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Michigan-Based HopCat Brewpub Eyes Lincoln Park For First Chicago Location

By Mina Bloom | March 18, 2016 11:21am | Updated on March 21, 2016 10:28am
 HopCat currently runs eight locations across the Midwest, including the pictured restaurant in Madison, Wisc.
HopCat currently runs eight locations across the Midwest, including the pictured restaurant in Madison, Wisc.
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Courtesy/HopCat Facebook

LINCOLN PARK — A Michigan-based brew pub wants to open a new restaurant on Clark Street, according to Ald. Michele Smith's 43rd ward office. 

HopCat is seeking a zoning change to open the restaurant at 2577 N. Clark St., a site occupied by Italian eatery chain Vapiano before it shuttered in 2014.

The restaurant group will present its plans at a community meeting hosted by Smith's office and Park West Community Association at the Second Church of Christ Scientist, 2700 N. Pine Grove Ave., March 22, beginning at 6:30 p.m., Smith said in an email Friday morning.

The zoning change is needed because of the large size of the proposed restaurant. HopCat is also seeking approval for its liquor license. A rooftop patio is currently not part of the restaurant group's plans.

Smith said she will not approve the proposal until the community weighs in.

Opening a new location in Chicago is part of HopCat's expansion plan.

The restaurant group is planning to open 30 new restaurants across the Midwest thanks to a $25 million investment, according to reports. The first HopCat location opened in Grand Rapids, Mich. in 2008. 

If HopCat's existing restaurants are any indication, patrons can expect the Chicago spot to focus on craft beer brewed in Michigan and American food like burgers, wings and "crack fries," which are battered in light beer and named for how addictive they are. The fries made Food Network Magazine's "Top 10 French Fries in America" list. 

 

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