Eater Chicago: All Posts by Ari BenderskyThe Chicago Restaurant, Bar, and Nightlife Bloghttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/52682/favicon-32x32.png2021-07-08T12:49:44-05:00https://chicago.eater.com/authors/ari-bendersky/rss2021-07-08T12:49:44-05:002021-07-08T12:49:44-05:00Chicago’s First Major Food Festival Since 2020 Is a Celebration of Smoked Meat
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<img alt="Windy City Smokeout" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Fql5pQOiz7YYtiG0yxorwyK8rwQ=/0x0:4864x3648/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69557186/IMG_8752.0.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Windy City Smokeout is back in Chicago. | Jeff Marini/Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises</figcaption>
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<p>Chicago is banking on Windy City Smokeout to be both a celebration of barbecue, and a celebratory sign of the city’s progress against COVID-19</p> <p class="p--has-dropcap" id="U5Q7lF">While some festivals have taken place this spring and summer in Chicago, none have had the size and scope of the <a href="https://www.windycitysmokeout.com/">Windy City Smokeout</a>. Returning to the <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/united-center">United Center</a> parking lots July 8 to 11 — after last year’s installment was canceled due to the pandemic — the city’s first large-scale food festival since 2020 will feature some of the country’s best barbecue pitmasters and hottest country music acts.</p>
<p id="CMub6g">With 17 nationally renowned barbecue joints participating, like Charleston, South Carolina- based Rodney Scott’s BBQ; Texas’s Salt Lick BBQ; and St. Louis’s Pappy’s Smokehouse; plus 19 musical acts including headliners Darius Rucker, Dierks Bentley, Jon Pardi (and hometown favorite Brett Eldredge), tens of thousands of people are expected to pack the Near West Side over those four days. </p>
<p id="tAEfY3">The city has entrusted festival organizers to put on a safe festival and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2021/4/29/22409790/chicago-covid-19-restrictions-united-center-windy-city-smokeout-summer-festivals">Mayor Lori Lightfoot touted the event in April</a> alongside executives from the city’s largest hospitality company. <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/lettuce-entertain-you">Lettuce Entertain You</a> Enterprises runs the festival, and Lightfoot’s team worked in concert with them.</p>
<p id="2pNeTn">“When approving this and other outdoor festivals, the health department was able to observe how much headway we’ve made against the virus,” says Deputy Mayor Samir Mayekar. “At the same time, COVID-19 is still with us, so we want to emphasize how important it is for people to get vaccinated, especially if they plan to attend large events.”</p>
<p id="PJtokO">The Smokeout takes place at outside the United Center, coincidentally the home of one of the city’s first large-scale vaccination centers. The major event comes following the return of some smaller-scale events in the city. In June, Chicago brought back the Old Town Art Fair, the Puerto Rican People’s Day Parade, and Pride in the Park. But other food events, notably Taste of Chicago and Chicago Gourmet, aren’t ready for full comebacks. </p>
<p id="x0zP1M">“We’re appreciative of the city for having faith in us to put on a safe festival,” says Ed Warm, festival co-founder, owner of Joe’s on Weed Street, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/bub-city">Bub City</a>, and Carol’s Pub, and the chairman of the Academy of Country Music. “We’re prepared and ready to tackle the challenges.”</p>
<h2 id="QoH1OL">Rebounding from 2020</h2>
<p id="BzGgV2">This year marks the festival’s eighth installment, the second at the United Center parking lot after moving from its home at Grand Avenue and the Chicago River. When organizers canceled last year, most of the artists and restaurants had already signed on.</p>
<p id="Gicih7">“Everyone was in within seconds of me sending the email,” says Christian Eckmann, a chef-partner at LEYE, who oversees numerous restaurants and organizes the pitmaster lineup. “Then we had to figure out how we were going to do this — talking to officials and doctors to keep everyone safe, not knowing where we were going to be [with the pandemic in July].”</p>
<p id="eEdp6a">As cities started reopening around the country, some pitmasters who committed realized they wouldn’t have the resources to travel to Chicago. The labor shortage prevented some from leaving their restaurants, and the increasing cost of meat also poses a financial challenge. But the event soldiered on.</p>
<p id="t9EKud">“I feel proud to be able to bring it back,” Eckmann says. “We all worked really hard for it and it’s a definite labor of love.”</p>
<h2 id="HZlzJj">Let them entertain you</h2>
<p id="CQhgdn">While big-name acts will ideally serve as a draw for the festival, Warm — a respected music promoter with deep connections within the country music industry, who curated the lineup — says he’s excited for up-and-coming stars, including Hailey Whitters and Riley Green, to appear this year. </p>
<p id="mqaCza">“[Hailey] is such a creative songwriter, fun performer, and Midwest girl from Iowa; I’m such a supporter of hers,” Warm says. “And I’m really excited for people to see Riley Green. He’s a superstar in the making.”</p>
<p id="cafsvm">Many of the artists, who also had to sideline most live shows and touring over the last year, say they can’t wait to perform. </p>
<p id="ir1ZAS">“This year really made me realize just how much I love playing live music,” says Darius Rucker, who headlines Friday. “Video performances were a good way to stay connected, but there’s no substitute for the moments where you laugh, hug, and sing your favorite song at the top of your lungs.”</p>
<p id="WaRBTL">Rucker, who says he’s a big fan of pitmaster Rodney Scott and plans to eat as much great barbecue as possible while on-site, released his last single, “Beers and Sunshine,” during the pandemic. He hadn’t performed it live until recently. </p>
<p id="aa9Qva">“I’m excited to share the newer music people haven’t heard yet — and of course we’ll play the hits,” which will include some favorite tunes from his time fronting Hootie & The Blowfish, he says. “I’d be ripping people off if I left without playing those hits.”</p>
<h2 id="KbZTSJ">Dealing with the pandemic stall </h2>
<p id="DzFU1E">For those who plan to hit the festival all four days, know the barbecue offerings on Thursday will be limited to Bub City, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/green-street-smoked-meats">Green Street Smoked Meats</a>, Lillie’s Q, the Duck Inn, Pearl’s Southern Comfort, Pappy’s Smokehouse, and Sugarfire Smokehouse. Scott will only be on-site Friday and will cook whole-hog sliders with slaw. The rest will cook for the duration.</p>
<p id="giLjL5">Amy Mills, from 17th Street BBQ in downstate Murphysboro, will represent her family’s two restaurants while honoring her award-winning pitmaster dad, Mike Mills, who passed away in December. Her team will serve brisket nachos with five-bean baked beans topped with cheese and jalapenos. She calls her seventh appearance in the festival — and the first without her father — bittersweet, but also exciting.</p>
<p id="OByLFz">“We’ve been sequestered for so long, but as COVID numbers drop, we’re excited to be back out there serving barbecue with our friends,” Mills says. “This is such a unique culture of people and I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”</p>
<p id="w33zDt">Burt Bakman, who owns Slab in LA, waited to see what other pitmasters’ menus featured to avoid duplication, and will make tri-tip sandwiches served with fennel slaw, as well as smoked beef ribs. His entire LA team will be in Las Vegas opening a new venue at the Wynn, so he tapped other “non-professionals” — his accountant, a neighbor, his brother-in-law, another friend — to help create a festive vibe at his booth.</p>
<p id="NWL4OO">“We come in, have a good time, and don’t take it too seriously — just like you shouldn’t take barbecue too seriously,” Bakman says. “We’re there to have fun, meet people, that’s it. But it’s gonna be a good bite.”</p>
<p id="EyJ7ef">Smokeout will also have food from LEYE restaurants and collaborators, including Happy Camper, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/tallboy-taco">Tallboy Taco</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/sushi-san-2">Sushi-san</a>, and other non-barbecue vendors. Nearly 30 beer and cider vendors will pull taps, from behemoths like Goose Island and Shiner to craft houses like Moody Tongue, Spiteful, and Haymarket from Chicago alongside Deschutes, 4 Hands Brewing, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/virtue-cider">Virtue Cider</a>, and Stem Ciders. Maker’s Mark, Jim Beam, and Casamigos will also have large presences on-site. </p>
<h2 id="el8NQ7">Addressing safety concerns</h2>
<p id="Mfkixf">Eckmann says they’ve continually responded to a steady flow of questions around public safety for the event. Organizers added 35 percent more space over the grounds’ 18 acres, providing more room to spread out. Warm says they added more bars to get beverages and additional open-air tents for shade. </p>
<p id="j92ZAF">Everyone attending the festival will have to show proof of vaccine or a negative COVID-19 test from no more than 72 hours prior to entry. The fest is also using <a href="https://clear.app.link/WCSmokeout">Health Pass</a> by CLEAR, a government-approved app used at large-scale sporting events like the NHL playoffs. Areas will be continually cleaned and sanitized, and handwashing stations will sit every 100 feet. Vendors will all use contactless payment. </p>
<p id="cJtWLM">“We have to be prepared and we’re seeing people’s behaviors have changed,” says George Chiampas of <a href="https://cemevent.com/bios/george-chiampas/">Chicago Event Management</a>, an event production company working with Smokeout. Chiampus is an assistant professor of emergency medicine and orthopaedic surgery at Northwestern Medicine who specializes in mass event management and the chief medical officer for the U.S. men’s soccer team: “You have to have complete transparency and be willing to modify plans. As we get closer to the event, we may still need to adapt and change.”</p>
<p id="9hm1QK">Even though things continue to change, people can expect familiarity when they get to the festival.</p>
<p class="c-end-para" id="0I2RlM">“Without a doubt, they’ll feel they’re at Smokeout,” Warm adds. “That’s what we want. It’s a return to gathering, a return to normal.”</p>
<aside id="lLp2vB"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"chicago-eater"}'></div></aside>
https://chicago.eater.com/2021/7/8/22566852/windy-city-smokeout-2021-chicago-food-festival-vaccinations-safetyAri Bendersky2021-05-04T12:31:41-05:002021-05-04T12:31:41-05:00Chicago Restaurants Fought to Survive — and They’re Ready to Face the Challenges Ahead
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<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/VeXIaGhIQ3KKtXkYkJe-F4ao-X8=/0x0:1423x1067/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/69235682/49987482317_b590a2c711_h.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Diana Dávila served food during a 2020 rally in Little Village. | Barry Brecheisen/Eater Chicago</figcaption>
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<p>Business owners share the lessons they’ve learned throughout the pandemic</p> <p class="p--has-dropcap" id="tT4BHy">Any number of restaurateurs, chefs, servers, managers, and bartenders could share a story with many of the same themes after the COVID-19 pandemic began steamrolling Chicago’s hospitality industry in March 2020 — tales riddled with heartbreak and endurance.</p>
<p id="mn2B0s">People felt challenged and emotionally taxed in ways never before experienced. Unemployment soared and Downtown Chicago was a ghost town, thanks to vacant office buildings and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/4/9/21207683/covid-19-chicago-hotel-hospitality-effects">record-low tourism numbers</a>. Hundreds of <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/closings">restaurants and bars closed</a> permanently city wide as government mandates halted indoor dining to protect the public from gathering in spaces normally reserved for social connection.</p>
<p id="iQKz5F">In spite of everything, people in the hospitality industry know how to fight. Outdoor dining became the norm. Chefs scraped together innovative takeout menus to make ends meet when it felt like ends might fray. Bars petitioned the state so they could sell to-go cocktails.</p>
