Chicago's Logan Square is now home to Attagirl, a new kid on the block with an old soul, helmed by chef and culinary director Bunny, formerly at the helm of Cafe Marie-Jeanne. "It's pink because we think pink is cute, not because pink is gay," Bunny told Eater Chicago, setting the record straight on the joint's color palette. Cafe Marie-Jeanne's faithful, who've been adorning its T-shirts long after its 2020 closure, can now redirect their loyalty to Bunny's latest venture.
Bunny previously teamed up with Matt Sussman, not a stranger to the local dining scene, thanks to his own establishment, Table, Donkey, and Stick. After a stint in Springfield, Missouri and bartending at Sussman's outfit, Bunny is back in action, boasting a menu with impressions of Cafe Marie-Jeanne, albeit under the proper chefship of Dia Pedroza. Sussman admits to his own reliance on trustworthy teams in his experience, "I think I had to trust people because I basically didn’t know how to do anything," he confided to Eater Chicago.
Attagirl isn't just resurrecting Cafe Marie-Jeanne favorites like oysters, burgers, and duck frites; it's refining them. The spot has quickly gained fame for its crispy-on-the-outside and creamy-on-the-inside French fries. Bunny, describing the path to reopening, said, "It was prep work to open a restaurant, something Sussman had to push after Dos Urban Cantina closed and a space opened up," in a statement obtained by Eater Chicago.
Meanwhile, just down the road, the Orbit Group has plans to bring back the California Clipper and transform the old Cafe Marie-Jeanne into Segnatore. Orbit’s chef and partner, Matt Troost, promises a menu with Italian-Midwestern chops, while beverage lead Kristina Magro is tuning the drink list in harmony. "We want to see this corner of the city come back to life," Jessica Garza, Marketing Director at Orbit Group, told Block Club Chicago. Aiming to honor the space's importance to Chicago, they're committed, "We don’t want to be the ones to ruin the California Clipper. We just want to be the ones to breathe some life back into it and keep it going for the next 100 years,” stated Magro in a statement obtained by Block Club Chicago.
As Chicago's gastronomy landscape evolves, both Attagirl and the impending Segnatore nod to the past while forging their own futures, catering not just to taste buds but community spirits, too. Bunny's intersectional mission at Attagirl and the Orbit Group's homage to historical favorites strike a balancing act between innovation and tradition—a recipe that could sustain these establishments as new local landmarks.
