ANDERSONVILLE — The Ann Sather restaurant in Andersonville is scheduled to shutter at the end of the year.
Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) owns the Swedish-inspired breakfast and brunch chain, known in Chicago for gigantic, gooey cinnamon buns served hot in Andersonville, Edgewater and the restaurant's two locations in Lakeview.
Tunney announced Wednesday that he has sold the building that houses the Andersonville location at 5207 N. Clark St. to real estate and investment firm Newcastle Limited, and that the Ann Sather there would operate through December before closing and leaving Andersonville, a neighborhood with deep Swedish roots.
“After careful consideration, I decided to consolidate our Andersonville area restaurants at our newest location at 1147 West Granville [in Edgewater],” Tunney said in a news release. “To ensure an orderly transition, I negotiated leasing back the restaurant through the end of the year."
Tunney said the restaurant's Lakeview locations at 909 W. Belmont Ave. and 3411 N. Broadway "will remain open and are not affected by this business decision.”
A spokeswoman for Ann Sather said the Edgewater location recently expanded. It occupies the former Bananas Foster space that closed in 2011.
Ellen Shepard, executive director of the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce called losing Ann Sather "an unfortunate blow to our community’s Swedish culture," and said "We’re very sad to lose this longstanding business."
Ald. Harry Osterman (48th), whose ward includes parts of Andersonville and most of Edgewater, promised constituents via a newsletter that he is committed to helping New Castle and the Andersonville chamber "in any way I can on attracting a quality tenant for this space."
