The idea is to tour the country by plate: Gulf Coast spice, Pacific Northwest freshness, Maine classics and California flavors, with rotating daily and weekly specials that spotlight a region or a state. Regulars order the pine-nut trout, cedar-planked salmon, brick chicken, shrimp and crawfish étouffée, a lineup of po'boys, the Martha's Vineyard salad and a burger the restaurant calls the best in Evanston, and weekends often bring a prix-fixe dinner for two. The room has a story too: a 28-seat bar built from a reclaimed Michigan bowling-alley lane, a vintage back bar from a South Chicago tavern and walls full of local art. It also holds one of the first liquor licenses in a town that was completely dry until 1972, and it was Evanston's first craft beer bar.
The calendar is where Prairie Moon earns its regulars. Happy hour runs every day from 4 to 6 with $1 shrimp, $2 oysters, $6 drafts and $8 cocktails; Mondays bring $5 martinis and Manhattans all night; Tuesday is trivia; and Wednesday night is live jazz from Chicago-area players, with a $7 cover that goes entirely to the musicians. Open daily from 3pm.
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