15 Shuttered Bars And Restaurants We'll Miss The Most This Year
By Anthony Todd in Food on Dec 30, 2015 3:01PM
At the end of every year, we see a million best-of lists, all inviting us to reflect on all the great things we ate and drank over the past 12 months and all the great new spots that have opened. But as 2015 comes to a close, it's important to remember some of the restaurants that we've lost. Here are 15 of our favorite dining spots that shuttered their doors this year.
Nightwood
Leading the list is the one that broke our hearts in 2015, Nightwood. For many Chicago diners, this was a standby, one of those places that we always recommended. But after Chef Jason Vincent left, the place was never quite the same, and its popularity waned enough that the group decided to shut it down in July. At least we still have Lula.
Karyn's on Green
Something less of a heartbreaker, but still a sad closing for many people, was Karyn's on Green. We've covered Karyn's recent (slightly strange) trials and tribulations, but this was the one restaurant in her group that actually tried to bridge the gap between healthy and normal, surprising people with how good vegan food should be. It had a dramatic space right off the Greektown strip, interesting decor, and didn't force you to choose between eating healthy and having a strong martini.
Japonais
When Japonais shuttered to turn itself into Japonais by Morimoto, we thought that it was saved for good. After all, Morimoto runs a popular and successful chain of restaurants, they pumped a lot of money into revamping the menu and the decor, and the result was actually pretty decent. Unfortunately, at least according to Eater, they never, well, paid their rent, and the high prices on the menu didn't bring in many diners. We'll miss the tableside tofu service.
Browntrout
For North Center folks, this was a real tragedy. Browntrout served approachable, locally-sourced food at a reasonable price. It was great for families (kids ate free much of the time) and had a surprisingly interesting cocktail program. Unfortunately, Chef/Owner Sean Sanders couldn't keep the place going and closed it in August. However, watch the space - they are running some interesting popups under the Trout Kitchen name.
Trattoria Trullo
This Italian spot on the main drag of Lincoln Square just . . . disappeared one day. While it wasn't anyone's favorite Italian restaurant in the city, it was a solid standby - exactly the sort of place you want in your neighborhood. It had cheap wine, decent pasta and a lovely atmosphere. That is, until a dispute with the landlord led to a lockout and the restaurant sad empty, with the tables set and food in the kitchen, for months. The space will become the new location of Artango in 2016.
Duran European Sandwiches
Some might not even know this place opened, let alone that it closed, but during its brief run it served some of the prettiest Viennese-style open faced sandwiches anywhere. Unfortunately, it had an odd location on the near west side, and a huge space that somehow only had a few small tables, so we weren't all that surprised it didn't last.
A delicious looking taco from the (now closed) Kokopelli. Photo via Facebook.
Kokopelli
It's not so much that we'll miss Kokopelli as a restaurant. It's that they went out with the biggest bang in recent memory, admitting in their closing voicemail in November that the restaurant "sucks ass" and couldn't take care of customers. Keep it classy, Kokopelli.
Heaven on Seven
The gigantic movie-theater-adjacent version of chef Jimmy Bannos's cajun spot was one of the first closures of 2015. Early in January, the spot announced it was closing - later it broke that it was ordered closed after some non-payment of rent. We'll miss the wacky decor and the built-in post-movie cocktail, and it'll be interesting to see what, if anything takes over the huge still-vacant space.
Spencer's Jolly Posh
This English food store and tea shop was a cult favorite among anglophiles - and anyone who enjoyed a good tea sandwich. The shop closed in November, and the owners announced they'll keep selling some imported British products through local grocery stores. Looks like our only option left for British awesomeness is Pleasant House.
Bom Bolla
This may be the final closing (we hope!) of 2015, as the Wicker Park cava bar shuttered on Dec. 23. As far as we could tell, the place was incredibly popular, but it was apparently undercapitalized and dealing with incredibly high rents. There's apparently a slim chance it will be revived, so perhaps we can take it off this list in the new year. We'll definitely miss the Spanish fishes and gin and tonics.
Rodan
By the end of its life, we're not sure anyone actually loved the food at Rodan. But it was a Wicker Park standby for 12 years, and who hasn't had an awkward date there? The Japanese spot closed, another victim of rising Wicker Park rents, in September.
The interior of Tippling Hall, via Facebook.
Tippling Hall
This wasn't a particularly surprising closing - despite the massive amount of money poured in the space, reviews for this cocktail spot with the backing of the Tippling Bros. were just ok, service was fairly awful and even the drinks were nothing to write home about. Tippling Hall closed after less than a year. Luckily, anyone looking for food in that area can just pop over to Farmhouse.
Bistro Margot
Technically, Bistro Margot still has another day before it closes, but the Old Town french standby will be shutting down on Dec. 31. We loved the restaurant, with its old-fashioned red decor, classic french food and friendly atmosphere, and were sad to hear of its departure.
Coppervine
An impressive buildout, a good art collection and a staff trained in all the finer points of wine couldn't save this Lincoln Park restaurant. It was known for its interesting (and sometimes strange) beverage pairings, but closed on Valentine's Day. The one bright spot: the space is now Oyster Bah, the Lettuce Entertain You seafood place getting rave reviews.
Nuevo Leon
This is less of a closing and more of a temporary tragedy, but we'll still miss it - at least until they rebuild. Nuevo Leon, open since 1962, was destroyed in a fire earlier this month, but the owners have said that they were insured and plan to rebuild.