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—Another acclaimed restaurant has switched to ticketing and partly eliminated tipping. Ryan McCaskey's two-Michelin-starred Acadia has switched to Nick Kokonas' Tock for the tasting menu in the dining room and instituted a 23 percent service charge there, although walk-ins will still be available at the bar.
—You may have read that a new Mexican street food bar and eatery, Broken English Taco Pub, opened in the Loop yesterday. But you may not have known that the new spot from Adolfo Garcia is giving away free tacos—no strings attached—today and tomorrow. It will be closed on Sunday for Mother's Day. Update: Some customers are saying the free stuff is only taco samples.
—The Matchbox, the popular old-school cocktail bar known as perhaps Chicago's smallest, is temporarily closed to deal with a licensing issue. There's no word yet when it will reopen. The Silver Palm, the adjoined restaurant in a classic railcar, remains open.
—Arbella, the new Peruvian cocktail bar and eatery from the folks behind Tanta Chicago, set its opening date—May 16. More to come before the public unveiling.
—The Cubs applied for an outdoor patio liquor license yesterday while the team hopes the city approves its plan for a new plaza with outdoor drinking, according to multiple reports.
—La Storia, the new-ish Italian restaurant in the classic Gold Coast Biggs Mansion, is launching brunch service on Mother's Day (this Sunday). It will be available every Saturdayand Sunday thereafter, with dishes including Nostro Benedetto (poached eggs, prosciutto, heirloom tomato, fava bean salad, pea Shoots, roasted garlic hash) and house-made Bloody Marys.