Ukrainian Village, Chicago, IL

It wasn’t that long ago that the bars in Ukrainian Village were the kind of places where politicians performed their dirtier deeds and a request for fine wine would be met with a punch in the face.

Nowadays, however, Ukrainian Village has become the hip, less gentrified little brother of surrounding Wicker Park, with blocks of trendy restaurants full of casual creative types and quirky stores selling goods ranging from handmade clothing to beads.

Although the neighborhood still maintains a sizable Ukrainian population, as evidenced by its many domed Orthodox churches, there are plenty of skinny-jeaned cool kids and moody artists making forays into the knitting shops and fusion restaurants, and popular jazz clubs do just as well as the dive bars.

Division and Chicago Streets are the main drags of Ukrainian Village, and in summer almost every restaurant puts tables out on the bustling sidewalk, creating a bright, noisy, al fresco people-watching haven.

Despite a handful of upscale eateries, there is a decidedly bohemian feel to “Ukie Village,” in both the Eastern European and the counter-cultural meanings of the word.