BBQ restaurants in Chicago
64 trading today — 1% of every restaurant open in the city. 282 have held a licence here since 2002, and 11 opened in the last 24 months.
How long BBQ restaurants last
Measured only on restaurants that opened long enough ago to have reached 4 years, so recent openings cannot flatter it. A rate is published only where at least 40 have.
Where BBQ clusters
By community area, most open today first. Counts only — a four-year survival rate needs 40 matured restaurants and only ≈16% of these cells have that many, so the rate lives below, where it can be quoted honestly.
| Neighbourhood | Open now | Ever licensed |
|---|---|---|
| ChinatownTier 3 · Emerging | 6 | 12 |
| AustinTier 4 · Value | 3 | 22 |
| Avalon ParkTier 4 · Value | 3 | 9 |
| Lake ViewTier 1 · Prime | 3 | 7 |
| Morgan ParkTier 3 · Emerging | 3 | 9 |
| LoopTier 1 · Prime | 2 | 8 |
| UptownTier 2 · Strong | 2 | 5 |
| West RidgeTier 3 · Emerging | 2 | 11 |
| Logan SquareTier 1 · Prime | 2 | 5 |
| Fuller ParkTier 4 · Value | 2 | 7 |
| Humboldt ParkTier 3 · Emerging | 2 | 5 |
| Grand BoulevardTier 4 · Value | 2 | 5 |
By zip code
The same cut for anyone working from an address rather than a neighbourhood name.
| Zip | Open now | Ever licensed |
|---|---|---|
| 60616 | 7 | 17 |
| 60609 | 4 | 10 |
| 60617 | 3 | 12 |
| 60647 | 3 | 7 |
| 60643 | 3 | 10 |
| 60619 | 3 | 13 |
| 60614 | 2 | 5 |
| 60640 | 2 | 5 |
| 60659 | 2 | 8 |
| 60624 | 2 | 13 |
| 60644 | 2 | 10 |
| 60657 | 2 | 5 |
Thinking about opening one?
This page is the record: what has been tried, where, and how long it lasted. A read scores a specific concept at a specific address against it — including whether BBQ is the strongest thing you could put in that space. One full read a month is free, no card.
Read an address freeFrom the City of Chicago business-licence record · rebuilt August 4, 2026 · methodology