The most anticipated restaurant openings in Chicago in the fall of 2021

Chicago asks like the rest of the world … now what? Spring and summer gave hope with the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions and the promise of vaccinations. The town’s restaurants and bars were full.

Then the other shoe fell – not enough people were protecting themselves and the vulnerable. The unvaccinated helped spread the disease with the help of the more contagious Delta variant.

The city withdrew and reintroduced its mandate for interior masks in August. This affects restaurants with more people staying at home. The labor shortage adds further complications. The workforce wants better salaries. Some restaurant owners listen and increase their benefits. In private, others are hoping to return to the pre-pandemic world – they are betting that workers will return to their jobs in the fall and winter.

Aside from slower service, restaurants don’t have enough staff to open new projects. The opening dates, which can always change, have been pushed back more and more frequently. The picture is much sunnier than in January, but the positive momentum from the beginning of the year has slowed down to some extent.

Still, Chicago’s dining scene has several reasons for optimism this season. Restaurant owners want to showcase their late projects before the holidays, so there is a new sense of urgency to avoid a winter opening. So ditch the pumpkin and spice lattes and read Eater Chicago’s most anticipated restaurant openings for the fall.

Listed in alphabetical order.

Address: 1934 W. Chicago Avenue, Ukrainian Village

Main actor: Zubair Mohajir

Aman is a South Asian restaurant with fast-casual and fine-dining components by Zubair Mohajir, the chef behind the Wazwan food stand and virtual restaurant. Guests can expect American favorites with Indian twists like halal burgers and fried chicken during the day. In the evening, Mohajir would like to prepare composed dishes that are reminiscent of his fine dining pop-up series, including a delicious Lamb Nihari Momo. Construction delays have pushed the opening backwards. While Mohajir tries to get the project going again, he shows up in Wicker Park in the former Mana Food Bar on 1742 W. Division Street. There is still hope for Aman’s fall opening date. Meanwhile, the Division Street area also welcomes pop-ups from some of Chicago’s most beloved chefs. Details will be released at a later date.

Address: 1000 W. Armitage Avenue, Lincoln Park

Main actors: Brendan Sodikoff, Hogsalt Hospitality

The signage is on the northwest corner of Sheffield and Armitage. Hogsalt didn’t say much about this casual gastropub that’s located near the main DePaul University campus. Brendan Sodikoff said the staff shortage delayed the opening. Hogsalt restaurants (Au Cheval, Green Street Smoked Meats, Bavette’s, Trivoli Tavern) have a huge following, so each of their openings is sure to generate interest. Hogsalt is hoping the Armitage Ale House will open by October, but keep an eye out as the company is known for bringing new restaurants under the radar with no fanfare.

Address: 116 W. Hubbard Street, River North

Main actors: Rina and Manish Mallick

The owners and operators of Chicago’s Rooh location, a successful Indian restaurant on Randolph Street, are downsizing with the opening of their second restaurant. Bar Goa, as the name suggests, is more intimate and geared towards cocktails, with Goan street food adapted to an American bar (dishes like fish and chips with a semolina crust and green pea hummus with chorizo). The Mallicks have taken over the former Slurping Turtle Space and are planning an opening on September 29th. This is more causal than Rooh; Music will play a bigger role and there is a tropical beach vibe. Rina Mallick developed this concept with the intention of opening further locations. You and her husband may have an announcement about a second edition of Bar Goa in Chicago soon. Stay tuned.

Bar Goa

Address: 4420 S. Cottage Grove Avenue, Bronzeville

Main actors: Eric Williams, Cecilia Cuff, Anika Ellison

Bronzeville continues to generate interest among locals who think the neighborhood is a good place to build businesses that can serve South Side residents. There is a particular void for black-owned businesses and Bronzeville Winery hopes to help. This is a wine bar and upscale restaurant with a kitchen counter owned by an owner group that includes Silver Room owner Eric Williams (not to be confused with virtue chef Erick Williams). You are about to appoint a new chef for the project and hope to be able to open in mid-October.

Bronzeville Winery

Address: 1002 N. California Avenue, 1001 N. California Avenue, Humboldt Park

Main actors: The Orbit Group, Matt Troost, Kristina Magro, Ben Fasman

Chef Matt Troost opened Good Measure in River North and the venerable (and now closed) Three Aces near Taylor Street in Little Italy. He has now considered two restaurants opposite in Humboldt Park in order to found a new restaurant group. The Clipper is a historic dive bar with live music that has undergone several changes of ownership (most recently Hogsalt). The new owner wants to keep it simple with classic cocktails and a Suntory Toki highball machine. Troost says food is served at the bar but has been reluctant to share details.

