A long-empty storefront just off Millennium Park is finally getting its second act. Three Asian-forward restaurants, including an upscale izakaya, a Southeast-Asian hot-pot and BBQ buffet, and a fast-casual taco spot, are headed to 174 N. Michigan Ave in the Loop. The four-story property is being rebranded by its new owner as Pacifica on Michigan, an Asian-focused retail and dining hub, and fresh permit action suggests the project has quietly shifted from renderings to real construction.
Developer plans and timeline
Developer Windfall Group says it bought the building in March 2025 and is pitching the redo as "Pacifica on Michigan," with a target opening window in 2026 or 2027, according to Windfall Group. The company describes its Pacifica projects as Asian lifestyle centers that bring together restaurants, retail, and entertainment, all meant to lure locals and tourists back to busy urban corridors.
Who's signing on
Early tenant lineups point to a stacked roster: Genki, a concept tied to a Washington, D.C.-area izakaya team, Kanpai Hot Pot & BBQ, a Southeast-Asian barbecue and shabu-shabu buffet operator, and Velvet Taco on the ground floor, as reported by Crain's Chicago Business. Crain's also reports that Windfall paid about $7.5 million for the address in March 2025 as part of a broader acquisition play along the Mag Mile block.
Permits show work is underway
City and contractor records show multiple tenant build-out filings tied to 174 N. Michigan Ave, including self-certified interior restaurant buildouts dated December 2024 and electrical permits issued in 2025, a signal that crews are actively prepping the shell for incoming operators, according to permit data compiled by BuildZoom. Those filings match up with business-license entries and occupancy paperwork that assign specific concepts to different floors in the building.
Where the brands come from
Kanpai already runs a Southeast-Asian hot-pot and BBQ spot in the D.C. suburbs, after opening in Rockville, Maryland, last fall, a debut that local coverage documented, and Windfall has leaned on similarly regional concepts in other projects, according to Bethesda Magazine. Genki's operators have ties to izakaya ventures in Northern Virginia, signaling that Windfall is curating tenants from outside Chicago rather than simply filling the space with off-the-shelf chains.
What it could mean for the Mag Mile
The move drops into a larger, slow-motion reset for Michigan Avenue, where landlords have been working to refill storefronts and broaden the dining mix after years of pandemic-era disruption and turnover. New leases and conversions have been landing up and down the corridor even as some longtime operators and food halls bow out, a trend tracked by coverage from Axios Chicago and other commercial-real-estate reporting.
Windfall, Genki and Kanpai did not immediately respond to requests for comment, Crain's noted, and the developer's timeline suggests the next several months will determine which floors and concepts open first. Expect the real clues to show up in fresh permit filings, window signage and city inspections as Pacifica on Michigan edges closer to lighting up that long-quiet stretch of the avenue.
