The Resy Hit List: Where In Chicago You’ll Want to Eat Right Now

This Nashville-based pizza favorite spent a year in West Town before settling into its new home adjacent to Parson’s Chicken & Fish in mid-February. The neighborhood might be new, but you’ll find the same tavern-style pies and great drinks. Build your own party-cut style or get the cacio e pepe or peppy boy with hot honey, and don’t sleep on starters like garlic Parm tots and wings. Drinks cover a lot of ground, from draught beers and craft cocktails to “fun” shots like the Carajillo with Licor 43, espresso, and coffee liqueur, THC-infused options, and an impressive amaro list. Once the warmer weather hits, the garage door windows will open up to Parson’s lively patio.

The owners of this seven-year-old Modern Israeli and Middle Eastern tasting menu restaurant retained their Michelin star this year, and for good reason. Andrés Clavero and James Beard-honored chef Zachary Engel, along with bar director Scott Stroemer and pastry chef Mary-Eder McClure, are the dream team behind a $105 four-course choose-your-own adventure that changes with the seasons. Choose from a selection of hummus (go with Bubbe’s brisket-topped), salatim (from labneh to a global pickle tour), mezze (order the schmaltzy potatoes with charred leeks just to say the word “schmaltzy”), and coal-fired dishes like classic lamb kebab el babor (off-skewer lamb kebabs with a melty mix of leeks, potatoes, bordelaise and miso-pickled garlic under charred pita), or a vegan/gluten-free kubbeh selek (an Iraqi-Persian soup traditionally made with meat dumplings). End the lovely and delicious parade of flavors with crispy phyllo pie for dessert.

After nearly 10 years, husband-and-wife team Thai and Danielle Dang’s modern Vietnamese restaurant has become a fixture in Pilsen, picking up James Beard nods and Bib Gourmands along the way. Thai, the youngest of 10 siblings and a Vietnamese-born immigrant, describes his food as “going over to a Vietnamese friend’s house for dinner,” and we couldn’t agree more. Settle into the warm, caramel-toned dining room for dishes like papaya salad, grilled eggplant, and crispy chicken wings with caramelized fish sauce, or easy-to-share whole fluke, grilled meat and seafood platters, and the soul-warming bún chả Hanoi with grilled pork patties, rice noodles, charred pork broth, and fresh herbs. There’s a happy hour, three-course tasting menu, Sunday brunch, and sister concept Cà Phê Dá next door with báhn mì, pho, and Vietnamese coffee during the day.

This year-old contemporary Mexican-American kitchen and cocktail bar is a homecoming for owner Emidio Oceguera—quite literally. The first-generation Mexican-American grew up in the historic building, which pre-dates the Chicago Fire. He’s turned this former billiards hall, Mexican-owned for three generations, into a homey, intimate lounge with brown leather booths, dark walls, and family photos. The small-but-mighty menu includes a double-patty smashburger with chorizo and Chihuahua cheese, duck carnitas nachos, and aguachiles; cocktails range from espresso martinis made with tequila to Palomas spiked with housemade Squirt on draft, along with Mexican wines and from-scratch cordials. With only 30 seats, it fills up fast, but they leave room for walk-ins from open to close.

Chicago bar and restaurant alums Pat Ray, Dani Kaplan, and Tyler Hudec (Boka, Lula Cafe, Analogue, Sepia and Lost Lake, collectively) joined forces for this newish Italian-American concept that took over the former Moe’s Tavern. The dim and homey space is decorated with a mish-mash of estate sale and flea market finds, and lit with a mix of vintage lamps. It’s the perfect old-school setting to settle in for housemade focaccia with fermented garlic honey butter, shrimp scampi toast, and the now-famous “Spaghetti Uh-O’s,” made from scratch with meatballs and vodka sauce and served right out of a can. The Italian wine selection doesn’t disappoint, but we suggest choosing a cocktail from the list split into the relatively familiar (think Black Manhattan and the rarely seen Trinidad Sour) and the unfamiliar, like the clear Mirror Image, with gin, rhum, grapefruit, star anise and acid-adjusted aloe. Want something NA? Here’s your chance to try a shot of the housemade “no-lort”—an alcohol-free version of the polarizing wormwood-based spirit.

