In a year when it felt like everything changed — and then changed again, and again — Chicago-area restaurants and bars were there for us.
As constant as they could be while making do with nimble pivots and pop-ups and other adaptations for the ever-evolving pandemic, they kept us nourished and constantly innovated. It’s hard to keep track, but it was just a year ago when indoor dining seemed an impossibility, and restaurateurs were scrambling to find ways to make ends meet.
The Tribune Food team went through some significant changes ourselves this year: Louisa Chu and Nick Kindelsperger were named as our food critics in May following the January departure of our esteemed (and dearly missed) longtime critic Phil Vettel, and Josh Noel has covered Chicago’s beer scene as no one else could, while also providing key insights into how the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the city’s restaurant industry.
It’s impossible to predict what’s to come in 2022, but for now, we will simply be grateful for the stories we were lucky enough to tell this year. Here are 10 of our favorites from 2021.
Back-aching work. Low pay. No health care: Here’s why Chicago restaurant workers aren’t coming back.
As the country reopened with the arrival of warm weather in late May, a simple narrative emerged amid a national labor shortage that seemed to hit the dining industry particularly hard: Workers weren’t returning because enhanced unemployment benefits left them with little motivation to get back to work.
That was hardly the full story, and Tribune food reporter Josh Noel went in search of answers.
Restaurant reviews spanning from The Wieners Circle to a $225 tasting menu
Technically this isn’t one article, but it’s impossible to limit ourselves to just one review from our new food critics. Whether it was the lighthearted, barbed-tongue service at Ed Debevic’s and The Wieners Circle or a deeply moving visit to Dear Margaret amid a wearying pandemic winter, Nick Kindelsperger and Louisa Chu have forged a new path for our food criticism — one we hope provides a more complete, equitable survey of all kinds of restaurants, bars and other food creators across the region.
Together, they’ve been combing Chicagoland for the most exciting food and drink, spotting new thick-crusted trends at pizzerias such as George’s Deep Dish and Uncle Jerry’s and superb Korean takeout from a suburban mom-and-pop shop. They’ve evaluated whether splashy debuts at Rose Mary, Esmé and Claudia lived up to the hype; and highlighted truly impressive additions to the city’s restaurant scene, such as chef Ethan Lim’s thoughtful take on Cambodian fried chicken, and barbecue at Soul & Smoke that might be some of the best in town.
As Native American Heritage Month approached this fall, we found ourselves asking why Indigenous Native American cuisine didn’t have more of a presence within Chicago’s dining scene.
Louisa Chu traveled far and wide in her search, not only in Chicago, but also up north in Minneapolis. There, she visited Owamni by The Sioux Chef, a restaurant using exclusively decolonized ingredients — no wheat flour, dairy, pork or refined sugar, for example — to craft stunning, modern dishes of Indigenous food in a strikingly intentional way.
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Column: In Chicago, even Home Depot hot dogs are worth savoring
It’s a story of happenstance that could only come out of Chicago, a place where even a national hardware chain is a hot dog hot spot.
Fixin’ Franks stands can be found in the entryways of a smattering of Chicago-area Home Depot stores, serving up first-rate sausages from Makowski’s Real Sausage, a 101-year-old Bridgeport operation that sources the dogs for some of Chicago’s best spots. For hot dog connoisseurs and lovers of Chicago lore, it’s a must-visit.
Lager Town USA: After years in the shadows, lagers leap to the forefront of Chicago’s brewing scene
Lager accounts for most of the beer sold in the world — including the 16 biggest-selling brands in the United States — but it has rarely been a recipe for success for craft breweries.
But as reporter Josh Noel found this fall, that’s been changing in Chicago, where the industry is increasingly embracing lagers — and customers are responding with surprising enthusiasm. He’s also got a list of 12 intriguing picks from Chicago-area breweries.
“ Half Acre to sell Lincoln Avenue brewery to upstart Hop Butcher for the World, which gets its first home after years of quiet growth
The Chicago bagel revolution is here. Here are the 10 best, ranked.
When we say critic Nick Kindelsperger will stop at nothing to find the best version of the dish du jour, we’re not exaggerating — this is the guy who has clocked about 100 burgers in recent years in search of the best.
But he’s also got a sharp eye for shifting food trends, and the notion that Chicago — at last — had bagels worthy of grizzled New York skeptics was a thrilling one. After a few weeks and a few dozen bagels, he expertly narrowed it down to the 10 best.
“ Chicago’s 25 best burgers, ranked
Workers’ rights have come under heightened public scrutiny since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Unionizing efforts have made headlines across the nation as employees of Starbucks, Amazon and other companies seek better working conditions.
This summer, Tribune food reporter Josh Noel chronicled such an effort at Goose Island, Chicago’s oldest craft brewery (under the ownership of Anheuser-Busch InBev since 2011). Organizers were in the midst of a union drive at Goose Island’s two Chicago brewpubs in March 2020 when most were furloughed or began working from home. Three months later, the core organizers were among at least 20 Chicago brewpub employees Goose Island laid off, citing a downturn due to the pandemic.
But looking back, organizers said they believe Goose Island used the layoffs to target leading union activists and to finish off their efforts. According to current and former employees, the idea of unionizing Goose Island has withered away.
“ Why some Chicago-area small shops won’t sell Goose Island’s Bourbon County release this Black Friday
“ Hailstorm Brewing co-owner ousted after calling allegation of groping at Wisconsin beer fest ‘accurate’: ‘It was one of the worst things I’ve ever done.’
Who knew, when reporter and critic Louisa Chu went hunting for Chicago’s oldest hot dog stand, she would end up with such a rich history to recount?
Not only was it an utter pleasure to get to know owner Eugenia “Gina” Fountain and the four generations of Black female relatives who help her run the Lawndale stand, but our first story managed to unearth more information than we anticipated.
As it turned out, Dave’s Red Hots is even older than we thought, and Louisa’s second column narrates the resulting meeting of Fountain’s family and descendants of the stand’s first and second owners, who first opened up shop in the early 1930s.
It’s almost too easy to drive right by the restaurant where Chicago’s best al pastor tacos are made. The unassuming storefront on a busy stretch of West 31st Street in Little Village is home to Asian Cuisine Express. Inside, a towering trompo of pork revolves next to ingredients for popular Chinese, Thai and Japanese dishes like kung pao pork, pad thai and chicken teriyaki.
In his column about the restaurant, critic Nick Kindelsperger says the mashup works better than one might think
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— al pastor fried rice, anyone?“ Chicago’s newest pozoleria serves 5 varieties of pozole — and each is delicious
“ Meet the 18-year-old owner of Peke’s Pozole, who runs his family restaurant while still in high school. ‘Truth is, he was made for this.’
“ Cevapi sandwiches are part of Chicago’s latest Balkan food craze
Takeout 100: Chicago’s best restaurants for pickup and delivery right now
We’re nearing the one-year anniversary of our Takeout 100 list, but with winter chill setting in and concern over the omicron variant keeping people home, it remains an excellent guide for picking out an easy dinner, an upscale at-home treat or a quick lunch on the go.
We updated our list in August with 13 newcomers. Check them out if you haven’t yet; it’s an ideal time to support our neighborhood restaurants at the start of another pandemic winter.
“ Critics’ Choice Takeout Awards: Chicago’s best chefs, industry innovators and community champions of 2020
“ Readers’ Choice Takeout Awards: Your 2020 picks for best new restaurant, pizza, meal kit and more
Big screen or home stream, takeout or dine-in, Tribune writers are here to steer you toward your next great experience. Sign up for your free weekly Eat. Watch. Do. newsletter here.