Will the DNC Boost Business For Chicago’s Restaurants?

When Scott Weiner and Fifty/50 Group started preparing for the Democratic National Convention a year ago, his team budgeted for a better-than-average August. But judging by reservations so far, they’re likely to fall short of expectations.

“I would say about six months ago we started to hit the panic button a little bit because we noticed that while we had booked some events for during the DNC, we definitely didn’t feel like we were pacing to any of our budgets,” says Weiner, co-founder of the group, which includes venues like Kindling inside the Willis Tower.

The DNC, which starts Monday, August 19, marks the first in-person convention for Democrats since the start of the pandemic as COVID cases surge across the country. With Democrats hosting events at McCormick Place and the United Center, the convention should provide a boon to nearby restaurants. However, Weiner says while VU Rooftop Bar near McCormick Place is doing well, other locations haven’t experienced a rush for lavish events.

According to DNC host committee spokesperson Natalie Edelstein Jarvis, the DNC has already contracted over 200 local vendors. Neighborhood spots hosting ancillary events include Chicago mainstays like Buddy Guy Legends and Manny’s Deli in the South Loop.

Yet some restaurant owners argue that the DNC remains fixated on Downtown Chicago. Last year, the Silver Room in Hyde Park hosted an event with delegates from all 50 states. Eric Williams owns the South Side store that doubles as a community hub for Black artisans: “Choose Chicago did a great job, they were the reason we hosted delegates in the first place,” Williams says of the city’s tourism board. “They advocated for restaurants, especially South Side restaurants.”

Williams, also a co-owner of Bronzeville Winery, booked at least one event thanks to contacts from last year’s party. But he says he was surprised more didn’t follow; Williams says DNC visitors stick to downtown venues. However, downtown venues worry any boost from DNC tourists will be nullified by office workers who elect to work remotely during the DNC to avoid protests, slowed commutes, and street closures. In the Loop, owners of the former Revival Food Hall — now known as Sterling Food Hall — have notified vendors they intend to close early the entire week of the DNC, closing at 3 p.m. instead of the customary 8 p.m.

“While we’re not going to hit anywhere close to our budgets, we’re going to end up having a pretty average week for August. There will be some places, specifically our Loop places, that will fall below its typical week,” Weiner adds. “Most of the offices are being told to work remotely that week or given the option so our traditional business will be way below.”

Several businesses in the West Loop and downtown have either closed their offices or advised workers to stay home during the convention, including John Deere, SVN, and Accenture, the Chicago Tribune reported. Soul & Smoke — the acclaimed barbecue with two Chicago locations and one in Evanston — has booked catering events at the Adler Planetarium and the United Center. It’s still less than co-founder Heather Bublick expected, plus she worries about the lack of foot traffic next week at their Accenture Tower location.

“We’re just starting to get downtown full again and to have people not go downtown that’s, I think, the biggest concern I have and I think I’ve been hearing from other restaurants,” Bublick says.

However, operators like Michelle Durpetti remain cautiously optimistic. Her family’s restaurant, legendary River North steakhouse Gene & Georgetti, has seen a small boost in reservations.

“I would love to tell you right now that we’re booked to capacity for that convention. But the reality is we are not up to capacity,” she says. “I think Chicagoans have grown fatigued by various festivals, large gatherings, etc. They tend to disconnect from the city, in particular, when they know a big event is coming.”

Restaurants aren’t alone when it comes to their moderate reservation numbers. Just days out from the convention, rooms are still available at Chicago’s hotels, CBS Chicago reported. Around 50,000 people are expected to descend upon the city next week, but the economic impacts of the convention could still pale in comparison to other large events Chicago has hosted in recent years.

“I still think it’s going to be better than a typical Monday through Thursday,” says Sam Toia, president of the Illinois Restaurant Association. “I still think you’re going to see a little bit of a bump. Is it going to be like the Taylor Swift concert? Maybe not.”

The Eras Tour bump may be hard to beat, but the city’s tourism bureau reported that June 2023 weekend set a record last year for total hotel rooms occupied with 44,000 rooms booked each night and $39 million in total revenue. While a similar “Kamala bump” hasn’t materialized, some restaurants are capitalizing on the vice president’s memeable personality with coconut-pilled specials. In Fulton Market, Good Ambler executive pastry chef Meg Galus is creating a coconut-filled Kamala Cruffin, while suburban Evanston-based Hewn Bread has unveiled the “Kamalamann” — a coconut custard-filled kouign-amann topped with blueberry jam.

At Bunker, a bar just a few blocks from the United Center, owner Michael Salvatore is prepping for three private events and the late-night crowd on his patio. Salvatore also runs Froth nearby and Heritage Bikes & Coffee, whose Lakeview location on Lincoln Avenue should be flooded with The Daily Show’s team running their show at the nearby Athenaeum Center for Thought and Culture.

“I expect a big boon,” Salvatore says. “I know Milwaukee was kind of a bust, but I’ve got a feeling with the momentum swinging with the energy behind what’s going at the DNC and just the private parties that we’ve already booked at Bunker, that it feels like we’re going to have a successful week there.”