A brand new restaurant called Fonda will soon be making its debut in Evanston, located at 1735 Benson Ave.
The new Mexican restaurant will move into the former home of The Stained Glass, which closed earlier this year. Owner Michael Lachowicz tells What Now Chicago he hopes to open the restaurant in early 2023, hopefully around Valentine’s Day. While Lachowicz owns two other French restaurants in Winnetka, George Tois and Aboyer, the Polish-Italian chef has spent the last two years researching the region’s food, and promises “indigenous, genuine Mexican cuisine,” according to Evanston Now. “There is nothing Tex-Mex about it.”
To help create this authentic Mexican experience, Lachowicz has enlisted two of his partners from his George Trois group, Executive Chef Miguel Escobar and General Manager Sergio Angel, as well as chef Carlos Cahue. All three have deep roots in Mexico and grew up in the country before coming to Chicago. The menu will feature dishes greatly influenced by the three prominent states of Michoacan, Nuevo Leon, and Guerrero.
Lachowicz tells Evanston Now he looked all over for the perfect place for Fonda and ultimately decided on Evanston due to its proximity to Northwestern University and the hopes of creating a loyal customer base. While the workforce continues to recover from the pandemic, Lachowicz is expecting to hire about three dozen people, many of which hopefully come from the nearby university looking for part-time work. The restaurant will sit next to a new restaurant called Thomas and Dutch, a rebrand of Farmhouse under the same ownership.
