The culture ofChicago,Illinois is known for the invention or significant advancement of several performing arts, includingimprovisational comedy,house music,industrial music,blues,hip hop,gospel,jazz[1] andsoul.[2]
The city is known for itsChicago School andPrairie School architecture. It continues to cultivate a strong tradition ofclassical music,popular music,dance, andperforming arts, rooted inWestern civilization, as well as other traditions carried forward by itsAfrican-American,Asian-American,European American andHispanic and Latino American citizens.
The city is additionally known for various popular culinary dishes, includingdeep-dish pizza, theChicago-style hot dog and theItalian beef sandwich.
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Chicago lays claim to a large number of regional specialties that reflect the city's ethnic and working-class roots. Among these are its nationally renowneddeep-dish pizza; this style is said to have originated at Pizzeria Uno. The Chicago-style thin crust is also popular in the city. A number of well-known chefs have had restaurants in Chicago, includingCharlie Trotter,Rick Tramonto,Grant Achatz, andRick Bayless.
In 2003,Robb Report named Chicago the country's "most exceptional dining destination" and in 2008,Maxim awarded Chicago the title of "Tastiest City."
The most popular Chicago-style foods are:
Other Chicago-style dishes include:
Chicago features many restaurants that highlight the city's various ethnic neighborhoods, includingChinatown on the South Side, Swedish/NordicAndersonville on NorthClark Street,Greektown onHalsted Street, andLittle Italy on Taylor Street and theHeart of Italy. TheSouth Asian community alongDevon Avenue hosts manyPakistani andIndian eateries. The predominantly Mexican neighborhoods ofPilsen andLittle Village are home to numerous eateries ranging from smalltaquerías to full scale restaurants. Several restaurants featuring Middle Eastern fare can be found alongLawrence Avenue, whilePolish cuisine is well represented alongMilwaukee Avenue on the Northwest side andArcher Avenue on the Southwest side. A large concentration ofVietnamese restaurants can be found in theArgyle Street district inUptown.[69]
Along with ethnic fare and fast food, Chicago is home to manysteakhouses, as well as a number of upscale dining establishments serving a wide array of cuisine. Some notable destinations includeFrontera Grill, a gourmetMexican restaurant owned by chef andMexico: One Plate at a Time host,Rick Bayless;Graham Elliot's eponymous restaurant,Graham Elliot;Jean Joho's Everest, anew-French restaurant located on the top floor of theChicago Stock Exchange building downtown, andTru from chefsRick Tramonto andGale Gand.
Chicago has become known for its ventures inmolecular gastronomy, with chefsGrant Achatz ofAlinea,[70]Homaro Cantu ofMoto,[71] andMichael Carlson ofSchwa.
Many African American migrants who were entrepreneurs would open restaurants, female entrepreneurs especially. Food-related businesses had a low threshold for entry because many African Americans were raised in environments where food was a central part of life.[72]
TheChicago Tribune in 2019 identified five "iconic black restaurants" run by five families as having some of the best food in the city. They wereHarold's Chicken Shack (founded 1950),Lem's Bar-B-Q (founded 1954), Uncle Remus Saucy Fried Chicken (founded 1963), Taurus Flavors (founded 1966) and Old Fashioned Donuts (founded 1972).[73] The city is also home to many fried-shrimp shacks.[74][75][76]
Taste of Chicago is a large annual food festival held in early July inGrant Park in downtown Chicago. It features booths from dozens of Chicago-area restaurants, as well as live music.[77]
Beginning in 2015, Chicago Black Restaurant Week is an annual celebration of various Black cuisines where more than 20 different restaurants come together in February during Black History Month to share their foods.[78]
In 2001, the Culinary Historians of Chicago held a "Grits and Greens" conference at Harold Washington College. The conference was focused on highlighting the contribution of African-American women in shaping the culinary culture of Chicago's black community. Over the course of two days, the event brought together an array of people, including authors, chefs, and professors. The programming of the event featured a variety of activities, such as a gala held at Roosevelt University and tours of the southwest neighborhoods of Chicago.[79]