<p id="IDXrrQ">The light at the end of the tunnel is approaching, with Chicago poised to lift capacity <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2021/5/4/22419106/return-full-capacity-indoor-dining-july-chicago-illinois-restaurants">restrictions for indoor dining in July</a>. For those lucky enough to remain standing, the pandemic pushed restaurateurs to take care of their businesses and each other. Erick Williams, the chef and owner of <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/virtue">Virtue</a> in Hyde Park, acknowledges the emotional toll, and how easy it would have been to quit. But the public health crisis reminded him about how restaurants serve as community beacons, and he felt a responsibility to serve his neighborhood.</p>
<p id="OfBaDE">“And part of that moral standard is not giving up,” Williams says.</p>
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<p id="oi6lFO">Others shared Williams’s perseverance in finding ways to survive. Third-generation restaurant owner Gina Capitanini experienced this firsthand. Capitanini, whose two children work with her at the 94-year-old <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/italian-village">Italian Village</a> in the Loop, obtained Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans to keep her family business alive as crowds diminished downtown, crushing sales. The stalwart restaurant with 135 workers had just come off three gangbuster years, when <em>Hamilton</em>’s nightly sold-out crowds at <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/cibc-theatre">CIBC Theatre</a><em> </em>helped fill her three restaurants: the Village, Vivere, and La Cantina. The success came to a halt in early 2020 when the pandemic hit; later that summer, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/8/10/21359061/chicago-looting-restaurants-effect-chance-bieber-tipping-intel">looters seized an opportunity</a> to strike downtown businesses following otherwise peaceful protests.</p>
<p id="NygVpV">Downtown businesses were unhappy with the responses from elected officials throughout the pandemic, and they weren’t alone.</p>
<p id="QziutC">“Our federal government failed our industry so horribly,” former restaurant owner Jeanne Roeser says. “If the government had only paid restaurants to stay closed, it would have saved so many places.”</p>
<aside id="8oNtNj"><div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"Chicago’s Restaurant and Bar Closures for 2020","url":"https://chicago.eater.com/2020/1/16/21067528/chicago-restaurant-bar-closures-2020"},{"title":"Chicago’s Restaurant Industry Looks Back at the Year in COVID-19","url":"https://chicago.eater.com/2021/5/4/22332015/chicago-restaurants-stories-coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic-challenges"},{"title":"How to Help: Fight Hunger and Support Local Restaurants in Chicago","url":"https://chicago.eater.com/21525451/how-to-help-during-pandemic-covid-19-chicago"}]}'></div></aside><p id="Oo4h4j">Roeser’s restaurant, Toast lasted 24 years before closing in April 2020. The brunch mainstay, which also had a Lincoln Park location, was one of Chicago’s first high-profile places to close. “You try to envision the future and there’s just a wall,” Roeser says of her decision. “It’s trusting your gut. There was no way we would have survived.”</p>
<p id="PSmTlr"><a href="https://www.eater.com/2020/5/8/21251960/restaurant-industry-jobs-lost-unemployment-april-coronavirus-pandemic">Millions of people</a> across America suddenly found themselves out of work in 2020. While large restaurant chains grabbed the federal government’s attention, smaller entities realized they lacked a voice in Washington, D.C. A group of restaurant owners from around the country, headlined by names like <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/boka">Boka</a> Restaurant Group co-founder and co-CEO Kevin Boehm and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/lula-cafe">Lula Cafe</a>’s Jason Hammel, quickly formed the Independent Restaurant Coalition (IRC) to lobby Congress for a restaurant relief bill that would provide help similar to what other industries, like airlines, received. Their efforts continued throughout the pandemic, without much action by the government.</p>
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<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/pMn2XAKgdvaBkiJ2F1B02DpyhUg=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22477808/50898324073_e6cbd80f9f_h.jpg">
<cite>Barry Brecheisen/Eater Chicago</cite>
<figcaption>At Swift & Sons, Boka Restaurant Group created a yurt village.</figcaption>
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<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/nIHBQRJxvFtkxvHJUJYsFrd6Tww=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22477810/50899151867_29ed83176d_h.jpg">
<cite>Barry Brecheisen/Eater Chicago</cite>
<figcaption>The inside of one of the yurts.</figcaption>
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<h2 id="Dn8scx">Tallying up the losses</h2>
<p id="itEGdP">As the IRC waited for aid, job losses became unavoidable. Illinois law requires companies to put in notice when weighing mass layoffs, prompting Boka to tell the state <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/9/3/21419956/boka-restaurant-group-layoffs-coronavirus-chicago">it was considering 500 of them</a>. Closures followed — going back to March 2020, 415 restaurants in Chicago closed through the end of the year, according to CHD Expert, a global data-tracking service for the food-service industry. </p>
<p id="3SjI8o">Weekly, Chicagoans would learn of treasured places closing: <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/blackbird">Blackbird</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/passerotto-2">Passerotto</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/income-tax">Income Tax</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/beacon-tavern">Beacon Tavern</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/taqueria-sabor-y-sazon">Taqueria Sabor Y Sazon</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/la-sardine">La Sardine</a>, Ay Ay <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/picante">Picante</a>, Kiki’s Bistro, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/rickshaw-republic">Rickshaw Republic</a>, Hot “G” Dog, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/ever">Ever</a>est, Lawry’s The Prime Rib, and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/mundano">Mundano</a>. Others, like <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/6/17/21288547/fat-rice-chicago-closes-employees-claim-mistreatment-abe-conlon">Fat Rice</a> and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/9/23/21440781/acadia-ryan-mccaskey-alleged-retaliatory-harassment-campaign-against-former-worker">Acadia</a>, buckled under pandemic-fueled social media scrutiny led by workers alleging toxic workplaces.</p>
<p id="W2Dhwq">“Chicago is a city of neighborhoods and in each of those there are restaurants that define that neighborhood,” says David Henkes, senior principal with food and beverage industry analyst Technomic. “A lot of those are gone, taking away the character of those neighborhoods.”</p>
<p id="eph7GU">One Off Hospitality is one of Chicago’s behemoths, with nine restaurants citywide, including hits like <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/big-star-3">Big Star</a> and the Publican. Three months into the pandemic, One Off’s partners, including co-founder and executive chef Paul Kahan, made <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/6/30/21307710/blackbird-cafe-cancale-closed-chicago-one-off-hospitality-covid-19">the tough decision to close Blackbird,</a> its Michelin-starred West Loop trailblazer. They followed that call by closing <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/caf-cancale">Café Cancale</a> in Wicker Park. When the pandemic hit, One Off employed about 800 people; it now employs 176.</p>
<p id="pQ1LZo">The company also suffered through growing pains. No one had experienced a pandemic before, and Kahan says there was “no playbook” on how best to proceed. Workers at <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/pacific-standard-time">Pacific Standard Time</a> in River North <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/8/4/21348015/one-off-hospitality-pacific-standard-time-workers-open-letter-safety-coronavirus-covid-19-chicago">made their concerns</a> about pay cuts and reduced hours public, saying management was not clearly communicating their plans for the restaurant. One Off brought over its ace chef, Perry Hendrix, to bring stability to the space after the departure of founding chef Erling Wu-Bower. Eight months later, in early February, One Off closed Pacific Standard Time, transitioning the space into a supersized version of its intimate Mediterranean-focused West Loop spot, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/avec-2">Avec</a>.</p>
<p id="F8rset">“This has come as a great opportunity to redefine the industry and our business,” Kahan says. “There are so many things wrong with the restaurant industry and a lot of that came to light with all the social upheaval. We’re working through the issues and hopefully we can create a much better workplace for everyone.” </p>
<p id="2ij6y1">While One Off is one of Chicago’s larger hospitality companies, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/caf-marie-jeanne">Café Marie-Jeanne</a> is on the other end of the spectrum, and few closures garnered as large an outpouring of support. Owned by chef Mike Simmons, their wife Val Szafranski, and wine director Jamie McLennan, the cozy all-day restaurant and wine bar closed in November after five years. The cafe never reopened its dining room, and before closing altogether, focused on carry-out and delivery with a pared-down staff in order to keep everyone safer. They got PPP loans to pay expenses and welcomed industry friends to sell food and raise money for charities like Brave Space Alliance and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/8/27/21400022/grocery-run-club-chicago-food-banks">Grocery Run Club</a>.</p>
<p id="ChlJ1U">“The best parts of that place left that building with me, Val, Jamie and all of our staff,” Simmons says. “All the best parts get to live in our hearts and minds. Even though the food and service were excellent, it was about the vibe you got when you came in.”</p>
<p id="xAcY1m">Closing the restaurant has given Simmons the opportunity for a life shift. They gave up drinking, cook healthier food at home, exercise daily, and found time to properly grieve the loss of the cafe. Now, after years of working in many kitchens, including Lula Cafe and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/rootstock">Rootstock</a>, they plan to leave the industry altogether and pursue a career in nursing. </p>
<p id="MRWWYc">“The pandemic is terrible, the grief is something I don’t know how to deal with and I’d never make a silver lining for it,” Simmons says. “But with the change of pace<strong>,</strong> I’ve been able to reflect on what I want out of life and that’s resulted in a happier, more fulfilled person.”</p>
<div> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/OYl5Vq9XA3f6um8_l5fEKMs-1XY=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22477795/49975926401_afe2f72a7f_h.jpg">
<cite>Barry Brecheisen/Eater Chicago</cite>
<figcaption>Crews boarded up Boka Restaurant and Stephanie Izard’s Girl & the Goat over the summer to protect against any damage during the aftermath of George Floyd’s police murder.</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<h2 id="n3MDIK">Openings during trying times</h2>
<p id="05nOVB">CHD Expert reports that 373 new restaurants — like Ever, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/mama-delia">Mama Delia</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/taqueria-chingon">Taqueria Chingón</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/testaccio">Testaccio</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/dear-margaret">Dear Margaret</a>, and Cocoa Chili — opened between March and December 2020. This is compared with an average of 1,205 openings per year over the previous three years, according to CHD Expert. Ursula Siker’s “Jew-ish” deli, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/jeff-and-judes">Jeff & Judes</a> in Humboldt Park, was one of them. She began taking orders via Instagram in August before fully opening in November. Siker used the money she would have spent on building out her dining room to help her get through the pandemic. She focused her menu on takeout-friendly foods like corned beef and pastrami, matzo ball soup, and black-and-white cookies.</p>
<p id="C8jSta">“I am lucky to have a small team and many overqualified people who can help me shape the culture here,” Siker says. “I’ve learned quickly to shift expectations and how to prioritize staff while still giving customers a good experience.” </p>
<p id="jTdxYN">Chefs Genie Kwon and Tim Flores faced a similar experience when opening <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/kasama">Kasama</a> in Ukrainian Village. Flores’s dream of serving composed Filipino dishes using fine dining techniques got deferred as the married couple leaned on a patio and counter service to weather the pandemic.</p>
