Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
@louisachu.bsky.social
Restaurant critic at @chicagotribune.com
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
In her review of Alinea this year, Tribune critic @louisachu.bsky.social gave the restaurant two out of four stars, recognizing the industriousness of the staff, but noting overly sweet, salty and truffled flavors. Plus, it’s time to let go of The Balloon, one of too many signature courses.
Restaurant review: Alinea turns 20 in Chicago, and our critic says it’s time to let go of the balloon
Alinea, the modernist tasting-menu restaurant marking a milestone 20th anniversary this week, remains the most important fine dining establishment in Chicago, but it’s not at its best.
www.chicagotribune.com
November 13, 2025 at 12:21 AM
In her review of Alinea this year, Tribune critic @louisachu.bsky.social gave the restaurant two out of four stars, recognizing the industriousness of the staff, but noting overly sweet, salty and truffled flavors. Plus, it’s time to let go of The Balloon, one of too many signature courses.
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
Michelin awarded the restaurant three stars when the guide first came to Chicago, a distinction it had retained since then.
Alinea by chef Grant Achatz demoted from three Michelin stars in Chicago
Our Tribune review this year said it was time to let go of The Balloon, one of too many signature dishes.
www.chicagotribune.com
November 13, 2025 at 12:18 AM
Michelin awarded the restaurant three stars when the guide first came to Chicago, a distinction it had retained since then.
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
Alinea has lost a Michelin star.
The French guide announced that the modernist tasting menu restaurant in Chicago, by award-winning chef and owner Grant Achatz, has been demoted from three stars, the highest rating, to two stars.
The French guide announced that the modernist tasting menu restaurant in Chicago, by award-winning chef and owner Grant Achatz, has been demoted from three stars, the highest rating, to two stars.
Alinea by chef Grant Achatz demoted from three Michelin stars in Chicago
Our Tribune review this year said it was time to let go of The Balloon, one of too many signature dishes.
trib.al
November 13, 2025 at 12:07 AM
Alinea has lost a Michelin star.
The French guide announced that the modernist tasting menu restaurant in Chicago, by award-winning chef and owner Grant Achatz, has been demoted from three stars, the highest rating, to two stars.
The French guide announced that the modernist tasting menu restaurant in Chicago, by award-winning chef and owner Grant Achatz, has been demoted from three stars, the highest rating, to two stars.
Free gift link to my review here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/11/11/restaurant-review-tacotlan-mexican-tacos-quesabirria-hermosa/?share=swauertaaiirschosccn
chicagotribune.com/2025/11/11/restaurant-review-tacotlan-mexican-tacos-quesabirria-hermosa/?share=swauertaaiirschosccn
November 12, 2025 at 9:48 AM
Free gift link to my review here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/11/11/restaurant-review-tacotlan-mexican-tacos-quesabirria-hermosa/?share=swauertaaiirschosccn
chicagotribune.com/2025/11/11/restaurant-review-tacotlan-mexican-tacos-quesabirria-hermosa/?share=swauertaaiirschosccn
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
Restaurant review: Tacotlán brings deeply rooted immigrant traditions to fleeting food trends in Hermosa
Restaurant review: Tacotlán brings deeply rooted immigrant traditions to fleeting food trends in Hermosa
The cozy and chaotic father-and-daughter-owned Mexican restaurant in Chicago is best known for the taco phenomenon known as quesabirria.
trib.al
November 12, 2025 at 6:59 AM
Restaurant review: Tacotlán brings deeply rooted immigrant traditions to fleeting food trends in Hermosa
🍕 Free gift link to my review here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/10/07/restaurant-review-pizzamici/?share=zghztucrapt1m0cuiasa
chicagotribune.com/2025/10/07/restaurant-review-pizzamici/?share=zghztucrapt1m0cuiasa
October 8, 2025 at 6:51 PM
🍕 Free gift link to my review here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/10/07/restaurant-review-pizzamici/?share=zghztucrapt1m0cuiasa
chicagotribune.com/2025/10/07/restaurant-review-pizzamici/?share=zghztucrapt1m0cuiasa
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
Pizz’amici makes one of the best thin crusts in the city, but reservations and service can get in the way unless you know the rules.
