One of America’s Best Chefs Is Bringing Coastal Italian Food to Chicago — Now Open
Welcome to “Now Open,” Eater’s new series exploring the high-stakes journey of launching a restaurant. From construction and design to finances and menu development, we dive deep into the grit and pressure of starting a new venture.
For the first episode we are at the Radicle, where chef Joe Frillman is asking, “What if the Midwest were a region in Italy?” Following the massive success of his New York Times Top 50 restaurant, Daisies, Frillman is back with a new spot that challenges everything you think you know about Midwestern dining.
The Radicle is a high-low experience where hyperlocal ingredients meet coastal Italian inspiration. Whether you’re looking for the ultimate “elevated” comfort food like wood-fired pizza, wings, and mozzarella sticks or sophisticated plates like clam passatelli, crudos, and house-made tuna conserva, chef Joe is proving that world-class cuisine can still be affordable and accessible.
#food #restaurant #chicago
00:00 Intro: Opening a Restaurant
01:01 R&D: Tuna Conserva Process
03:47 Passatelli Pasta
05:36 Inspiration for the Radicle
06:40 Scallop Crudo With Chef Meghan
08:56 Construction of the Radicle
10:19 Plating Up the Tuna Conserva
11:28 Putting Yourself Out There as a Chef
Credits:
Supervising Producer/Director: Connor Reid
Camera: Murilo Ferreira, Daniel Kwon
Production Sound Mixer: Joshua Timmer
Editor: Howie Burbidge
Executive Producer: Stephen Pelletteri
Head of Production: Stefania Orrù
Supervising Producer: Connor Reid
Post-Production Supervisor: Lucy Morales Carlisle
Director of Production: Michelle Fox
Senior Director of Photography: Murilo Ferreira
Supervising Producer, Social Video: Jordan Shalhoub
Download the Eater App: https://shorturl.at/Rz1pN
Eater is the go-to resource for food and restaurant obsessives with hundreds of episodes and new series, featuring exclusive access to dining around the world, rich culture, immersive experiences, and authoritative experts. Binge it, watch it, crave it.
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel now! http://goo.gl/hGwtF0
24 Comments
I SAW THAT! You can't fool me! I saw this uploaded then taken down!
Thank you for uploading this video Eater!
Insane refresh Pull
What happened to the Mise en Place series?!
$1,000,000 is really cheap to open a standalone restaurant anywhere in the US let alone in Chicago.
Says his philosophy is if the Midwest was a region in Italy what would the food be and then immediately says it’s a coastal inspired seafood forward restaurant. Since when is Chicago/midwest a coastal seafood region?
Definitely all over the place but if the food is good then the food is good
I remember when white people wouldn't consider going to Logan Square for anything. How times change.
That scallop crudo looks weak af. I know home cooks making more well rounded versions
So sick of the need to add "approachable" dishes to stay in business. How many wings, burgers, fried chicken, and steaks can we have?
None of these dishes sounded appetizing
Clicked on it for the thumbnail, then heard Logan Square!
Chicago locals, represent! Time to get a crew together to hit this up before a night life outing.
2:34 the immersion goes to the next level when owner makes eye contact with the executive chef instead of the audience and camera crew. A refreshing subtle touch even if it was unintentional.
Wings and cheese sticks as elevated dining ? Pathetic. Pick a lane.
5$ for burnt toast
Maybe my geography is off, but I really struggle when in the same sentence the restaurant is supposed to be "Midwest", Italian and seafood and coastal-inspired….
bruh. guy buys fresh tuna and cooks it well done cuz mememeh i don't like tin tuna, the buy good or the best tin tuna. wtf. so much better uses for fresh tuna then cooking it through. such a shame.
"If the midwest was a region in Italy, what would the food look like here? It is a seafood coastal inspired restaurant." WTF? Italy is known for their focus on local ingredients. Coastal seafood is found in coastal towns. I'm from Chicago…it's not coastal…
hipster ass BS. This guy does not seem to understand the sourcing of local ingredients or Chicago's culinary history.
Also, a midwest take on what food might be like in Italy yields Italian-American food…red sauces, garlic bread, pastas, etc.
"We don't like lobster because its the last thing in the bowl, so we used clams" you mean the things that you have to eat with your hands? like what? Lol
That poor, gorgeous, talented brunette…having to listen to this guy discuss thinking about pairing black or pinto beans with tuna. The things that women have to put up with in the industry (and others) just to gain leadership experience.
serving clams with the shell is great…but serving a broken shell, you're going to cut someone. Also, Massachusetts clams in Chicago is not very Italian. You know, there are freshwater fish near us that you could look into
wow they sounds like idiots