Last we checked, it’s still tough to snag a table at this two-and-half-year old Fulton Market District favorite, but it’s worth the wait (and we have some tips), since executive chef Chris Jung and chef/partner Erling Wu-Bower continue to put out fantastic food that tells the stories of their multicultural upbringings. The seasonal menu is divided into beginnings, griddle bread and dunks, starch, substance, and desserts, and you’ll want to order something from every category (don’t miss the caramelized Japanese sweet potato with curries that change out, half-chicken a la brasa, and the Basque buttercake), or spring additions like pea doppio ravioli and a karaage-marinated fried walleye. Choose a glass or bottle from the well-curated wine list, or take advantage of the $12 spirit-free menu for N/A Old Fashioneds, Negronis, and spritzes. Want a closer look at the bar and open-kitchen action that unfolds nightly? Bar reservations are available Tuesday through Thursday until 6:30PM.

We welcome Ballyhoo’s third location of their classic Italian red sauce joint with open arms. With locations already established in Lincoln Park and Highland Park, Hinsdale is the next neighborhood where locals can enjoy the same menu of white and red pizzas (head in on a Monday for tavern-style), fresh, handmade pastas (find out CEO Jon Farrer’s go to order), garlic knots, and eggplant Parm. Located in a historic building from 1923, the two-story restaurant features warm woods, elevated midcentury booths, and a vaulted ceiling; come summer we predict prime seating on the outdoor patio. Arrive early to have a glass of wine, limoncello spritz, or amaro Manhattan at the towering bar.

Opened last spring by friends Nuttawut Waljorhar and Jack Ekkaphanh, this Irving Park newcomer is one of the only Laotian restaurants in the city, with full sit-down service to boot. Take on cold-weather days with Lao chicken noodle soup with handmade noodles, chicken meatballs, and poached chicken (up the heat ante with chile oil), or just warm up with spicy papaya salad with anchovy and crab paste. Other standouts include wings with tamarind and fish sauce and not-to-be missed beef jerky. Prices are reasonable and they don’t take reservations, so prepare for a bit of wait during peak dining times, but it’s worth it for a comforting meal to help get you through the winter.

No reservations; more info here.

Fans of Jake Schneider’s jewel box of a Jewish deli that opened adjacent to the Ohio House Motel three years ago are thrilled he and his wife Ariel have expanded to Lincoln Park in a 1,750-square-foot space. Aside from a bigger kitchen and more seating, expect extended hours, along with local beer, canned wine, and cocktails (coming soon), and full-service coffee and espresso program. Bubbes everywhere will applaud the addition of kugel and prepared foods to go, along with comforting take-and-bake items like braised chicken Marbella. What won’t change is their fabulous matzo ball soup, latkes, house-cured lox, thick-cut corned beef and pastrami sandwiches on rye, egg creams on tap, and photos of Schneider’s family, who inspired the concept from the beginning.

No reservations. More info here.

This Modern Filipino restaurant, helmed by James Beard-nominated chef and owner Joe Fontelera, just celebrated three years in North Center. What started as a stall in Revival Food Hall is now a comfortable, homey restaurant on Western Avenue filled with family photos, lush plants, and pendant lamps. Sharable sizzling pork sisig (complete with runny egg that gets mixed tableside) is a must, along with shrimp lumpia with sweet chile sauce, and lechon baka made with slow-cooked wagyu beef cheeks rubbed with a lechon-style mix of lemongrass, star anise, and cinnamon. Cocktails include fun takes on the classics like a banana old fashioned and hibiscus habanero Negroni, and the roasted banana turon is the most delicious brown sugar-dusted, deep-fried dessert you’ll ever have.

