SEPTEMBER
Café con Leche | 1732 N Milwaukee Ave, 773-342-2233
Having satiated Wicker Park’s need for late-night grub with Flash Taco and Underdogg, Ulysses Salamanca is heading up the street to open this pan-Latin BYOB in early September. Specialties of the house include lechon with arroz con gandules, grilled skirt steak, Cuban sandwiches and, of course, the namesake sweet and potent coffee.
OLO | 1152 W Randolph St, 312-733-0573
Rachael Ray may have nailed “catchy” with E.V.O.O., but this spot’s moniker aims to make the acronym for olives, lemons and oregano a household name just the same. Sean Eastwood of Isabella’s Estiatorio in Geneva looks to bring Mediterranean to Randolph Row in late September with veal cheek ravioli in hazelnut-butter foam and wild-boar tenderloin with beluga lentils and minted yogurt.
The Whistler | 2421 N Milwaukee Ave
Two guys from punk-rock chorus the Blue Ribbon Glee Club are behind this new tavern, so it’s no surprise music will be a big part of the scene. They’ve built a stage in the space, and when they open in September, they plan to have live music as often as possible—and charge no cover, to boot. The bar also will serve as an art gallery for local artists and, perhaps most important, a watering hole with American microbrews for those artists to nurse.
Photo: Andrew Nawrocki
OCTOBER
Tiny Lounge | 4352 N Leavitt St
Ever since the CTA shut down Colleen Flaherty’s sultry, sophisticated martini bar (it was subsequently demolished to make room for an expanded Addison Brown Line station), fans have patiently waited for it to come back. In October, Flaherty will quell her long-parched regulars’ thirst with Tiny’s signature well-made martinis, and she’ll offer a menu of small plates to nosh on while drinking them. And this time, she’s nowhere near a train station, meaning the CTA’s unlikely to break up the party again.
NOVEMBER
Town & Country | 525 W Monroe St
Top Chef’s Dale Levitski (the Mohawked season-three runner-up, not the shit-talking crotch-grabber from season four) promises he’ll open his long-awaited restaurant before the holidays. His “seasonal, simple American” restaurant will hold court on the ground floor of a slick West Loop skyscraper that was recently a shoot location for The Dark Knight, but diners are likely to be more concerned with which of the two dining rooms is playing host to Levitski’s circle of celeb-chef buddies.
UM, EVENTUALLY?
If you’ve ever been turned away at Roscoe Village’s Terragusto because the Ferrari-size Italian eatery was jam-packed, you’re not alone. This fall, owner Theo Gilbert aims to give the overflow a place to go as he unveils his sophomore effort. The sophisticated sibling to the BYOB little sis, Gilbert’s new spot will sport linen-topped tables, a wine list and a prix-fixe–only format of slightly refined takes on signature pastas and seasonal, regional classics. And for those who want to try their hand at replicating the night’s meal, a market area will hawk fresh pastas, house-canned tomatoes and more. At press time, Gilbert still didn’t know where or when this new joint will open, but he’s hoping for some time this fall—stay tuned for details.
Read more about infighting at Cafe con Leche on the TOC blog.
Read more in our 2008 Fall Preview.
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Check out the other sections in our 2008 Fall Preview:
ART | BOOKS | CLUBS | COMEDY | DANCE | FILM | GAY & LESBIAN | KIDS | MUSEUMS & CULTURE | MUSIC | OPERA & CLASSICAL | RESTAURANTS & BARS | SHOPPING | SPORTS & REC | THEATER | TV & DVD