<p id="Zvl64y">“I don’t think there was ever a point we’d stop,” Flores says. “We were lucky we didn’t open before [the pandemic] and have to lay off staff. We were able to tailor our opening to the times.”</p>
<h2 id="1cXjdg">Restaurants needed to evolve or perish</h2>
<p id="dF7JAH">With lockdown in full effect and restaurants closed to indoor dining, owners needed to get creative in how they could continue operating, keep staff working, and feed the public. Some looked to takeout and delivery. Others converted their restaurants into markets offering grab-and-go or take-and-bake food. Many bars and restaurants offered to-go cocktails after <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/kumiko">Kumiko</a>’s Julia Momose successfully lobbied the state to allow their sale last spring. Many created meal kits and sold full bottles of alcohol to reduce bar inventory. And a number of chefs and owners cooked to feed their communities.</p>
<p id="gAjzD5">The word “pivot” soared in popularity as chefs found ways to adapt or reinvent themselves: Urbanbelly’s Bill Kim converted part of his Korean and Chinese restaurant into a ghost kitchen called Pizza & Parm Shop; <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/oriole">Oriole</a> chef-owner Noah Sandoval offered Carolina-style pulled pork kits out of his two-Michelin-starred kitchen. He also opened <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/pizza-friendly-pizza">Pizza Friendly Pizza</a> next to <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/empty-bottle">Empty Bottle</a> with owner Bruce Finkelman. Even fine dining powerhouses like Curtis Duffy and Michael Muser’s Ever adapted, as they began griddling patties inside their $5 million restaurant with the launch of Reve Burger. And Logan Square’s acclaimed <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/giant">Giant</a> introduced a roving food truck offering pizza, soup, and other easy-traveling items.</p>
<p id="aTDnp6">The city also experienced a carb-friendly pizza, bagel, and bakery boom, with the rise of operations like Milly’s Pizza in the Pan, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/pizza-lobo">Pizza Lobo</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/gotham-bagels">Gotham Bagels</a>, Zaides Bagels, and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/aya-pastry">Aya Pastry</a> supplying baked goods to coffee shops all over town. Acclaimed pastry chef Mindy Segal got ahead of the curve in July when she closed her 15-year-old Bucktown restaurant Hot Chocolate and introduced <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/mindy-s-bakery">Mindy’s Bakery</a>.</p>
<p id="tOr1dx"><a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/lettuce-entertain-you">Lettuce Entertain You</a> Enterprises, Chicago’s largest restaurant group, resurrected previously retired restaurants like Vong’s Thai Kitchen and Ben Pao, and created new ones like Coastal Soups and B Square Pizza as delivery-only offerings to keep people working.</p>
<p id="8EY3dS">“All your decisions, which affect a lot more people, are amplified,” Lettuce Entertain You president R.J. Melman says. “If you have 7,000 employees or 70, the decisions aren’t any easier.”</p>
<p id="RC6xgR">That includes deciding to permanently close a restaurant, which many did over the last year. For some, that goes beyond merely shuttering a physical space. Jennifer Kim, who <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/9/8/21424479/passerotto-andersonville-korean-closing-jennifer-kim">closed her Italian-influenced Korean restaurant</a> Passerotto in Andersonville in September, grappled with breaking apart a staff that thought of themselves as a restaurant family. The “untethering of our community as it existed within Passerotto was gut-wrenching,” Kim says. </p>
<p id="LxZ4Dk">For Kim, that decision was about more than just making money. She has always been outspoken about reforming industry injustices, from racism and homophobia to classism and the mental health toll. She says she remained conflicted about operating a traditional restaurant within a system that spits out laborers to the benefit of those at the top. Her response was to launch Alt Economy, an operation where she collaborates with other business owners and sells items via social media.</p>
<p id="NaBYZG">“One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned and want to pass on for those who are looking to create compassionate workspaces: Listen to your staff and trust them as experts, both in their jobs and in their experiences,” Kim says.</p>
<div> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/-LHGdwGG1ffAQMWPzhnmK9phHso=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22477813/49907101421_ef8ef383ff_h.jpg">
<cite>Barry Brecheisen/Eater Chicago</cite>
<figcaption>Oriole’s Cara Sandoval works on a laptop inside her Michelin-starred restaurant which was converted into a takeout operation during the pandemic.</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<h3 id="HoUyGJ">Feeding the community</h3>
<p id="kGcJ0X">Listening to and protecting staff became threaded into the Chicago restaurant community. Virtue’s Williams prioritized his staff’s safety by closing the restaurant for a time to dining, but also placed their livelihood upfront. Early in the pandemic, when Virtue focused on carryout and delivery service, a physician friend who works at UChicago Medicine asked if he could help feed the overworked medical residents to boost dwindling morale. The chef then got a call from the rapper Common’s team, asking if Virtue could make 285 meals to feed frontline workers at Stroger Hospital.</p>
<p id="V5vjUV">“This has been an awakening for many people,” Williams says. “It’s time for people to be good stewards for humans. My focus these days is working where communities around me can be healed because people are really hurting.”</p>
<p id="K1RJGg">Few business owners acted as quickly or as proactively to help their community as Ed Marszewski, whose family owns multiple businesses in Bridgeport, including Maria’s Packaged Goods, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/marz-community-brewing">Marz Community Brewing</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/kimski">Kimski</a>, and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/pizza-fried-chicken-ice-cream">Pizza Fried Chicken Ice Cream</a>. </p>
<p id="WS1Xqn">During the summer, Maria’s parking lot became a social distancing-friendly patio. Customers placed digital orders from their seats and workers used a PA system to call people to grab their food and drinks, like at a ’70s roller rink.</p>
<p id="u2IpdE">With safeguards in place, Marszewski began using his kitchens to prepare daily meals for nonprofits, including Pilsen Food Pantry, Senior Suites of Bridgeport, and Love Fridge. Marszewski launched a farmers market and then Community Kitchen, to feed anyone who wanted a fresh chef-made meal for whatever they could pay. The concept then expanded by partnering with kitchens including Avondale’s <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/wherewithall">Wherewithall</a> and Bronzeville’s Iyanze Bronze.</p>
<p id="XjPlQB">In addition to supplying 4,000 meals each week (more than 80,000 meals to date), the program helped employ out-of-work hospitality staff. Through all of this, Marszewski raised his minimum wage beyond $15, shared tips between all the staff, and added healthcare benefits. </p>
<p id="wZq9JH">“We remodeled everything to make sure everyone had an equitable piece of the pie,” he says. “This has made me a better boss. It made me feel more connected to all the people I work with. We believe in this world and we’re moving forward no matter what.”</p>
<p id="khDBhs">Diana Dávila, chef-owner of <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/catalpa-kitchen">Mi Tocaya Antojeria</a> in Logan Square, saw how many undocumented workers couldn’t get COVID-19 relief. She launched an initiative to keep her staff working and help local farmers by buying their products. Chefs like Darnell Reed of Luella’s Southern Kitchen and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/birrieria-zaragoza">Birrieria Zaragoza</a>’s Jonathan Zaragoza also joined the effort to help make and distribute 1,000 free weekly meals to people in the community.</p>
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<h2 id="QdHlt7">Light at the end of the tunnel</h2>
<p id="4rfTfA">On March 11, almost a year to the day of the creation of the Independent Restaurant Coalition, the Restaurant Revitalization Fund was signed into law as part of President Joe Biden’s larger <a href="https://ny.eater.com/2021/2/4/22264721/joe-biden-coronavirus-bill-restaurants-25-billion">$1.9 trillion COVID relief bill</a>. With it, $28.6 billion will now help countless struggling restaurants. Of that, $5 billion is set aside to specifically assist restaurants with annual revenues below $1.5 million, as well as businesses owned by women, minorities, and veterans. </p>
<p id="8qd4KK">But Boka’s Boehm doesn’t mince words at his frustration and disappointment with how the government treated the restaurant industry amid the pandemic. He points out that, with the collective workforces — including vendors and suppliers — the industry employs 16.1 million people and comprises 4 percent of the entire U.S. GDP. </p>
<p id="PFsm9Q">“When they forced us to close, there should have been an understanding immediately how many people that affected,” Boehm says. “[The federal government] should have come together and decided we were an important enough industry and the people working were worth saving.” </p>
<p id="yCdqJ8">While many in the industry say the government turned its back on millions of people, it is also true that many endured tremendous pressure to simply plow ahead and survive conditions without precedent. Chicago finally made restaurant workers vaccination-eligible on March 29, and as more people get shots, hope is emerging.</p>
<p class="c-end-para" id="g6t9ws">“You wanted to make the right decisions, lead with safety and take care of your teams all while wanting to survive,” Boehm adds. “It’s such a beautiful feeling these last few weeks to actually see the light at the end of the tunnel. There was a time that light felt very far away.”</p>
<aside id="gY4C4N"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"chicago-eater"}'></div></aside><p id="y5ceAG"></p>
https://chicago.eater.com/2021/5/4/22409397/chicago-restauraunts-covid-19-one-year-later-impact-challenges-lessons-learnedAri Bendersky2021-01-07T13:09:01-06:002021-01-07T13:09:01-06:00Una organización creada un fondo de $4M para ayudar a trabajadores de restaurantes de Chicago — pero $3.6M aún no ha sido reclamado
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/w_Y8klr8gvJy6ZgUmx16VXnGY8c=/0x0:1425x1069/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/68633806/50429338921_42f80256bf_h_2.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Trabajadores de la Casa Yari preparan comida. | Brian Rich/Sun-Times</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Southern Smoke Foundation de Houston dice que no hay suficientes personas de la industria de comida que hayan solicitado el dinero de la subvención</p> <p id="ptDZnm"><em>An English version of this article can be found </em><a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/12/29/22204442/southern-smoke-foundation-chicago-relief-fund-restaurants-covid-19-how-to-help"><em>here</em></a><em>/Se puede encontrar una versión en Ingl</em>é<em>s de esta historia </em><a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/12/29/22204442/southern-smoke-foundation-chicago-relief-fund-restaurants-covid-19-how-to-help"><em>aquí</em></a><em>.</em></p>
<p id="nrn4tZ">La pandemia del COVID-19 ha despedido millones de meseros, cocineros, anfitriónes, panaderos, camareros, bartenders, carniceros, baristas y más sin trabajo (trabajadores asalariados y por hora) con miedo de no ser capaz de sobrevivir.</p>
<p id="janTiz">Mientras grupos como la Coalición de Restaurantes Independientes continúan trabajando incansablemente con el gobierno para pasar la legislación de <a href="https://www.eater.com/2020/5/20/21265212/bill-proposes-120-billion-nts-to-support-independent-restaurants?_ga=2.87029535.647295014.1609293899-908018919.1592496265">$120 billiones </a> para ayudar a restaurantes independientes, esfuerzos locales existen para ayudar a los trabajadores más inmediatamente con dinero. ¿Pero cuál es el único problema? No hay suficientes personas de la industria de comida que hayan solicitado el dinero de la subvención.</p>
<p id="M2E8Wo">“No creo que anticipamos que el desafío sería tan grande,” dice Kathryn Lott, directora ejecutiva del Smoke Foundation. “Es muy difícil impulsar esta industria en particular a pedir ayuda. La gente se enorgullece de ser supervivientes y hacer las cosas sin apoyo.”</p>
