10 Moments That Defined the Last Decade of Dining in Chicago
Resy turns 10 years old this summer, and we’re celebrating with a cross-country series of special experiences. A lot has happened in the last 10 years, to say the least. To mark the occasion, we’re reflecting on some of the major dining events that have shaped the dining world over the past decade.
No. 1
Fulton Market goes from meatpacking to packing in diners
— 2014 —
Whether you call it the West Loop or Fulton Market District, there’s no denying that this stretch continues to be one of Chicago’s hottest dining destinations. Now-shuttered restaurants like Vivo, Blackbird, and La Sirena Clandestina laid early ground as the original meatpacking businesses continued to flourish. But in 2014, Soho House’s début caused a tipping point. Soon, Google took over the former Cold Storage building. Three food halls opened (two have since closed). Real estate developers from New York and China scooped up warehouses and factories. Nobu and Hoxton hotels — and their respective restaurants — arrived. Michelin bestowed stars upon Ever, Mako, Sepia, Oriole, Smyth, and Elske. J.P. Graziano has, thankfully, survived. And hot restaurants (Momotarō, El Che Steakhouse, La Serre, and Maxwells Trading), bars (Bisous and Lone Wolf), and chains (Nando’s PERi-PERi and Gus’s World Famous Fried Chicken) continue to thrive.
No. 2
The James Beard Awards come to town
— 2015 —
From their inception in 1991, the James Beard Foundation Awards took place in New York. That changed in 2015 when the ritzy ceremony came to Chicago, following active lobbying by people like former mayor Rahm Emanuel, Illinois Restaurant Association president Sam Toia, and restaurateur and sommelier Alpana Singh. Chicago’s Lyric Opera continues to host the splashy red carpet event dubbed the “Oscars of the culinary world” — and will through at least 2027. Every May, the best of the best of the food world descends upon the city for a weekend of parties, events, seminars, and, of course, indulging in all the deliciousness that our restaurants and bars have to offer. The event infuses millions of dollars into the city’s economy each year — and puts a spotlight on the culinary prowess we all know happens here every day. A number of Chicago restaurants and chefs have won in recent years, led by luminaries such as Kasama and Lula Café.
No. 3
“Top Chef” influences a generation of Chicago chefs
Cutthroat cooking competition “Top Chef” filmed in Chicago in 2008, and since then, we’ve seen many local chefs compete, win, and open gangbuster restaurants here. Chicago chef Stephanie Izard won in ‘08, making our city proud, and later opened The Girl & The Goat and Cabra, among others. A slew of Chicago chefs, including Sarah Grueneberg (Monteverde), Beverly Kim (Parachute), and Richie Farina (Ever, Adorn) competed in 2011 in Texas. In 2018, Joe Flamm, then the executive chef of the (sadly) now-closed Spiaggia, took home the title. Virtue’s Damarr Brown was named a fan favorite in 2022. Most recently, three chefs — Alisha Elenz (formerly mfk.), Kaleena Bliss (Cindy’s), and Soo Ahn (Adalina) — represented Chicago. Today, the show’s influence can be felt all over the city, at the aforementioned restaurants and others where diners continue to clamor to get in.
No. 4
Mi Tocaya Antojería opens, paving the way for even more regional Mexican food
— 2017 —
Chicago has one of the most robust, diverse, and delicious Mexican food scenes anywhere outside of Mexico. Taquerias dot corners in every neighborhood. Pilsen and Little Village are home to acclaimed restaurants like 5 Rabanitos, Carnitas Uruapan, La Catedral, and Nuevo Leon. Rick Bayless helped make Chicago part of the global conversation when he opened Topolobampo and Frontera Grill more than 30 years ago. But when renowned chef Diana Dávila opened her cozy corner spot, Mi Tocaya Antojería, in Logan Square in 2017, the chatter grew louder. Her attention to authentic regional Mexican cuisine got a wider swath of diners to start seeking out more than Tex-Mex. And this opened the doors for more chefs to step up and showcase their own region’s food. Look across the city and you’ll see a range of newer Mexican restaurants pushing boundaries and highlighting different Mexican specialities, like Kie-Gol-Lanee and Cariño in Uptown, Tzuco in River North, Taqueria Chingón and Manchamanteles in Bucktown, El Xangarrito in Lincoln Square, Mariscos San Pedro in Pilsen, and even Bloom Plant Based Kitchen in Wicker Park, which explores Mexican-inspired vegan fare.
