In September, Time Out ranked West Town No. 18 on its list of the coolest neighborhoods in the world, ahead of neighborhoods in New York, Paris and Amsterdam. “If you've heard about a cool new spot in Chicago recently,” Time Out wrote, “there's a good chance that it's in West Town.”
If you want to see what they mean, go to the 1400 block of W. Chicago Avenue. Two of the most talked-about restaurants of the fall sit right across the street from each other there.
Gilda: Chicago's first Basque tavern
Gilda opened in July at 1421 W. Chicago Ave., in the old Chi-Latin space, and it calls itself Chicago's first Basque tavern. Think of the bars of San Sebastián in Spain's Basque Country: pintxos (small bites, many served on bread or a skewer), porróns of wine passed around the table, and a wine list that's mostly Spanish.
The name comes from the most famous pintxo of all. A gilda is a skewer of olive, anchovy and pickled pepper, named after Rita Hayworth's 1946 film Gilda. That's why there's a Rita Hayworth mural on the wall.
The story behind it is a very West Town story. Chef Jeremy Leven, who used to run the kitchen at mfk. in Lakeview, opened Gilda with partners Rafael Esparza and Anthony Baier. When their bank financing fell through, they turned to the neighborhood. About 40 people bought “Compañero cards” and raised roughly $20,000 to get the doors open.
What to order: start with the gilda skewers and the croquetas. Then get the jamón pan con tomate, the Ibérico pork and the lamb albóndigas, and finish with the Basque cheesecake. The cocktails have a Chicago accent. Try the Lady Gilda, their take on a dirty martini. On Mondays, Gilda runs Chuletón Night: a one-kilo bone-in steak for the table.
Good to know: It's small, with 44 seats, so book ahead on OpenTable. Early diners there rate it 4.7 out of 5. Plan on about $50 a person and up. Hours are Monday and Thursday through Saturday from 5 to 10pm, and Sunday from 5 to 9pm. It's closed Tuesday and Wednesday. There's no parking lot, so walk or grab a ride.
Compa: Opening any day now
Directly across the street at 1424 W. Chicago Ave., the whole neighborhood is watching the windows. Compa is one of the most anticipated openings of the fall, and according to neighborhood reports, the grand opening could come any day now. We walk past it constantly, and we're as impatient as everyone else. Chef Horacio Fonseca and beverage director Adrian Gaytan met while working at DMK Restaurant Group, and the name says it all. “Compa” is short for compadre, a friend you'd do anything for.
Here's what we're waiting for. The menu is regional Mexican and built for sharing, and a few of the announced dishes are reason enough to be first in line: chile en nogada with lobster, a whole grilled octopus with chorizo crisps, an al pastor–style whole branzino, and lamb mole with hand-pressed tortillas. The bar will focus on agave cocktails and wines from Mexico and Latin America. The room is designed in light woods with bright, colorful details, and the goal is an elevated neighborhood dining room, not a special-occasion-only place.
We're all anxiously waiting for the doors to open, and the minute they do, we'll let you know. If you beat us there, tell us what you ordered.
How we'd do the block
Once Compa opens, this stretch of Chicago Avenue becomes a two-stop night. Start at Gilda with a gilda skewer and a glass of txakoli or vermouth, then cross the street to Compa for dinner. Or flip it: mezcal first, Basque cheesecake last. Either way, you never need to move the car.
Our corner of the neighborhood
This block is personal for us. Today we closed on 1427 W. Huron, one block south of these two restaurants. Over the past four months, Ivona also closed on 1429 and 1436 W. Huron. That's three homes on the same block of Huron since summer.
That's what local roots look like for us. Ivona has been selling homes in West Town for more than 30 years. I've been in this part of the city since 1999, when we bought our first lot in Bucktown for $40,000. We know these streets block by block, down to how long it really takes to walk to dinner. From Huron to Gilda's front door, it's about two minutes.
A Time Out ranking doesn't set the price of anyone's house. Comps, condition and timing do that, and we'll always walk you through those numbers plainly. But when restaurants like these open within a few minutes' walk of a quiet residential street, buyers notice. We've watched it happen three times this year on one block.
If you're thinking about your next move
Maybe you've owned your West Town, Wicker Park or Bucktown home for years and you're curious what it's worth now. Maybe you moved away and you're thinking about coming back. Either way, start with dinner on Chicago Avenue. And if a question about your home comes up, call us. We'll give you a straight answer.
