground, a “green” sustainable restaurant and coffee shop that boasts Chicago’s first certified organic rooftop garden.

On its north end, Rogers Park takes on a distinctly ethnic character, with a number of restaurants along Howard Street specializing in Caribbean cuisine, like Jamaica Jerk and Deta’s Café. Further east on Howard Street is Lost Eras, a theatrical costume rental and resale shop with a diverse selection of props, costumes and antiques for sale. It is even possible to purchase a suit of armor if one is so inclined, and for a fairly reasonable price too! A few blocks south and directly east of the CTA Jarvis Red Line station is a quaint dining hotspot that includes Grupo di Amici, an Italian restaurant known for their great wine list and thin-crust pizzas; Charmers Café, a family-owned coffee shop with a cozy, neighborhood feel; Taste Food & Wine, a gourmet European deli and wine shop; and an unassuming but delicious Indian restaurant, Luzzat, in the strip mall across the street.

In between these two areas lies the Glenwood Avenue Arts District, centered around the intersection of Glenwood and Morse. Seemingly endless gallery space and an assortment of urban, socially- and artistically-conscious retailers and restaurants make their home here, like the Heartland Café, an organic restaurant and part bar/live music venue that grows their own produce on a rooftop garden, or the Morseland, a cozy neighborhood watering hole that features live music, great food and friendly service. The outdoor sculpture garden at B1E Gallery, and LifeLine Theater, which specializes in original literary adaptations, may be of additional interest to visitors to this vibrant arts district.

Located throughout the city, Chicago Tribute Markers of Distinction commemorate where notable Chicagoans lived and worked. A marker in Rogers Park honors puppeteer Burr Tillstrom.

Read, Learn, Discover at the Chicago Public Library. Search programming and event information at your neighborhood branch (Rogers Park, Northtown).