<p id="p3vWF7">El<a href="https://houston.eater.com/2020/4/23/21232636/southern-smoke-foundation-covid-19-pandemic-relief-distributes-one-million-dollars"> Southern Smoke Foundation</a> empezó en el 2015 por Chris Shephard, un cocinero galardonado de Houston con James Beard. En agosto, el cocinero anunció una<a href="https://southernsmoke.org/chicago-relief-fund/"> campaña de fondos para trabajadores de los restaurantes</a> de Chicago, que ha creado $4 millones de fondos para apoyar a los trabajadores en Cook County, que tiene más de 7,300 restaurantes. El dinero viene de donantes anónimos, que dijeron que lo igualaran a $1 millon más donaciones para un total de $6 millones disponibles.</p>
<p id="GH0f6W">Lott explica que Southern Smoke anticipaba muchas más aplicaciones cuando empezó en agosto, pero el fondo solo ha premiado 1,028 aplicaciones. Para ser elegible, personas debe haber trabajado en un restaurante, bar o café un mínimo de 30 horas a la semana (no solamente en un lugar; podría ser una mezcla de trabajos) por al menos seis meses antes que empezó la pandemia. Candidatos necesitan demostrar un W2 o talón de pago para verificar empleo. Más allá de eso, se hacen pocas preguntas — por ejemplo, inmigrantes pueden estar esperando un permiso de residencia (tarjeta verde). Fundos se dan en función de la necesidad, entonces no hay una cantidad específica que una persona puede recibir. La organización tiene un proceso de selección dura pero cuando aprobado, los fondos pueden transferir rápidamente.</p>
<p id="zRN7gI">“Es una organización que trabaja basada en el nivel de la urgencia,” dice Lott. “Tenemos niveles de urgencia que identificamos y tenemos exámenes casi en tiempo real cuando se entregan las aplicaciones. Probamos de ayudar a la gente a salir de la crisis.”</p>
<p id="oAENBp">Las personas pueden usar el dinero para pagar renta o el pago del carro, una factura de un servicio para mantener la calefacción en casa o gastos médicos. Hasta ahora, el fondo ha otorgado $386,425 a 140 solicitantes, que significa que más de $3.6 millones todavía no es reclamado — y con otros $2 millones si los fondos reciben las donaciones igualadas. Solamente $35,000 de $1 millón de donaciones igualadas fue recaudado, pero más apoyo local está trabajando para recaudar más fondos. Southern Smoke también da 90 centavos por cada dólar al fondo, que es más dinero para la gente y menos para gastos administrativos.</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A man with glasses leaning outside at a street fest." data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8OtWpbBkyZlAyyfpkQtlRdm2iI4=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22202249/0427_SouthernSmoke2018_093018_MCW.jpg">
<cite>Southern Smoke/Michelle Watson of <a class="ql-link" href="https://www.catchlightgroup.com" target="_blank">CatchLight Group</a></cite>
<figcaption>Southern Smoke fue iniciado por el cocinero Chris Shepherd.</figcaption>
</figure>
<h3 id="elNdRM">Cocineros de Chicago ayudan a recaudar fondos</h3>
<p id="qhZ1EX">Con más gente sin trabajo, personas en la industria han creado recaudación de fondos para ayudar el fondo de Smoke Foundation pero también para difundir el conocimiento de apoyo financiero disponible a los trabajadores. Sarah Grueneberg, cocinera y dueña del restaurante <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/monteverde">Monteverde</a> en West Loop, conoció a Sherpherd en el 2003 en su primer trabajo de cocina en Brennan’s of Houston. Ella participó en la recaudación de fondos anual del Southern Smoke en Tejas y sabía que quería ayudar cuando escuchó del fondo de Chicago. Cada domingo, Monteverde vende un pollo entero de parmesano por $40 y dona $10 al fondo por cada plato vendido. El restaurante también tiene una donación directa en su portal de internet para cuando la gente pide comida para llevar.</p>
<p id="4Bda3k">“Personas están diciendo que ese [fondo] está cambiando sus vidas cuando no tenían esperanza,” dice Grueneberg. “Si necesitas ayuda, aprovecha el dinero. No te sientas mal que estás aplicando por apoyo. Parte del conocimiento es no se necesitan sentirse culpable de preguntar para ayudo.”</p>
<p id="Ix1ZmA">Mientras que el fondo era anunciado, el cocinero y dueño de <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/frontier">Frontier</a> y Ina Mae Tavern Brian Jupiter hizo un poco de trabajo con Diageo y Bulleit Bourbon. Aprendió del Chicago fondo de representantes de Bulleit y la marca de licor donó $1,500 al fondo en el nombre de Jupiter.</p>
<p id="8W5a22">“Tenemos muchos restaurantes en Chicago y eso es lo desafortunado de esperar por apoyo del gobierno,” dice Jupiter. “[Los restaurantes] es una profesión acelerada y con dinero rápido para muchos camareros. Es difícil ir de generar ingresos a una posición donde no tienes nada. Estoy indeciso de donar a las [organizaciones grandes de recaudación de fondos] porque el dinero se pierde. Eso parecía como el dinero iría a las personas indicadas.”</p>
<p id="xClzDl">Dos importadores de vino, <a href="http://www.thesortingtable.com/">The Sorting Table</a> ay <a href="https://www.louisdressner.com/">Louis Dressner Selections</a>, se asociaron con restaurantes locales <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/table-donkey-and-stick-5">Table, Donkey and Stick</a> y <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/pizza-friendly-pizza">Pizza Friendly Pizza</a> para hacer una recaudación de fondos el 10 de diciembre donde la gente pagó $75 para una pizza especial, una botella de vino sangiovese y una fiesta de pizza por Zoom. Diez por ciento del dinero hecho — más o menos $300 — fue al fondo.</p>
<p id="zg2ePn">Steve Dolinsky, de ABC 7 Chicago, creó 16 tipos de pizza con nombres de calles o barrios en Chicago (como Pilsen y Harlem Avenue) y vendió piezas for $7. Él también recolectó $2,000 vendiendo un Breville y un horno Ooni para pizza.</p>
<p id="BZH5Ea">“Yo quería hacer una cosa para ayudar y no sabía que podría hacer más de ordenar comida de restaurantes,” dice Dolinsky. “Quería saber que estaba directamente ayudando personas.”</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="Food Network &amp; Cooking Channel New York City Wine &amp; Food Festival presented by Capital One - Dinner with Sarah Grueneberg, Angie Rito and Scott Tacinelli part of the Bank of America Dinner Series" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/pqO7Nha6zppGuEIS70sL0MlxxqQ=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22202287/1175363879.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Kris Connor/Getty Images for NYCWFF</cite>
<figcaption>Sarah Grueneberg, cocinera y dueña del restaurante Monteverde en West Loop, está recaudando dinero para el Southern Smoke fondo para trabajadores en Chicago de la industria de comida que perdieron sus trabajos.</figcaption>
</figure>
<h3 id="YAT4kA">Ayudando los trabajadores de servicios</h3>
<p id="6y27fy">La gente todavía puede recibir dinero del fondo para apoyo durante ese tiempo difícil. Cuando Ashley Collins, de 23 años, perdió su trabajo temporalmente, ella recibió dinero del gobierno solamente una vez, y no era mucho. Collins está embarazada y tiene la custodia de su hermano, entonces ella solicitó una subvención para ayudarla pagar renta a una amiga quien las dejó quedarse en su sótano, y para pagar su factura de teléfono y tarjeta de crédito. El fondo le dio $800.</p>
<p id="3mvdWP">Peter Mohawk, de 62 años, trabaja como camarero para Levy Restaurants al <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/united-center">United Center</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/wrigley-field">Wrigley Field</a> y Ravinia. Desde marzo que no tiene ningún ingreso. Recibe desempleo pero tiene grandes facturas médicas, entonces quería más asistencia para su seguro de salud. El fundo le dio $1,320. Amie Autentrieth, de 39 años, recibió una cantidad secreta para ayudarla a pagar su hipoteca y comida. Ella es una madre soltera que perdió su trabajo en un restaurante dos veces a causa de la suspensión de servicio dentro del restaurante impuesto por el gobierno. </p>
<p id="rfFNSa">Mientras los fondos son solamente para aquellos que han trabajado en restaurantes, bares y cafés, El Smoke Foundation fondo nacional es para alguien que trabaja en la industria de comida y bebida. Durante la pandemia, Southern Smoke dio $4.3 millones a 2,200 personas. En noviembre, un cocinero famoso<a href="https://houston.eater.com/2020/11/30/21725996/david-chang-who-wants-to-be-a-millionaire-southern-smoke-win-one-million-charity"> dio $1 millón a la organización</a> después de ganar <em>Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?</em></p>
<p id="Usc8Vr">La organización continúa aceptando donaciones. Trabajadores de restaurantes en Chicago pueden solicitar dinero <a href="https://southernsmoke.org/chicago-relief-fund/">aquí</a>.</p>
<h5 id="0XSSge">
<em>Historia</em> <em>traducido del inglés por Ariel Parrella-Aureli.</em>
</h5>
<aside id="XIS9Sf"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"chicago-eater"}'></div></aside>
https://chicago.eater.com/2021/1/7/22217597/southern-smoke-foundation-chicago-relief-fund-restaurants-covid-19-how-to-help-spanishAri Bendersky2020-12-29T11:35:56-06:002020-12-29T11:35:56-06:00This Organization Created a $4M Fund to Support Chicago’s Restaurant Workers — but $3.6M Remains Unclaimed
<figure>
<img alt="Two kitchen workers wearing masks preparing food." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/nfoxyF0qX9RSGt0FzbpQiJi2Eis=/0x0:1425x1069/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/68593718/50429338921_42f80256bf_h_2.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Workers at Casa Yari prepare food. | Brian Rich/Sun-Times</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Houston-based Southern Smoke Foundation says not enough industry members have applied for grants</p> <p id="rsk8WW">The COVID-19 pandemic has left millions of cooks, servers, bartenders, hosts, counter staff, and many more (both salaried and hourly) out of work, without insurance, and with a growing fear of not being able to make ends meet. </p>
<p id="rnpLL1">While groups like the Independent Restaurant Coalition continue to tirelessly work with Congress to get the <a href="https://www.eater.com/2020/5/20/21265212/bill-proposes-120-billion-nts-to-support-independent-restaurants">$120 billion RESTAURANTS Act</a> revitalization bill passed, local efforts exist to help people on a more immediate basis. The only problem? Not enough hospitality workers have applied for grant money.</p>
<p id="6vq8s5">“I don’t think we anticipated the challenge would be this great,” says Kathryn Lott, executive director of the Southern Smoke Foundation. “It’s really hard to get this particular industry to ask for help. People pride themselves on being survivors and doing for themselves.”</p>
<p id="I9KonK">The <a href="https://houston.eater.com/2020/4/23/21232636/southern-smoke-foundation-covid-19-pandemic-relief-distributes-one-million-dollars">Southern Smoke Foundation</a>, which was started in 2015 by Houston-based James Beard Award-winning chef Chris Shepherd, announced in early August the <a href="https://southernsmoke.org/chicago-relief-fund/">Chicago Restaurant Workers Relief Fund</a>. Powered by anonymous donors, the group created a $4 million fund to support industry workers in Cook County, home to more than 7,300 restaurants. The donors said they would match up to $1 million in additional donations, bringing the total available funds to $6 million.</p>
<p id="QWopTi">Lott explains Southern Smoke expected a much higher response when the fund was announced in August, but to date the fund has only fielded 1,028 applications. To be eligible, people must have worked in a restaurant, bar, or coffee shop for a minimum of 30 hours a week (not necessarily at just one place; it could be a mix of jobs) for at least six months before the pandemic began. Applicants need to show a W2 or pay stub to verify employment. Beyond that, few questions are asked — for instance, immigrants can be waiting on a green card. Funds are doled out based on need, so there’s no set amount someone can receive. The organization is serious about the vetting process, but once approved, funds can transfer quickly.</p>
<p id="ZTWaWX">“It’s an organization run based on the level of urgency at hand,” Lott says. “We have levels of urgency we identify and have screeners operating almost in real time as applications come through. We try to get someone up and out of crisis.”</p>
