United Center
Arena · Near West Side ·
Home to Bulls & Blackhawks, hosts concerts, offers diverse food options
Home to Bulls & Blackhawks, hosts concerts, offers diverse food options
"As part of the city’s major loosening of COVID-19 restrictions, events at venues including the United Center — home of the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks — were allowed to resume at 25 percent capacity, reflecting the phased return of large venues and performances." - Eater Staff
"The arena outside which groups rallied to protest the exclusion of a Palestinian American speaker at a major political convention, serving as a visible site of political demonstration and mobilization." - Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
"A large event arena where convention attendees often rely on concession-stand food between events; vegetarian visitors report turning to options like a veggie burger rather than traditional stadium hot dogs." - Leigh Giangreco
"This major arena and its surrounding district are the subject of a recently unveiled $7 billion private redevelopment proposal that would add a 6,000-seat music hall, parks, a hotel and expanded retail programming over a 10-year buildout; proponents pitch jobs, housing, commerce and community resources, while critics question who the project is ultimately intended to serve. The venue district regularly hosts hockey, basketball, concerts and large outdoor festivals (including a high-profile country music and barbecue event), and has long incorporated well-known local restaurateurs into its vendor stalls. Despite that, many visiting fans and eventgoers report a lack of convenient, walkable restaurant options nearby and often leave the area rather than spend at local businesses—an ongoing tension the redevelopment seeks to address but which also echoes prior arena-driven development debates in other cities." - Ashok Selvam
"The arena serving as the DNC venue and a major sports-and-entertainment home (notably for the Bulls and Blackhawks) did not stock the local bitter spirit during the convention, even as convention-adjacent hospitality operations and pop-ups brought other regional favorites to attendees; the venue’s large-scale, institutional role contrasted with the grassroots, dive-bar culture that traditionally embraced the drink." - Ashok Selvam
