2026 is shaping up to be a big year for restaurant openings, after a somewhat slow 2025. New spots are opening all over the city and suburbs, and refreshingly, there’s a wide variety of cuisines and concepts. Here are a few standouts.

Schneider Deli
Opening: April 1
I love a deli, so when I heard that Schneider Deli, from Jake and Ariel Schneider, was opening a second location in Lincoln Park, I got excited. It opens today (no, it’s not a joke) and will have all the great deli classics, including bagels, pastrami, coffee, and latkes, that made the first location a hit. 1733 N. Halsted St., Lincoln Park

Mariela
Opening: Spring
The team behind Mirra, including chefs Rishi Kumar and Zubair Mohajir, is opening a new spot in the Loop. Mariela will be heavy on seafood and will combine their Southeast Asian heritage and Midwestern culinary training. Part of the reason I’m excited for this spot is that it’s replacing the old Atwood Café in the Reliance Building, one of the best spaces downtown. It’s not the only restaurant from Mohajir to come — he is also opening a spot called Muhajir on Clark Street focused on live fire cooking, with a Filipino-inspired speakeasy, Bobo, in the same space. 1 W. Washington St., Loop

The Hand & The Eye
Opening: Spring
This project in the McCormick Mansion, which is focused on magic and cost $50 million, has gotten a ton of press, but not a lot of details about the food and drink have been released. We know that Levy is handling the food, and that there will be multiple restaurants and bars throughout the space, but that’s all we know at the moment. But with that kind of investment, it’s for sure worth keeping an eye on.

UrbanBelly
Opening: May
Bill Kim is moving Urbanbelly from Wicker Park back to the Fulton Market District, where it long had a presence. It’s set to open in May, and there’s no indication that the concept is changing — so continue to expect ramen, noodles, dumplings, and more with Korean-inspired flavors. 950 W. Fulton St.

Gilda
Opening: Summer
Jeremy Leven and Rafael Esparza have been working on getting Gilda, a new Basque-inspired tavern, going for a while now, hosting pop-ups and getting a lot of buzz on social media. A few places have tried to embody the pinxtos style of Spanish dining (we miss you, Bar Biscay) but none have quite gotten the vibe right, so Gilda has a lot of hopes riding on it. A few days ago, they took to Instagram to let customers pre-buy some dinners (with a bonus on top as an incentive); hopefully this helps to get the place over the finish line. 1421 W. Chicago Ave., West Town