Chicago’s Newest Restaurant Openings, Now on Resy

Surrounded by coastal blue and white colors, plus hanging wicker light fixtures that feel more Baja than Rosemont, Saltwater is the perfect setting for everything seafood. Leaning hard on Mediterranean influences, there’s everything from seafood towers brimming with chilled shellfish to pan-roasted lobster and an entire sushi and sashimi menu.

The dark teal interior, stunning design, and art deco panache give this lounge a speakeasy vibe, but it’s all in full view. Before you order your go-to martini, try something like the Trambler made with smoked gouda-washed Tequila and Campari (it works, we swear!). Food runs the gamut from nuggets to caviar and steak tartare.

For anyone who is a fan of Otto Phan’s Kyoten sushi omakase experience, this sibling restaurant allows even more opportunity to partake in pristine, wild-caught fish and exquisite presentation. Phan, who adheres to tradition but isn’t bound by it, is known to flip the switch a bit on what you think you know about sushi.

Although pegged as a steakhouse, this isn’t your garden-variety Chicago chophouse. From chef Doug Psaltis and the team behind Andros Taverna, the Basque-inspired menu leans heavily on char-grilled everything, including beef raised just for this restaurant. From the caviar churros to bone marrow potatoes, and the citrus coupe dessert, the extras are all extra.

Add this stop on your oyster crawl in the West Loop. East and west coast, grilled, chilled — they’re all represented. Once you get through the briny bivalves, think about crisp Caesar, a couple of octopus tacos, and maybe a surf and turf burrito if you’re feeling it. A martini, whether with gin, vodka, or mezcal, goes with everything.

This art-filled Evanston Mexican restaurant from Marcos Rivera (of Skokie’s Libertad) is creating a buzz with its menu of impeccable tacos and other masa-based specialties paying tribute to “zentil” — the Nahuatl word for “corn.”

You won’t go wrong with the straightforward, almost-entirely-seafood menu (sustainably sourced) at this Old Town offshoot of the well-loved Lakeview original from the same group behind Assembly and DMK Burger Bar.

Sibling to the Wilmette original, this instant hit in Lake Forest from Ballyhoo Hospitality (Andros Taverna, Pomeroy) serves up prime meats and seafood, decadent desserts, and classic cocktails. Don’t miss the signature Steak Sophia — a prime peppercorn-encrusted flat iron or filet with roasted mushrooms and Cognac cream.

Here’s a hideaway to know — a small, warmly lit, brick-walled cocktail lounge with leather bar stools and couches, original cocktails, and a small menu of irresistible bar food (potato chips with caviar, anyone?) from Meadowlark Hospitality, whose Union and Lardon are just next door.

Thassos didn’t miss a beat when it moved from its original location in Palos Hills to its new home in Clarendon Hills. Come for the friendly atmosphere, the excellent service, and the extensive menu of traditional Greek fare (including fish flown in from Greece).