The Chicago Way: An Oral History of Chicago Dining

The untold stories behind Chicago's globally celebrated culinary scene—from revolutionary chefs to kitchen disasters to public uproars to Michelin stars, told by the cooks, servers, restaurateurs, critics, dreamers, and rebels who built America's most fearless food city. Whether serious destination diners, weekend visitors, or fans of The Bear, everyone knows Chicago has long outgrown its mid-twentieth-century reputation as a steak-and-potatoes town. The last fifty years have seen it explode into world prominence as one of America’s best places to eat—and ground zero of some of America’s greatest cooking. When Michelin first started awarding stars in the United States, they selected Chicago as one of the first cities so recognized. But the story of this ascendency—and of nationally famed chefs like Rick Bayless, Charlie Trotter, Grant Achatz, Stephanie Izard, and many others—has never been fully revealed in all its messy, dramatic, high-energy glory. The Chicago Way traces Chicago’s growth as a dining capital over the past fifty-plus years through an oral history made up of the voices of those who led, drove, and otherwise took part in that transformation.