The Resy Guide to Chicago’s Wine-Loving Restaurants

It may not look like that quaint Parisian bistro you remember from the Marais, but the food and wine will quickly transport you back to France at this Logan Square charmer. Chef Madalyn Durrant incorporates Midwest ingredients into regional French dishes like a fresh green salad with local lettuces; moules frites in a coconut curry sauce; or a classic roast chicken with melted leeks and fine herbs. 

Owner Matt Sussman has crafted an affordable, mostly French wine list that pairs perfectly with Durrant’s fare — or simply to sip on their own. Think: Domaine Guiberteau chenin blanc, Château Pradeaux Bandol rosé, or even a pinot noir from Stranger Wine Co. closer to home in Michigan. Even more fun is the “grab bag” cooler, where Sussman stocks well-priced hidden gems and one-off finds you can purchase to drink there or to take home with you.

Giant’s menu continues to highlight chef Jason Vincent’s tried-and-true favorites, from the blue crab salad and waffle fries to the new weekly rotating “test kitchen” specials. This lets partner Josh Perlman offer minimal intervention and natural-leaning wines to play against the food’s big, textured flavors.

The producers on Perlman’s list tend to farm organically or biodynamically, creating wines that won’t overpower, like the super drinkable Broc Cellars ‘The Badger’ nero d’avola; a complex-yet-fresh mourvedre/grenache Domaine Tempier 2023 Bandol rosé with grapefruit and tart red berries; or the mineral-rich garganega-dominant (with a bit of trebbiano) Angiolino Maule 2021 ‘Sassaia’ from the Veneto in Northern Italy. Tuck into the main dining room or reserve a spot in the backyard patio — either way, just get to Giant.

As the operator of Chicago’s first and only Lebanese tasting menu restaurant (yes, there’s also an a la carte option), chef Ryan Fakih wants to make it special. Meaning “my home,” Beity is meant to express the warmth of a Lebanese home-cooked meal. Here, that means sharing mezze — charred muhamarra, creamy hummus topped with serrano shattah (a sort of red chili paste) or lamb kafta, and smoked brown butter labneh with pickled vegetables, all served with fluffy sourdough pita. Don’t skip the manouche, a Levantine flatbread similar to a small pizza that’s topped with akawi cheese and za’atar; the arnabit, lightly charred cauliflower you can dredge through lemon tahini and aleppo sauce; or the samke harra, a slightly spicy turbot in a creamy pine nut dressing served with fragrant rice with crunchy cashews.

The wine list is equally Lebanon-centric, with numerous selections like Chateau Musar’s cinsault blend or a skin-contact blend of sauvignon blanc with indigenous white variety merwah from Mersel. You’ll also find fun global picks like a sparkling grüner veltliner from Meinklang in Austria’s Burgenland, a crisp grenache rosé from Santa Barbara’s A Tribute to Grace, or COS Cerasuolo di Vittoria blend of nero d’Avola and frappato from Sicily. It’s an eclectic list worth exploring.

The new all-day bakery, cafe, and bistro from the team behind Michelin-starred Galit just next door is a celebration of the linger-for-hours cafes in Paris and Tel Aviv. The food still celebrates Mediterranean fare and Midwestern ingredients, with chef Zach Engel and his team offering dips like a rich caramelized onion miso labneh with Yemenite flatbread; buttery tasso-adorned wood-grilled oysters; and a pounded pork loin schnitzel with maitake mushrooms. 

To help cut through the richness, beverage director Scott Stroemer expands a bit from the mostly Middle Eastern wine list at Galit. He teamed up with California’s Folk Machine wine to offer two wines on tap: a white blend mostly of tocai friulano and albariño, and a red Rhone blend. You’ll also find a zesty and acidic amphora-aged Slovenian riesling from Matic, and a juicy and spicy Martha Stouman ‘Post Filtration’ that blends zinfandel, carignan, and a smidge of pinot noir and plenty of red fruit. Lots of good cool-kid stuff here.

The restaurant’s website says all you need to know front and center: food and wine. James Beard-nominated chef-owner Ethan Pikas continues to quietly delight at this intimate, globally inspired bistro in Logan Square. The menu changes frequently (sometimes daily, based on ingredient availability), and you can count on plenty of vegetable- and seafood-focused dishes as well as the excellent aioli- and pickled Fresno chile-topped burger.

Not only is this list well curated and focused on natural wines, but we love how many picks you can find in the $50 and $60 range. That might be a high-acid, fruity grolleau from the Loire Valley, a floral, tropical, and viscous Alsatian gewurztraminer, or a youthful and bright sparkling malvasia from Emilia-Romagna, Italy — and so much more. 

After more than 25 years, Lula remains one of the city’s best restaurants — and with good reason. From the ever-rotating farm-to-table menu with standouts like the sweet-and-spicy “Yiayia” pasta, chickpea and fennel terrine (this writer’s favorite), and roast chicken with bitter greens panzanella and potatoes, you have a lot to work with, pairing-wise. Thankfully, general manager Liezl Basilio makes it easy with a spectacular wine list. 

You’ll find many Greek and Italian wines, playing off owners Jason and Lea Hammel’s Italian and Greek backgrounds, as well as wines indigenous to Spain and France. There’s plenty to choose from — Greek skin-contact moschofilero, melon de Bourgogne from the Loire Valley, a schiava/pinot noir blend from Alto Adige — but not too much that you’re overwhelmed. This is one of those lists that you know whatever you pick will spark joy. 

Good things come in small packages, and that really sums up all you need to know about mfk. This intimate subterranean Spanish restaurant near Diversey Harbor packs much sabor into a small space. The menu — with oily (in the best way) ​​boquerones, tortilla Española, and lamb albóndigas — is only enhanced by the very focused wine list. 

Here, the question isn’t whether you can find something to drink, it’s how to pick from all the excellent options. Do you get the Lagar de Condesa albariño or the Can Sumoi garnatxa blanca? Or veer off the Spanish path with the Luigi Giordano “Buschet” barbera d’Alba? Depending how the night goes, you just might try them all. 

Italian Village certainly knows a thing or two about comforting Italian-American fare, given that it’s been operating for nearly 100 years in the Loop. But they also know how to keep things fresh, by opening this new, buzzy lower-level spot. Here you’ll get cacio e pepe arancini; frutti di mare with squid ink bucatini and abundant shellfish offerings; and roasted corn risotto. 

With one of the city’s most extensive cellars, you know you’ll get some excellent options here to drink from. Thankfully they keep things focused, and you can find plenty of quality wines by the glass, like the Benanti Etna Rosso and La Spinetta timorasso. Of course, if you want to take a deep dive into Italian wine, hit the reserve list.