Ampersand Wine Bar, Trotter & Cantu Vets' Long-Gestating Project, Unveiling Soon

Ampersand Wine Bar, the ten-years-in-the-making neighborhood spot from Charlie Trotter's vet Darren McGraw, is getting ready to make its debut tomorrow at 4845 N. Damen. Featuring approachable wines at a reasonable cost to go with chef Tim Havidic's (iNG) menu of refined rustic dishes ("and damn good desserts"), McGraw's intention is to know the restaurants' customers by name and to be a part of the community.

Havidic's menu, which can be viewed below, is chock full of big flavors artfully designed. A few of the dishes (lamb belly with heirloom carrot and spiced hummus, sweet corn with blue crab and tomatillo) were revealed at an intimate dinner at McGraw's home a few weeks ago. Havidic's opening menu is deep into summer ingredients, so expect seasonality to play a big part at Ampersand Wine Bar.

In addition to the dinner menu, McGraw is offering afternoon tea service every day from 3:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m., featuring pastries, salads, sandwiches, coffee, tea, wine and spirits. Circling back to wine, McGraw has even established a wine club at three different price levels (Magnum, Methuselah and Nebuchadnezzar).

Take a trip over to Ampersand Wine Bar, open Tuesday through Thursday from 3:00 p.m. until 10:30 p.m., Friday from 3:00 p.m until 11:00 p.m., Saturday noon until 11:00 p.m., and Sunday noon until 10:00 p.m.

UPDATE: Ampersand will still be hosting their Amperbash on Saturday, June 27, but their official opening date, though it is expected to be in the very near future, is still undetermined.