ANDERSONVILLE — A Chicago-based hot dog chain opened in the former home of a longtime Persian restaurant in Andersonville, while a fast-casual restaurant chain is eyeing a vacant storefront in Edgewater.
Here’s more recent food news on the Far North Side:
Devil Dawgs opened the doors to its new Andersonville location earlier this week. Credit: Madison Savedra/Block Club Chicago
Devil Dawgs, 5259 N. Clark St.
Devil Dawgs opened the doors to its newest restaurant in Andersonville at 5259 N. Clark St. this month.
The local chain announced this spring it was taking over half of the former home of Reza’s, a popular and longstanding Persian restaurant that closed its doors in 2023.
Andersonville neighbors can expect the same Devil Dawgs menu as other locations, including its classic Chicago hot dog, jumbo spicy sausage and Italian beef sandwich.
Panda Express, 1123 W. Berwyn Ave.
It appears casual-dining chain Panda Express is opening a location in Edgewater.
City records show permits were issued Wednesday for builders to install four signs reading “Panda Express” at 1123 W. Berwyn Ave., which is currently an empty storefront. It’s at the end of a strip mall on Berwyn Avenue and Broadway, but the front door is on Berwyn Avenue.
The rest of the strip mall remains empty, except for a Burlington store that opened in 2023. It sits directly west of the newly opened Berwyn Red Line station.
La Parrilla Colombian Restaurant is behind the new Cafe Colombiano, which opened at 5940 N. Broadway late last month. Credit: Madison Savedra/Block Club Chicago
Cafe Colombiano, 5940 N. Broadway
An Edgewater Colombian restaurant expanded with a cafe next door at 5940 N. Broadway.
Cafe Colombiano by La Parrilla opened late last month, offering classic drinks like drip coffee and cold brew as well as fun twists like a marshmallow latte and coconut cream matcha.
La Parrilla Colombian Restaurant opened in Edgewater in 2024, offering a wide menu of traditional dishes from Colombia, including empanadas, buñuelos and arepas.
An Italian restaurant based in the suburbs is expanding to the city, opening a new location in Uptown. Credit: Madison Savedra/Block Club Chicago
Piacere Mio, 1303 W. Wilson Ave.
A suburban Italian restaurant is expanding to Chicago in a storefront that’s been home to several restaurants over the past three years.
Piacere Mio appears to be opening soon at 1303 W. Wilson Ave., according to signs on the storefront. The restaurant, which offers a variety of pasta dishes, opened in Forest Park in 2023, according to the Forest Park Review.
The storefront was most recently home to Floreen’s Chicken & Roost, which was open for only three months in 2023. From spring to fall 2022, it had been a vegan Mexican restaurant; from 2017-2019, it had been a pizza restaurant. All three restaurants were operated by a couple known for having several restaurants in the area.
Krispy Krunchy Chicken, a fried chicken chain, opened in the former home of Fiesta Mexicana. Credit: Madison Savedra/Block Club Chicago
Krispy Krunchy Chicken, 4806 N. Broadway
A fried chicken chain opened in the former home of Uptown’s oldest restaurant.
Krispy Krunchy Chicken opened this month at 4806 N. Broadway, formerly the home of Fiesta Mexicana, serving chicken wings, nuggets, honey biscuits and more. The fried chicken spot has several other locations across the city, some attached to gas stations.
Fiesta Mexicana had been an Uptown mainstay for over 40 years; it closed in 2024.
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