Chicago's Wishbone Restaurant to close

Chicago's Wishbone Restaurant will soon be closing after 36 years in business.

The restaurant confirmed Monday afternoon that it will be closing. No final date has been set, but the goal is to be open through the end of August, the restaurant said.

Wishbone is located at 161 N. Jefferson St. in the West Loop.

Chef Joel Nickson founder the restaurant in July 1990, with its original location at 1800 W. Grand Ave. in West Town. The original restaurant featured 23 seats, nine stools, and six paintings by Nickson's mother.

Nickson's southern-inspired fare included baked bone-in ham, blackened catfish, and Carolina crab fakes prepared with a minimum of heavy oils or added sugar. Paired with sides such as mashed sweet potatoes, sauteed spinach, and macaroni and cheese, the cuisine at Wishbone was quick to catch on, the restaurant said.

Wishbone opened a second location at 1001 W. Washington Blvd. at Morgan Street in the West Loop in 1992. Published reports note that the proximity of this location to Harpo Studios drew staff for the Oprah Winfrey Show and celebrities such as Michael Jordan.

This location moved to Jefferson Street in October 2018 after 27 years.

Another Wishbone location at 3300 N. Lincoln Ave. closed in September 2019 after 20 years, published reports note. This location was owned by Joel Nickson's brother, Guy.

Wishbone also operated a location alongside the music venue FitzGerald's on Roosevelt Road in Berwyn, which was in business for five years before closing in 2011.