Chicago’s Most Anticipated Restaurant Openings, Fall 2025

The hottest season of the year may be unofficially over, but that doesn’t mean the Chicago restaurant scene is cooling off. As we head into fall, there are plenty of new openings to get excited about. From an intimate omakase experience inside the Chicago Athletic Association to a Southeast Asian restaurant helmed by one of the city’s most talented chefs, the next few months promise a wave of noteworthy newcomers. Read on for more details and, as always, expect projected opening dates to change.

Address: 933 N. Ashland Avenue

Chef Devin Denzer brings Nordic Japanese fine dining to the former Temporis space with a new tasting menu experience. Anticipate seafood-forward dishes and seasonal produce, like sturgeon with puffed rice, ginger-scallion paste, and tom kha broth, plus Denzer’s signature Milk and Pine dessert brought over from his pop-up dinner series Loon. The intimate, bi-level setting features an earthy-toned dining room upstairs and a moody lounge and chef’s counter downstairs, where guests begin the night with opening bites and cocktails before heading to the main meal.

Address: 51 W. Hubbard Street

Key Players: Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, Thai Dang

Thai Dang (HaiSous) has joined forces with Lettuce Entertain You for this Southeast Asian spot that’s in the former Hub 51 space. The menu draws on flavors from Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, with shareable plates like sugarcane beef wrapped in betel leaves, crispy prawn toast on Chinese donuts, pork belly with carnitas flair, and a clay pot lobster pad Thai that promises plenty of wok hei. Expect a striking interior from David Collins Studio — the design firm behind Tre Dita.

Address: 7620 N. Milwaukee Avenue, Niles

Key Players: Jimmy Bannos, Jimmy Bannos Jr.

James Beard Award winner Jimmy Bannos, Jr., of the Purple Pig fame, is returning to his Greek roots with Kouklas, his first solo restaurant. The modern spot in north suburban Niles will emphasize open-fire cooking, house-made pita and pastas, and a selection of locally-sourced vegetables, paired with one of the largest Greek olive oil programs in the U.S. Set in a 9,000-square-foot space with indoor and terrace seating, Kouklas blends rustic and contemporary design — expansive windows flood the space with natural light, while ceramic sculptures and Greek artwork add warmth and character.

Address: 12 S. Michigan Avenue

Key Players: Boka Restaurant Group, Brian Lockwood

Boka Restaurant Group is transforming the old Milk Room bar at the Chicago Athletic Association into Midōsuji, an eight-seat omakase restaurant named after Osaka’s famed gingko-lined avenue. Chef Brian Lockwood applies French techniques on Japanese ingredients, turning out dishes like sansho pepper duck and crab salad with daikon and miso egg yolk. There will be two seatings a night, a rotating hand roll selection, and cocktails like a tomato water martini. Midōsuji opens September 5.

Address: 1578 N. Clybourn Avenue

Key Players: John Asbaty, Alain Uy

Two former Hogsalt Hospitality and Trio alums, chef John Asbaty and restaurateur Alain Uy, are reuniting for a neighborhood spot in Lincoln Park built around wood-fired Midwestern cooking. At Ox Bar & Hearth, diners can look forward to comforting regional flavors reimagined with seasonal ingredients, paired with a beverage list that highlights Midwestern spirits, beers, and wines. The design nods to the building’s past as the Golden Ox, a beloved German restaurant, while adding lounge seating, intimate booths and banquettes, and a private dining room styled after a kitchen library.

Address: 868 N. Wells Street

Key Players: Jenner Tomaska, Katrina Bravo

Husband-wife duo Jenner Tomaska and Katrina Bravo are opening a new French bistro in River North this fall. Petite Edith will spotlight approachable, seafood-focused dishes, and is the latest project in the couple’s expanding portfolio, which includes Michelin-starred restaurant Esmé and the Alston, the swanky steakhouse collaboration with the Fifty/50 Group that debuted earlier this summer.

Address: 2523 N. Milwaukee Avenue

Key Players: Nicole Yarovinsky, Joe Frillman

The Daisies team is making its way back to its original Logan Square space with the Radicle, an all-day bar and restaurant named after the first root that emerges from a seed. Nicole Yarovinsky will craft $10 cocktails that highlight coastal Italy, such as a pomegranate-infused Negroni and a Sbagliato Rossini with strawberries. Joe Frillman’s menu will feature Italian cuisine through a Midwest lens, including deviled eggs with trout roe, fried lake perch with whitefish tonnato, artisan pizzas, and chilled seafood like oysters and prawns with Campari aioli.

Address: 1555 N. Damen Avenue

New York-based scoop shop Van Leeuwen makes its Chicago debut this fall in Wicker Park. It’ll serve more than 30 signature flavors, available in sundaes, shakes, floats and ice cream sandwiches. For a true local twist, the brand is also rolling out a limited-edition Jeppson’s Malört ice cream — a bold and bitter ode to Chicago’s most notorious spirit. Van Leeuwen opens September 12. A second outpost will follow later this year at Willis Tower.