No. 5
Erick Williams helps boost Black chefs and culture in Chicago and beyond
— 2018 —
If you were to look up “quiet storm” in the dictionary, you might find a photo of chef Erick Williams. Even before he opened his nationally acclaimed, finer dining Southern restaurant Virtue in Hyde Park in 2018, Williams had already made a name for himself, climbing the ranks from line cook to executive chef at mk. But after opening Virtue, where service leads with kindness in an unpretentious setting, he also aimed to highlight underserved voices in the industry (without being preachy). His cooking quickly received national attention, getting featured in a 2019 New York Times article about Black chefs changing food in America. The following year, he was one of the first chefs to step up to feed frontline hospital workers during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic. After that, he launched the Virtue Leadership Development Program to help young people of color gain leadership and entrepreneurial skills. And he has opened a number of restaurants since, often with former Virtue employees whom he helped mentor, including Daisy’s Po-Boy and Tavern, Top This Mac & Cheese, Mustard Seed Kitchen, and the forthcoming Cantina Rosa. Today, Williams and his partners are developing commercial real estate along Bronzeville’s 47th Street to help revitalize it and bring more Black-owned business to the area.
No. 6
Tavern-style is finally recognized as the pizza of choice for real Chicagoans
— 2018 —
Tavern-style pizza is nothing new in Chicago. In fact, it dates back to the 1940s, most likely with the opening of Vito & Nick’s at 84th & Pulaski. Their cracker-crust, square-cut pizza with tomato sauce, sausage, and fresh mozzarella cheese served as an inexpensive post-work snack (with a beer, of course) for workers just getting off their factory or stockyard shift. These days, this style — also called party-cut — with its requisite four crispy corners, is ubiquitous around the city. A lot of credit is owed to food reporter Steve Dolinsky, who sang tavern-style’s praises as the true local’s choice in his 2018 book, Pizza City, USA: 101 Reasons Why Chicago is America’s Greatest Pizza Town. The sentiment was backed up on a national scale in 2023, when New York Times food writer J. Kenji López-Alt published his findings of a five-month journey to learn how to make the best tavern-style pie. So while tourists may want to hit up the famous deep-dish spots, true Chicagoans know that to get a quality thin-crust pie, you need to hit Pat’s Pizzeria, Candlelite, Bungalow by Middle Brow (especially on Tuesdays), Crust Fund Pizza (monthly), Professor Pizza, Pizza Matta, and many more, including suburban spots like Barnaby’s in Northbrook and Kim’s Uncle Pizza in Westmont.
No. 7
Omakase culture goes mainstream
— 2020 —
Back in the day, if you were to seek out sushi omakase — a high-quality, fixed-price tasting menu in which the chef decides what to serve you (omakase means “I leave it to you”) — you had just a few options. These included Tanoshii in Andersonville, Kai Zan and Arami in West Town, Juno in Lincoln Park, and, of course, the O.G. Katsu in West Rogers Park. But then, the 2020 Michelin guide awarded three omakase restaurants — Mako, Omakase Yume, and the now-closed Kikkō below Kumiko — with one star each. (Shockingly, Kyoten, from chef Otto Phan, was left out.) Since then, the city has experienced an omakase explosion with no signs of slowing: Today, there is Omakase Room at Sushi-san, Momotaro, Q Sushi, Omakase Shoji & Izakaya, Kyoten Next Door, Jinsei Motto, Raisu, Sushi by Bou, and Sushi by Scratch. There’s even Japanese-Mexican sushi at Casa Madai and a new all-beef omakase at Bonyeon (from the owners of Omakase Yume). The list goes on, and Chicagoans now have more access to high-quality raw fish than ever before.
