A popular restaurant on Chicago's North Side has announced plans to closed its beloved café after 40 years in business.
Café Selmarie, a staple in the Lincoln Square neighborhood, known for its bakery and restaurant, revealed that it will close in early 2024, just after the establishment celebrated its 40th anniversary this month.
The restaurant's owner and co-founder, Birgit Kobayashi, will retire as the restaurant closes.
“Since my business partner Jeanne passed away in 2017 and long before that, my daughter and Café Selmarie General Manager, Connie has been my rock, my guide, my advisor, supporter, constructive critic, and captain of the ship. Despite having a truly wonderful staff, we find ourselves ready for that new chapter in our lives," Kobayashi said in a statement. “After cooking and baking for decades, it is time to sit down. I want to travel with my husband and have time to indulge in other interests. We have met so many wonderful people over the years and celebrated birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, graduations with them. We witnessed this sleepy northside enclave blossom into the vibrant, lovely Lincoln Square neighborhood at our front door. We are forever thankful to our customers for their support through all these years."
Café Selmarie has been in Lincoln Square's Giddings Plaza since 1983, when two neighbors on Giddings Street opened a storefront to serve pastries and coffee, with what was considered the first espresso machine in the neighborhood. Eventually the restaurant expanded in 1999 to more than just pastries.
“We were inspired by European cafés and coffee houses,” Kobayashi said. “We wanted fresh food, made with the best ingredients, served in a warm and inviting setting.”
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In its final months, the restaurant said it plans to celebrate its 40th anniversary with a special three-course dinner from Sept. 21-28, a cookie giveaway and a photo exhibit in its dining room showcasing its history. Classic menu favorites will also make a return, including the hazelnut cheesecake and apricot-hazelnut tartlets.
For fans of the café's holiday staples, Kobayashi said the holiday season will be "business as usual in the bakery," including its popular Stollen, Linzer Torte, Yule Logs, and Eggnog.
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