Chicago has a longbrewing history that dates back to the early days of the city.[80] While its era of mass-scale commercial breweries largely came to an end withProhibition, the city today has a large number ofmicrobreweries andbrewpubs.[81][82] According to 2018 report by the Brewers Association, Chicago had the most breweries of any metropolitan area in the country, with 167 total.[83] Included among these are craft brewers likeHalf Acre,Off Color,Pipeworks andRevolution Brewing.[84][85] The largest brewery in Chicago isGoose Island, founded in 1988 and now owned byAnheuser-Busch InBev.[86]
Annual events include Illinois Craft Beer Week,[87][88] the Festival of Barrel-Aged Beers (known as FOBAB),[89][90] the Chicago Beer Festival,[91] and the Chicago Beer Classic.[92][93]
In the mid- to late-20th century, the most popular beer in Chicago wasOld Style, a mass-produced lager that at the time was brewed byG. Heileman inLa Crosse, Wisconsin. The Old Style brand is now owned by thePabst Brewing Company which supervises its production under contract byMillerCoors.[94][95][96][97][98]
Jeppson's Malört is a brand ofbäsk, a Swedish-style liqueur flavored withwormwood. Known for its bitter taste, it can be found in some Chicago-area taverns and liquor stores, but is seldom seen elsewhere in the country. The Carl Jeppson Company was founded in Chicago in the 1930s.[99] Malört was made in Chicago until the mid-'70s, when the Mar-Salle distillery that produced it for the Carl Jeppson Company closed. It was made inKentucky briefly, after which it was produced inFlorida for many years.[100] In 2018, Jeppson's Malört was acquired by Chicago-based CH Distillery,[101] and in 2019 production was moved back to Chicago.[102]
Koval, Chicago's first distillery to operate within city limits since Prohibition, began operation in 2008. Located in theAndersonville neighborhood on the city's North Side, Koval offers a wide range of spirits and was featured on the Chicago ("World's Greenest Beer") episode during the second season of theEsquire Network showBrew Dogs in 2014.[103]
Cohasset Punch is a brand ofrum-based drink first created by Chicago bartenders Lewis Williams and Tom Newman in the 1890s.[104] Officially classified as aliqueur, Cohasset Punch can also be considered a bottledcocktail orpunch. It has been referred to as "the definitive Chicago cocktail",[105] and a 1902trade journal remarked that "what themint julep is tothe South, Cohasset Punch is to Chicago."[106] Cohasset Punch was produced until the late-1980s, and was relaunched under new ownership in 2024.[107][108]
Chicago has made many significantpop-cultural contributions in the field ofmusic:Chicago blues,Chicago soul,jazz,gospel,indie rock,hip hop,industrial music,punk rock, andacid house. With the advent of theChicago house in the 1980s, the city is also the birthplace of thehouse style of music, which helped lead to the development oftechno music inDetroit,Michigan.
Chicago artists have played an influential role in the R&B–soul genre. Popular R&B or soul artists to hail from Chicago includeSam Cooke,R. Kelly,Curtis Mayfield,The Impressions,Jerry Butler,The Chi-Lites,Ahmad Jamal,Dave Hollister,Jennifer Hudson,Baby Huey, andCarl Thomas.
Prominent figures fromChicago blues includeSunnyland Slim,Howlin' Wolf,Muddy Waters,Sonny Boy Williamson,Willie Dixon,Elmore James,Albert King,Koko Taylor,Otis Spann,Little Walter,Lonnie Brooks,Junior Wells,Syl Johnson,Buddy Guy,Magic Sam,Magic Slim,Luther Allison,Freddie King,Eddy Clearwater, andOtis Rush.
Jazz musicians based in Chicago have includedJelly Roll Morton,Bix Beiderbecke,Benny Goodman,Sun Ra,Von Freeman, andDinah Washington. The city is the home of theAssociation for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, a group of musical artists who helped pioneeravant-garde jazz.
Thehip hop scene in Chicago is also very influential, with major artists includingKanye West,Chance the Rapper,Twista,Common,Lupe Fiasco,Crucial Conflict,Psychodrama,Cupcakke,Da Brat,Shawnna,Chief Keef,King Louie,Lil Reese, andRhymefest.
The rock bandChicago was named after the city, although its original name was theChicago Transit Authority. The band's name was shortened to Chicago after the CTA threatened to sue them for unauthorized use of the original trademark. Popular 1980s bandSurvivor is from Chicago.
Many mainstream rock bands hail from Chicago or were made famous there. Among these areThe Blues Brothers, the aforementioned Chicago,Styx,Cheap Trick,REO Speedwagon,Survivor, theButterfield Blues Band, and theSiegel–Schwall Band.
