Restaurant News: Lost Lake, Formento's, Bunny Micro-Bakery And Bascule Openings
By Melissa McEwen in Food on Jan 14, 2015 4:30PM
It might be the most dreary part of winter, but Chicago’s restaurant scene is very busy, with a ton of new bars and restaurants open now or opening soon.
Formento’s, the Italian restaurant from The Bristol’s team, is opening tonight. They also opened their attached take-away Nonna’s yesterday. The little shop open during the day from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. will offer grab and go Italian-American classics like meatball sandwiches topped with mozzarella cheese, marinara and giardiniera.
The burgeoning Taylor Street restaurant and bar scene gets a new addition as the highly anticipated Bascule wine bar is now open. Eater has pictures of the expansive and beautifully lit interior as well as their menu featuring items like corned duck hash and short ribs with gnocchi.
Red Eye has more information and pictures from the buzzed-about Lost Lake tiki bar and its companion restaurant Thank You, opening this week. Lost Lake’s menu, created by Chicago tiki kingpin Paul McGee, is half traditional tiki drinks and half modern interpretations. The food at Thank You will be based on Chinese dishes popular for take out in America, but made from scratch from regionally-sourced food. Head to DNAinfo to take a look at the cabana-style interior of Lost Lake and the minimalist design of Thank You.
Eater took a look at another eagerly-awaited bar, The Drifter, which will be helmed by Liz Pearce, one of the Drawing Room alumni who have so influenced Chicago cocktail culture in the past five years. The interior has an esoteric and vintage look and they’ll offer tarot-inspired cocktails as well as eclectic performances.
If you follow Elizabeth Restaurant’s social media, you’ve probably been bombarded with pictures of delicious-looking pastries and bread. Recently Chef Iliana Regan started offering them at morning pop-ups, but soon you’ll be able to get them at the new Bunny Micro-Bakery, along with some of her other popular treats like mushroom tea or pierogies, as well as new favorites like fancy toast. Gawk at delicious twee photos at their Facebook page.