About a year and a half ago, Glenn Fahlstrom left his eponymous restaurant near the Montrose Brown Line stop, Glenn’s Diner, at the end of a long legal dispute that left his ex-partners with the restaurant, complete with Fahlstrom’s own first name. At the time, he sounded sad to leave the restaurant, but he was itching to get back into it: “I had to lose my restaurant for the lawsuit to be dropped, for me to be free to pursue new ventures,” he told us then.
If all goes according to plan, Fahlstrom will scratch that itch on October 1, when he opens a restaurant/fish market (1258 W. Belmont Ave., no phone yet). The space previously housed a spinoff of La Gondola. He says it’s the next logical step past Glenn’s Diner, a chalkboard-seafood concept, to include the fish market.
In addition to selling 16 to 18 types of fresh fish, the market half of the new place will offer quick-cooked “seaplates” of a cooked fish and two sides such as cranberry-walnut quinoa salad, potato salad, wild rice, or pork and beans. “I’ve always wanted to develop a seafood version of Potbelly,” he says. He says a five-ounce piece of salmon with two sides could be ready in five minutes and cost about $10. The restaurant half will be full-service, and Fahlstrom promises a family-friendly atmosphere.
Fahlstrom isn't ready to announce the name of the place yet, but the name Glenn’s Diner presumably isn’t available. Oh, what’s in a name? We have a hunch Glenn's fans will find him.