Resy at 10
No. 8
Covid wreaked havoc on the entire industry
— 2020 —
Friday March 20, 2020 could have marked the end of Chicago’s vibrant restaurant scene. That day, Illinois governor J.B. Pritzker announced a stay-at-home order, forcing all restaurants and bars to shut down indefinitely. Workers got furloughed or laid off altogether. Restaurant owners and chefs scrambled to figure out their next moves. Once-lively dining rooms transformed into markets overnight. Chefs and restaurateurs like Virtue’s Erick Williams, Mi Tocaya’s Diana Dávila, and Kimski’s and Marz Community Brewing’s Ed Marszewski banded together to feed frontline workers and nonprofit organizations. Numerous restaurants, including Blackbird, Cafe Marie-Jeanne, Toast, Everest, Passerotto, Income Tax, La Sardine, Kiki’s Bistro, Taqueria Sabor y Sazon, and so many more closed permanently. Social backlash forced a reckoning within the industry against toxic workplaces. But much innovation took place. Ghost kitchens sprung up and became the hottest thing around. Legislation passed that allowed bars to offer to-go cocktails. Outdoor dining took over entire blocks. Takeout windows appeared where plain brick walls once stood. Eventually, the world started opening back up, and so did restaurants.
No. 9
Kasama becomes the first Filipino restaurant to win a Michelin star
— 2022 —
People often say if you see a line outside a restaurant, get in it. Fewer places deserve that wait than Kasama, chef power couple Genie Kwon and Tim Flores’ modern Filipino East Ukrainian Village institution. A casual breakfast and lunch spot, where Kwon’s lauded pastries and Flores’ beloved breakfast sandwich always draw the crowds, turns into an upscale tasting menu restaurant each night for dinner. In 2022, Kasama became the world’s first Michelin-starred Filipino restaurant, followed by a James Beard win for the couple in 2023. Their success has helped open the doors to other less Western-centric restaurants — Indienne, Coach House by Zubair Mohajir, Hermosa, Khmai Cambodian, Maman Zari, Bayan Ko 2.0, Minyoli — that continue to dominate the culinary conversation.
No. 10
“The Bear” puts a spotlight on Chicago
— 2022-present —
There’s no denying that FX darling “The Bear” has taken the small screen by storm. Season one showed Chicago in a favorable, albeit chaotic, light and gave what seemed like every visitor to the city the excuse to down a dipped Mr. Beef sandwich. Superdawg and Roeser’s Bakery both got a little love and Loaf Lounge co-owner Sarah Mispagel-Lustbader may now have the most famous chocolate cake in America. But season two was truly a love letter to our culinary scene. From Sydney’s epic day eating around the city — Kasama, Avec, Giant, Pizza Lobo, Publican Quality Meats, Lao Peng You, Margie’s Candies — to cameos from some of our top restaurant folk, including One Off Hospitality partner Donnie Madia, Publican Quality Meats head butcher Rob Levitt, Elske chef-owner David Posey, Avec chef Dylan Patel, and Ever’s director of hospitality Amy Cordell. It was at Ever, chef Curtis Duffy’s two-Michelin-starred restaurant, that the fictional Richie stages to become a front-of-house whiz, alongside a chef played by Olivia Colman. Season three continues the love affair with the city, but that’s all we’ll say about it, for now.
Ari Bendersky, a lifestyle journalist specializing in food, wine, spirits, and travel, is the author of Something Glorious with Ari Bendersky on Substack. Follow him on Instagram and Twitter. Follow Resy, too.
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