Chicago has also been home to a thriving folk music scene, particularly in the 1960s and 1970s.John Prine,Steve Goodman andBonnie Koloc were the most prominent folk singer–songwriters of that time.
In the late 1970s, local bandThe Shoes arguably started indie rock with a power pop album recorded in their living room.[citation needed] 1980s and 1990salternative bandsLocal H,Eleventh Dream Day,Ministry,Veruca Salt,My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult,Material Issue,Liz Phair,Urge Overkill, andThe Smashing Pumpkins hail from Chicago. Contemporary rock bandsThe Lawrence Arms,Soil,Kill Hannah andWilco are also Chicago-based. The 2000s have seen local artistsDisturbed,Alkaline Trio,The Academy Is,Rise Against,The Audition,Spitalfield,Chevelle, thePlain White T's,Kanye West,Lupe Fiasco, andFall Out Boy also attain success in the U.S.
Chicago has become known for indie rockers following in the paths of the Smashing Pumpkins, Urge Overkill, Wilco, and The Jesus Lizard; bands likeThe Sea and Cake,Califone,OK Go,Andrew Bird andUmphrey's McGee hail from the city. Tim and Mike Kinsella, hailing from Chicago, fronted several seminal 90s emo bands:Cap'n Jazz,American Football,Owen,Joan of Arc, andOwls. Matthew and Eleanor Friedberger ofThe Fiery Furnaces, who now reside in Brooklyn, New York are originally from Oak Park, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. Chicago is also home to many independent labels like Thrill Jockey, Drag City, and others, and to the popular music-news website Pitchfork Media.
A handful ofpunk rock bands are based in Chicago. Some of the more famous punk rock products of the city areNaked Raygun,The Effigies,Big Black andShellac (featuringSteve Albini), andScreeching Weasel. Many of these punk and indie bands got their start at noted alternative music venuesMetro (originally Cabaret Metro),Lounge Ax,Empty Bottle,Double Door, andThe Fireside Bowl.
Chicago is also known for being the "birthplace of AmericanIndustrial Music",[This quote needs a citation] as many bands got their start in Chicago. The city was also home of the now-defunctWax Trax! Records record label which once hadKMFDM,Ministry,Front 242,PIG,Front Line Assembly,My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult,Coil, and more on its roster.
TheChicago Symphony Orchestra is one of the nation's oldest and most respectedorchestras. It is well regarded throughout the world through tours in both Asia and Europe and also through a large number of recordings widely available. Perhaps because of Chicago's historically large German-American population, the CSO is particularly well known for its performances of pieces by German composers.
Chicago also has a thriving and youthful contemporary classical scene. Major venues for new music include concerts by theInternational Contemporary Ensemble, Ensemble Dal Niente,Third Coast Percussion, Fulcrum Point and the CSO's MusicNOW series. Composers of note includeAugusta Read Thomas,Lee Hyla,Marcos Balter,Kirsten Broberg, Hans Thomalla,Jay Alan Yim andShulamit Ran.
While lacking a school of music with the stature of theJuilliard School or theCurtis Institute of Music, the Chicago area does have a number of colleges. The best known outside of the region is theNorthwestern University Bienen School of Music. TheChicago College of Performing Arts atRoosevelt University and the School of Music atDePaul University are both working to expand their reputations.
Chicago's colorful history and culture have provided inspiration for a wide variety of musical compositions. In the 19th century, the chain of events surrounding theGreat Chicago Fire led Chicago residentHoratio Spafford to write the hymn "It Is Well With My Soul".
Annual music festivals in Chicago with free admission include theChicago Blues Festival, theChicago Jazz Festival, theGrant Park Music Festival, andWorld Music Festival Chicago. Annual ticketed festivals in the city includeLollapalooza,Pitchfork Music Festival,Riot Fest,North Coast Music Festival,Spring Awakening,Ruido Fest, andChicago Open Air.
Chicago is a major center for theater and is the birthplace of modernimprovisational comedy.[109] The city is home to two renowned comedy troupes:The Second City andiO Theater (formerly known as ImprovOlympic). The form itself was invented at theUniversity of Chicago in the 1950s by an undergraduate performance group called theCompass Players, whose members went on to found Second City. It was also home to one of the longest running plays in the country—theNeo-Futurists'Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind, an ensemble of 30 plays in 60 minutes.