<p id="PsADKD">That could mean using the funds to pay rent or a car payment, a utility bill to keep the heat on, or even high medical expenses. But to date, the fund has awarded $386,425 to 140 applicants, which means more than $3.6 million still sits unclaimed — with up to another possible $2 million if the funding match hits its mark. So far, only $35,000 of that $1 million match has been raised, but local support is working to raise more. Southern Smoke also directs 90 cents from every dollar raised right into giving, putting significantly more money into people’s hands than into administrative fees.</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A man with glasses leaning outside at a street fest." data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8OtWpbBkyZlAyyfpkQtlRdm2iI4=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22202249/0427_SouthernSmoke2018_093018_MCW.jpg">
<cite>Southern Smoke/Michelle Watson of <a class="ql-link" href="https://www.catchlightgroup.com" target="_blank">CatchLight Group</a></cite>
<figcaption>Southern Smoke was started by Houston chef Chris Shepherd.</figcaption>
</figure>
<h3 id="fk71go">Catching on in Chicago</h3>
<p id="jWw9MV">As more people remained out of work, local folks connected to the industry held fundraisers to support the fund to raise more money, but to also get the word out that help was available for people. Sarah Grueneberg, chef/owner of <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/monteverde">Monteverde</a> in the West Loop, has known Shepherd since he hired her in 2003 for her first cooking job at Brennan’s of Houston. She has participated in Shepherd’s annual fundraiser for Southern Smoke in Texas and knew she wanted to help when the Chicago fund got announced. Each Sunday, Monteverde offers a $40 whole chicken Parmesan (her winning dish from <em>Beat Bobby Flay</em>) and donates $10 to the fund for each dish sold. The restaurant also has a direct donation section on its online to-go ordering platform. </p>
<p id="H66PL6">“People are saying this [fund] is changing their lives when they didn’t have any hope,” Grueneberg says. “If you need help, take advantage of it. Don’t feel bad you’re applying for support. Part of the awareness is to fight any guilt or stigma.”</p>
<p id="vGhweP">Around the time the fund was announced, Brian Jupiter, chef and owner of <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/frontier">Frontier</a> and Ina Mae Tavern, had done some work with Diageo and Bulleit Bourbon. He learned about the Chicago fund from reps at Bulleit; the liquor brands donated $1,500 to the fund in Jupiter’s name.</p>
<p id="L4pCPL">“We have so many restaurants in Chicago, and that’s part of the downside of waiting for support from the government,” Jupiter says. “It’s a fast-paced, cash-first profession for a lot of our servers and bartenders. It makes it difficult to go from that to nothing at all. I’m leery of donating to the ‘big boys’ because the money just gets lost. This seemed like it would get into the right hands.”</p>
<p id="ReVvwl">The two wine importers — <a href="http://www.thesortingtable.com">The Sorting Table</a> and <a href="https://www.louisdressner.com">Louis Dressner Selections</a> — partnered with Chicago restaurants <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/table-donkey-and-stick-5">Table, Donkey and Stick</a> and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/pizza-friendly-pizza">Pizza Friendly Pizza</a> to hold a fundraiser December 10 where people paid $75 for a special pizza, a bottle of sangiovese wine, and a Zoom pizza party. Ten percent of the money raised — about $300 — went to the fund. </p>
<p id="zV85hM">ABC 7 Chicago’s Steve Dolinsky hosted a similar fundraising event at <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/pizza-lobo">Pizza Lobo</a>. Dolinsky — who also runs Pizza City USA Tours with his wife Amy Dordek — created 16 focaccia crusts for four different pizza flavors named for streets or neighborhoods in Chicago (like Pilsen and Harlem Avenue) and sold pieces for $7. He also raised $2,200 by selling a Breville and an Ooni pizza oven.</p>
<p id="y8rUji">“I wanted to do something to help and didn’t know what I could do short of supporting restaurants by ordering,” Dolinsky says. “I wanted to give a check that was going to directly help people.”</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="Food Network &amp; Cooking Channel New York City Wine &amp; Food Festival presented by Capital One - Dinner with Sarah Grueneberg, Angie Rito and Scott Tacinelli part of the Bank of America Dinner Series" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/pqO7Nha6zppGuEIS70sL0MlxxqQ=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/22202287/1175363879.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Kris Connor/Getty Images for NYCWFF</cite>
<figcaption>Monteverde’s Sarah Grueneberg is raising money for Southern Smoke, a group from her native Houston.</figcaption>
</figure>
<h3 id="OhA42Z">Helping Chicago hospitality workers </h3>
<p id="bbjcpx">While many more people can still benefit from the fund, a good number of folks have already received money to cover a variety of financial needs. When 23-year-old Ashley Collins, who is pregnant and has custody of her 16-year-old brother, got laid off temporarily from her job, she received a one-time disaster relief payment, but that only went so far. She applied for a grant to help pay rent to a family friend who let them stay in their basement as well as her credit card and phone bills. The fund awarded her $800. </p>
<p id="0d43bL">Peter Mohawk, 62, works as a server for Levy Restaurants’ properties at the <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/united-center">United Center</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/wrigley-field">Wrigley Field</a>, and Ravinia, and has basically had no income since the middle of March. He collects unemployment, but has high medical bills and sought assistance to help pay for his health insurance premium. The fund awarded him $1,320. Amie Autentrieth received an undisclosed amount to help with mortgage payments and groceries. She’s a 39-year-old single mother who got laid off from her restaurant job twice due to the suspension of indoor dining by the government.</p>
<p id="NnsM20">While the fund awards money only to those who have worked in restaurants, bars, or coffee shops in Chicago, the national Southern Smoke Foundation fund is open to anyone who works in the food and beverage supply chain: farmers, distillery and winery workers, food and alcohol delivery drivers, and more. During the pandemic, Southern Smoke has granted $4.3 million to 2,200 people nationwide. In November, <a href="https://houston.eater.com/2020/11/30/21725996/david-chang-who-wants-to-be-a-millionaire-southern-smoke-win-one-million-charity">restaurateur David Chang</a> brought the organization $1 million after winning <em>Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?</em></p>
<p id="CTdITk">The organization continues to accept applications. Chicago restaurant workers can apply grants <a href="https://southernsmoke.org/chicago-relief-fund/">at the link</a>.</p>
<aside id="ZKPiJf"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"chicago-eater"}'></div></aside>
https://chicago.eater.com/2020/12/29/22204442/southern-smoke-foundation-chicago-relief-fund-restaurants-covid-19-how-to-helpAri Bendersky2020-11-23T16:45:00-06:002020-11-23T16:45:00-06:00Ex-Publican Chef Transforms North Shore Stalwart With Ghost Kitchens
<figure>
<img alt="An outdoor patio." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/FGLcuS904qK8VLcNR12cN1I--6o=/0x0:1735x1301/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/67867298/048.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Guildhall | Guildhall [Official Photo]</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Guildhall in Glencoe shows how one suburban restaurant is trying to survive the pandemic</p> <p id="xR0Dio">Upscale restaurant <a href="http://www.guildhallrestaurant.com">Guildhall</a>, which opened in Glencoe a little more than seven years ago, has undergone some changes during the pandemic. They’ve launched a series of new concepts as a ghost kitchen — a takeout-only restaurant with online-only ordering — under the supervision of a new executive chef, a veteran of one of the city’s most successful restaurant groups.</p>
<p id="QPE7o2">Like most restaurants, Guildhall has experienced a rollercoaster since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Justin Large coming on board as executive chef has allowed the team to focus and quickly pivot as Gov. J.B. Pritzker initiates, removes, and then reinstates dining restrictions. </p>
<p id="FBIEyE">For the past 10 months, Large has guided Guildhall, a New American restaurant in the North Shore. Large spent 15 years with One Off building his culinary chops at various restaurants, including <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/blackbird">Blackbird</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/avec-2">Avec</a>, and Publican, ultimately serving as culinary director before leaving in 2015 to move to Michigan. He returned to Chicago in 2018 to work with the fast-casual, healthy-leaning Left Coast Food & Juice (a chain that featured recipes from One Off co-founder Paul Kahan).</p>
<p id="mvzKfA">Another One Off connection — former Publican chef Brian Huston — pushed Large to join Guildhall and investor Jeff Shapack, the namesake behind real estate development company Shapack Partners. Shapack is a Guildhall partner. </p>
<p id="3F88mr">At the time, Shapack and Guildhall creators Jennifer and Alec Litowitz, (founder of Magnetar Capital), looked to start a restaurant group and expand their offerings in the North Shore, starting with a high-quality sushi concept. Large and the owners had started developing the sushi spot while brainstorming others. Then the pandemic hit.</p>
<p id="yfD29G">“Ultimately, we wanted to grow this into a restaurant group in the North Shore in the style of <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/boka">Boka</a> [Restaurant Group], Hogsalt, and One Off,” Large says. “We were going to do highly curated individualized concepts. It’s a waiting game now.” </p>
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<h3 id="mtRHyG">Introducing high-quality sushi </h3>
<p id="BukXEP">The first venture was to be <a href="https://www.eattoridasu.com">Tori Dasu</a>, but with the pandemic, it didn’t make sense to open a new standalone restaurant. Instead, they created this pop-up sushi concept available for takeout orders, fitting it under Guildhall’s umbrella and making it available via Tock. To accommodate for that, Large removed the bar sinks and rails, since the large Guildhall bar wasn’t being used for service, and installed prep tables, new sinks, and refrigeration for the sushi concept.</p>
<p id="p7mrki">Tori Dasu, which offers a curated selection of appetizers like miso soup, gyoza, and zuke salmon sashimi; nigiri, sashimi, and various rolls; and sake, was a quick hit with locals. It allowed Guildhall to diversify its offerings and accommodate more diners looking for variety. Large also reworked the Guildhall menu, which shifted during lockdown to more simple family-friendly dishes, to feature items like char-grilled beef tenderloin; confit duck leg; Faroe Island salmon; fish and chips; and now Neapolitan-style pizza, a passion of Large’s. They continue to also offer frozen treats from <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/pretty-cool-ice-cream">Pretty Cool Ice Cream</a> owner Dana Salls Cree. She’s yet another One Off connection as the former pastry chef at Publican and Blackbird. </p>
<p id="6tCc8D">“With COVID, we’ve had to think outside the box and create excitement around the restaurant,” Large says. “People come for the food, the room, and the experience. Take 75 percent of that away and you’re left with our food in takeout boxes. That wasn’t the experience we are known for.”</p>
<h3 id="GBd6b8">Greenhouses and burgers for winter warmth</h3>
<p id="nFceac">Now with winter looming, the Guildhall team hopes to capitalize on outdoor dining. They researched various structures to allow for a longer outdoor dining season, but what they found didn’t suit their needs. So instead, they’re having 12 polycarbonate greenhouses custom built that will span the sidewalk and extend into the parking lot to create a Christkindlmarket-like vibe, Large says. Jennifer Litowtiz adds they’ll string up LED lighting and have proper ventilation and heating, which was approved by the local fire marshal. Each greenhouse will seat up to six comfortably and will be 8-feet-tall, allowing for better air flow. They’re working on this project with neighboring Hometown Coffee & Juice owners Lou and Julie Rubin to create a little outdoor dining village.</p>
<p id="RRlWm8">“The intent is to provide people the opportunity to dine on site and be adventurous,” Litowitz says. “People are game for that.”</p>
<p id="4mfNyd">The hope is for the greenhouses, which aim to open in the next few weeks, to provide diners with a fun, heated outdoor dining experience well into winter. That will only allow for a more robust business as Large will soon introduce a third ghost kitchen option to the 4,500-square-foot Glencoe space with a new burger concept, with a working name of BurgerGuild. </p>
