IN THE NEWS: TimeOut Chicago’s Heather Shouse and others report the Oct. 7 closing of chef-owner Michael Carlson’s highly regarded two-year-old contemporary restaurant Schwa (1466 N. Ashland Ave.; 773-252-1466). … David Tamarkin profiles Charlie Trotter on the 20th anniversary of his influential restaurant, Charlie Trotter’s. (Interestingly, some of the celebrity chefs in attendance for the soiree honoring Trotter on Oct. 7 dined at Schwa two nights previously on what was to be the restaurant’s last night of operation, according to reports.) … The magazine notes the new Sweet Collective (5333 N Lincoln Ave at Summerdale Ave (773-293-0888) and WestEnd (1326 W Madison St between Ada and Loomis Sts (312-981-7100). timeout.com/chicago …

Chicago magazine’s October 2007 issue includes Dennis Ray Wheaton’s review of Bucktown Italian spot Il Covo (2152 N. Damen Ave., 773-862-5555) and new trattoria Anteprima (5316 N. Clark St., 773-506-9990). The magazine also rounds up macaroni and cheese spots, naming the best as Fixture (2706 N. Ashland Ave, 773-248-3331), and also spotlights Table Fifty-Two (52 W. Elm St., 312-573-4000), Cafe 103 (1909 W. 103rd St., 773-238-5115), The Bluebird Bistro & Wine Bar (773-486-2473), and El Sueno (9850 Milwaukee Ave., Des Plaines, 847-298-9090). … Dish columnists Penny Pollack and Jeff Ruby chat with Willie Wagner, the self-taught pitmaster/owner at Pilsen’s new 60-seat BYO, Honky Tonk Barbeque (1213 W. 18th St.; 312-226-7427), and reports the openings of: La Brochette (1401 N. Ashland Ave.; 773-276-5650), a BYO Moroccan-Mediterranean spot; Sabai-Dee (5359 N. Broadway; 773-506-0880), the new Laotian spot in Edgewater; Torpedo’s (5211 W. Diversey Ave.; 773-622-7060), a new Cragin sub shop; and Macello (1235 W. Lake St.; 312-850-9870), a “peasant-style” Italian spot from Giovanni DeNigris (Trattoria Trullo). chicagomag.com …

The Chicago Tribune’s Bill Daley features the release of Carlyn Berghoff’s “The Berghoff Family Cookbook” (Andrews McMeel, $29.95), which features recipes from the late, great German food institution the Berghoff Restaurant, which closed in 2006. … Phil Vettel and Monica Eng round up 22 soon-to-open restaurants, beginning with Brasserie Ruhlmann (500 W. Superior St.; 312-494-1900, Oct. 9). … Vettel reports that Oct. 27 will be the last day for chef Jonathan Harootunian at Courtright’s (8989 S. Archer Ave., Willow Springs), while Eng has a first bite at Honky Tonk Barbeque. chicagotribune.com … The Sun-Times’s Pat Bruno reviews Japanese fusion spot Niu (332 E. Illinois, Chicago, 312-527-2888), while Janet Rausa Fuller interviews Dale Levitski, a runner-up to winner Hung Huynh (a sous chef at Guy Savoy in New York) in the season-closing episode of Bravo’s “Top Chef”. Levitski has been waiting tables at this first jog, Chicago’s Sola, while preparing to open his first restaurant early next year in Chicago. suntimes.com … The Reader rounds up brats and Polish sausages, while Martha Bayne notes the opening of a new branch of San Francisco’s famed Boudin bakery in suburban Lombard. chicagoreader.com … ChicagoBurgerProject.blogspot.com visits Hot Chocolate (1747 N Damen Ave, Chicago, 773-489-1747).

Compiled by Pat Embry, WhereTheLocalsEat.com

Filed under: Chicago Restaurants | Tags: |