If you're a Chicago resident, you might just be living in one of the coolest places in the world.
As part of their fifth annual index survey, Time Out Magazine canvassed 20,000 "city-dwellers" around the globe to find out what they each love (or hate) about their chosen city. And while the word "cool" is of course subjective, the list says, rankings were based on accessibility, culture and nightlife, and wide variety of affordable food and drink along with "lively street life and big community vibes."
The top scoring neighborhoods also earned points for walkability, with offerings for both tourist and locals.
According to the global list, neighborhoods in only 6 U.S. cities made the cut.
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Coming in at No. 1 is Colonia Americana in Guadalajara, Mexico, which Time Out says is known to many locals as the "country’s cultural capital," and the "epicenter of its underground scene."
The first U.S. neighborhood to grace the list of cool is Ridgewood in New York City at No. 4, which sits on the Brooklyn-Queens border, Time Out says.
Coming in at No. 16 is Chicago's Avondale neighborhood, which the list says won for its ties to the Polish community, top-rated Mexican food and array of eccentric small businesses -- which includes a bug museum and a horror-themed coffee shop -- in addition to opportunities for both growing families and solo residents.
"Avondale is a rare place that feels equally welcoming to families, arty twenty-somethings and working-class Chicagoans," Time Out says. "And as the neighborhood deals with rising rents and other symptoms of gentrification, community organizations are hard at work to make sure it stays that way."
If you're itching to spend a day filled with Avondale-style cool, Time Out suggests starting it with pastries at the Loaf Lounge -- whose chocolate cake was made famous by the FX show The Bear -- enjoying the Polish cathedral-style architecture at the Basilica of St. Hyacinth, eating tacos at Taqueria Mazamitla and then knocking down a few vintage pins at Avondale Bowl.
Rounding out the list's top 10 coolest neighborhoods are Cais do Sodré in Lisbon, Portugal at No. 2; Wat Bo Village in Siem Reap, Cambodia at No. 3; Mile End in Montreal, Canada at No. 5; Barrio Logan in San Diego, California at No. 6; Shimokitazawa in Tokyo, Japan at No. 7; Clifton, in Margate, UK at No. 8; Barrio Yungay in Santiago, Chile at No. 9; and Cours Julien in Marseille, France at No. 10.
In 2021, Andersonville, on Chicago's north side, snagged the No. 2 spot on the same list.
The full list of 51 neighborhoods can be found here.