Troost transforms the second room, the former Cafe Marie-Jeanne, into an Italian restaurant “where you can bring your mom” or a date. Eventually, they’ll add weekend brunch service. It replaces CMJ and has huge shoes to fill. Time will tell whether Troost and Co. can keep up the good mood of the former tenant, one of the most popular neighborhood restaurants in Chicago. Both concepts hire.

Address: 444 N. Wabash Avenue, River North

Main Actors: Kevin Kelley

Kevin Kelley is a businessman and lawyer who runs a popular restaurant in Dallas. Its second location will open in River North in early October. The restaurant promises a hip design in which guests want to be seen and photographed. The menu focuses on home-style cooking with fun twists like Hennessy icings, a wide variety of chicken and waffles, and over-the-top cocktails. Downtown Chicago has not welcomed black-owned businesses, so Kelley’s investment is a big deal. The restaurant could break through a glass ceiling by persuading landlords and city officials to remove barriers that block opportunities for black entrepreneurs. This is the former seat of Benny’s Chop House and reservations are available open to debut in October.

Kitchen + cocktails

Address: Unknown, Logan Square

Main actors: Jonathan Zaragoza

Jonathan Zaragoza, the chef whose family has run one of the city’s most notable restaurants – Birrieria Zaragoza in Archer Heights – has a new project that features tacos and classic dishes from Mexico City. This is a solo assignment for the chef who had a pop up in Hyde Park (El Oso). Zaragoza hasn’t said much about its plans for Logan Square, but now says it will have a “great neighborhood vibe with a focus on everything CDMX related,” including agave spirits and cocktails. This is one of the most fascinating openings of the season.

Address: 15 W. Washington

Key figures:

• Bhoomi (Indian, had surgery at the Hatchery, an incubator in Garfield Park)
• Bianca’s BBQ (Chicago-Style Barbecue, a spin-off of Bianca’s Burgers from the Revival Food Hall)

• The Budlong (hot chicken chain in Nashville)

• Edzo’s Burger Shop (Evanston’s Bratburger Specialists)
• Happy Lobster (spin-off of the food truck)

• Isla Pilipina (New location for popular Filipino restaurant that closed in Lincoln Square in 2020)

• Pita Yeero (Greek and Mediterranean wraps and bowls; a frequent Urbanspace partner)
• Vegetable junkie (salads)
• Roberta’s Pizza (popular Neapolitan pizza place in New York)
• Spanglish (burritos, tacos)
• Stan’s Donuts (Famous Chain)

• Sushi Dokku (spinoff of the Japanese restaurant West Loop)

Urbanspace is a New York food hall operator with plans for two locations in Chicago. They’ll be importing a few food stalls from their east coast locations (the most famous being Roberta’s Pizza, a hip pizza place surrounded by shipping containers in Brooklyn with artisanal thin crusts). The Chicago location will offer two revivals: Isla Pilipina and Edzo’s, two restaurants that have been without city locations for years. The general manager for both locations is Gabriella Lenzi Littleton (her family owns the Gene & Georgetti steakhouse). This is the city’s first new food hall to open since the pandemic. The stalls will offer downtown workers a whole new lunch option when they return to the office towers. There is also a bar for happy hour, a ritual many observed after work in the period leading up to March 2021. A second Urbanspace location in the Willis Tower is to be opened in winter 2022.

Address: 2622 N. Clark Street

Main actors: Ari Levy, Matthew Brewer, Timothy Won and Evelyn Morris.

Chicago’s most notorious hot dog stand has been dark since December. Then it was announced that the hot dog stand was going to be given a facelift. For passers-by on Clark Street, with the familiar facade and signage at the front, it’s still business. The same atmosphere in which customers and employees enchantingly exchange insults late into the night will be preserved. However, there is a party in the back of the venue that is being converted into an 800-square-foot terrace that serves alcoholic beverages in a space that was once reserved for cars. The opening was postponed due to delta and supply chain issues. Ownership is hoping for a major update soon. Look for boozy milkshakes and other new products alongside the classic Chicago char dogs and fries. The latest ETA is at the beginning of October.

Address: Roosevelt Collection, 150 W. Roosevelt Road, South Loop

Main actors: David Zhao, robot server

The windows are plastered, but this restaurant, a spin-off of a Las Vegas restaurant, is finally coming to Chicago, representatives say. This is a mostly Chinese restaurant that promises an immersive experience with art projections, music and robotic servers bringing food. The X Pot is slated to open in late September. You will serve a $ 155 tasting menu for dinner with hot pot selection and A5 Wagyu. The lunch option is $ 68. There’s also an a la carte bar menu that skips Japanese, Korean, and Sichuan selections. Look out for an opening date on September 22nd on the lakefront of the Roosevelt Collection.

1001 N California Ave, Chicago, IL 60622

1008 W Armitage Ave, Chicago, IL 60614
(773) 270-9005