New American restaurants in Chicago
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Lula Café
Funky, arty Lula led the way for Logan Square’s dining scene, and appreciative neighborhoodies still crowd in for the seasonal, locally sourced menu. Even the muffins here are something to drool over, and that goes double for lunch items like pasta yiayia (bucatini pasta with Moroccan cinnamon, feta and garlic) and dinners such as striped bass with pine-nut-peppered orzo. Mondays offer a prix fixe three-course Farm Dinner.
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Schwa
Exceedingly popular – reservations for chef Michael Carlson’s masterful restaurant should be booked around the same time as your airline ticket. The fact that Carlson worked at Alinea is apparent in an avant-garde, three- or nine-course menu (go for the nine) that redefines American comfort food via such dishes as apple-pie soup. The setup is progressive, too, with chefs also acting as servers. The intimate room is bookended by black wood floors and has a mirrored ceiling.
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Avec
Feeling social? This casual cousin to neighboring Publican gives diners a chance to rub elbows at eight-person communal tables. Dishes are meant for sharing (though you only have to share with people you know), and the food from Chef Koren Grieveson is exceptional. Sweet and savory, the bacon-wrapped dates are the must on the menu.
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Charlie Trotter’s
It’s no overstatement: Charlie Trotter is king of Chicago cooking and rightful father of the nouvelle standards. A notorious perfectionist, Trotter has never served the same menu twice. He plates two set multicourse versions nightly – one vegetarian, one meaty. Reservations and jackets for men are required.
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MK
Chef Michael Kornick (who was nominated for a James Beard award in 2005) wows the mostly business crowds with artfully presented dishes like ahi tuna, roast rack of lamb and sautéed veal sweetbreads. The desserts are equally scrumptious.
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Alinea
Helmed by superstar chef and James Beard Award–winner Grant Achatz, the small room at Alinea is widely regarded as Chicago’s most exciting dinner spot, where giddy, awestruck culinary cognoscenti document each course with a digital photo before eating it. The options are limited to a 12-course ‘tasting’ and a 20-plus-course ‘tour’, bringing an artistic carnival of strange pairings served in steel and glass contraptions. Expect otherworldly single-bite dishes and futuristic delights like the duck served with a ‘pillow of lavender air.’ The once-in-a-lifetime meal can take upwards of four hours, and you can add a note-perfect wine pairing for an additional fee. …
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Publican
Set up like a swanky beer hall with urbanites young and old sitting across from each other at long communal tables, Publican specializes in oysters, hams and fine suds – all from small family farms and microbrewers. So you’ll know your pork shoulder is from Dyersville, Iowa; your orange-honey turnips from Congerville, Illinois; and your oysters from Bagaduce River, Maine. There’s a four-course special ($45) Sunday nights, often hosted by a local brewer who provides beer pairings ($15 to $20 extra). Many locals think the Sunday brunch is the best around – Publican does indeed know its bacon.
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Bonsoiree
It started as an underground supper club for foodies, and Saturdays are still an invitation-only event (go to the website to get on the mailing list). Otherwise, dinner at Bonsoiree is a leisurely multicourse affair where the chefs whip up a set of inspired comfort foods (often with a Japanese bent) using seasonal ingredients. It’s unusually casual for such fine dining, right up to being BYOB (though if you ask in advance they’ll pair wine for you from a nearby shop). No Menu Sundays cost less, and are made from whatever the chefs pick up at the Logan Square farmers’ market that day.
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Nightwood
Staff members handwrite the menu each day based on what local farmers have provided to the chefs: maybe chicken with grits and red kale, or thick-cut hand-made pasta with Hungarian wax peppers. It has the same owners as Lula Cafe in Logan Square – so there’s a hint of a hipper-than-thou vibe – but they’ve intensified their commitment to sustainably produced foods here at Nightwood. The warm, wood-toned room sports an open kitchen, and there’s a big patio for al fresco dining.
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Kendall College Dining Room
The School of Culinary Arts at Kendall College has turned out a host of local cooking luminaries, and this classy space with river and skyline views is where they honed their chops. Students prepare and serve inventive contemporary American dishes, with forays into French and international fusion styles, all of which come with white-glove service at fantastic value. Call ahead for reservations (and note the hours can vary depending on the school term schedule).
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Elate
Located in the LEED-certified Hotel Felix, Elate sticks to the ecofriendly premise by using mostly local and organic ingredients for its fish and oyster dishes, flatbread pizzas and artisan cured meats. The decor incorporates reclaimed wood and concrete for a mod, rustic look, and natural light pours in the floor-to-ceiling windows. Add the crème brûlée pancakes to the mix, and the significance of the restaurant’s name becomes apparent.
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Graham Elliot
Each meal starts with insanely addictive truffle-oil-and-Parmesan popcorn. Chef Graham Elliot, one of Chicago’s young-buck gastro luminaries, then takes whimsy to new levels in such dishes as his foie gras lollypop coated in Pop Rocks and sweetbread hush puppies with anise slaw. Adventurous eaters who appreciate trendy food in an industrial, rock-and-roll atmosphere will like it most. Keep an eye out for his forthcoming sandwich shop.
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Spring
The seafood mains at this award-winning place come to your plate by way of Asia, with Chef Shawn McClain lovingly dressing up dishes of lobster, grouper, halibut and scallops in mouthwatering soy glazes, hot and sour broth, and fresh wasabi. The restaurant – which was a bathhouse in a former life – looks a little like an Ikea showroom: simple, modern lines and muted greens set the tone.
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Blackbird
One of the most talked-about restaurants in Chicago, this chic dining destination for Chicago’s young and wealthy perches atop best-of lists for its exciting, notably seasonal menu. The warm-ups – like the confit of suckling pig with concord grape, roasted chioggia beets, and house-made prosciutto – are a perfect introduction to the visionary mains, which pair well with the short, careful wine list.
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West Town Tavern
The owners hoped to create a neighborhood restaurant that evoked Chicago of the ’40s, and the exposed brick walls and tin ceiling in the handsome dining area do just that. The atmosphere – casual, ebullient and unpretentious – mirrors the contemporary comfort foods, and forking into the pot roast, pasta with turkey meatballs and slabs of lemon chess pie makes for a happy day.
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Hopleaf
A cozy, European-style tavern, Hopleaf draws crowds for its Montreal-style smoked brisket, cashew-butter-and-fig-jam sandwiches, organic sausages and the house specialty of frites and ale-soaked mussels. It also pours 200 types of brew (30 are on tap), emphasizing craft and Belgian suds. You’ll need patience for the queue, but it’ll be worth it.
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Boka
A hip restaurant-lounge hybrid with a seafood-leaning menu, Boka has become the pre- and post-theater stomping ground du jour for younger Steppenwolf patrons. Order a cocktail at the bar or slip into one of the booths for small-plate dishes like mango-laced tabbouleh salad or veal sweetbreads with Moroccan barbecue sauce.
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HB
The monogram stands for ‘Home Bistro,’ where chef-owner Joncarl Lachman serves careful comfort food in a warm wood-and-tile-lined space. Shout-outs go to the exquisite pork chops and the pan-roasted trout. Try to snag a seat by the front window, which entertains with Boystown people-watching. HB is BYOB.
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Jack’s on Halsted
The menu hops around the world, juxtaposing American steak and Cajun fare with capable Italian, French and Asian dishes. You can wash down every course with the many fine American wines. Be sure to save room for dessert. Sunday brunch is worthy of special occasions.
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