Good afternoon, Chicago. ✶
A go-to restaurant can really make a neighborhood feel like home. I’m talking about a reliably delicious place for special dates, celebrations and milestones.
Some of us saw these cherished neighborhood staples shutter for good when the pandemic hit nearly four years ago.
In today’s newsletter, we’re focusing on one South Side fine dining restaurant that, after closing in 2020, aims to stage a comeback in hopes of becoming even better.
Plus, we’ve got the community news you need to know this afternoon.
⏱️: A 7-minute read
— Matt Moore, newsletter reporter (@MattKenMoore)
TODAY’S TOP STORY
Englewood’s only fine dining restaurant is getting a refresh
Reporting Phyllis Cha
Missing a beloved restaurant: Before 2020, Sikia, located at 740 W. 63rd St., was Englewood’s only fine dining restaurant. It was a place where neighbors would come for dates, business meetings or dinner with their family. Sikia was about making something special for the community, said Katonja Webb-Walker, president of Kennedy-King College. It was the kind of dining experience you could get right there, rather than heading to Hyde Park or downtown. But the restaurant eventually closed, citing issues stemming from the pandemic.
Sikia stages return: Fifteen years since it first opened its doors, Sikia is getting a new lease on life, now that Kennedy-King’s Washburne Culinary & Hospitality Institute is making moves to revamp it. Staff at Washburne plan to bring Sikia back with a new look after holding one last luncheon for community members Wednesday. Then, they’ll close down for renovation before a grand reopening in fall 2024. Kennedy-King plans to renovate the restaurant using $500,000 of a $5 million grant it received from billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, Washburne Executive Dean Jewel Mideau said.
Teaching the next generation: For Washburne culinary students, Sikia will be a place where they learn real-world restaurant service. This not only includes cooking, but restaurant management, ownership and service to the community, Mideau said. Chef Gabriel Alvarez, a chef instructor at Washburne, is overseeing students as they prepare for Wednesday’s luncheon. Having worked at Washburne for 15 years, Alvarez remembers what Sikia was before it closed. He remembers the importance it held for the community, how they used to call it their “gem.”
“They want something that isn’t quick service, and they’re excited for it, and we’re ready to give it to them,” Alvarez said.
WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
- Howard Brown health care workers strike: More than 30 Howard Brown Health workers showed up on the picket line at the organization’s Englewood clinic today to kick off a two-day strike seeking better pay and working conditions.
- City Council aims to rein in unruly crowds: The City Council’s sergeant-at-arms has drafted new rules of decorum to rein in raucous crowds at public meetings. The rules include a ban on banners and other signs, profane or threatening language and demeaning or harassing behavior.
- Illinois could see more nuclear reactors by 2026: With bipartisan support, state lawmakers last week eliminated Illinois’ nearly 36-yearlong ban on construction of nuclear reactors. Proponents say more nuclear reactors could help Illinois transition to clean energy, but opponents are skeptical of the technology the state is relying on.
- Ethics board dismisses complaint against Lightfoot: The Chicago Board of Ethics found there was insufficient evidence Monday that former Mayor Lori Lightfoot violated the city’s ethics ordinance when her political campaign sent emails soliciting city employees to support her mayoral reelection bid.
- 2.5 stars for ‘Reporting for Christmas’: Filmed in the historic downtown of suburban Long Grove, this holiday film is predictable but sweet, writes Sun-Times critic Richard Roeper.
MEET YOUR NEIGHBOR 👋
Kenya Elan, writer and comedian
Reporting by Vocalo
In her work, comedian and writer Kenya Elan aims to channel the exasperations of everyday life and turn discomfort into laughter.
Elan, who now calls Humboldt Park home, had an upbringing in the suburbs of Chicago and Hyde Park. Growing up as a theater kid, Elan always wanted to be a writer and director, something more behind the scenes.
It was not until years later, about two months before the COVID-19 pandemic began, that her journey into the spotlight as a comedian started. She performed at open mic shows and took an online class offered by Lincoln Lodge called Femme Com, which offers female and nonbinary people the opportunity to try out comedy.
“I got to see how much of an outlet it could be for the frustration that I was having,” she remarked.
Elan relates working out her comedy sets to therapy, digging deep into her life, but finding a way to find light in all situations. Now as a cast member at Lincoln Lodge, she feels she has found encouragement and support to continue discovering her comedic style.
“Being given the opportunity to sort of just play around and meet a bunch of really amazing people that also share the same … intense nerdiness toward all of this and toward making people laugh, has been amazing,” she said.
BRIGHT ONE ✨
Only romance bookstore in Chicago is off to a happy beginning
Reporting by Stefano Esposito
Little paper hearts — hundreds of them — plaster the walls, like wet fallen leaves swept up in a sudden gust. Candles with Taylor Swift song titles. A rose-colored sofa offers a place for visitors to relax, perhaps to swoon.
The Last Chapter Book Shop in Roscoe Village, which opened in early September, isn’t your grandmother’s romance bookstore — well, not just your grandmother’s.
For those who find the traditional bodice ripper a bit anti-climactic, there’s romance of the contemporary, fantasy, sports, LGBTQ+ variety, and there’s dark romance, too.
Romance in its myriad varieties sells. When Amanda Anderson, 28, first opened her doors in September, the wait to get in was upward of three hours for some customers. She estimates she’s drawing about 2,500 customers a week. She also sells books online.
Anderson’s is the only bookstore in the city devoted to romance novels, she says.
“In books, you get to see people go through so much and still find happiness at the end of the day,” Anderson says.
YOUR DAILY QUESTION ☕️
If you could work any city job for a day, which one would you choose? Tell us why.
Email us (please include your first and last name and where you live). To see the answers to this question, check our Morning Edition newsletter. Not subscribed to Morning Edition? Sign up here so you won’t miss a thing!
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Editor: Satchel Price
Newsletter reporter: Matt Moore
Copy editor: Angie Myers
