A beverage mini-dream team has joined forces to open Spilt Milk (2758 W. Fullerton Ave., 773-413-8440), a neighborhood bar with throwback cocktails coming to Logan Square in late July.
Matty Eggleston (Nico Osteria), Tony Selna (Sparrow, The J. Parker), and Jason Turley (Lone Wolf, Bar Deville) are opening their 60-seat spot in partnership with Footman Hospitality’s Chris Haisma, Jason Freiman, and Nick Podesta (The Betty, Bangers & Lace).
“It’s going to be a tavern, but in the real throwback sense—a classic Chicago corner bar,” Eggleston says. “[We’re keeping] the drinks easy, quick, and delicious.”
The cocktail list—priced between $8 and $15—nods to the building’s history as a pharmacy in the 1920s, when early cocktails were booze-spiked juice and soda concoctions borrowed from pharmacists.
A few to expect:
- Concord grape julep: American brandy, whiskey, Concord grape juice, walnut liqueur, and fresh mint over crushed ice
- sarsaparilla zazerac: bourbon with sarsaparilla sugar, almond liqueur, and a dash of absinthe
- pink lemonade: vodka, white port, pink lemonade
There will also be six draft beers, a dozen bottled and canned brews, and 12 wines by the glass. In true “old-man bar” fashion, the only food available will be an ever-changing snack rack of chips, popcorn, and other savory noshes.
“We just want to get back to the bar being the focus,” Eggleston says. A 40-foot wood bar runs almost the length of the space, which will also have a mix of booths and barstools. Expect a cozy back patio to open next spring.
Once the doors open, you’ll find all three owner/operators—comprising the aptly named Equal Parts Hospitality—behind the bar, slinging drinks.