Since their foundings in 1925 and 1974,Goodman Theatre, downtown, andSteppenwolf Theatre Company on the city's north side have nurtured generations of actors, directors, and playwrights. They have grown into internationally renowned companies of artists. Many other theaters, from nearly 100 black box performances spaces like theStrawdog Theatre Company in theLakeview area to landmark downtown houses like theChicago Theatre on State and Lake Streets, present a wide variety ofplays andmusicals, including touring shows and original works such as the premiere in December 2004 ofSpamalot. TheChicago Shakespeare Theater,Lookingglass Theatre Company, and theVictory Gardens Theater have wonregional Tony Awards, along with Goodman and Steppenwolf.Broadway In Chicago, created in July 2000, hosts touring productions andBroadway musical previews at:Bank of America Theatre,Cadillac Palace Theatre,Ford Center for the Performing Arts Oriental Theatre. Broadway In Chicago provides over 7,500 jobs and an economic impact of over $635 million.[110]Polish language productions forChicago's large Polish speaking population can be seen at the historicGateway Theatre inJefferson Park.
TheLyric Opera of Chicago, founded in 1954, performs in theCivic Opera House. The Civic Opera House was built in 1929 on the east bank of theSouth Branch of the Chicago River. The Lyric Opera purchased the Civic Opera House in 1993.[111]
TheLithuanian Opera Company of Chicago was founded byLithuanian Chicagoans in 1956,[112] and presentsoperas inLithuanian. It celebrated fifty years of existence in 2006, and operates as a not-for-profit organization. It is noteworthy for performing the rarely stagedRossini'sWilliam Tell (1986) andPonchielli'sI Lituani (1981, 1983 and 1991), and also for contributing experienced chorus singers to theLyric Opera of Chicago.[113]The operaJūratė and Kastytis by Kazimieras Viktoras Banaitis was presented inChicago, Illinois in 1996.[114]
TheJoffrey Ballet makes its home in Chicago. Other ballet, modern and jazz dance troupes that are located in the city includeHubbard Street Dance Chicago,River North Chicago Dance Company, Gus Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago,Chicago Dance Crash, Thodos Dance Chicago,Chicago Festival Ballet and The Joel Hall Dancers.
The city'sUptown is reportedly the birthplace ofSlam Poetry, a style ofspoken word poetry that incorporates elements of hip hop culture, drama, jazz and lyricism.
Chicago is one of 13 metropolitan areas that have major league baseball, football, basketball, and hockey teams. In four of these metropolitan areas the teams from all four sports play their games within the limits of one city — Chicago,Detroit,Philadelphia, andDenver. Four of the metropolitan areas have two baseball teams — Chicago,New York City,Los Angeles, and theSan Francisco Bay Area — and of these four, only Chicago has had the same two teams since the American League was established in 1901.
TheChicago White Sox of theAmerican League, who won theWorld Series in 1906, 1917, and 2005, play atRate Field, located on the city's South Side in theArmour Square neighborhood.
TheChicago Cubs of theNational League, who won the World Series in 1907, 1908, and 2016, play atWrigley Field, located in the North Side neighborhood ofLakeview. The area of Lakeview near the stadium is commonly referred to as "Wrigleyville."
TheChicago Bears of theNational Football League play atSoldier Field. The Bears have won nineAmerican football championships (eightNFL Championships andSuper Bowl XX) trailing only theGreen Bay Packers, who have 13.
TheChicago Bulls of theNational Basketball Association are one of the world's most recognizedbasketball teams, thanks to their enormous success during theMichael Jordan era, when they won six NBA titles in the 1990s. The Bulls play at theUnited Center on Chicago's Near West side.
TheChicago Blackhawks of theNational Hockey League also play at the United Center. The Hawks are anOriginal Six franchise, founded in 1926, and have won sixStanley Cups, in 1934, 1938, 1961, 2010, 2013, and 2015.
TheChicago Fire FC, members ofMajor League Soccer, won one league and fourUS Open Cups since 1997. They play their home games at Soldier Field.
TheChicago Stars FC of theNational Women's Soccer League play atSeatGeek Stadium. The team was founded in 2009.
TheChicago Sky of theWomen's National Basketball Association play atWintrust Arena. The Sky won the WNBA Championship in2021.