Since it replaced Elizabeth in 2022, Michelin-starred tasting menu restaurant Atelier has evolved, not only in size with a bigger location just up the street from the original, but also with the addition of a six-seat bar and à la carte menu. What owner Tim Lacey and chef Bradyn Kawcak haven’t changed is their seasonal, seed-to-plate food mentality, stunning presentations, gorgeous blue velvet seats (they just have more of them), and the $210 tasting menu option ($185 during the week). A la carte standouts have included a jerk rabbit leg with saffron rice and foie-topped pizza bagel bites, while the ever-evolving tasting menu features local bison with fermented sunchokes and cherry jus. Take advantage of happy hour in the lounge from 5 to 6 p.m. Tues-Thurs.

The sushi omakases keep coming and we’re not mad about it, especially when it comes to budget-friendly newcomer Omakase Box. The word is out: you’ll find one of the best tasting menu deals in town here, including a 15-course chef’s counter seating for under $100, and other options for “à la kase” menus in the fun and intimate dining room. The nigiri is fresh and beautifully presented, and the negi hamachi and toro handrolls make great add-ons (we also love the bluefin tuna tartare on puffed rice chips). You’ll also find sake, wine, and Japanese whiskey selections, but we’re partial to the house highballs like the yuzu-hibiscus with gin (or vodka). End the night with vanilla Basque cheesecake.

Book on Tock. 

Chef/owners Genie Kwon and Tim Flores’ nearly six-year-old fine-dining Filipino-inspired tasting menu restaurant was just bestowed two Michelin stars, an accolade the couple is adding to their much-deserved James Beard win in 2023. It’s a cafe/bakery by day, and expect a line for pastry options and a savory menu that includes a Filipino breakfast and pork belly adobo on weekends. For dinner Thursday-Sunday, a 13-course menu features the chef’s creative and fine dining take on Filipino dishes, which emerge in the most beautiful vessels. Think lumpia, sinigang, kare kare, halo halo, and the now-famous black truffle-topped croissant.

The cozy front bar area of the 16-year-old Longman & Eagle is still one of our favorite places to tuck in on a frigid night. Settle in for the fantastic whiskey cocktails like the Longman Manhattan with Wild Turkey, Punt e Mes, and aromatic bitters or peruse the extensive list of rare, reserve, and single-barrel whiskey selections. Pair something with Executive Chef Alex Swieton’s seasonal Midwestern menu of duck meatballs l’orange, roasted bone marrow with strawberry balsamic beef bacon marmalade, wild boar sloppy joes, or the beloved double beef smash burgers (one of the city’s best). Other recent favorites include the sharable apple and Cheddar pork sausage or Slagel Farms dry-aged strip steak. Finish the decadence with peanut butter pie.

This cozy French bistro is still going strong after almost 25 years in its homey Lincoln Avenue location. Founded by the late chef Michael Altenberg, the seasonal, locally focused neighborhood spot has always focused on the farm-to-table movement and treats every guest like a regular. It boasts one of the most prime patios in the city, but we love the dimly lit dining room all year round, which is particularly conducive to a visit before or after a show at Old Town School of Folk. Tuck in for signature dishes like brandade croquettes, escargot, cassoulet, croque madame, and dark chocolate pot de crème with Chantilly cream. The wine selection is strong, but don’t sleep on cocktails like the Old Farm, an old fashioned made with raspberry black tea-infused rye, black walnut liqueur, red wine syrup, and bitters. Head in on a Tuesday night for bottomless mussels specials.

A year and a half after opening, this lively South Side craft BBQ joint was named one of the New York Times Top 50 restaurants in America. But the word was already out, as owner James Sanders and pitmaster Nick Kleutsch are drawing crowds (hours are 11am until sold out) for sliced-to-order meats, peach tea-smoked wings, oxtail gumbo, 7-hour smoked beef ribs, turkey legs (on Sundays only), and Berkshire rib tips. Head out to one of two patios open in the warmer months, or just bask in the smokey glow from live wood fires and rotisserie smokers inside. A second location is slated to open this year in the former Promontory space in Hyde Park. Expect an expanded menu with steaks and plated dinners, along with complimentary beef tallow-smoked popcorn.

No reservations, more info here.