Restaurant review: Pizz’amici making new tavern style pizza history on Grand Avenue in Chicago
The pizzeria makes one of the best thin crusts in the city, but reservations and service can get in the way unless you know the rules.
trib.al
October 7, 2025 at 6:01 PM
Pizz’amici makes one of the best thin crusts in the city, but reservations and service can get in the way unless you know the rules.
🎄 I’m on vacation this week, but had to share, because The Walnut Room holiday reservations go live tomorrow!
🎁 Free gift link here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/09/23/guide-walnut-room-reservation/?share=nt9ob3ercwtorwietatl
🎁 Free gift link here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/09/23/guide-walnut-room-reservation/?share=nt9ob3ercwtorwietatl
September 23, 2025 at 3:04 PM
🎄 I’m on vacation this week, but had to share, because The Walnut Room holiday reservations go live tomorrow!
🎁 Free gift link here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/09/23/guide-walnut-room-reservation/?share=nt9ob3ercwtorwietatl
🎁 Free gift link here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/09/23/guide-walnut-room-reservation/?share=nt9ob3ercwtorwietatl
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
The Walnut Room, the legendary Chicago restaurant best known for Mrs. Hering’s chicken pot pie, opens holiday reservations this week with a new executive chef.
Restaurant guide: How to get holiday reservations at The Walnut Room, with a new executive chef, in Chicago
Holiday reservations for the Walnut Room, arguably the season’s toughest tables in town, open Sept. 25 at 9 a.m. on OpenTable.
trib.al
September 23, 2025 at 3:02 PM
The Walnut Room, the legendary Chicago restaurant best known for Mrs. Hering’s chicken pot pie, opens holiday reservations this week with a new executive chef.
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
Many will have a more comprehensive look at his career. I wanted to do something short on the elusiveness he gave to his characters that made them interesting conundrums rather than a blank
No role exemplified this better than 1973’s “The Way We Were." Hubbell, you absolute coward!
Gift 🔗
No role exemplified this better than 1973’s “The Way We Were." Hubbell, you absolute coward!
Gift 🔗
In appreciation: Robert Redford’s elusiveness on screen made him a more complicated actor
No role exemplified this better than 1973’s “The Way We Were.”
www.chicagotribune.com
September 16, 2025 at 4:39 PM
Many will have a more comprehensive look at his career. I wanted to do something short on the elusiveness he gave to his characters that made them interesting conundrums rather than a blank
No role exemplified this better than 1973’s “The Way We Were." Hubbell, you absolute coward!
Gift 🔗
No role exemplified this better than 1973’s “The Way We Were." Hubbell, you absolute coward!
Gift 🔗
✨ Free gift link to my review here!
chicagotribune.com/2025/09/16/restaurant-review-north-pond-chicago/?share=ngcpthi1ies20catwout
chicagotribune.com/2025/09/16/restaurant-review-north-pond-chicago/?share=ngcpthi1ies20catwout
September 16, 2025 at 8:42 PM
✨ Free gift link to my review here!
chicagotribune.com/2025/09/16/restaurant-review-north-pond-chicago/?share=ngcpthi1ies20catwout
chicagotribune.com/2025/09/16/restaurant-review-north-pond-chicago/?share=ngcpthi1ies20catwout
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
North Pond, the rustic yet refined iconic Chicago restaurant open in Lincoln Park since 1998, whose defining chef departed after an award-winning career spanning 20 years, has found new confidence and curiosity through the extraordinary lived experience of executive chef César Murillo.
Restaurant review: North Pond reflects new confidence and curiosity of chef César Murillo in Chicago
Executive chef César Murillo has perhaps become best known as a contestant on the reality television series “Top Chef” just this year.
trib.al
September 16, 2025 at 5:35 PM
North Pond, the rustic yet refined iconic Chicago restaurant open in Lincoln Park since 1998, whose defining chef departed after an award-winning career spanning 20 years, has found new confidence and curiosity through the extraordinary lived experience of executive chef César Murillo.
