UIC's east campus runs along Halsted Street between the Eisenhower Expressway and Roosevelt Road, and the walkable shopping starts on its edges. Taylor Street, the old Little Italy strip, cuts right through the Near West Side between Halsted and Ashland, so it is the first place to explore.
On Taylor, Conte di Savoia (1438 W Taylor St) is an Italian import grocery and deli with hard-to-find pantry goods plus subs and panini. Scafuri Bakery (1337 W Taylor St) is the family bakery for cannoli filled to order, cookies and Sicilian pizza. First Aid Comics (1142 W Taylor St) is the comic shop a few blocks from the Halsted side of campus, and it keeps a cheap comic bin in the back.
Head east on Roosevelt Road and you reach Roosevelt Collection Shops (150 W Roosevelt Rd) in the South Loop, an open-air plaza with about 20 stores, five restaurants and a movie theater. The Maxwell Street Market sets up on Maxwell Street between Halsted and Union on select Sundays, 10am to 3pm. The 2026 season ended October 4, so watch for next spring's dates.
Official UIC gear is at the UIC Bookstore in Student Center East (750 S Halsted St), on the first floor and lower level. It carries clothing, gifts, trade books and tech accessories along with textbooks, and the course materials search on uicbookstore.org lists the books for your classes. Call (312) 413-5500, or (312) 413-5534 for textbooks.
The store's own hours were not posted on the pages we could load. Student Center East itself is open daily 6:30am to 10pm, but store hours can differ, so call ahead. If you're on the west side near the hospital, the Medical Campus Bookstore is in Student Center West (828 S Wolcott Ave), phone (312) 413-5550.
The closest big grocery is Whole Foods Market South Loop (1101 S Canal St), east on Roosevelt. It's open daily 8am to 10pm and has a hot bar, a salad bar, bulk spices, beer and wine, and an Amazon returns counter, which helps when you're returning a mattress topper that didn't fit.
For everything else on a move-in list, ride the Blue Line into the Loop. Target State Street (1 S State St) is a full Target with groceries, electronics and office supplies, open weekdays 7am to 9pm and weekends 8am to 8pm. T.J. Maxx State Street (11 N State St) is good for cheap home decor and towels. For a big Asian grocery run, Park To Shop Supermarket (2425 S Wallace St) in Chinatown is open daily 8am to 9pm.
We could not confirm a hardware store close to campus with a page we trust, so check before you go.
For vintage, books and records, walk or bus south down Halsted to 18th Street in Pilsen. Knee Deep Vintage (1219 W 18th St) sells vintage clothing from old tees to 1950s dresses, and buys older tees and denim. Pilsen Vintage & Thrift (1430 W 18th St) has clothes, jewelry, records and small furniture. 606 Records (1808 S Allport St) stocks new and used vinyl from small labels. Pilsen Community Books (1531 W 18th St) is an employee-owned new and used bookstore open daily 11am to 7pm. Open Books Pilsen (905 W 19th St) sells used books on a pay-what-you-want basis.
North of campus in the West Loop, Open Books West Loop (651 W Lake St) is another used-book stop, and Warby Parker Fulton Market (851 W Randolph St) does glasses and eye exams. On select weekends, Randolph Street Market (1341 W Randolph St) brings vintage fashion, vinyl and furniture dealers together.
For cheap clothes and sneakers, State Street has Primark (35 N State St) and Nordstrom Rack (24 N State St), and Reckless Records Loop (33 S Wabash Ave) is a block over.
- UIC Bookstore (750 S Halsted St): official UIC apparel and gifts for the grad or a proud parent.
- Mestiza (1444 W 18th St): jewelry, stationery and housewares by Latinx and local artisans.
- Tienda Tzintzuntzán (1852 W 19th St): the National Museum of Mexican Art's shop, with textiles, jewelry and folk art. Museum entry is free.
- Chocolat Uzma (917 W 18th St): boxed bonbons and truffles, open Wednesday to Saturday.
- Conte di Savoia (1438 W Taylor St): Italian pantry goods for a parent who cooks.
- Barnes & Noble State Street (150 N State St): the chain's big new Loop store for books and gifts.
On Taylor Street, grab a sub at Conte di Savoia or a cannoli and a square of Sicilian pizza at Scafuri Bakery.
The east end of Pilsen's 18th Street is close to campus. Don Pedro Carnitas (1113 W 18th St) is a carnitas counter with few seats and a regular line. Mariscos San Pedro (1227 W 18th St) does Mexican seafood. Further west, Carnitas Uruapan (1725 W 18th St) and 5 Rabanitos (1758 W 18th St) are worth the trip.
For a parents' weekend dinner, the West Loop is just north: The Publican (837 W Fulton Market) and Duck Duck Goat (857 W Fulton Market) are both on our list, and Publican Quality Meats (825 W Fulton Market) does sandwiches. In Chinatown, MingHin Cuisine (2168 S Archer Ave) serves dim sum.
The Blue Line stops at UIC-Halsted, Racine and Illinois Medical District. UIC says the UIC-Halsted stop is about a five-minute walk from Student Center East. On the west side, use Polk on the Pink Line or Illinois Medical District on the Blue Line. Ogilvie, Union Station and the Halsted Metra stop are each about a 20-minute walk from the east side.
CTA buses stop on Halsted, Harrison and Roosevelt. Free UIC shuttles run every 30 minutes on weekdays, mainly along Harrison and Roosevelt, and Night Ride covers trips after 10pm through the UIC Ride app. Divvy racks are on both sides of campus, and students get a discounted membership.
Parking: pay-per-visit parking is $15 a day, and the $9 Value Card works in designated visitor lots (buy it in person at Parking Services). For Pilsen, the Pink Line stops at 18th Street; for Chinatown, the Red and Green Lines stop at Cermak-Chinatown.