<p id="0FFjuk">“We’ll turn out tasty, gritty fast food-esque burgers, fries, onion rings, and shakes,” Large says. “Think In-N-Out meets <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/small-cheval-2">Small Cheval</a>.”</p>
<p id="zWEBnV">BurgerGuild’s menu will comprise 4-ounce patties of pasture-raised Angus beef; Amish ABF ground turkey; and Impossible Burgers to cover a variety of dietary needs. Those will get prepared either “classic” (char-grilled single or double patty served with ketchup, garlic mayo, lettuce, tomato, onion, and choice of cheese on a toasted sesame seed bun); “royale” (char-grilled single or double patty served with housemade pickles and secret sauce, shredded iceberg lettuce, and Merkts cheddar on a toasted sesame seed bun); or a weekly rotating special highlighting riffs on some of Large’s favorite burgers around the country. He plans to use Homer’s Ice Cream for the shakes and have a small beer list featuring local brewers like <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/cruz-blanca">Cruz Blanca</a> and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/revolution-brewing-2">Revolution Brewing</a>. </p>
<p id="bGZej4">While a pizza concept isn’t likely to get added anytime soon, mostly due to space, if the pandemic keeps restaurants on hold for the longer term, Large can’t rule it out. </p>
<p id="l7Is8Z">“Depending how the pandemic plays out in the next year will certainly drive business decisions,” Large says. “Thankfully I’ve had a lot of experience in fast casual and have vocalized that may be the future for us.”</p>
<p id="RGHQTm">Sounds like the future is now. </p>
<aside id="QeUj6H"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"chicago-eater"}'></div></aside>
https://chicago.eater.com/2020/11/23/21574073/guildhall-glencoe-ghost-kitchen-virtual-restaurantsAri Bendersky2020-10-21T10:34:08-05:002020-10-21T10:34:08-05:00‘Boystown’ Restaurant and Bar Owners React to Dropping Neighborhood Name
<figure>
<img alt="Rainbow pylons and plaques commemorating the life and work of notable LGBTQ individuals on Halstead St in Boystown, Lakeview." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8DgzJdllZkoXMxinzmNXo0rLxP8=/525x0:4732x3155/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/67666136/GAYCHICAGO_062820_10.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Change could be on its way to Boystown. | Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Although it’s a home to the wide spectrum of LGBTQ people, the neighborhood’s long-established name only referenced a sliver of that community</p> <p class="p--has-dropcap p-large-text" id="1MKeXO">Is a neighborhood by any other name still the same neighborhood — and will changing its name change what happens there? </p>
<p id="DMeB6v">That’s a question that arose after the Northalsted Business Alliance announced in September it would no longer use “Boystown” in its marketing of the neighborhood. The alliance, which comprises businesses in the East Lakeview neighborhood stretching along Halsted Street between Barry Street and Irving Park Road, conducted an eight-week survey of nearly 8,000 people over the summer to determine if those living in or visiting the LGBTQ enclave felt excluded by the name Boystown. The survey came after a petition <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/ct-life-renaming-boystown-petition-07102020-20200710-wzfqwqshefa5tgh34kd7phxdgu-story.html">circulated in July</a> calling out systemic racism, sexism, and transphobia in the neighborhood. </p>
<div class="c-float-right"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt="“Boystown” flags hang on street poles on North Halsted Street near West Roscoe Street on the North Side." data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/KAJQwyG73ZdOnhK641LxdpYsxi8=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/21976684/BOYSTOWN_10XX20_10.jpg">
<cite>Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times</cite>
<figcaption>Boystown has been a controversial name of late.</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p id="nSsFGO">When the survey results were made public, many people thought that the neighborhood’s name would change, but, to be clear, the business alliance hasn’t advocated for an official renaming: It has only said it would stop using Boystown when marketing the neighborhood’s events and businesses. Boystown has been a widely accepted nickname for this portion of Lakeview since around the early ’80s, but it has never been the official neighborhood name. </p>
<p id="qlmjLG">But does that matter? Will the alliance’s change stop people from calling the area Boystown, and will it affect whether people patronize local businesses? </p>
<p id="QiaqbF">While 80 percent of survey respondents say they did not feel unwelcome by the Boystown name and 58 percent favored keeping the name intact, the alliance still felt that by not taking a step to be more inclusive, it could alienate a part of the population that does not identify as “boys,” thereby leaving them feeling unwelcome in what has been known as “Chicago’s Proudest Neighborhood.”</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="The Lucky Horseshoe Lounge at 3169 N. Halsted St. in Boystown on the North Side." data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/rIoqc4dicySaeUnnLPnYnN7pEyY=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/21976687/BOYSTOWN_10XX20_01.jpg">
<cite>Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times</cite>
<figcaption>The Lucky Horseshoe is on Halsted, between Belmont and Briar.</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="0xRUUt">“I think it illustrates that we need to listen to the neighborhood and continue to change,” says Micah Hilgendorf, who owns the North End and Lucky Horseshoe Lounge. “I’m glad the call to recognize it wasn’t a name for everybody was heard, and I hope we can respond to things like this in the future as quickly.”</p>
<p id="msrrRl">Hilgendorf, like other restaurant and bar owners in the area, doesn’t feel the marketing changes will affect his business. In fact, he thinks the Boystown name doesn’t have much impact on his success. </p>
<p id="slZC4y">“The North End identifying as a gay bar didn’t deter customers from coming in,” Hilgendorf says. “The straight folks who found themselves there — whether that was the first place with seats or the closest bathroom on the way back from a Cubs game — ended up staying and having a good time.”</p>
<p id="23WCgE"><strong>A mixed crowd</strong></p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="D.S. Tequila Company at 3352 N. Halsted St. in Boystown on the North Side" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/aPJks-a8MwxPK_R3q9GNPnvOwiA=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/21976678/BOYSTOWN_10XX20_06.jpg">
<cite>Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times</cite>
<figcaption>D.S. Tequila in Boystown.</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="EJi8Az">Franco Gianni not only owns Wood, a popular New American restaurant on Halsted known for its shareable plates and quality cocktails, but he’s also lived in the neighborhood for 22 years. He mostly refers to the neighborhood as Boystown when traveling. </p>
<p id="kUF97Y">“People from outside of Chicago refer to the area as Boystown,” Gianni says. “That’s how they know it and find it when they come to Chicago from another city.”</p>
<p id="FzMyBB">Gianni says his clientele is fairly mixed, which he feels reflects the neighborhood’s demographics over the last couple of decades — and they’re still coming in to eat and drink. </p>
<p id="Cx0N0o">“I’ve seen a wide mix of people while living here for 22 years,” he says. “I don’t think the name deterred people in the LGBTQ community from being here.”</p>
<p id="BhBdNf">That sentiment is shared by Rose Pohl, who since 1978 has co-owned the Closet — a popular queer bar — with Judi Petrouski. Due to its location on Broadway, just a couple of blocks east of Halsted, the Closet is not part of the Northalsted Business Alliance. But people still call that area Boystown.</p>
<p id="QHs6ut">“If we change it to Northalsted, it’s still going to be Boystown,” Pohl says. “With all the problems we have in the gay community right now, like [the GOP] trying to take away gay marriage, this is the last thing we need to think about.”</p>
<p id="RZcCpp">Stu Zirin, with his business partner, John Dalton, owns <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/d-s-tequila-company">D.S. Tequila Company</a> and used to own the now-closed <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/minibar">Minibar</a>. Zirin also sits on the board of the business alliance. Several years ago, Zirin didn’t want to use Boystown to market D.S. Tequila, because, he admits, “If I wanted to get the straight guys from Wrigleyville to come watch a game, I didn’t know how comfortable they’d be.” He now says that attitude has changed.</p>
<p id="Ea0LIv">“The culture has changed,” Zirin says. “People accepted the name.” That said, as a board member — and as a Halsted strip business owner who early on hired trans people at D.S. — he has always strived to be inclusive.</p>
<p id="yu0Rs2">“We’ve always been open and welcoming,” Zirin says. “I’ve been discriminated against and I would never discriminate.”</p>
<p id="erkYkT"><strong>Bigger issues than a name</strong></p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="The exterior of a restaurant." data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/SFv724dXlIFeRXpwsS6n2c_5jKw=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/21976681/BOYSTOWN_10XX20_04.jpg">
<cite>Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times</cite>
<figcaption>Chicago Diner is a popular vegetarian restaurant in Boystown.</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="Ng2Een">Local businesses face a more pressing issue with the COVID-19 pandemic. Like most other hospitality businesses, those in this area also feel the pain of reduced capacity.</p>
<p class="c-end-para" id="MEUQzs">“COVID is a bigger issue than the name,” says Mickey Hornick, owner of iconic vegetarian restaurant the <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/chicago-diner-2">Chicago Diner</a> (its motto is “meat-free since ‘83”). “We do carry-out and delivery, but not dine in. My staff didn’t want to wait on customers with masks, and we don’t blame them. We’re doing what we think is correct, but what good will it do us if we’re not there? That’s the main thing on all of our minds. Winter is coming. It’s a very difficult time.”</p>
<aside id="7mcwLx"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"chicago-eater"}'></div></aside><p id="leXgqV"></p>
<p id="7B09k0"></p>
<p id="8YAdCi"></p>
https://chicago.eater.com/2020/10/21/21523686/boystown-name-change-chicago-gayborhood-northalsted-business-allianceAri Bendersky2020-07-02T15:00:00-05:002020-07-02T15:00:00-05:00As COVID-19 Closes Restaurants, Expect No Rush to Fill Real Estate Vacancies
<figure>
<img alt="A neon sign over a road." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/zDyuf-ZlfMH4kan0cg9I2WSIOPw=/112x0:1508x1047/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/67011782/49975415523_5c69cda286_h.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Fulton Market has some of Chicago’s most pricey real estate. | <a class="ql-link" href="http://bbphoto.com" target="_blank">Barry Brecheisen</a>/Eater Chicago</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Restaurants often revolve around real estate opportunities</p> <p class="p--has-dropcap" id="O6OywM">When the novel coronavirus pandemic initially hit Chicago back in March and Gov. J.B. Pritzker ordered all restaurants and bars to close to in-room dining, a panic soared throughout the hospitality industry. Thousands of establishments shut their doors immediately for indoor dining, leaving countless people out of work. Many questions arose: When could restaurants fully reopen? How many might not return? What would Chicago’s retail landscape look like with so much restaurant vacancy? </p>
<p id="ETS8DF">Restaurants that stayed open for delivery and carryout business saw an 80 percent drop in sales, the Illinois Restaurant Association said at the time. Indoor dining, which just restarted, has to follow the same social distance guidelines as outdoor dining. Owners have to ensure tables are set six feet apart and staff have to wear masks. Chicago then also introduced a program to close streets heavily populated with restaurants in various parts of the city — Lakeview, Chatham, and Little Italy, for example — to allow expanded outdoor seating to bolster business. Lakeview is the only neighborhood where the program has commenced as of yet.</p>
