Under One Roof: Creating Distinct Identities for Three Concepts

4 Min Read

Managing one restaurant is challenging enough, but can you imagine hosting three concepts within a 110-year old historic building? 

Steve Lewis and Chef Chris Thompson share with Modern Restaurant Management (MRM) magazine how they navigate the unique challenges they’ve encountered while operating Meadowlark Hospitality, which houses three original concepts in Chicago: daytime salumeria/cafe Lardon (MICHELIN Bib Gourmand 2022), beer-centric restaurant Union, and new craft cocktail lounge Meadowlark.

They operate out of a single kitchen, accessible via a narrow alley-turned-hallway added by the building’s previous owners over 50 years ago, which now acts as the behind-the-scenes gateway to each of the spots.

"When cities run out of room, they build up! However, that’s not an option with our historic building - we’ve had to build in and utilize every nook and cranny of our interior," said Lewis. "For example, while doing early renovation we decided to save the old…