Restaurant news: Wolf & Company, with first patio on The 606, among openings and closings around Chicago

Chicago Tribune

16-06-2025

Wolf & Company — from the owners of Little Bad Wolf, Gretel and The Good Wolf — will open a 10,000-square-foot, two-story space with the first and only patio directly accessible to The 606 elevated trail in Chicago.
'It's our biggest project to date,' said Gus Lappas, co-owner with Sol Ashbach and Ankur Joshi.
The project — with a full-service restaurant, grab-and-go deli, two bars, a coffee shop, market and butcher — will celebrate its grand opening in Bucktown on June 23.
'We'll be offering the burgers that we're known for too,' Lappas said.
But they'll also be offering something different this time around, Joshi said, including pizza and sandwiches to cater to the lunch crowd on the trail. And they'll have an in-house butcher for steaks and chops, he added, plus craft cocktails, wine and barrel pick whiskies.
What style of pizza will they be making?
Somewhere in the family of New Haven and Neapolitan, Lappas said.
'We're going to have traditional pepperoni and sausage,' he said. 'And then there's going to be some unique offerings that are chef-driven.'
Wolf & Company executive chef Graham Akroyd is also the culinary director for Little Bad Wolf and Gretel. Akroyd is creating a 606 pizza for the new restaurant, Lappas said, and the chef will use pizza dough to bake bread in house for sandwiches.
They'll have a Philly cheesesteak-style sandwich, and may have a steak sandwich and a hot vegetarian sandwich too, Joshi said. Cold sandwiches feature mortadella, plus jamon with cheese.
Rosa Fraga leads the butcher and deli program, according to a release, with a commitment to whole animal sourcing.
Drinks include a classic Manhattan cocktail and a modern old fashioned, Joshi said. Mixologist Clare Andrejek designed most of the drinks, he said, as she has for their sibling establishments.
What will you see when you approach Wolf & Company from The 606?
'You'll see our patio,' said Lappas. 'It's going to be fully furnished.'
There will be window service, he said, plus full service on the dog-friendly patio. The entrance to the restaurant on the trail level on the second floor leads into the coffee shop, he added.
A 20-person bar and lounge looks out through floor-to-ceiling windows onto the trail upstairs, with an additional 50 to 60 seats in the restaurant and bar downstairs.
Reservations will be available, but those details are still in the works.
'After what everyone's been through in the restaurant industry, we're just really appreciative that the neighborhood seems excited,' Lappas said. 'And we really want to try and do right by them.'More openings, in alphabetical order:
A Pizza Pie
Danny and Maria Sweis, the couple behind Ragadan, the award-winning Jordanian American falafel and Oklahoma onion burger shop, just opened a little sister pizzeria nearby. A Pizza Pie started slicing in Uptown on June 3. You'll find neither tavern style nor deep dish, but a medium-thick crust, with a Mushroom n Onion white sauce pie; plus wings, available with a dry spice seasoning; and salads, including a Caesar with sesame croutons.Abrah Bakery & Daily Bistro
Artur and Iryna Yuzvik, the couple behind Soloway Cafe, the coffee shop using beans from their roastery in Ukraine, unveiled a new home inspired by Ukrainian heart and American life. Abrah Bakery & Daily Bistro began brewing in Lincoln Park on June 4. Look for modern Midwestern variations on classic chicken Kiev, buckwheat honey cake and kvass lemonade.The Alston
Chef Jenner Tomaska (Esmé) has partnered with The Fifty/50 Group for an unexpected steakhouse. The Alston fired up in the Gold Coast on May 30. Steaks are butchered in house, wood-fired and glazed with charcoal clarified butter, including a $300, 60-day dry-aged, 30-ounce bone-in wagyu ribeye from Margaret River in Australia; plus there's a $22 'elegant steak burger' with clothbound cheddar and bone marrow; and a $12 classic martini for happy hour at the bar, lounge and terrace.Ärt-is
Chef Brandi Artis launched a Black, brown, queer and women-owned Creole restaurant and safe space. Ärt-is debuted in River North on April 10. They're serving up a Bad N' Bougie provolone cheeseburger with an Angus beef patty and shrimp in a branded bun; Flaps N' Fins with wings, catfish and jalapeno ketchup; plus a nonalcoholic strawberry and citrusy Seedlip Grove 42 'Mockcock' named in honor of Marsha P. Johnson, the legendary, late transgender rights activist.Friends of Friends
A quartet of industry veterans behind some of the best bars in Chicago (Estereo, The Meadowlark and The Violet Hour) have transformed a former Schlitz tied house into a stylish neighborhood cocktail bar. Friends of Friends started pouring in West Town on May 29. House cocktails feature a 'floral and bubbly' sakura-infused Roots Divino Bianco nonalcoholic vermouth (but can be made with alcohol too); a house Handshake with a bottle of Schlitz and shot of Dickel rye whiskey; plus a Friendship Dip with giardiniera and pimento cheese.Mister Tiger
A family-owned Korean restaurant carries the legacy of three generations of homestyle food. Mister Tiger began roaring in West Town on May 23. A hot stone bibimbap comes sizzling in a bowl with bulgogi ribeye or tofu; desserts include a milk ice cream bingsoo with red bean paste and mochi; and signature cocktails feature Grandma's Tiger Balm with minty herbal flavors inspired by the ubiquitous Asian heat rub.The Violet Hour, the pioneering craft cocktail bar in Wicker Park, closed temporarily on May 21 for 'internal repairs needed at the property' until further notice, which will be posted on their social media.Fire, the open flame-driven restaurant by The Alinea Group and chef Grant Achatz, which opened last November after replacing Roister in the West Loop, will close permanently after just seven months on June 28. (Eater Chicago first reported news of the closure.)Heritage Restaurant & Caviar Bar, the modern Eastern European establishment from co-owners Guy and Tif Meikle, currently offering a 'Hot To Go' Italian beef soup dumpling for Pride Month, will close after eight years and one last summer season in Humboldt Park on Aug. 30.