Tavern on Rush to reopen at new location — across the street from its old Gold Coast spot

Tavern on Rush plans to reopen this summer at 1015 N. Rush St., just across the street from the Gold Coast location that steak eaters and tipplers cozied up to for nearly 25 years before its closure in 2022.

“It looks like we’ll have a better idea by the first week of May, but we’re shooting for mid-June,” longtime owner Phil Stefani said Thursday of the opening date. “We’re hoping to take advantage of being outside. It’s all about the tables outside at Tavern.”

The previous location at 1031 N. Rush St. was beloved as much for its coveted outdoor dining area as its menu.

The new restaurant will occupy two floors inside the Thompson Hotel. There will be a bar and lounge on the first floor and dining upstairs — the same configuration people were accustomed to at the previous location.

The 16,000-square-foot space previously housed Nico Osteria, and is currently under construction.

“Tavern was a meeting place; it wasn’t the bricks and mortar, it was all about being a meeting place for people, and we hope to duplicate that,” Stefani said.

“We’ll have the Tavern favorites and some new items on the menu,” he said. “It’s all about quality. We served prime steaks before, and we’ll continue to do that, along with seafood items.”

The restaurant will also handle room service orders for the hotel and have access to the hotel’s banquet space to hold events.

“The upscale, modern steakhouse and bar will carry on Tavern’s 25-year legacy in the heart of the Gold Coast. ... We can’t wait to welcome you back,” the restaurant announced Thursday morning on its Facebook page.

The restaurant held its final service on New Year’s Eve in 2022, due to the building owner’s decision to not renew the lease, Stefani said at the time.

The legendary restaurant had a devoted clientele that included celebrities and politicians.

Pat Nabong/Sun-Times