Openings

Open now: Lao Sze Chuan Evanston (1633 Orington, 847-868-8989), the latest in the Tony Hu empire, is up and serving hot pots and other regional specialties.

Thursday, March 6: The fried chicken takeover of Chicago continues with the opening of Leghorn (959 N. Western Ave., Ukrainian Village, 773-394-4444), a “socially conscious BYOB chicken shack” from the folks behind Kinmont and Nellcôte. Order your breast or thigh-meat sandwiches pickle-brined or Nashville hot (a style of poultry breading with a massive amount of cayenne pepper paste for extra heat), with a lemon shake-up on the side to wash everything down.

Monday, March 10: The newest addition to the Rosebud family is Joe Fish (445 N. Dearborn St., River North, 312-832-7700), a “coastal Italian” joint with an oyster bar, Bang Bang Pie Shop biscuits, and lobster tails that’s taking over the spot vacated by Rosebud Trattoria.

Tuesday, March 11: The cakes are coming, Avondale. The third location of Sugar Hills Bakery (3235 W. Addison St., 773-961-7077) will frost all manner of baked goods in their first location inside city limits.

Morsels

We now have so much fried chicken in Chicago that we’re starting to get niche offerings. Leghorn isn’t the only spot with poultry in the Nashville hot style, as on Tuesdays, Parson’s Chicken & Fish (2952 W. Armitage Ave., Logan Square, 773-384-3333) has started serving it up as an off-menu special with white bread and pickles.

To coincide with the launch of iNG’s (951 W. Fulton Market, West Town, 855-834-6464) new “Craft Beer Experience” menu, the restaurant now has an a la carte companion Sunday brunch —think roasted chicken with a beer sourdough waffle, orange and Bell’s Oberon French toast, and biscuits with chorizo and braised pig face, plus takes on classic lazy Sunday cocktails. The menu is available from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. starting March 9.

A new River North weekday lunch option: SideDoor (100 E. Ontario St., 312-787-6768), the more casual sibling of Lawry’s, starts serving mid-day meals today—swing by for a smoked pastrami sandwich with cheddar rarebit on a pretzel roll, and pray you’ll stay awake through your 2 p.m. meeting.

Share







