Former Trencherman Mike Sheerin To Helm Cicchetti

By Chuck Sudo in Food on Sep 5, 2013 6:20PM

One of the most pressing questions asked by Chicagoans who follow the moves of the city’s best chefs lately has been, “What’s next for Mike Sheerin?” When last we checked in on the former Blackbird chef and Trencherman, Sheerin was trying to steady the kitchen at Parson’s Chicken and Fish while cryptically referencing a new downtown project he had in the works.

Now we know the name of that project. Sheerin is working on Cicchetti with Dan Rosenthal, the money man behind Trattoria No. 10, Poag Mahone’s and the creator of the original Harry Caray’s. “Cicchetti” is Italian for small plates and gives a glimpse as to where Sheerin and Rosenthal are going with this project. Rosenthal told Chicago magazine it’s “a perfect pairing of my conservative business practices and his cutting-edge cooking style.”

What isn’t conservative is the size of the restaurant. At 9,200 square feet, Cicchetti is aiming for a ton of covers in a single evening. But the restaurant’s centerpiece will be Sheerin’s cooking, which has drawn raves since his days at New York City’s WD-50 and later at Blackbird.

Cicchetti is slated to open in November at 661 N. St. Clair.