TheChicago Wolves of theAmerican Hockey League play at theAllstate Arena in nearbyRosemont. The Wolves won the league championships in 1998, 2000, 2002, and 2008. Their first season was 1994–95.
OneNCAA Division I college football team plays in the Chicago area — theNorthwestern Wildcats, in nearbyEvanston. Chicago-area college basketball teams competing at the Division I level are theNorthwestern Wildcats, theDePaul Blue Demons, theLoyola Ramblers, theUIC Flames, and theChicago State Cougars.
Minor league baseball teams that play near Chicago include theKane County Cougars, theWindy City ThunderBolts, theSchaumburg Boomers, theJoliet Slammers, theGary SouthShore RailCats, and theChicago Dogs.
TheChicago Bandits, a women's professional softball team, play their home games atRosemont Stadium.
TheChicago Mustangs of theMajor Arena Soccer League play at theSears Centre inHoffman Estates.
TheWindy City Bulls are anNBA G League team affiliated with the Chicago Bulls. They play their home games at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates.
The city is home to severalroller derby leagues, including theWindy City Rollers and theChicago Outfit.
TheChicago Swans are theAustralian rules football club in the city, competing in theMid American Australian Football League.
Rugby teams in the city include theChicago Lions and theChicago Griffins.
There are two facilities forauto racing near Chicago, both of them inJoliet.Chicagoland Speedway hostsNASCAR races, and theRoute 66 Raceway is the site ofdrag racing events.
Thousands of long-distance runners from around the world compete in theChicago Marathon each October.
In most of the U.S.,softball is played with a 12-inch ball, but in Chicago16-inch softball is more popular.[115][116][117]
Chicago hosted the1959 Pan American Games, andGay Games VII in 2006. The city made anunsuccessful bid for the2016 Summer Olympics, though it was heavily favored.[118][119]
Chicago is home to a lively fine arts community. A high concentration ofcontemporary art galleries can be found in theRiver North andWest Loop neighborhoods, though a great amount of arts activity also centers aroundUkrainian Village. Chicago visual art has had a strong individualistic streak, little influenced by outside fashions. "One of the unique characteristics of Chicago," saidPennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts curator Bob Cozzolino, "is there's always been a very pronounced effort to not be derivative, to not follow the status quo",[120] and arts pioneers such asStanislav Szukalski who were tied to the "Chicago Renaissance" helped to fashion the city into a nexus for new trends in art.[121]
Chicago has long had a strong tradition of figurativesurrealism, as in the works ofIvan Albright andEd Paschke. In 1968 and 1969, members of theChicago Imagists, such asRoger Brown,Leon Golub,Robert Lostutter,Jim Nutt, andBarbara Rossi produced bizarre representational paintings. TodayRobert Guinan paints gritty realistic portraits of Chicago people which are popular inParis, although he is little known in Chicago itself.
These same impulses also appeared in Chicago's livelystreet photography scene, gaining notoriety through artists centered around theInstitute of Design such asHarry Callahan,Aaron Siskind, as well as in the work of nanny-savantVivian Maier.Bob Thall's beautiful, bleak photographs of Chicago-area architecture have also won much acclaim.[122]
Chicago has aPercent for Art program of public artworks, although it is notoriously more opaque and secretive than that of most other cities; arts activist such asPaul Klein and attorneyScott Hodes have long criticized its lack of public accountability.[123]
Chicago is home to a number of large, outdoor works by well-known artists. These include theChicago Picasso,Miró's Chicago,Flamingo andFlying Dragon byAlexander Calder,Batcolumn byClaes Oldenburg,Cloud Gate byAnish Kapoor,Crown Fountain byJaume Plensa,Man Enters the Cosmos byHenry Moore,Agora byMagdalena Abakanowicz,Fountain of Time byLorado Taft, and theFour Seasons mosaic byMarc Chagall.
The central part of Chicago was largely destroyed by theChicago Fire in 1871. Almost all the buildings currently standing in the city's downtown area were built after that, one exception being theChicago Water Tower.
Around the turn of the twentieth century, Chicago was a key location in the development of theskyscraper. This movement was spearheaded by architects promoting theChicago School design philosophy, includingLouis Sullivan and others. Notable tall buildings and skyscrapers built before the mid-1930s include theRookery Building, theAuditorium Building, theChicago Cultural Center, theMonadnock Building, theReliance Building, theSullivan Center, theMarquette Building, theChicago Building, theWrigley Building,Tribune Tower, theLondon Guarantee Building,333 North Michigan, theJewelers' Building, thePalmolive Building, theCarbide & Carbon Building,Riverside Plaza, theMerchandise Mart, and theChicago Board of Trade Building.
