A story in the Chicago Reader Monday by writer Mike Sula takes harsh aim at the Andersonville neighborhood. In an attempt to woo people to the culinary cuisine of Diana Dávila at Cantina 1910, he instead resorted to cheap shots at online Yelpers and at the entire Andersonville community.

In the article, Sula feels “ignorant yelpers” are improperly reviewing Cantina 1910, located at 5025 N. Clark St. But he also feels Andersonville is “a neighborhood that doesn’t always embrace culinary talent” and that if Andersonville can’t accept Cantina 1910’s menu, “there is no hope for you.” His Twitter account gets even more personal by posting “Trick or trolling in Andersonville” before leading into the story link.

Unfortunately, Sula makes inaccurate claims to Andersonville’s refusal to accept culinary cuisine by mentioning two area eateries that have closed: Pasticceria Natalina and Great Lake. Pasticceria Natalina offered amazing desserts which the community enjoyed but also did so accompanied by erratic behavior and rude insults to the customers by the owners, which helped lead to their demise. Great Lake, which the neighborhood adored, closed due to a dispute with the landlord.

The fact of the matter is that Andersonville loves great cuisine. You see it in our patronage of successful local eateries like m. henry, pizzeria antica, antiprima, Big Jones, Hopleaf and many others, all of which have garnered much success and praise for their unique culinary creations. What Sula doesn’t understand is that with all the success of the Andersonville strip through the past decade, the community remains loyal to all things unpretentious. It is the area’s appeal and charm. Knowing the neighborhood in which you open your business is crucial to its success.

All this being said, I want to see Cantina 1910 succeed because they do have a unique approach to their culinary offerings. Though I support Mr. Sula’s right to have an opinion, he may have done more harm to Cantina 1910 then good by insulting the community in which it is located.