Dec. 17--Restaurateur Tony Hu will bring his winning formula to Michigan Avenue with Thursday's soft opening of Lao Sze Chuan (520 N. Michigan Ave., 312-818-8099) in the Shops @North Bridge center, adjacent to Nordstrom.
The restaurant will open at noon tomorrow and will offer very limited seating. "It's mostly for family and regular customers," Hu said about Thursday's opening. "It will be very limited; we want to take good care of the customers."
Lao Sze Chuan will begin with a menu of no more than 20 items until the kitchen finds its rhythm, and expand the offerings later. Among the dishes Hu is most excited about are the Peking duck ("very authentic," assures Hu) and pan-fried soup dumplings, which, Hu says, "You've never seen in Chicago before."
Hu owns five restaurants in Chinatown (Lao Sze Chuan, Lao Beijing, Lao Shanghai, Lao Hunan and Lao You Ju), as well as Lao Sze Chuan outposts in Uptown, Downers Grove, Skokie and Evanston (not to mention the one in Las Vegas). This will be his second foray into River North, following the short-lived Lao 18, but this latest restaurant will have a much higher profile.
The restaurant will be fully open to the public on Friday, beginning at 11 a.m.
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