Celebrity Chefs Pay Attention to Suburbs

By Hanna Aronovich in Food on Jun 21, 2006 4:01PM

It seems Chicago is following in the footsteps of Las Vegas and New York when it comes to hotel dining. On Sunday, the Tribune reported Chefs Rick Tramonto and Gale Gand of Tru have plans to bring four new restaurant concepts to the Westin Chicago North Shore Hotel, which will open in Wheeling this October.

Dining options at the Westin will include Osteria Di Tramonto (serving breakfast lunch and dinner), Tramonto’s Steak & Seafood (a restaurant and cocktail lounge), RT Lounge (offering small plates) and Gale’s Coffee Bar (serving coffee and pastries, obviously).

The Trib points out other Chicago hotels already operate upscale restaurants, including the Four Seasons, The Peninsula and the Park Hyatt. Also recently opened, The James Chicago hotel is home to New York Chef David Burke’s Primehouse.

So, basically, Chicago is already well on its way to keeping up with New York and Vegas (which we really don’t like being compared to anyway) and now Wheeling is getting in on the act.

But it’s not just Wheeling! Tramonto and Gand plan to open restaurants at a Le Meridien planned for Rosemont, and a Holiday Inn Select in Naperville.

Chicagoist doesn’t make it out to the suburbs too often, and when we do, we’re not hanging around hotels. But, we’re all about being positive, so we hope the new concepts will draw both locals and those just traveling through. And, Tramonto and Gand are probably hoping so, too.

Image via Starwood Hotels