This laid-back counter-serve spot dishes out standout seafood and meat tacos, po' boys, and creative burgers with a twist, all made-to-order.
"Casual Chicago mini-chain Big & Little’s has permanently closed its last standalone location at 1034 W. Belmont Avenue after a decade and removed the address from its website. The brand’s sole remaining outpost is at Midway Airport." - Ashok Selvam
"At BIG & little’s three fast-casual locations in River North, Lakeview, and Lincoln Park, diners can order a sizable piece of beer-battered cod. The batter-to-fish ratio is perfect and the simple seasoning is not too zesty. Carryout and delivery ordering is available here." - Ashok Selvam, Eater Staff
"BIG & littles is funky as hell, a great place, and one of our favorite restaurants in River North. Great does not mean fancy, because this place is a fast-food joint. The menu offers all kinds of items you might not expect from a typical fast-food restaurant. Like tacos stuffed to the brim with sushi-grade ahi tuna and blue crab, to giant soft shell crab, to foie gras grilled and plated over fries before getting topped with the duck fat drippings. Restaurants who specialize in only one of these types of foods have a hard enough time making it this good, and BIG & little’s does most of it top-notch. We encourage you to order anything and everything on the menu, but check the Food Rundown below for our favorites. Remember to bring cash because it’s all they accept, but on the flip side, it’s also BYOB. Food Rundown Beer Battered Cheeseburger Any of the burgers are good, so take your pick of whatever you want on it. Egg, bacon, pineapple, it’s up to you. Mango Chutney Taco Seared and shredded pork with pickled red onion, cilantro, and a mango chutney. Great contrast of flavors with the pork and mango. Raw Ahi Tuna Taco A huge portion of sashimi-grade ahi tuna packed into a hard shell tortilla, with ginger, chili paste, sesame seed oil, chili aioli, and a soy-based sweet sauce. The raw salmon taco is equally as good. Steamed Blue Crab Taco Fresh and delicious blue crab in a hard shell tortilla, also as fully packed as the ahi tuna. Softshell Crab Po’Boy A big ss piece of soft shell crab on a french roll with chili aioli and lime juice. Opt for the Lil version if you want one that’s a little smaller so you can try other things. Foie Gras Fries If you like foie gras, this is a must-try. Two perfectly seasoned and grilled strips of foie gras carefully plated over a bed of twice-fried potatoes. Kimchi Fries A whole lot of kimchi with a sweet sauce over a whole lot of fries. Delicious." - Sam Faye
"Big and Little’s has a long menu full of upscale fast food - from soft-shelled crab sandwiches to foie gras-topped fries to ahi tuna tacos. They also have a list of very good burgers (like a Hawaiian burger or a gyro burger). Available for pickup and delivery." - adrian kane
"Big & Little’s is available for delivery and takeout." - adrian kane