—Business opportunity: West Town Chamber of Commerce is offering an opportunity for businesses to lease two spaces in 2026 for short-term pop-ups. The spaces are at 1821 W. Chicago Ave. (550 square feet), at$900/month; and 1947 W. Chicago Ave. (1125 square feet), at $1,200/month.
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. The application form is here and the website is here.
And now on to culinary items…
—To market we go: Most of Chicago farmers’ markets will start in May—but not Lincoln Park’s Green City Market, which will actually begin Saturday, April 4.
By the way, the market is dedicated to expanding access to nutritious, local and sustainably produced food—which is why it triple-matches Link (also known as SNAP or EBT) up to $25. When you spend $25 of Link with Green City Market, you automatically get $50 more to spend to make your benefits go further.
—14 carrots: Levain Bakery has debuted a new Carrot Cake Cookie, inspired by the classic dessert and loaded with freshly grated carrots, sweet apricots, white chocolate chips and pecans.
There’s also the return of Levain’s Lemon Cookie, which is back for its third seasonal run and tends to disappear quickly once it hits the menu. Both cookies are available now for a limited time at Levain’s West Loop, River North and Lincoln Park bakeries.
—(Cinnamon) rolling along: Confirming what I had heard, CBS 2 Chicago reported that the flagship Ann Sather restaurant at 909 W. Belmont Ave., in Chicago’s Lake View area, will be moving later this year. (Ann Sather also has locations at 3415 N. Broadway and 1147 W. Granville Ave.)
Next door to Ann Sather (which is owned by former 44th Ward Ald. Tom Tunney), a new five-story, mixed-use building is now under construction. The building, which will feature 46 luxury apartments, is in place of a building that housed the American Vapor vape shop, Strings Ramen, BopNgrill Korean fast-food restaurant, The Gallery Bookstore and Belmont Army Vintage, along with apartments above them. Ann Sather has been located on Belmont Avenue between the CTA’s “L” tracks and Clark Street since Sather herself first took over an eatery on the block in 1945, but has moved several times.
Tunney, who has owned Ann Sather for 45 years, relayed a timeline regarding Ann Sather to me. “In 2019, I sold all the property on Belmont,” he said. “So I literally sold and leased back from the owner. It was a 10-year lease that would’ve carried me through 2029; however, I had an out clause that I would have to execute at least four years. Of course, all of this transpired before COVID—but I actually exercised my right to leave after year four.
“In June 2023, they reduced the rent but I still said I wanted a month-to-month. That was one of the reasons I didn’t want to be alderman at that time; I didn’t want people to think I had orchestrated some shenanigans, because I didn’t. The developers wanted to do a 10-story building from 909 to 925 [W. Belmont Ave.] but that would’ve required a zoning change.
“So they decided to build in two phases. The first is almost done now—and I thought I would be [at 909 W. Belmont Ave.] through 2026; however, they gave me notice about a month and a half ago that they would start demolishing in July or August, so that’s where we stand—or collapse, if you want to say it that way.”And there’s more! Find out what Tunney said about Ann Sather’s future at SAVOR with Andrew.
—Here, Kitty’s: Kitty’s Cosmopolitan Club, a new bar from Lettuce Entertain You, is open on the lower level of 51 W. Hubbard St.
The bar maintains a tight selection of 10 standout spirits per category, chosen for quality and performance in refined classics. Services include traditional tableside stirred martinis and Chicago’s first dedicated -16°F walk-in freezer cocktail station.
The team includes bar managers Tyler Maclellan and Scott Kitsmiller, along with a roster of veteran Chicago bar talents. The food menu—composed by James Beard Award-nominated Chef Thai Dang (Crying Tiger and HaiSous Vietnamese Kitchen) and Chef Bob Broskey (RPM Restaurants and Gus’ Sip & Dip)—will offer a raw bar selection and curated dim sum. David Collins Studio, responsible for the spaces of Tre Dita and Crying Tiger, collaborated on the opulent interior of Kitty’s Cosmopolitan Club.
—Boxed in: Jack in the Box officially sold Del Taco for nearly $120 million as it refocuses on its core business; however, the chain continues to struggle, with plans to close as many as 100 locations.
“We’ve always been smaller than some of these really big chains like a McDonald’s or Taco Bell, Burger King, whoever it may be. I think in order for us to be successful when they’re out there with heavy value, we’ve got to have our own consistent value,” CEO Lance Tucker said in a conference call, per Men’s Journal.
In 2024, Jack in the Box Inc. announced a significant expansion into the Chicago market with a 12-unit franchising deal. After I inquired, the company emailed me on March 24 that it’s “definitely not closing the Chicago units. We are excited about that area and we will be opening our first store in Joliet in the next 10 days or so. The first eight are company-owned.”
