French in Chicago

Whether you’re a francophile living in Chicago or a francophone visitor looking to connect with the local French scene, here’s a guide for you.

 

Organizations

Some important Chicago French organizations and institutions

• The Consulate General of France in Chicago
• Alliance Française de Chicago: A fantastic organization located in the River North neighborhood. They have beautiful facilities, including a “médiathèque” and a teaching kitchen, and offer all sorts of educational and cultural programs throughout the year.
• The French-American Chamber of Commerce in Chicago: A business group connecting French businesses and professionals.
• The Groupe Professionnel Francophone de Chicago: A network of French-speaking professionals in Chicago.
• French in Chicago: A network to connect French people living in Chicago.

 

Education

• Again, the Alliance Française de Chicago, offering French classes for both children and adults.
• The Lycée Français de Chicago: A private pre-K through 12 (de la maternelle à la terminale) school with bilingual French-English instruction.
• L’École Française Chicago: French classes in the Roscoe Village neighborhood on Chicago’s North Side.
• Colleges and universities: The Chicago area has many, many colleges and universities, most of which have French departments. Just a few of them are the University of Chicago, DePaul University, University of Illinois at Chicago, Loyola University Chicago, and Northwestern University.

 

Arts and Culture

• The Art Institute of Chicago: Rated one of the top museums in the world by TripAdvisor. The Art Institute has a collection of French impressionist art that rivals that of Paris’ Musée d’Orsay, with works by Monet, Manet, Renoir, Seurat, Caillebotte, Van Gogh, Gauguin, Degas, Cézanne, Toulouse-Lautrec, Pissarro, and Rousseau.
• Chagall’s Four Seasons: A monumental mosaic piece by Marc Chagall, on display in the heart of Chicago’s downtown.
• The Chicago Picasso: Yes, I realize that Picasso was Spanish, but he’s often considered an adopted son of France. This massive sculpture stands in Chicago’s Daley Plaza. Some say it looks like a horse, some say it’s a lion, others say it’s a “female bird“. Whatever it is, it’s really cool and is a Chicago treasure.
• French Culture in the Midwest: The Facebook page for the French Embassy’s Cultural Services in the Midwestern region, with many events in Chicago.
• Cantigny Park: Located in Wheaton, IL, in Chicago’s western suburbs. It is the former estate of Robert McCormick, publisher of the Chicago Tribune, who named the property in honor of the Battle of Cantigny, in which he served. The park includes a museum dedicated to La Grande Guerre (WWI).

Restaurants

A list of the French restaurants in the Chicago area that I’ve personally visited. Sadly, truly authentic French restaurants are hard to come by in the United States, but these ones are not bad.

• Cochon Volant Brasserie, in the Loop: The misspelled items on their menu still make me cringe, but the food is fairly good. Their specialty is “dry aged boeuf”.
• Mon Ami Gabi, in Lincoln Park and Oak Brook, IL: A French-style steak house.

Cafés, Boulangeries, and Pâtisseries

• Petit Margeaux at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in the River North neighborhood: Pretty pricey (no surprise given that it’s in the Waldorf Astoria), but food and drinks are good. Come and get French bakery favorites like the opéra mini-cake.