Editorial
Chicago has the deepest serious-cocktail tradition outside New York and Tokyo. The Violet Hour opened in 2007 and trained a generation. The Aviary turned cocktails into an avant-garde tasting menu. The 10 below cover the West Loop, Wicker Park and Logan Square — the city's three drinking neighbourhoods of record.
Chicago bars take craft as seriously as New York's, but with a different posture — less self-aware, more midwestern. Toby Maloney's Wicker Park lineage (The Violet Hour) and Grant Achatz's Fulton Market lineage (The Aviary) define the two poles. The neighbourhood places (Lost Lake, Sportsman's Club) bring the warmth.
Senior US Editor — drinks his way through New York and writes about which bars actually deserve their reputations.