Legendary Chicago Restaurant Has 'Abruptly' Closed for Good
After more than six decades in operation, one of Chicago's iconic restaurants has closed up shop.
Gale Street Inn, which opened in 1963 in the Windy City's Jefferson Park neighborhood, announced Thursday morning it was shuttering. The restaurant had previously hinted as much in an Instagram post Wednesday night, sharing a video along with the message "It's been a heck of a run Chicago, thank you!"
This morning, the official Gale Street Inn account confirmed they are indeed shutting down, blaming staffing issues for the decision.
"With a sad but satisfied heart, we have closed our restaurant," the post reads. Hiring and retaining quality staff has proven too tough for too long. We are tired of sucking, we have standards you know. But overworking our existing crew is not the answer. There are simply too many of you and not enough of us. Thank you to our current & past teams."
Not surprisingly, Gale Street's announcement was met with a slew of comments from disappointed fans. The restaurant also honored its longtime customers in its farewell post.
"Man what a run! Thank you to all of our guests for all of the years," they wrote. "To our vendors, thank you for delivering the goods, always. To the city of Chicago, we loved operating in the greatest food town on the planet."
As for anyone still holding a Gale Street Inn gift card, the restaurant says it will devise a plan for reimbursement and announce it at a later date.
Owner George Karzas told the Chicago Sun-Times that business at the restaurant, which was known for its steaks and baby back ribs, remained robust even up to its closure.
In the end, it was the staffing problems that proved too much to overcome and led to the shutdown.
"I'm tired, it's hard," Karzas told the Sun-Times.
Legendary Chicago Restaurant Has 'Abruptly' Closed for Good first appeared on Men's Journal on Jun 19, 2025
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