LOGAN SQUARE — The building that housed longtime neighborhood staple Cafeteria Marianao will soon see new life as the Victory Grill, a diner serving full breakfast and boozy shakes, according to owner George Liakopoulos.
The fast-casual diner, 2246-48 N. Milwaukee Ave., which will be outfitted with a "Logan Square theme inside and out," is expected to open in late 2017 or early 2018.
According to a rendering of the restaurant, the menu will likely include hot dogs, hamburgers, sandwiches and classic breakfast items like pancakes and waffles.
Drink-wise, patrons can expect craft beer, brunch cocktails like mimosas and Bloody Marys, as well as coffee from the restaurant's full coffee bar. There will be an element of self-service, but it's unclear how it'll be implemented.
The restaurant will offer 99 seats inside and 30 outside, as well as eight parking spots in the back.
"We don't build cookie-cutter restaurants," Liakopoulos said in an email "We incorporate the neighborhood into our design."
Before it closed last year, Cafeteria Marianao, a hole-in-the-wall-type spot known for its Cuban and steak sandwiches, had been a go-to location for a quick breakfast or lunch for more than 20 years.
Liakopoulos, who owns White Palace Grill and Hollywood Grill among others, was quick to buy the property. When the restaurateur heard the property was for sale, he made an offer the same day for the full listed price: $1.3 million.
"We've been looking at that location for a long time. We have been looking in that area, Milwaukee and California," he said at the time. "I didn't even negotiate. I put a full price offer in. I like the location."
Liakopoulos said the diner is named after his parents' first restaurant, The Victory, at 18th Street and Wabash Avenue.
A rendering of The Victory Grill [All photos Courtesy/Esyn Design]
