Among the many perks that Fox & Obel Food Market customers will get is a lovely view of the Chicago river walk in the Streeterville neighborhood.
But this is one store where you may not need it.
The 22,000-square-foot specialty food store at Illinois Street and McClurg Court (in the former North Pier Terminal), scheduled to open Thursday, will stock gourmet items from around the world in a space that exudes the charm of a European market.
Among the attractions: artisanal breads and pastries made on site; cheeses from domestic and foreign specialty producers; a prepared-food lineup that includes items such as truffled sweet corn grits and Balinese lemon grass shrimp-crusted halibut; a 40-seat cafe that serves, among other things, flights of hot chocolate (five single-bean hot chocolates, $8.95). Then there are the butcher shop and fresh fish market; shelf-stable foods; wines and spirits; a produce area stocking the familiar and exotic; and an area devoted to housewares and cookbooks. There will be cooking classes, too.
Is Chicago ready for all this? Co-owners Ken Obel and Ari Fox–lawyers who decided that their calling leans more toward brie than briefs–are counting on it.
“We saw great restaurants, doing great business, with a food-savvy clientele,” Obel said. “On the retail side, we didn’t see this niche–a specialty food market–being represented.”
Though the market will specialize in the esoteric and exotic, it still aims to be a full-service operation, with mainstream products alongside the upscale offerings–for example, Organic Valley butter ($3 per pound) sharing shelf space with a French butter, Isingy-Saint Mere ($9 for 8 ounces), and Carr’s Water Crackers ($2.49 per box) next to Italian Cornmeal Crackers ($7 for three 12-inch rounds).
“The shelves are all full of stuff we’ve tasted and like and believe in,” Fox said. “And there’s a lot more service. There’s almost no place in this store where you’re shopping self service without somebody helping you.”
Your car has been taken care of too: Free parking will be available in the lot across the street (90 minutes with validated ticket); valet will cost $5. (If the lot is full, valet service will be offered gratis.)
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Fox & Obel Food Market, 401 E. Illinois St., 312-410-7301, will be open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday-Saturday (cafe opens at 6:30 a.m.); 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.
