Sitting just north of Wicker Park, Bucktown is a patchwork of recently built condos, modest old brick cottages, and glass-and-steel modernist masterpieces. What the homes share is a small lot size that often lends itself to cozy, creative garden spaces tucked just out of view—except on the Bucktown Garden Walk, when the public gets a chance to hop through the backyards of friendly strangers. Below, a few photos of the neighborhood’s surprising living designs, and some of the stories behind them.
Serenity, Below Sidewalk Level | 1623 N. Honore
Behind an ivy-covered fence and down a few stairs lies a sunken garden with the feel of a terraced hillside. The previous owners used the long front yard as a dog run, but 20 years later, it’s a shady summer haven. Like many of the gardens in the area, there are a few Asian-inspired touches, but this one’s unique for its nod to Japanese zen gardens. On one of the raised rectangular garden beds—built up so high partly because the soil on the lot was unusable—the owners have created a collage of beach and field stones. At first glance, the stones appear to be set in cement, but actually, it’s sand, making a mosaic that can be rearranged whenever inspiration strikes.
In a corner stands a cultivar of the hazel tree known by the common name Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick. The tree’s branches corkscrew wildly, like the gnarled staff the Scottish vaudevillian Harry Lauder sometimes used as a prop when he performed his hits “Roamin’ in the Gloamin’” and “Stop Yer Tickling, Jock!”
Secret Japanese Garden | 1802 W. Cortland
At first it looks like a mirror propped against the wall of the dark garage, a rectangle reflecting the greenery and searing daylight outside. In fact, it’s a door, a luminous portal into another Asian-inspired oasis. Much of the foliage is authentically Eastern, including a weeping katsura tree and a Chinese maple, whose striped bark and skinny trunk set it apart from its stout Western cousins. At 20 years old, the koi in the fern-lined pond are the biggest I’ve seen on the tour—as their owner mentions, their average lifespan is 40 years or so, and reports put the oldest known koi at 226 years.
Avian Luxury Condos | 1834 N. Honore
The double-wide, lushly forested front lawn would be impressive enough. But step through a screened-in porch, and there’s a brighter space with a fish pond and a striking storage solution: two high-rise birdhouses. They were picked up in rough shape while passing through Galena, an antiques mecca in northwest Illinois. After a couple of coats of white paint and elbow grease, the avian skyscrapers now hold pond supplies and other patio necessities. The openings have been screened in since the time a mother bird moved in her brood and started screeching each time the door opened.
No Lawnmower Necessary | 1846 N. Hoyne
A crumbling porch and parking pad were all Sam Marts and Nicholas Sistler had to work with when they moved into the Dot House (named for its domino-patterned fence) in 1986. Fortunately, Marts is an architect and Sistler is an artist. They harvested bricks from the porch and picked up a load of old street pavers from Clark Street, and created a lawn-free landscape that still brims with life. Rain has melted the edges of the old bricks, making for a gentle, cobblestone-like surface, and vines of all kinds snake up everywhere, including easy-to-grow trumpet vine and New Dawn roses. “Did you see the Great Lakes yet?” Marts asks his guests. It takes a second, but looking down, we notice: around the brick form of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, vines and flower beds create the shapes of the Great Lakes. Lake Ontario is a small pool, with a horseshoe around the spout symbolizing Niagara’s Horseshoe Falls.
Garden Meets Putt Putt | 1934 N. Wood
It seems impossible that this double-lot garden could have been assembled in just three years. Every inch of the enormous space has been meticulously designed, from the cobblestone planters to the pièce de résistance: a triple-decker, boulder-lined waterfall spilling into a pond where koi have already spawned a second generation. Despite the hard work in evidence, the garden doesn’t take itself too seriously. The freewheeling spirit of an old-fashioned mini-golf course pervades the place—one reason it’s a huge hit with the kids who pass through. Angel statues stand guard atop the waterfall, a scrap-metal dinosaur crouches by the gate, and in the front yard, an unnervingly realistic gorilla eyes St. Francis with suspicion while a plaster schoolchild obliviously reads a book just beyond.
Vertical Garden | 2028 N. Churchill
One of the swankiest spots on the walk arose from one of the smallest spaces. The owners of this house had only about 20’x20‘ to work with—including room for parking. So they built up. From the front door, they now have a clear view of an elevated oasis outfitted with a fountain, loungers, and patio furniture whose design echoes the lattices that shield the deck from the alley. The planters holding rare evergreens are massive, but the load on the structure is reduced by the choice of materials: made of lightweight resin, the planters themselves weigh just a few pounds each.
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Green grass and blue skies bookend the boot-camp classes at Bulldog Bootcamp. Leading the outdoor workouts, owner Greg Major and his team of seasoned fitness instructors spur their students on by shouting words of encouragement and tearing Chicken Soup for the Soul books in half. Major—a decorated bodybuilder and inline skater—has been a certified personal trainer since 1989, and has since picked up the credentials to teach CrossFit’s Level 1, Football, and Kids programs. He and his staff stage CrossFit classes at Bulldog Bootcamp’s training facility in Forest Park.
1520 Hannah Ave
Forest Park,
IL
US
Organic and small-batch wines fill swirling glasses beneath the soaring ceilings of House Red Vinoteca. At a rustic, reclaimed-wood bar, discerning staff members subject new elixirs to tastings and credit checks, and the chef makes changes to a rotating menu of vino-enhancing fare made from scratch. Plates bearing crispy flatbreads and desserts inspired by international culinary traditions glide back and forth between duos chattering beneath exposed-brick walls. The warm sway of live jazz rolls across wine-tasting events and bottle-laden shelves, and patrons sipping through tasting flights from Croatia, Lebanon, Morocco, Serbia, and Slovenia add delicate treble notes with clinking glasses.
7403 Madison St
Forest Park,
IL
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Illuminated by a roaring fireplace or the outdoor patio's twinkling fairy lights, patrons thwart thirst and dig into a full menu crafted from scratch. Though brews flow from 15 taps and over 50 bottles, the bar and restaurant also lavishes focused attention on its cuisine. Chefs toss pizza dough by hand, and personally shake hands with every Irish and American entree they send to tables. Celebrants drawn to the spacious party rooms upstairs wet whistles with special party packages.
7652 Madison St
Forest Park,
IL
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Corner sports/pub on Madison Street in Forest Park. We serve pizza & traditional pub food, most of it homemade. We have darts (plus steel tip) & beer pong. We have karaoke and live music and will feature an outdoor patio in the spring. Watch all your favorite sports on one of our 10 50" flatscreens! Daily drink specials!
7522 Madison St
Forest Park,
IL
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Goldyburgers is a Sports Bar & Family Restaurant established in 1926. Goldyburgers is known for being a friendly, down-to-earth place where patrons can enjoy one of our famous burgers, have a beer, and catch up on the latest sports action. Named 1 of the nation’s 15 Burgers to Try Before You Die (AOL Cityguide).
7316 Circle Ave
Forest Park,
IL
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