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The bar at Niles Crosby Kitchen in the early afternoon on Friday, May 31. (Tom Robb/Journal Photo)
Niles is expanding its culinary offerings with new restaurant openings. Crosby's Kitchen, They opened in Caldwell and Touhy last week, with two more stores planned.
Village Mayor George Alpogiannis said when village staff were reaching out to community members for the Niles 2040 Comprehensive Plan, 68 percent of residents said their “go-to restaurant” for special occasions was outside the village.
Alpogiannis, a restaurant owner himself, said he hopes to change that and attract a fine-dining restaurant that will become a popular dining destination in the village.
Crosby's opened May 21. A private ribbon-cutting by Alpogiannis and Niles Chamber of Commerce officials is planned for next month.
During a visit to Crosby's on Friday afternoon, May 31, the new restaurant and its outdoor patio were busy, and managers said it has been busy since it opened.
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Niles Crosby Kitchen has several dining rooms that can be sectioned off for private function rooms, one of them. (Tom Robb/Journal Photo)
Crosby's owner Derek Littell reached out to the village after Alpogiannis said he was in discussions with restaurateurs about opening a location in the Golf Mill Shopping Center.
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Niles Crosby's dining room in April while the restaurant was under construction. (Tom Robb/Journal Photo)
The Sterling Organization plans to invest $440 million in redesigning and renovating the shopping center, turning it into an open-air “town center” similar to Skokie's Old Orchard, with tree-lined restaurants and fountains. Village and Sterling officials are working on a redevelopment agreement for the renovation.
The same day, May 21, Alpogiannis announced that James Beard Award-winning chef Jimmy Banos had completed the purchase of Amici Ristorante at 7620 N. Milwaukee Ave. and would open a restaurant there. Kokura Restaurant, Greek concept.
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James Beard Award-winning chef Jimmy Banos Jr.
In addition to the prestigious James Beard Award, Bannos' restaurant, The Purple Pig, on Chicago's Michigan Avenue, was also awarded the 2023 Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand Award, one of only 22 Michelin-starred restaurants in the Chicago area in 2023.
Alpogiannis said it could take six months for the Koukla store to open before renovations at the Amici store are completed.
Before Koukla opened, Alpogiannis said he would welcome the opening of another quality restaurant in the village. Sabor a Café Colombian steakhouse and music venueAlpogiannis said it is expected to open within about three months.
The first Columbian Restaurant location is located on Peterson Avenue, just west of Western Avenue, in Chicago's northernmost neighborhood.
Alpogiannis said Sabor already has signage installed outside its new location at 6873 N. Milwaukee Ave., the former Music Box Club just north of White Eagle Banquets.
Both Crosby's Kitchen and Kokura received financial assistance from the village; Sabor, which is not located in a tax increment financing district, did not.
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