Free gift link to my story here!
chicagotribune.com/2025/09/09/restaurant-news-luellas-southern-kitchen/?share=9owrn2ucltuiognh20mh
chicagotribune.com/2025/09/09/restaurant-news-luellas-southern-kitchen/?share=9owrn2ucltuiognh20mh
September 10, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Free gift link to my story here!
chicagotribune.com/2025/09/09/restaurant-news-luellas-southern-kitchen/?share=9owrn2ucltuiognh20mh
chicagotribune.com/2025/09/09/restaurant-news-luellas-southern-kitchen/?share=9owrn2ucltuiognh20mh
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
Luella’s Southern Kitchen, the beloved restaurant best known for its buttermilk fried chicken or perhaps crab stuffed shrimp with house-smoked grits, has made a long-anticipated move after 10 years in Lincoln Square — along with a big menu change.
Restaurant news: Luella’s Southern Kitchen makes big moves in Albany Park, among 12 openings around Chicago
Darnell Reed bought the building, marking ownership for the ode to his great-grandmother, who migrated from Morgan City, Mississippi, in 1943.
www.chicagotribune.com
September 9, 2025 at 6:48 PM
Luella’s Southern Kitchen, the beloved restaurant best known for its buttermilk fried chicken or perhaps crab stuffed shrimp with house-smoked grits, has made a long-anticipated move after 10 years in Lincoln Square — along with a big menu change.
Free gift link to my review here!
chicagotribune.com/2025/08/11/restaurant-review-elawa-farm-cafe/?share=1crh5anwah0bewascehw
chicagotribune.com/2025/08/11/restaurant-review-elawa-farm-cafe/?share=1crh5anwah0bewascehw
August 12, 2025 at 3:39 PM
Free gift link to my review here!
chicagotribune.com/2025/08/11/restaurant-review-elawa-farm-cafe/?share=1crh5anwah0bewascehw
chicagotribune.com/2025/08/11/restaurant-review-elawa-farm-cafe/?share=1crh5anwah0bewascehw
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
Elawa Farm, the historic former country escape built by a couple with a meatpacking fortune has evolved into a foundation with an ethereal café, elegant market and earnest mission.
Restaurant review: Elawa Farm, a beautifully bountiful café and market in Lake Forest
The historic former country escape has evolved into a foundation with an ethereal café, elegant market and earnest mission.
trib.al
August 11, 2025 at 11:54 PM
Elawa Farm, the historic former country escape built by a couple with a meatpacking fortune has evolved into a foundation with an ethereal café, elegant market and earnest mission.
Free gift link here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/08/05/restaurant-news-cerdito-muerto/?share=uowwcawoimccrt0utbns
chicagotribune.com/2025/08/05/restaurant-news-cerdito-muerto/?share=uowwcawoimccrt0utbns
August 5, 2025 at 4:32 PM
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
Cerdito Muerto, a speakeasy-style cocktail bar with a contemporary Mexican American kitchen that’s transformed an old family home that survived the Great Chicago Fire, opened in Pilsen on June 26.
Restaurant news: Cerdito Muerto, a cocktail bar and Mexican American kitchen, transforms an old family home in Pilsen
Owned by Emidio Oceguera, the space was once his mother’s restaurant, Tacos Palacio, and his late father’s neighborhood pool hall.
www.chicagotribune.com
August 5, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Cerdito Muerto, a speakeasy-style cocktail bar with a contemporary Mexican American kitchen that’s transformed an old family home that survived the Great Chicago Fire, opened in Pilsen on June 26.
