"Baby on Board" Review: The Book Cellar

By Elizabeth Shapiro in Arts & Entertainment on Apr 3, 2007 6:00PM

Parents of Chicago, we know what you’ve been craving: a place to get a decent beer with friends and pick up a quality picture book for your child at the same time. Order your favorite Unibroue, pull up your stroller, and relax at Lincoln Square’s Book Cellar.

This independent bookstore has our favorite children’s book selection in the city; they stock everything from board books about urban babies to favorites like Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus. An eclectic selection of pregnancy, parenting and nursing books are smartly stacked at your eye level, while your kids can peruse their own books a few shelves down. The Book Cellar even has a weekly story hour with Nili Yelin, the self-professed Storybook Mom, for free on Fridays at 11 a.m.

In addition to the beer selection ($3-5), this female-helmed literary haven also serves a wide variety of wine by the glass ($6-8), rich Julius Meinl coffees and teas ($1.50 and up), and a selection of sandwiches, salads, soups and baked treats to snack on. We’re a fan of the high-quality drink selection, but we usually wander to other stellar Lincoln Square bakeries for our snacks.

Regardless, the Book Cellar is a fantastic place to meet up with other parents and spend some quality away-from-the-TV time with your kids. You can teach your child, by example, to value an independent bookstore … so they don’t become even more of a rarity when he grows up.

The Book Cellar is located at 4736 N. Lincoln Ave. and is open 10 a.m. - 10 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Noon - 6 p.m. Tuesday and Sunday.