My FAVORITE Skokie things
Enjoy them before or after your next appointment with me ✨
Also– Scroll down ⬇️ for details and to RSVP for the Wonderbooks potluck dinner ✨🏡🥗👯♀️
Good morning, New Day 🤩 I hope you’ve been enjoying the sights and sounds of spring like I have been 🌹🐣🌱🐿️
Okay. I have wanted to write this blog for SUCH a long time.
Because there are so many of you who come to New Day from the city, another suburb, or even further (Wisconsin and Indiana I see you!), I want you to be able to get the most out of your time here.
No matter where you come from for care at New Day, there are precious gems and treats to enjoy when you’re here in Skokie 💎
The reason I’ve put off writing this for so long is because there are SO MANY great things I could write about. Too many 😰
Because there is no way for me to include ALL the great stores, cafes, and breakfast spots in one message, please ask me if you need other recommendations.
Or respond to this message and let me know about YOUR favorite spots 💕
Coffee and Cafés
There are SO MANY! Skokie loooves their coffee and pastries 😂
I’m going to separate the field into Closed on Monday and Open on Monday categories.
So many of you come to see me for care on Mondays, and alas this is also a popular day for cafés to be closed for business 🛑
If you are up here on a Monday and want to grab a coffee or tea before you head into the rest of your day, I recommend Qahwah House on Touhy Avenue, and Complimentary Café on Oakton.
Qahwah is an authentic Yemeni coffee and tea house. Stop here for something to go (the Adeni Chai is my go-to, but be ready because it will have you SUPER caffeinated🤩). Or, stay with your laptop if you have some work to do because the place is huge, there’s plenty of seating, and I’ve never had a problem with the WiFi.
Complimentary Café is just down Oakton from New Day. They’re known for writing cute little compliments on your cup, and have tasty treats for munching as well 😍
If you are visiting Skokie on all other days (NOT Monday!), you are encouraged to hit up Kneads and Wants (around the corner from New Day Their amazing pistachio muffin is worth the sugar if you’re looking for a treat! 💎
Local favorite Soul Good coffee is currently a pop-up at Sketchbook Brewery on Main Street, but they are soon to open their own location. I hear their coffee is great (I’m a tea girl though and so I enjoy their many matcha latté options 💚)
And of course we will never forget when Soul Good brought their coffee truck out to New Day last summer for our Appreciation Day 💕
Breakfast/Brunch
OK I might get some flack here for the things I don’t mention (again, so many options!)
BUT Alexander’s is my favorite in Skokie/the entire Chicagoland area.
It’s SO GOOD that I can hardly explain it to you except to say that if you are ever here around breakfast or lunch time and are looking for a sit-down spot, just go!
My favorite menu items are the mysteriously named “Brunch Hash” and the “Tuscany Hash” 🥗😍🍗
Runner up goes to Cupitol which recently opened at Old Orchard (DID YOU KNOW that Old Orchard is only 10 minutes from New Day?) ☕️🥪🧁
I haven’t even been to Cupitol in Old Orchard yet (love the one in Evanston though!) but everyone around here is completely gaa gaa over it so I thought I’d include it 😂
Lunch and Dinner
Though it is difficult to access, because it is an Israeli Jewish restuarant and therefore closed on Fridays and Saturdays, Taboun Grill is VERY special.
At Taboun you can get tasty kebabs, grilled meats, and wrapped sandwiches (my favorite has grilled egglplant and hard-boiled egg inside!) 🥙
So for Taboun think Sunday-Thursday.
The best dinner in the area, in my opinion, hands-down goes to Libertad.
Libertad is a fancy Latin American restaurant that people come way out of their way for 💥
They have flavorful cocktails and an intimate atmosphere. It’s a great place for a dinner-date or friends night out. And they even recently opened for lunch as well! 🍹
Groceries
Is it weird that I’m recommending grocery stores to clients at New Day?