Free gift link to my review here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/07/28/restaurant-review-carnitas-uruapan/?share=r2omabtsgaessns5ni7p
chicagotribune.com/2025/07/28/restaurant-review-carnitas-uruapan/?share=r2omabtsgaessns5ni7p
July 29, 2025 at 3:22 PM
Free gift link to my review here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/07/28/restaurant-review-carnitas-uruapan/?share=r2omabtsgaessns5ni7p
chicagotribune.com/2025/07/28/restaurant-review-carnitas-uruapan/?share=r2omabtsgaessns5ni7p
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
Las Carnitas Uruapan La Villita, the newest Mexican restaurant by the first family of pork in Chicago, brings 50 years of tradition and transformation to a flagship committed to the community in Little Village.
Restaurant review: Las Carnitas Uruapan La Villita, a flagship for pork in Chicago
Las Carnitas Uruapan La Villita brings 50 years of tradition and transformation to a flagship committed to the community in Little Village.
trib.al
July 28, 2025 at 9:43 PM
Las Carnitas Uruapan La Villita, the newest Mexican restaurant by the first family of pork in Chicago, brings 50 years of tradition and transformation to a flagship committed to the community in Little Village.
Free gift link to my review here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/07/14/restaurant-review-mahari-chicago/?share=oeeauaanenw0eiiae277
chicagotribune.com/2025/07/14/restaurant-review-mahari-chicago/?share=oeeauaanenw0eiiae277
July 15, 2025 at 3:49 PM
Free gift link to my review here:
chicagotribune.com/2025/07/14/restaurant-review-mahari-chicago/?share=oeeauaanenw0eiiae277
chicagotribune.com/2025/07/14/restaurant-review-mahari-chicago/?share=oeeauaanenw0eiiae277
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
Mahari brings not just the vibrant cuisines of the African diaspora to Chicago, but chefs tracing their cultures and blazing their own paths.
Restaurant review: Mahari, a neighborhood home with the cuisine of the African diaspora in Hyde Park
Mahari brings not just the vibrant cuisines of the African diaspora to Chicago, but chefs tracing their cultures and blazing their own paths.
www.chicagotribune.com
July 14, 2025 at 6:21 PM
Mahari brings not just the vibrant cuisines of the African diaspora to Chicago, but chefs tracing their cultures and blazing their own paths.
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
This place sounds awesome!
Also, never read restaurant reviews when you're already hungry.
Also, never read restaurant reviews when you're already hungry.
Mahari brings not just the vibrant cuisines of the African diaspora to Chicago, but chefs tracing their cultures and blazing their own paths.
Restaurant review: Mahari, a neighborhood home with the cuisine of the African diaspora in Hyde Park
Mahari brings not just the vibrant cuisines of the African diaspora to Chicago, but chefs tracing their cultures and blazing their own paths.
www.chicagotribune.com
July 14, 2025 at 7:09 PM
This place sounds awesome!
Also, never read restaurant reviews when you're already hungry.
Also, never read restaurant reviews when you're already hungry.
🎁 Free gift link to my review here 🍝
chicagotribune.com/2025/06/30/restaurant-review-void-chicago/?share=ntn5ogmowccwuesowid0
chicagotribune.com/2025/06/30/restaurant-review-void-chicago/?share=ntn5ogmowccwuesowid0
July 1, 2025 at 2:37 PM
🎁 Free gift link to my review here 🍝
chicagotribune.com/2025/06/30/restaurant-review-void-chicago/?share=ntn5ogmowccwuesowid0
chicagotribune.com/2025/06/30/restaurant-review-void-chicago/?share=ntn5ogmowccwuesowid0
Reposted by Louisa Kung Liu Chu 朱功蕾
While the Italian American restaurant Void does whimsy well, most evident with its Spaghetti Uh-O’s and No-Lört, it’s become one of the best restaurants in Chicago right now, writes @louisachu.bsky.social.
Restaurant review: Void, a whimsical Italian American refuge for the weird and wonderful in Chicago
Spaghetti Uh-O’s emerged early as the signature dish since opening in Avondale last August, along with their non-alcoholic No-Lört.
www.chicagotribune.com
June 30, 2025 at 11:17 PM
While the Italian American restaurant Void does whimsy well, most evident with its Spaghetti Uh-O’s and No-Lört, it’s become one of the best restaurants in Chicago right now, writes @louisachu.bsky.social.