Seven Chicago restaurants landed a spot on Michelin Guide’s Bib Gourmand lineup.
The Bib Gourmand is Michelin’s annual roster of restaurants that offer a full menu where guests can order two courses and a glass of wine or dessert for $40 or less.
“Chicago’s culinary community has it all,” Gwendal Poullennec, international director of the MICHELIN Guides, said in a statement. “This diverse Bib Gourmand selection delighted the MICHELIN Guide inspectors, and restaurant-goers will surely feel the same.”
This announcement precedes Chicago’s hallmark star revelation, which will be released Tuesday. Michelin Guide Chicago also plucked 23 restaurants from a variety of popular eateries across the city, leaving them esteemed reviews from acclaimed culinary inspectors.
Here are the restaurants that earned Bib Gourmand status, and notes from each:
Apolonia
The South Loop restaurant brings the contemporary cuisines of chef Stephen Gillanders to the table. On top of a menu of savory dishes and treats, the place boasts high ceilings and vast areas where natural light often seeps through.
Local
Bloom Plant Based Kitchen
Chef and owner Rodolfo Cuadros presents diners with a vegan menu full of flavor and textural complexity. The Wicker Park restaurant flaunts greenery, funky light fixtures and seating with a full look into the kitchen.
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter here.
Dear Margaret
Chef Ryan Brosseau’s Lakeview front brings together a blend of French-Canadian dishes that offers more than poutine and cheese curds. The restaurant is quaint, with blue-painted facades, white-trim windows and an adorned ceiling.
Lardon
The Logan Square salumeria runs all day, presenting whole-hog butchery and selections of charcuterie boards. The dining room provides a full view of the craftsmanship at hand.
Sochi Saigonese Kitchen
The Lakeview establishment, which is run by husband and wife Son Do and Chinh Pham, houses modern Vietnamese courses with a focus on ingredient sourcing. The high school sweethearts display dishes with depth — a favorite being pho paired with bone broth, flat rice noodles, Wagyu short rib and aromatics aplenty.
Superkhana International
Mixes and mashes of Indian flavors are on the plate, with naan topped with jalapeños and mozzarella being a menu fixture. The eatery spent five years hosting pop-ups before landing its location in Logan Square in 2019.
Tortello
“Pasta is king” at this Wicker Park establishment. The Italian restaurant’s platter consists of simple tweaks to classic dishes that make for unique tastes. Inspector notes commended the smoked eggplant with roasted peppers and ricotta salata.