I guess for me, when I drive to a different town or area of the city, I’m always thinking “what special thing can I eat or pick up while I am over here?” So if that’s you, I can help you with that 😂😂😂
I LOVE Village Marketplace on Dempster, even though it is a bit out of the way. If you were headed toward Evanston it would be right on your way though.
It’s a super retro full grocery store, with an old-timey feel and lots of Eastern European and Russian specialties 🍰🍖
I also recently discovered that Marketplace on Oakton (seemingly unrelated to the aforementioned and similarly named “Village Marketplace”) is very cool as well. A full grocery store with a focus on Middle Eastern and Greek items 🇬🇷
Last, if you’re looking to grab a loaf of sourdough real quick, head over to Sunberry Market on Oakton.
You might feel awkward in there, as it’s a small store and you’re probably the only customer. Plus, you probably don’t speak Russian 😂
But you can do it! I believe in you 🙏
You’ll just walk right in, go right to the deli counter and grab a loaf of bread that will be sitting there right on top. When you check out, just mumble something in response to their Russian greeting 😂
I also like to buy their frozen cherries and lingonberries from their freezer case because I put them into my plain sheeps-milk yogurt 🍒🐑😍
Nail Salon
If you’re looking to grab a manicure or pedicure while in Skokie, I recommend Skokie Nails. 💅
Even though, as a notable downside, the salon is kind of disorganized (why can’t they keep the nail colors arranged in some kind of order?), it’s a nice vibe and the customer service is AWESOME.
For example, one time I accidentally ruined some of my toenails after a pedicure by working out too soon afterward. I came back to the salon with my ruined nails, head down in shame 😰
After they fixed the nails, I tried to give the woman $20 for her trouble. She refused to take it. So I left it at the counter 👻 #sneaky
Months later, I returned to Skokie nails and the woman working (not even the same woman) goes, “Here, you left this last time you came here.” She was giving me the $20 bill back 😂🙏😂🙌
You’ll also be able to use your time there to interrupt your texting and doom scrolling by enjoying the Korean TV shows they play all day long (thanks for turning me on to Singles Inferno, Skokie Nails!)
Other Notable Mentions
Be sure to check out the Skokie Public Library, if you have the chance. It’s only a block from New Day, is beautiful, and is constantly winning awards for being the best library ever. 📚
Bop across Brown Street from New Day over to See Jane Sparkle for a fair trade piece of jewelry and gift for yourself or someone you love. She also hosts a lot of great events as she represents a clothing line and a line of clean-crafted wines. 👑
If you’ve been to New Day, you know that I LOVE flowers. This is Floral Avenue, after all!
The flowers at Jewel are great and seem to last forever. BUT if you’re looking for a beautiful arrangement, head around the block from New Day (take a nice little walk after your adjustment!) to Botanik Culture. They sell plants too and the store owner is very nice! 💐💐💐
Lorel Park, a lovely 2 block walk from New Day, is a neighborhood gem. They also have a really sweet zip-line that will entertain your kid for a long time! 🤩
And last. I LOVE the mall, y’all. I grew up on malls! A couple of hours at Old Orchard is a huge treat for me (plus we finally have good weather for it). I shop at Bloomies, Nordstrom, and eat at Nando’s Peri Peri or the Hampton Social (get the Green Goddess salad 🥗).
Thank you so much for reading, sunshine, and I look forward to hearing from you about what you love when you’re here in Skokie. And I look forward to seeing you at your adjustments today, Saturday, and beyond 💖
Wonderbook sunshines! Wednesday evening, May 14th we are meeting for a dinner 🍽️
Hopefully you know about this already. I am aware that it’s a busy time and not everyone will be able to come. We will have more gatherings like this in the future!
This is an opportunity for those of you who have been participating with the Wonderbooks over the past 2 months to be in community, energize, and mind-meld.
I hope you can make it!
Click here to RSVP if you are a Wonderbook Participant and you are planning to come to the potluck, along with the number and names of any guests you might be bringing ✨