Current Chicagoland locations include Chicago, at 7807 S. Cicero Ave.; Countryside, at 5656 S. La Grange Rd.; 441 E. Geneva Rd., in Carol Stream; 672 E. Lincoln Hwy., in New Lenox; 9550 179th St., in Tinley Park; 320 N. Randall Rd., in Lake in the Hills; 1600 E. Ogden Ave., in Naperville; and 2101 Rte. 59, in Plainfield.
—Dance fever: End Women’s History Month with the sixth annual Let’s Talk Womxn’s “Retro Revolution Dance Party.”
This year’s celebration brings together the leading Chicago-area women restaurateurs and entrepreneurs from Let’s Talk Womxn on Tuesday, March 31, at Moe’s Cantina, 155 W. Kinzie St., 6-9 p.m. BTW, men are more than welcome. Among the women restaurateurs with offerings will be Two Fish Crab Shack’s Yasmin Curtis, Bitoy’s Sweet Treats’ Layla Bitoy-Dillon, Soul & Smoke’s Heather Bublick and Demera’s Tigist Reda.
Visit LetsTalkWomxn.com to purchase tickets for only $40 each or on Eventbrite with the keyword WOMXN.
—Not an April Fool’s Day joke: Puerto Rican restaurant Jibaritos is celebrating its 10th anniversary on Wed., April 1, by giving out free jibaritos at the Logan Square location, 3400 W. Fullerton Ave., at 7 a.m.-noon, during a celebration featuring dancers and musicians. (There is a limit of one jibarito per person.)
The jibarito is a sandwich started in Chicago that is served with flattened, fried green plantains instead of bread, creating a signature Puerto Rican–Chicago fusion dish that also includes either steak, chicken, pork or shrimp as well as garlic mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato, and American or Swiss cheese.
—Release the Hounds: On Saturday, April 4, Revolution Brewing will host a viewing party of the local rugby team the Chicago Hounds’ match against Anthem Rugby Carolina.
Highlights of the event, which starts at 3 p.m., will include discounts on the Hounds’ official beers, Cold Time and Anti-Hero; and food by Beer and Belly, including pulled-pork sliders, mac n’ cheese and more. (BTW, Chef Art Smith is a co-owner of the Hounds.)
—On a roll: Also on April 4 (and the first Saturday of each month), Sunda New Asian is inviting guests behind the sushi bar for a hands-on sushi rolling class. The class (at 333 N. Green St. and 110 W. Illinois St.) is 4-5 p.m. and is $65/person.
During this interactive experience, participants will learn the basics of sushi-making while crafting their own rolls from scratch, featuring ingredients like fresh salmon, crispy shrimp tempura and spicy tuna wrapped in perfectly seasoned sushi rice and nori. Attendees will learn classic techniques like temaki (hand-rolled cones), futomaki (traditional thick rolls) and uramaki (inside-out rolls).
—In addition, Levain Bakery’s Lincoln Park Locationis celebrating Easter with a neighborhood-wide egg hunt in Lincoln Park on Saturday, April 4, as its signature blue eggs pop up in spots like neighboring shops on Armitage Avenue and the Oz Park playground, each filled with treats and prizes. Gather the family and follow @levainbakery for real-time hints and make a day of tracking them down!
When you collect your prizes, make sure to pick up Levain’s limited-time cookies—the brand new Carrot Cake Cookie, loaded with freshly grated carrots, sweet apricots, white chocolate chips and pecans; and the Lemon Cookie.
—In case you missed it, I put out a huge Easter/Passover roundup at SAVOR with Andrew. However, don’t sleep on these additional spots that are offering specials:
- On Sunday, April 5, Duck Duck Goat is serving a festive, family-style Easter brunch ($65 on OpenTable, linked here) that starts with dim sum and ends with filling dishes. Little ones will have their very own à la carte menu; and cocktails, wine and beer will be available for the grown-ups.
- Also on Easter Sunday, Manchamanteles is offering a prix fixe menu in celebration of Easter, available for $60/person plus tax and gratuity. The menu—available for brunch/lunch and dinner on Sunday only, alongside the regular menu—includes three courses, with the choice of one appetizer, one salad, and one entrée. For the first course, choices include a seafood tostada, jalapeños rellenos or sopa Azteca; the second course includes ensalada de noche buena or Caesar salad; and for the third course, guests can choose between chile poblano divorciado, chicken in green pepián mole or red pepián (pollo divorciado), or cochinita pibil. Reservations can be made on Tock.
- Acanto will offer Easter specials and its current spring menu at 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Highlights at the Michigan Avenue spot include soft scrambled eggs with black truffle; braised lamb neck; chopped Bibb salad; and housemade rigatoni with beef-and-pancetta bolognese.
- Michael Jordan’s Steakhouse (on the Mag Mile) will have Easter brunch specials like Laura’s Cinnamon Monkey Bread, granola French toast, country ham Benedict, and filet and eggs. In addition, Australian lamb chops will be an all-day special.