Husband and wife restaurant veterans launch neighborhood restaurant

CHICAGO - July 3, 2014 - PRLog -- mfk. Restaurant Opening Day Set For July 3, 2014 (http://www.mfkrestaurant.com/)

Chicago, IL July 1, 2014

A Seaside Walk in Simplicity

Husband and wife restaurant veterans launch neighborhood restaurant

Imagine a southern European seaside cafe, one that pays celebrates coastal cuisine, honors local produce and summons an easierway of life.

This is mfk., (http://www.mfkrestaurant.com/) an intimate cafe and bar in Chicago, just off of Lake Michigan on the border of the East Lakeview and Lincoln Parkneighborhoods.

Scott Worsham (http://www.mfkrestaurant.com/staff/) (who opened Art & Soul in Washington D.C. and Southern Art & Bourbon Bar in Atlanta) and Sari Zernich Worsham (http://www.mfkrestaurant.com/staff/) (author of Charlie Trotter cookbooks and producer of PBS’s The Kitchen Sessions with Charlie Trotter), who met whileworking with Art Smith, have named the restaurant after legendary food writer, M.F.K. Fisher. Opening day, opening July 3, 2014, wasselected to celebrate Ms. Fisher’s birthday. A contemporary of F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway, Fisher championed thepleasures of simply prepared food and advanced the European notion that food is at the intersection of life and should be respected.

In that spirit, Executive Chef Nick Lacasse (http://www.mfkrestaurant.com/staff/) has created a menu with a minimalist approach: pair just a handful of ingredients that aregreat solo and even better united.

Seafood and seasonal vegetables figure prominently. Two kinds of anchovies, shrimp, ceviche and squid are all found in the firstsection of the menu, little bites designed to be eaten with your fingers that range from $7 to $14. A section of dishes from the soilfeature vegetable items that are gluten- free, peanut-free and seafood-free, all from $7 to $10.

Larger dishes begin from the plancha, where the likes of a half pound of fresh, never-frozen, shrimp, scallops by the piece, whole razorclams and whole octopus (ranging from $10 to $22) all take a turn on the chrome-plated surface before being simply adorned. Finally,there are heartier chicken, fish stew and steak dishes ($28 to $38) collected under the heading hope you’re hungry. The dishes aredesigned to share and serve 2-4 guests, honoring Fisher’s edict: “Sharing food with another human being is an intimate act that shouldnot be indulged in lightly.”

While Lacasse’s menu (http://www.mfkrestaurant.com/menu/) as a whole can serve as a study in simplicity, mfk.’s dessert menu underscores the point. It is one dish —Basque Cake — which arrives on a plate solo, without garnishes.

mfk. also features a highly-curated wine list (http://www.mfkrestaurant.com/menu/) of affordable wines, with special attention given to varietals grown near the seaside. Thelist of 14 whites, 7 rosés and 4 reds, are all served by the glass and priced the same as by the bottle, without the usual by-the-glassmark up ($6 – $18). Those same wines, by the bottle, range from $24 to $72.

mfk. is open daily, from noon to midnight (with the exception of being closed for Monday lunch). The kitchen is open until 1:00 a.m.Fridays and Saturdays.

We invite you to explore our mfk. morsels (http://www.mfkrestaurant.com/morsels/) to get a more indepth view of mfk.’s food, cocktails and concept.

The Worshams designed the light and airy space to reflect coastal Spain, from Barcelona to Basque country to Mallorca. White-washed walls, white powder-coated metal barstools and chairs, and a wood bar top made from a whole slab of sycamore combine tooffer a simple backdrop for the original paintings of Chicago artist John Santoro, a childhood friend of Scott’s, and custom made claypendant lamps crafted by Chris Busse of Chicago’s Penguin Foot Pottery.

Located within steps of the city’s most treasured open spaces—Lincoln Park and recreation along Lake Michigan, the restaurant’scalm and simplicity is inspired by one of Fisher’s most famous quotes: “First, we eat, then we do everything else.”

Contact

Scott Worsham
owner/operator
804-868-5008 mobile
scott@mfkrestaurant.com

Sari Zernich Worsham
owner/operator
312-636-5404 mobile
sari@mfkrestaurant.com