<p id="2nRZHe">When restaurants, bars, and brewery taprooms resumed seating on-premise customers on June 26, the state required restricting seating to 50 people or less. In many cases, this reduces patron capacity to 25 percent of normal — not enough for a business to thrive, let alone survive. The restaurant association estimates that 20 to 25 percent of all restaurants will permanently close due to COVID-19, while the Independent Restaurant Coalition, <a href="https://media-cdn.getbento.com/accounts/cf190ba55959ba5052ae23ba6d98e6de/media/EmH1JsVMRNylmKAeF2FJ_Report.pdf">a national restaurant industry lobby</a>, estimates upward of 85 percent of independent restaurants nationwide risk closing by the end of 2020. Some wonder if a restaurant bubble had emerged in the last few years and if COVID-19 possibly sped up its burst.</p>
<p id="1EEDRm">“There’s no question the industry had become oversaturated with really aggressive unit growth,” says Melissa Wilson, a principal in the advisory services group at Technomic, a research and consulting firm for the food industry. “As there was a need for correction, I would have expected to see more slowing of chain growth. But it’s the independent operators that will be suffering. They don’t necessarily have the capital reserves to sustain.”</p>
<p id="t9mkJT">Closures have already started. Since the onset of the pandemic, a number of Chicago’s restaurants <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/5/12/21254955/chicago-restaurant-closings-coronavirus">have permanently shut down</a> including <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/6/30/21307710/blackbird-cafe-cancale-closed-chicago-one-off-hospitality-covid-19">Blackbird</a>, Toast, Ditka’s, Fahlstrom’s Fresh Fish Market, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/income-tax">Income Tax</a>, Jeri’s Grill, Congas, Taqueria Sabor y Sazon, Trattoria No. 10, and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/simply-it">Simply It</a>. Restaurants without enough revenue or access to government loans may shutter; estimates say 1,500 of Chicago’s approximately 7,500 restaurants may not reopen. If that happens, a glut of real estate may sit vacant for the foreseeable future, which could point to opportunities for others.</p>
<div class="p-fullbleed-block"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A rent sign far above street level on Wells Street in Old Town." data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/r3AYqS7Lzt_FPCJueAIuYqSr7nc=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/20064113/49970711271_081a36ab53_h.jpg">
<cite><a class="ql-link" href="http://bbphoto.com" target="_blank">Barry Brecheisen</a>/Eater Chicago</cite>
<figcaption>A rent sign far above street level on Wells Street in Old Town.</figcaption>
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<p id="0CGouU"><strong>New opportunities arising from closures</strong></p>
<p id="y1oSec">“It’s likely there will be higher than normal vacancy,” says Michael Wexler, principal of Canvas Real Estate Collective. “Restaurants are in survival mode. Some have already pulled the plug, but many others intend to reopen. I believe it will be tough for operators once they start fully reopening. Others who have concepted new business models will be able to take advantage of vacant space as well. Opportunities that may have not been available before will present themselves to the survivors and new ventures.”</p>
<p id="SWlnVK">Faced with vacant retail space, but also sometimes out of compassion, many landlords are working with restaurant tenants to help keep them in business through rent abatement and, in some cases, reduced rent. </p>
<p id="fwu1PB">“We’ve been really candid with our tenants and are working with each one individually,” says Gino Battaglia, who, along with his wife, Bernadette, owns many spaces around the city housing restaurants, including <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/brindille">Brindille</a>, the recently shuttered 25 Degrees, and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/prosecco">Prosecco</a> in River North; <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/chef-s-special-cocktail-bar-2">Chef’s Special Cocktail Bar</a> and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/small-cheval-2">Small Cheval</a> in Bucktown; and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/california-clipper">California Clipper</a> in Humboldt Park. The Clipper <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/5/28/21273155/california-clipper-cc-ferns-closed-hogsalt-humboldt-park">recently closed amid</a> a bit <a href="https://blockclubchicago.org/2020/05/28/california-clipper-landlord-says-he-tried-to-help-owner-save-beloved-bar-hopes-it-will-carry-on/">of controversy</a>. “We have some really good people as tenants and we want to keep them. If they don’t have a business, their employees are out of a job. This virus, it’s going to take some time to work our way through — a year or two before we get back to a normal situation. In the meantime, we have to adjust.”</p>
<p id="sdTJ31"><strong>Neighborhood restaurants may benefit </strong></p>
<p id="dU55Lv">One positive is that this experience may be a boon to neighborhood restaurants, where quality spaces may open up with lower rents.</p>
<p id="0CEMcp">“I think there will be silver linings in the next 24 months,” says Marcus Sullivan, assistant vice president of SVN’s restaurant resource group. “There will be opportunities for groups to get into spaces that were too expensive or had too much competition. [Some] will step into second-generation spaces and get into neighborhoods that were too cost prohibitive in the past. I’m hopeful that will help the neighborhoods bounce back quicker.”</p>
<p id="5mIEIp">That sentiment is felt among many in the restaurant industry. People likely feel more comfortable staying closer to home, as they may know a restaurant owner or staff at a favorite local place.</p>
<p id="09WoFn">“I think this will be the resurgence of a lot of the neighborhoods,” says Scott Weiner, co-owner of the Fifty/50 Restaurant Group, which owns 19 restaurants and bars around the city, including Roots Pizza, West Town Bakery, the Fifty/50, Berkshire Room, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/utopian-tailgate">Utopian Tailgate</a>, and <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/portsmith">Portsmith</a>. “People feel comfortable in their neighborhoods. They can walk or drive.”</p>
<p id="nfq09F">Weiner, along with partner Greg Mohr, bought the buildings that house many of their neighborhood restaurants, where they’ve operated with carryout and delivery since the government-mandated shut down. Weiner says they were current on all their payments, but adds that their two banks — Wintrust and Gold Coast Bank, both local — have worked with them to stay in business. That said, he still has concerns. Weiner feels the local governments, which collect real estate taxes, have to work with local businesses, otherwise more issues may arise.</p>
<p id="SbRYHW">“It’s fair to say our buildings are only worth the occupancy we can put in them,” Weiner says. “My buildings are essentially worthless if no one can go in them. If the law won’t know when we’ll have 100 percent occupancy, the reality is my building is worth half the price, so I shouldn’t have to pay real estate taxes on that amount.” </p>
<div class="p-fullbleed-block"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/cTBakT-7e_8-aXIjqudJqlppaSQ=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/20064118/49970192118_3a511a27ac_h.jpg">
<cite><a class="ql-link" href="http://bbphoto.com" target="_blank">Barry Brecheisen</a>/Eater Chicago</cite>
<figcaption>Sidewalk diners enjoy food at Prosecco in River North.</figcaption>
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<p id="lvRLEA"><strong>Independent owners adjust</strong></p>
<p id="lxUzeq">Independently owned establishments likely feel the pandemic’s crush more than large restaurant groups or chains. While some have continued to operate, they faced even slimmer-than-normal margins.</p>
<p id="kJHMAq">“The family has had to take pay decreases,” says Jonathan Zaragoza, whose family owns <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/birrieria-zaragoza">Birrieria Zaragoza</a> in Archer Heights on Chicago’s Southwest Side, which continued to offer takeout throughout the pandemic. “We own our building and we made [our monthly] payments. We put the restaurant first. If there’s no restaurant, there’s no anything for us. We’re making sure we’re doing all we can to stay afloat.”</p>
<p id="Wz3jsS">The Zaragozas are far from alone in doing whatever is needed to save their business. Stephanie Hart, who owns the 16-year-old <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/brown-sugar-bakery">Brown Sugar Bakery</a> in Chatham (with other still-closed locations on Navy Pier and in the Austin neighborhood), closed when the COVID-19 crisis hit; she slowly started reopening around Mother’s Day. Hart is looking at setting up a farmers market inside the Austin location and possibly even adding a bakery truck to do mobile pop-ups around the city. Hart leases her space on 75th Street and so far things look positive. She was able to secure a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan in the second round of funding and also has a good relationship with her landlord.</p>
<p id="f2n29J">“My landlord told me I didn’t have to pay rent until I got some money,” Hart admits. “He didn’t put any pressure on me. Everybody was trying to help everybody. When I got the PPP, I started paying him. I didn’t feel crushed. I didn’t have anyone pressuring me.”</p>
<p id="8NwYQm"><strong>Fighting toward a new normal</strong></p>
<p id="3lnZhK">While there’s much uncertainty about restaurants’ survival, people have remained optimistic about what the future may bring. </p>
<p id="RBQCk9">“Reopening and moving forward has to be calculated and done right,” SVN’s Sullivan says. “The road to getting back to normal is compounded by additional pressures. People who were going to do deals are pausing now. The best course of action, unfortunately, is to sit back and wait.”</p>
<p id="xNhiFF">While that may be true for new deals, current restaurateurs are pushing forward with everything they have to ensure they have a future.</p>
<p class="c-end-para" id="ojeUdl">“I’m just living to fight another day,” Fifty/50’s Weiner adds. “I’m not making money [right now], but I know we’ll be around to fight that next battle.”</p>
<aside id="NwfEdt"><div data-anthem-component="newsletter" data-anthem-component-data='{"slug":"chicago-eater"}'></div></aside><p id="Jzvc6Y"></p>
<p id="RuVvxA"> </p>
https://chicago.eater.com/2020/7/2/21301141/chicago-restaurants-real-estate-market-coronavirus-rentAri Bendersky2020-04-09T13:30:00-05:002020-04-09T13:30:00-05:00COVID-19 Has Crushed Convention Business for Hotels, an Overlooked Part of the Hospitality Industry
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<img alt="The exterior of a hotel entrance, with an overhang and lights." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/xw30_jlPlBI-4aJnndWHsa-xkj8=/90x0:1511x1066/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/66630084/39390840700_fb68c50429_h.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Hotel Zachary stands across Wrigley Field in Chicago. | <a class="ql-link" href="http://bbphoto.com" target="_blank">Barry Brecheisen</a>/Eater Chicago</figcaption>
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<p>A decline in tourism and canceled culinary events were only the start of trouble</p> <p id="sBI4DV">Let’s be honest: Chicagoans love playing host to the many visitors the city welcomes each year. They’re known to show off their gorgeous lakefront, Riverwalk, and vast parks; boost their sports teams; tout their numerous free music festivals; and, of course, lay claim to being one of the best dining cities in the world. All of these things add up to Chicago seeing massive amounts of tourist and business traffic each year, especially in summer. </p>
<p id="xSRmEb">Because of the increased annual traffic, Chicago has experienced a tourism and hotel boom in recent years, with numerous new properties, like the Hoxton, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/hotel-zachary">Hotel Zachary</a>, and St. Jane, opening their doors. The city welcomed 59.5 million visitors in 2019, with a little more than 34 million staying at least one night and filling many of those rooms, according to Choose Chicago, the city’s tourism arm.</p>
<p id="Y5AGv1">Annual culinary-focused events like the National Restaurant Show and the James Beard Awards helped drive even more traffic in the last year, boosting Chicago’s restaurant scene. <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/one-off-hospitality-group">One Off Hospitality Group</a>’s Paul Kahan talked <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/4/2/21204249/paul-kahan-one-off-hospitality-covid-19-coronavirus">about how convention-goers</a> regularly filled his restaurants. With the city showing an excellent start to 2020 from large-scale events like the NBA All-Star Game and returning conventions, Chicago was on track for another fantastic year where tourism was concerned.</p>
