4 Star Restaurant Group announced the opening of its second Smoke Daddy restaurant at Chicago’s Hickory Street Capital’s Hotel Zachary, slated to open in early 2018. With this opening, 4 Star Restaurant Group will have five Lakeview restaurants, including Crosby’s Kitchen, Tuco and Blondie, Frasca and the upcoming Ella Elli.
“4 Star Restaurant Group is very prevalent in the Lakeview neighborhood and we feel it’s a natural fit to partner with Hickory Street Capital to bring our popular barbeque concept, Smoke Daddy to Hotel Zachary,” says 4 Star Partner and Co-Founder Derek Rettell. “We’re thrilled to be part of this new community gathering place that taps into the distinctive character of Wrigleyville.”
The new 300-seat Smoke Daddy location will be situated on the street level of Hotel Zachary. The 8,000-square foot, two level restaurant will have a 75-seat terrace that faces Clark Street and offer live music seven days a week.
The 175-room, boutique hotel will also include retail space for other Chicago-born boutiques and local chef-driven restaurants. Smoke Daddy will join concepts including The Fifty/50 Group’s West Town Bakery and One Off Hospitality’s Big Star as well as a forthcoming concept from Folkart Restaurant Management to provide a one-of-a-kind tasting experience for guests and locals alike. The seven story, 238,000-square-foot, mixed-use building will also be home to a Wintrust Bank and McDonald’s.
“We feel fortunate to have partnered with a community-driven restaurant operator like 4 Star Restaurant Group, who is at the forefront of Chicago’s culinary scene,” explains Eric Nordness, vice president of Hickory Street Capital. “From the hotel’s inception, we felt it was important to curate a distinctly local experience unique to Wrigleyville.”
Smoke Daddy debuted in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood in 1994 and has since been a mainstay in the Chicago barbeque scene. With influences from many Midwestern barbeque meccas, most prominent is Kansas City, with its vinegar-based, hint-of-celery-seed sauces. All meats are smoked in-house over hard fruit woods like apple and cherry and paired with housemade sauces including Original, Mustard Q and Sweet and Smokey. Sides including sweet potato fries, slaw, pit-smoked beans and more round out the menu. Guests can expect to see favorites at the Hotel Zachary such as the Daddy-O and Burnt End sandwiches and the award-winning Bloody Mary.
Hotel Zachary will be a second home for city explorers, business travelers, visiting families and baseball enthusiasts, who seek an environment that allows one to live like a local. The hotel’s design blends classic elements with a modern aesthetic and draws inspiration from neighboring Wrigley Field.