In the 1940s, amodernist Second Chicago School of architecture emerged from the work ofLudwig Mies van der Rohe. Buildings that he designed include860–880 Lake Shore Drive,Crown Hall,330 North Wabash, and theKluczynski Federal Building.
Thetallest buildings in Chicago areWillis Tower,Trump Tower, theSt. Regis Chicago, theAon Center, and theJohn Hancock Center. Willis Tower was originally named Sears Tower, and was the tallest building in the world from 1973 to 1998. It is now the third-tallest building in the United States, afterOne World Trade Center andCentral Park Tower, though the height to the roof of Willis Tower is greater than that of One World Trade Center.[124]
Other architecturally significant modern andpostmodern skyscrapers in Chicago include theInland Steel Building,Marina City,Lake Point Tower, theCNA Center,333 Wacker Drive, theCrain Communications Building, theThompson Center, theHarold Washington Library, andAqua.
ThePrairie School of architecture originated in Chicago, which is home to a number of buildings byFrank Lloyd Wright and other Prairie School architects. Examples includeRobie House and theFirst Congregational Church of Austin.
ThePullman District was the first planned industrial community in the United States.
Some neighborhoods in the city have manyChicago bungalow houses. Built mostly between 1910 and 1940, these single-family homes are narrow,1+1⁄2-story brick structures, with gables parallel to the street.
Early writers associated with Chicago includeTheodore Dreiser,Eugene Field,Hamlin Garland,Edgar Lee Masters, andFrank Norris.[125] Poets have includedGwendolyn Brooks andCarl Sandburg. Other notable writers often associated with the city's literary tradition includeNelson Algren,Saul Bellow,John Dos Passos,James T. Farrell,Lorraine Hansberry,Ernest Hemingway,Upton Sinclair,Studs Terkel, andRichard Wright.
Popular public attractions in Chicago include theMuseum of Science and Industry, theField Museum of Natural History,Adler Planetarium,Shedd Aquarium,Lincoln Park Zoo, theChicago History Museum,Millennium Park, andNavy Pier.
The city has a number of art museums, of which the two largest are theArt Institute and theMuseum of Contemporary Art.
One weekend each August the city hosts theChicago Air & Water Show, a free exhibition on the shores of Lake Michigan.
The flag of Chicago consists of four red stars and two blue stripes on a white background. The stars represent events in the history of the city – the establishment ofFort Dearborn in 1803, theChicago Fire in 1871, theWorld's Columbian Exposition in 1893, and theCentury of Progress Exposition in 1933. The stripes represent the North and South branches of theChicago River. The flag is very popular in the city, both for its bold design and as a sign of civic pride.[126][127][128]
Less well-known is the Chicago municipal device, a symbol that looks like the letter Y inside a circle. According to theMunicipal Code of Chicago, the device is "for use by the varied unofficial interests of the city and its people". Its design is inspired by the confluence of the North, South, and main branches of the Chicago River atWolf Point. The municipal device can be seen in various places around the city – for example on the marquee of theChicago Theatre.[129][130]
On the West and South sides, barbecue joints tend to be strictly take-out places, and the style is typically smokier and chewier, cooked in aquarium smokers. (Developed in the 1950s and unique to Chicago, these rectangular cookers with transparent doors get their name from their resemblance to fish tanks.)
Raise a glass, Chicago, to your new title: craft beer capital of the country. Craft brewers in the Chicago area occupy an estimated 1.6 million square feet of commercial real estate, more than any other metro area in the country, according to a report from Seattle-based brokerage Colliers International. The area also has the second-most craft breweries with 144, behind only Portland, Ore.'s 196.
Old Style, once Chicago's best-selling beer, is attempting a comeback with a new marketing campaign aimed at Chicagoans too young to remember its 1970s heyday.... Hip probably has never been used to describe Old Style, a no-frills beer long favored by blue-collar workers. In the '80s, Old Style had more than 30% of the local beer market. But in recent years, internal strife and industry trends have taken their toll on the century-old beer, depressing Old Style's Chicago-area marketshare to less than 5%, according to ACNielsen Corp.
