Expat
Restaurant · West Town ·
Daytime cafe/nighttime cocktail bar with global inspirations
Daytime cafe/nighttime cocktail bar with global inspirations
"A West Loop all-day café and bar inspired by famous historic drinking spots—think Bellinis and Papa Dobles—where each cocktail is tied to a story curated by a beverage director and hospitality creative director. The program includes coffee cocktails and a selection of natural wines priced at $50 or less; the roomy 2,000-square-foot space doubles as a remote-work–friendly spot with outlets and lunch offerings like a deconstructed BLT layered on pizza crust with ricotta mayo. Rotating coffee blends spotlight local roasters, and a dinner menu of small and large plates is available into the late night." - ByKristin Braswell
"Ever wanted to open up your own restaurant? Good news, we know how you can do it on the cheap. If Expat can throw a few tables and chairs on the sidewalk and call it a restaurant, then so can you. Add some flags hanging overheard and voila! Decoration. In reality, Expat is kind of a genius move by the Element Collective group, the people who own the place. They own Nellcôte and RM Champagne, which are side by side and share the sidewalk on the southwest corner of Randolph and Green. So they decided to put some new yellow tables out front on the Green St. sidewalk, create a small menu, and call it an entirely new restaurant - Expat. Kudos to them. That means Expat is literally a small patio. There's no inside. Yes, it's below freezing here much of the year, but there's still a stretch in Chicago when you want to eat outside all the time, and Expat can be the cute little spot in the West Loop that fills the need. Just don’t refer to this period as #SummerTimeChi - we probably can’t be friends if you do. The menu is built around small plates and dishes that are ideal for the warmer months, which makes sense if you’ve paid attention to anything we just said. Come to Expat to sit outside and eat oysters, raw crudo, salad, and a few other light plates. People watching in front of Soho House is also excellent, and that alone can make for a fascinating meal. Boozy snow cones are also a great idea, and since it'll be a nice day 100% of the time you sit at Expat, we suggest you cap things off with an alcohol-infused ice. Food Rundown Oysters Start with a few. Ahi Tuna Chopped up ahi tuna with watermelon, avocado, and hearts of palm. The avocado and hearts of palm aren’t that noticeable, but the tuna and watermelon are. Solid crudo. Little Gem Salad Little gem, croutons, red wine vinaigrette. Basic and small, but not bad if you want some greens. Soppressata Sandwich A simple soppressata sandwich that has some house butter on it and comes with a bag of UTZ crab chips. It’s a small sandwich, which is fine in this instance, but we’d prefer a little lighter on the butter. Chicago Burrata The burrata isn’t anything special, but the trout roe that comes on it is smoky and fantastic and makes this dish a must order for us. Raw Vegetables Pick a type of raw vegetable and it literally comes raw shoved in a giant square bowl of ice with spicy ranch and pesto cream sauce. You could order your choice of raw cucumbers, radishes, purple cauliflower, little gem lettuce, or turnips. Or you can say fck that because who wants to pay for raw vegetables at a restaurant. Rosé Snow Cone You know you want it. Limoncello and Henny Sidecar versions are available too. A worthy order since you know it'll be nice out if you're sitting here." - Sam Faye
"This daytime cafe/nighttime cocktail bar is from the team behind Beatnik. It’s a whimsical lounge space with a small patio. You’ll find baked goods, light breakfast items (like avocado toast), wraps, and sandwiches." - Ashok Selvam
"An all-day American cafe opened in the private dining space of Bambola, an Asian-European West Loop restaurant that seems to be evolving since opening in 2022. Expat will be open for breakfast and lunch and morph into a late-night bar with a dinner menu." - john ringor, veda kilaru, nick allen
"Opening Friday, April 12 at 165 W. Ogden Ave., Expat converts an underutilized private party space into an all-day cafe and bar serving American comfort food, natural wine, and coffee cocktails inspired by bars that catered to homesick Americans in Havana, Ibiza, and Marrakech in the 1950s. The 2,000-square-foot space is outfitted with tiles, rugs, and handcrafted pieces from Moroccan cooperatives alongside Italian furniture and lighting, offers plenty of outlets for locals and workers and a large outdoor patio, and will rotate coffee from local roasters starting with Hexe and Metropolis. Daytime staples include French toast with strawberry compote and candied hazelnuts, a breakfast burrito, and avocado toast; evenings focus on comfort food such as wood-fired pizza, house-smoked pastrami sandwiches, and fish tacos. Live music features a jazz pianist during the week and vinyl DJs most nights, while the cocktail program—drawn from historic expat bars—includes the Papa Doble (rum, maraschino, grapefruit, lime) from El Floridita and the Suffering Bastard (bourbon, gin, ginger, lime, bitters, mint) from Shepheard’s Hotel, plus coffee cocktails and a selection of natural wines priced at $50 or less. Expat is scheduled to be open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 2 a.m., Saturdays 8 a.m. to 3 a.m., with Sunday hours coming soon." - Sam Nelson