At Qulinarnia in northwest suburban Mount Prospect, chef Agnieszka Janowska uses modern cooking techniques to update Polish classics. And so there are traditional cheese and potato pierogi here, but also lobster and spinach, served with a side of cherry tomatoes. Keep an eye on the menu for seasonal and holiday specials, like sauerkraut and porcini for Christmas and sweet blueberry in the summer. Frozen pierogi are also available for takeout.

Hidden inside a strip mall — where the former Oven Fresh Bakery stood for decades — the ownership of Old Warsaw (a venerable Polish buffet restaurant) have downsized. This quaint cafe makes its own pierogi filled with sauerkraut, potato/cheese, meat, and mushroom.

Red Apple was known for its buffet, which is still open on weekends, but, like everyone else, it has made adjustments for the pandemic era, specifically takeout. (There’s also a prix-fixe family-style meal for those who want to eat in the restaurant.) But the pierogis are still the same, and there are eight varieties to choose from, both sweet and savory, plus two vegan options.

Found at several local stores, Alexandra’s pierogi are the preferred freezer-section pierogi of Polish grandmas. But there’s no need to go on an epic quest throughout the city: the factory store in Irving Park sells all 16 varieties, all packaged and ready to go.

The hearty portions and hunting-lodge décor at Staropolska can make visitors feel as if they’re dining on the set of Game of Thrones. The tasty pierogi here are available by the platter with a choice of seven different fillings.

Many Chicagoans probably got their first taste of Kasia’s pierogi at the Taste of Chicago, but they’re now available year-round at local grocery stores and the Chicago Avenue deli, both carryout and frozen. Try the potato, cheddar, and jalapeno for bit of a kick.

For many Polish Chicagoans, there isn’t a more comforting Polish restaurant to dine at than Podhalanka. Everything here is so retro, it feels as though it’s still 1952, when Nelson Algren still roamed Division Street and, who knows, maybe stopped here for a platter of pierogi at the bar.

An arcade bar might not be the most logical place to find a great pierogi, but when did the search for good food ever follow logic? Mission Control happens to be the home of the Bare Naked Pole, which pops up four nights a week, Wednesday through Sunday. Pierogis come in traditional flavors like potato, but also experimental ones like lemon berry and reuben. Keep an eye on the Bare Naked Pole’s Instagram for other pop-up locations.

Polombia is a Polish-Colombian fusion restaurant from a couple at Time Out Chicago Market. Their take on the item, called an “emaparogi” is stuffed with potatoes and caramelized onions, sofrito, and chives. The non-vegetarian version comes with short rib, and both get served with an aji crema.

Strip pierogi of its more sentimental associations (babcia! the old neighborhood!) and what you get is a classic bar snack, designed to absorb alcohol. At Flo & Santos in South Loop, pierogi takes its rightful place beside wings, rings, fries, and pizza — but its also transformed, via tomato bacon vodka sauce, into ravirogi. Oh, America!