Best Museums in Riverdale

"Located in the heart of The University of Chicago campus, the SMART Museum of Art truly makes art accessible for their youngest guests. On the first Saturday of the month, the museum hosts a free Family Day where kids can participate in hands-on art projects highlighting current art exhibits. After creating their masterpieces, kids and their families can join a docent-led tour or listen to a story being read in the art gallery."

"If you want to see masterpieces but don't want to spend a long day wandering around one of the major art museums, the Smart may be just…"

"A powerful museum dedicated to African-American history, culture, and art, the DuSable Museum is a perfect place to take older kids and teens, although children ages 5 and up are welcome. Past exhibits have covered everything from the impact of Jewish scholars in African-American colleges to poetry and African-American soldiers in the Vietnam War."

"This museum features the “Freedom Now” mural, a wooden bas-relief depicting over 400-years of African-American history. Entry is free on Sunday."

"The Chew Chew in Riverside started as a small sandwich shop in 1996. Its popularity required a move to its current two-story space, a charming venue adorned with vintage railroad d..."

"With more than three million visitors per year, the Taste of Chicago is the largest food festival in the world. It’s an absolute smorgasbord of everything from sloppy street food to elegant, restaurant-quality dishes. If you like getting your grub on, it should be at the top of your bucket list!"

"Hyde ParkTucked away behind the Museum of Science and Industry, 57th Street Beach was designed by renowned landscape architects Olmsted and Vaux as part of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. Parking is fairly easy west of Lake Shore Drive, and the beach is accessible via the pedestrian underpass. Once the sun goes down, head on over to nearby Promontory Point and gather around a bonfire pit (reservations needed).What to know: While the criminally underrated Promontory Point is worth a visit to this beach alone, nearby (and always bumping) neighborhood music venue The Promontory makes the trip even more appealing."

"57th Street Beach is one of Chicago's most popular swimming beaches, located within Jackson Park at 57th Street's terminus at the Lake Michigan shoreline. Though developed beachfront has existed at the site since the park's original landscaping by famed park designers Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux in 1871, it was not renovated into a swimming beach until 1899, following the completion of Chicago's Drainage Canal. Today, it offers unprecedented views of the Chicago skyline for swimmers, along with a long-distance swimming area spanning between 55th Street and the beach's ADA-accessible pier."

"Oakwood Beach, also known as 41st Street Beach, is Chicago's newest public beach, developed in the late 1990s by the Chicago Park District and officially opened to the public in 2010. The beach, which is located at the terminus of 41st Street at the Lake Michigan shoreline within Chicago's Oakland neighborhood, spans 1,300 acres and is open to the public for swimming between Memorial Day and Labor Day, with lifeguards staffed on duty between 11:00am and 7:00pm. Environmentally-sustainable beach features include a bio-retention area intended to treat storm sewer runoff and a LEED-certified beach house with rainwater-harvested toilets, which received the Chicago Greenworks Award in 2010."

"OaklandOpened to the public in 2010, Oakwood—also known as 41st Street Beach—is both relatively new and still somewhat of a hidden treasure. Although it’s small in size, it manages to pack in a great beach house, a nearby picnic area, and volleyball courts. And, of course, you can’t beat the view!"

"Huck Finn Restaurant serves up hearty American meals all day, but regulars swear by their donuts.|© Salim Virji / Flickr. Huck Finn Restaurant serves up hearty home cooking all day long in three Chicagoland locations. While best known—or perhaps most appreciated—for its donuts, the diner has excellent breakfast, lunch, and dinner options, too."

"This diner mini-chain has three locations on the South Side that provide patrons with a satisfyingly sweet finish to every meal. Chow on golden brown pancakes, club sandwiches, and burgers but make sure to save some room for a donut delight. The signature treat features one of Huck’s donuts topped with choice of ice cream and whipped cream."