If you want a glimpse of what Chicago could look like with relaxed food truck laws, you don't have to fly to Portland or even take the Purple Line up north to Evanston. Just head west to Humboldt Park, the gorgeous 207-acre park by the neighborhood of the same name. That's where you'll find Isla de Cafe in a silver Airstream truck, which on bright and sunny days, shines like a beacon from across the park. More

Heaped with praise for its al pastor tacos, Taco El Jalisciense seemingly had everything I wanted in a taco joint, except for one minor detail: it wasn't open. For months, all the windows were boarded up, which I took as an ominous sign. Luckily, the restaurant just needed a little remodeling, and it's now back open and carving up al pastor. More

Let's start out with the obvious: if you don't think Bullhead Cantina picked up an idea or two for its whiskey bar and taco joint theme from Big Star, then you probably have been sipping a few too many shots of Evan Williams. But Bullhead also shows a real interest in kicking out quality tacos, which is something I can always support. More

Who knew art galleries and tacos got along so well? Last week I encountered shocking skillful food coming out of DeColores in Pilsen. This week I found similarly delicious food at La Encantada, which is located in Humboldt Park. More

Did I just manage to randomly stumble upon one of the best jibaritos in Chicago? My intention was to visit Joey's Shrimp House in Humboldt Park for a massive fried shrimp po' boy. But when I asked the manager what I had to try, he went straight for the shrimp jibarito ($8.95). How could I pass it up? More

Borinquen is definitely not the only jibarito player in town. Papa's Cache Sabroso, located on Division in Humbodlt Park, provides an equally admirable version, which is just as flavorful, and also slightly less greasy. More

Why do I keep going back to Cemitas Puebla? Sure, there are other truly remarkable sandwiches in town. It's just that no matter how many cemitas I've consumed—and I've had many—I always manage to be surprised by some small detail. More

Borinquen's rendition of the jibarito is still alive and well, especially if you stop by during the busy lunch rush. Freshly fried to order, the plantains are slathered with mayonnaise, topped with cheese and lettuce, and then stuffed with the meat of your choice. Steak is popular and good, but I have hard time ever saying no to the crispy roast pork. More

In any big city, tacos are a great representation of what the local food scene has to offer. Small, simple, and versatile, this is street food at its finest. Or it's a popular chef (ahem, Paul Kahan) doing tacos at their cheffiest-finest. There's quite a bit of diversity on this list: from the homey, traditional carne asada and carnitas to kalbi (Korean short rib) to a crunchy fish taco. More

If Rootstock Wine & Beer Bar only served booze, the small Humboldt Park spot would do just fine. But Executive Chef Duncan Biddulph's ever-changing menu, which always includes a few "crusts," helps keep the place packed on a seemingly permanent basis. More

Cemitas Puebla in the Humboldt Park neighborhood of Chicago is known for their unique cemitas sandwich. You may have seen it on a certain bleach blond, spiky-haired, er, guy's show somewhere? The cemitas are served on a flat sesame-seed bun with avocado, your choice of meat (pictured here is the milanesa, the breaded pork cutlet), adobo chipotle peppers, fresh Oaxacan cheese, and, when in season, papalo, a Mexican herb similar to cilantro. More

"They don't even try to disguise the fact that fat makes up a good one-third of each pork hunk." La Esquina Del Sabor N. Humboldt Drive and Brenock Drive, Chicago IL 60622 (map) The Short Order: Wide array of fried... More

Note: This post marks the debut of Nick Kindelsperger's Standing Room Only series, in which the author visits Chicago's best seatless eateries. Have at it, Nick. "The best seat is probably in your own car." Why start the column at... More

Last week, Good magazine named Chicago's Broadway as one of the tastiest streets in the U.S. Good magazine's criteria said a best street features "exquisite food you can actually afford." Haute cuisine is out of the equation. That said, as... More

Ed Levine made ethnic and cheap eats safe for America, or at least New Yorkers, anyway. In some ways, his seminal work, New York Eats, put pastrami and pizza on the same table as foie and truffles. It's precisely why... More