<p id="j4vqxR">Then the COVID-19 crisis happened, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/2020/3/15/21180768/illinois-restaurants-closed-bars-governor-pritzker-coronavirus">bringing everything to a grinding halt</a>. </p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt="A patio area with a deck, patio chairs, wooden, round tables." data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ORl-CapkrD1Eo4qx1DBu46AIEvE=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/19877069/35466574652_ba07b6e84c_h.jpg">
<cite><a class="ql-link" href="http://bbphoto.com" target="_blank">Barry Brecheisen</a>/Eater Chicago</cite>
<figcaption>The exterior of Ace Hotel Chicago.</figcaption>
</figure>
<h4 id="U4CsYh">Traffic numbers dropped dramatically</h4>
<p id="7iabir">Conventions and other events scheduled through June of this year — like the International Housewares Association’s Inspired Home Show, Ace Hardware’s spring conference, the American College of Cardiology conference, Salesforce’s Connections 2020 event, and the NRA Show — have been postponed or outright canceled. The total canceled events would have meant nearly 495,000 people visiting Chicago and booking more than 556,000 total hotel nights, according to Cynthia McCafferty, spokeswoman for Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, which owns the McCormick Place convention center. The influx of traffic to the city would have seen people dine at restaurants, take architectural boat tours, visit retail shops, see live theater or concerts, or visit one of the city’s many museums — all supporting the economy and the city’s tax revenue. But the novel coronavirus is keeping all of those people out of Chicago, equating to a huge loss in revenue and jobs. Let’s not mince words: Chicago will not see the banner year it had hoped to have. </p>
<p id="MWIV3m">“The bigger the conventions and guests in beds, the more diners in seats,” says Sam Toia, president and CEO of the Illinois Restaurant Association. “There are a lot of conventions that have been canceled. How do you make up for lost business? You just won’t. It’ll be too hard — 2020 will be shot overall for the hospitality industry. You’ll never be able to make up the numbers you’re losing in March, April, and May.”</p>
<p id="tU6U22">Since the crisis began, numerous hotels, including the Peninsula, Park Hyatt, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/soho-house-chicago">Soho House Chicago</a>, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/chicago-athletic-association">Chicago Athletic Association</a> Hotel, Sheraton Grand Chicago, Hilton Chicago, and many more around the Central Business District have all temporarily closed. <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/ace-hotel">Ace Hotel</a> has closed its West Loop location, as well as properties in London, New York, New Orleans, and others. Already on shaky financial ground before the pandemic, Trump International Hotel and Tower <a href="https://www.chicagobusiness.com/employment/trump-tower-workers-among-14000-layoffs-state-report">laid off nearly 300 workers temporarily</a>.</p>
<p id="BH9CIq">And the number of people who’ve stopped visiting Chicago compared to this time last year is way down. Between March 1 and 28, hotel occupancy is down 63 percent from 2019 and room demand is down 62 percent. Revenue per available room (RevPAR), a key metric to measure revenue and performance success, is down 66 percent, from $108.36 last year to $36.41, according to data provided by Choose Chicago via research firm STR.</p>
<p id="GxunmD">“Occupancy is in the single digits at most hotels across the city, if they’re even still open,” says Michael Jacobson, president and CEO of the Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association. “We’re getting more hotels each day deciding to suspend operations altogether. It doesn’t make financial sense to continue fighting the fight when you’re losing money every day.”</p>
<h4 id="CpalHY">Some positivity emerges</h4>
<p id="xTlQwT">Not everything is gloom and doom. The Robey in Wicker Park has kept its doors open to the public, even if the hotel only has an average of three rooms booked each night, according to GM Santiago Leon. </p>
<p id="yWUVKc">“We have a commitment to the community and to those guests who are counting on us,” Leon says. “We are a neighborhood hotel, so we still have a few people visiting family, or local people because of social distancing have decided to stay with us for a short time.”</p>
<p id="anbTGM">Normally, the Robey would employ about 95 people. The staff has shrunk to about 10, with the remainder furloughed or using accrued vacation, personal, and sick days to remain employed full time and continue to get paid and receive benefits. The view from Leon’s office overlooks the CTA Damen Blue Line station and Wicker Park’s Six Corners, and he says it’s generally quiet. He’s concerned about the other businesses in the area, but hasn’t given up hope. </p>
<p id="L2g7WP">“We remain optimistic about the future,” Leon says. “I feel blessed to have the team I have. Everyone has been extremely supportive. When times like this come, it either pushes people away or brings them closer. This team has come closer.”</p>
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<img alt="A lounge with couches, lamps, and chairs. " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/htYWfIJew7a6EeeDan-xxR2Wlwc=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/19877051/30359516154_b86f7b1c7f_h.jpg">
<cite>Nick Fochtman/Eater Chicago</cite>
<figcaption>The second-floor lounge at the Robey in Wicker Park.</figcaption>
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<p id="xT1Uwq">Other hotels have opened their doors to assist with the crisis. The Sophy Hyde Park closed to the public March 27, but started offering its rooms for free to staff at nearby University of Chicago Medical Center. This gesture is to give doctors, nurses, and other medical staff a break from their frontline work fighting the coronavirus pandemic. Gayle Conran, the Sophy’s spokeswoman, says while the hotel’s bookings had declined, it made more sense to open the doors of the Sophy’s 98 rooms to medical staff.</p>
<p id="6rJZy2">“Hospitality is about welcoming people in, giving them a place to rest and feel warm and safe for a night,” Conran writes in an email. “It made sense to use the hotel for a greater purpose and help our neighbors at UChicago Medicine as they help save lives.”</p>
<p id="j9L8Dd">On March 23, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced the city would start working with Oxford Hotels & Resorts to provide more than 1,000 rooms at some of its properties (including Hotel 166, <a href="https://chicago.eater.com/venue/hotel-felix">Hotel Felix</a>, Hotel Cass, and Hotel Julian) to people exposed to or mildly ill with COVID-19. Experts hope this saves hospitals space so they don’t have to use a bed to keep a patient who cannot return home and risk exposing family members to the virus.</p>
<p id="k4OVHY">Guests need doctor’s orders to stay, and the room and three meals a day would be free. On March 31, Hotel Essex, another participating Oxford hotel, started offering its 274 rooms for free to first responders — police officers, firefighters and paramedics — as a place to stay instead of going home and potentially putting their families at risk. </p>
<p id="2g38Zq">This program allows many hotels to remain open, operating and generating at least enough revenue to break even while also continuing to employ some staff. The cost to the city is estimated to be about $1 million to use one hotel for a 30-day period, according to Jordan Troy, deputy press secretary for Chicago. Hotel workers will continue to prepare meals, work the front desks, and clean common areas, but only Chicago Department of Public Health workers will interact with patients to deliver meals and clean linens. Chicago is the first U.S. city to have a program like this in place during the effort against the coronavirus. </p>
<p id="V3Yt3P">Jacobson says 120 hotel properties — equaling 22,000 rooms — throughout the state have volunteered to participate in the city’s program. </p>
<p id="hDkDEF">“When they’re struggling to make their own ends meet, if there’s a silver lining, it’s how many people have stepped up to help,” Jacobson says. “[This program] really covers labor, electricity, property tax — some costs so hotels will break even and remain solvent, but also helping the city. By no means are any hotels profiting off of this.”</p>
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<img alt="A hotel lounge with a modern look, with curved furniture and a wired light fixture from the ceiling. " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/4_lEsy3hJDk9mON6G8kuA06qLHI=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/19877065/2017_10_13_Lounge_v3.jpg">
<cite>Sophy Hyde Park [Official Photo]</cite>
<figcaption>The lounge at the Sophy Hyde park.</figcaption>
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<h4 id="GAGgzo">Looking ahead</h4>
<p id="pUpTQO">Hotels, restaurants, tourism, and other facets of the hospitality industry are currently struggling, but are looking toward the second half of the year and remain somewhat hopeful. They’re also thinking about the staff that had to be laid off or furloughed, and figuring out how to eventually get them back to work. </p>
<p id="fHmq5U">“Our aim is to get people back to their usual jobs as soon as possible and avoid losing team members who have become such a big part of the House,” says Soho House Chicago general manager Eric Kirkenmeier. </p>
<p id="yssLDZ">Some hotels, of course, won’t reopen; that also goes for many restaurants. Once this crisis passes, things won’t immediately come back to normal, whatever “normal” means anymore. </p>
<p id="VoEssI">“The flood gates won’t open,” Jacobson admits. “It’ll be a slow walk into growth. It’s safe to assume the industry will look very different when we come out of it. But it’s too early to project.”</p>
<p id="Vdgvvi">While it’s hard to see the forest for the trees, the hospitality industry has weathered other storms. They may not have been as swift and severe as COVID-19, but with assistance from the local, state, and federal governments, there may be a light at the end of the tunnel.</p>
<p id="AWtmVJ">“I don’t know if people are ready to throw in the towel,” the Illinois Restaurant Association’s Toia says. “People in this industry are resilient.”</p>
<p id="J7SPjg">Let’s hope he’s right. </p>
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https://chicago.eater.com/2020/4/9/21207683/covid-19-chicago-hotel-hospitality-effectsAri Bendersky2013-02-21T05:47:58-06:002013-02-21T05:47:58-06:00Get Eater's News Delivered to Your Inbox ... For Free
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https://chicago.eater.com/2013/2/21/6549727/get-eaters-news-delivered-to-your-inbox-for-freeAri Bendersky2012-11-30T05:04:00-06:002012-11-30T05:04:00-06:00Mike Ryan's West of the Moon at Sable Kitchen & Bar
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<p><em>As part of Eater's first ever <a href="http://chicago.eater.com/tags/cocktail-week-2012">Cocktail Week</a>, bartenders at five Chicago restaurants or bars made a special limited-edition cocktail, served just this week. Today we introduce the West of the Moon from Mike Ryan at Sable Kitchen & Bar.</em></p> <p><img alt="Mike-Ryan-112312.jpg" src="http://cdn2.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/1065732/Mike-Ryan-112312.0.jpg" width="500" height="334"><br><span class="credit"><em>[Photo: <a href="http://www.jasonlittlephoto.com">Jason Little</a>]</em></span></p> <p><strong>Mike Ryan</strong> is one of the most celebrated mixologists in town with a vast knowledge of modern and classic cocktails. He's incredibly inventive and he never misses an opportunity at <strong>Sable Kitchen & Bar</strong> to educate a customer or introduce them to something they may have never tasted. His West of the Moon follows suit tying together rum with a bit of heat for a perfect wintery drink.</p> <p>The drink combines Flor de Cana, a light Nicaraguan rum, with cinnamon syrup and lemon with a house-made chili tincture. It's shaken and served over a large rock of ice and garnished with a small Anaheim chili, which you can eat. "The idea is that [the chile] will sit in the drink and provide aromatic complexity to it," Ryan said. "<strong>As it sits, the cocktail gets a little spicier</strong>."</p> <p>Ryan said he's had the tincture for a while and just recently started thinking about how to use it more. "The idea of using spice and picante flavors in cocktails is more recent," he said. "And it's a good fit because Eater is always on the cutting edge of cocktail and food and drink news." You can check out the West of the Moon through the weekend for $13 at Sable. </p>
https://chicago.eater.com/2012/11/30/6518345/mike-ryans-west-of-the-moon-at-sable-kitchen-barAri Bendersky