The Wellsley
Event venue · River North ·
Expansive, versatile space blending grandeur and charm
Expansive, versatile space blending grandeur and charm
"Boka’s River North private event space at 504 N. Wells Street is hosting the limited pop-up from January 19 through January 26, with reservations via OpenTable. The venue, which was formerly the French restaurant Le Select before its conversion to a private-events space, is being optimized by Boka for pop-ups: Goldberg says they’ve been in talks with other chefs from outside Chicago and that a pop-up series could be in the works. The January timing was chosen in part because winter news coverage of snowstorms tends to encourage diners to stay indoors, and a short, time-limited pop-up creates urgency—if diners cancel, they’ll miss out." - Ashok Selvam
"A Parisian brasserie, Le Select was a popular gathering place in the 1920s for literary greats like Scott Fitzgerald and Earnest Hemingway." - Erin Perkins
"Le Select, a French restaurant led by acclaimed chef Daniel Rose and owned by Boka Restaurant Group, closed after 10 months of operation. The space is being converted into the Wellsley." - Ashok Selvam
"Opened in January 2023 at 504 N. Wells Street as a heavily hyped River North French brasserie from a celebrated restaurant group, this space—including its second-floor bar, Bar 504—struggled to connect with local critics and diners despite a VIP launch. Its opening chef, Daniel Rose, a suburban Chicago native with Michelin-starred Paris restaurants who also backed a lauded New York fine-dining spot, left after a middling reception; chef Chris Pandel from the group's Fulton Market steakhouse later stepped in to revamp the menu. Citing long-held plans to add a private-event venue for its catering arm and acknowledging that the concept “did not resonate,” the owners are converting the restaurant into an exclusive events space, immediately hosting private parties through the end of 2023, temporarily closing in January for about a month for light renovations and furniture removal, and retiring the current name while already taking event inquiries." - Ashok Selvam
"An over-the-top brasserie from James Beard Award-winning Boka Restaurant Group, Le Select is a dazzling visual spectacle in the former home of infamous clubstaurant Bottled Blonde. Bask in the glitzy, cavernous space at happy hour with $10 cocktails and wines by the glass, plus burgers, oysters, and other bites." - Naomi Waxman, Ashok Selvam