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Savor Scout › Campuses › Illinois › Chicago, IL › University of Illinois Chicago

Restaurants near campus

Restaurants near University of Illinois Chicago (UIC)

618 places to eat within a mile of the University of Illinois Chicago, closest first, including Cafe Descartes, Carm's Beef and Italian Ice and Tuscany Taylor.

The 50 places to eat closest to UIC

Closest first, out of 618 within a mile. Distances are straight-line from the campus, so a walk runs a little longer.

Right by campus · about a 5-minute walk (20)

About a 10-minute walk · a quarter to half a mile (30)

Listings from Overture Maps open data (September 2026), open places with a street address only. Hours and openings change, so check before you go. Want one picked for what you're craving instead? Ask Savor Scout near UIC.

Can't decide between them? Say what you're craving and Savor Scout picks one near Chicago, IL.

The food scene around UIC

618places to eat within 1 mile
72%independent, not chains
22coffee shops and cafés

Open listings put 618 places to eat within 1 mile of UIC, 85 within a ten-minute walk (half a mile), and 3,720 within 3 miles. The most common: sandwiches (45), Mexican (39) and pizza (35). 28 are fast-food counters; the rest are sit-down restaurants, cafés, bakeries and takeaway spots.

Where to walk: the streets with the most places to eat within 1 mile are W Taylor St (89), W Randolph St (71), W Madison St (47) and W Jackson Blvd (39).

What stands out around UIC is dim sum, Middle Eastern and Greek — types that are listed here at 5 to 7 times the national rate.

By type of food — tap one for what to order and how to spot a good one:

Sandwiches 45 Mexican 39 Pizza 35 Italian 28 American 24 Coffee 22 Indian 20 Sushi 20 Bakery 18 Japanese 16

Popular cravings near UIC, within 1 mile: Asian food (75 places), Mexican food (39), Korean food (6) and Vietnamese food (4). Each guide covers what to order and how to tell a good kitchen from an average one.

Food guides for UIC

Sandwich Shops near UIC 45 Mexican Food near UIC 39 Pizza near UIC 35

Where UIC stands out

Among the 1,027 campuses on Savor Scout, counting what is within a mile, UIC ranks near the top for these. Each guide covers what to order and how to tell a good one.

  • #10for Greek food — 13 Greek restaurants listed

Eating on a student budget near UIC

Cheap and bad overlap much less than price filters suggest. Of the places listed nearby, 28 are fast-food counters: the cheapest default, rarely the cheapest good meal. The value is usually in lunch specials, counter service, short menus and dishes built on rice, noodles, bread or beans. Where to eat when you're broke covers what to look for, or search cheap eats near UIC.

Need somewhere open right now? These listings do not carry live opening hours, and late at night a fair share of what is listed as open is not. The late-night guide covers how to check before you go, or search late-night food near UIC and call ahead.

The campus

  • Location — Chicago, IL
  • Other names, current or former — UIC, U of I-Chicago, Illinois-Chicago, U of I-Medical Center, University of Illinois-Medical Center
  • Setting — in a city
  • Size — 20,000 students or more
  • Type — Public four-year institution

Campus figures are from IPEDS, the US Department of Education's institutional survey. Size is reported as the survey's own bracket rather than an exact headcount, because that is what the public dataset gives and we would rather quote it than estimate.

Nearby cities

Guides worth reading

What to eat during finals week Where to eat when you're broke Where to eat late at night Where to take visiting family and friends Eating out with a dietary restriction

Questions about eating near UIC

What restaurants are near UIC?
A few to start with, nearest first: Cafe Descartes (cafeteria, 0.1 mi), Carm's Beef and Italian Ice (italian, 0.2 mi), Curry On Fire Indian Cuisine (indian, 0.2 mi), Little Joe's (bar and grill, 0.2 mi) and Thai Bowl (thai, 0.2 mi). They are chosen local-first, then listed by distance; a starting point, not a ranking.
How many places to eat are near UIC?
Open map listings put 618 places to eat within 1 mile, 85 of them within a ten-minute walk, and 3,720 within 3 miles. About 72% are independent rather than chains; 22 are coffee shops or cafés and 28 are fast-food counters.
Where is the food near UIC?
The busiest streets are W Taylor St (89 places), W Randolph St (71 places), W Madison St (47 places) and W Jackson Blvd (39 places).
What kind of food is near UIC?
The most common types are sandwiches (45), Mexican (39), pizza (35) and Italian (28). Unusually common compared with the rest of the country: dim sum, Middle Eastern and Greek.

Nearby campuses

Comparing schools, or eating with friends across town? These are the closest campuses to UIC.