Proxi Now Open in West Loop

Proxi, the second restaurant from the team of Michelin-starred Chicago restaurant, Sepia, is now open. Housed in a former print shop right beside Sepia, the restaurant is located at the beginning on Chicago’s Restaurant Row. Proxi takes guests on a ride to the world’s culinary rich corners. Using elemental cooking techniques and ingredients, the menu celebrates the flavors of street foods.

The menu at Proxi takes inspiration from Executive Chef Andrew Zimmerman’s lifelong fascination with the flavors most commonly seen in street foods. Including snacks, small plates, raw selections, entreés, and large-format dishes for the table, the restaurant’s Modern American presentations using primary cooking techniques showcased on the restaurant’s wood-fired hearth. Meat, seafood, and vegetables remain balanced throughout the menu. Highlights on the dinner menu include Chef Zimmerman’s take on Tempura Elotes, Coal Roasted Oysters with ssamjang butter, Raw Tuna with coconut milk, lemongrass & ginger sorbet, and Wagyu Sirloin over a Thai herb salad, and roasted rice powder.  In addition, Pastry Chef Sarah Mispagel dessert selection offers a range of sweet dishes balancing familiarity with experimentation. Desserts include an Avocado Mousse with tapioca pearls, pandan leaf, grapefruit, coco nibs, and coconut, and the Miso Pot de Crème with caramelized white chocolate, butterscotch, and banana.

Josh Relkin leads the cocktail program at Proxi, crafting a menu with an emphasis on globally influenced libations to complement the kitchen. Relkin embraces the hearth, incorporating the live fire cooking into the cocktail list, with a goal of blending familiar ingredients in an unconventional way. Cocktail highlights include the Don’t Chouette It with aperol, bubbles, blood orange & Champagne ice cubes, and the El-OTAY!, bringing Josh to the hearth to make the fire roasted corn infused in tequila, with agave, and tajin salt. Proxi also offers a selection of beers from across the world.

The Wine program, led by Beverage Director and Advanced Sommelier Arthur Hon, boasts a wine list of wines from around the world. Hon, who travels often to taste new wines and experience unfamiliar flavors, will have a rotating theme that will be changed seasonally with the menu. To start, he’s transporting guests to the Loire Valley of France to experience the wines from that region.

Proxi is open for dinner from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. on Monday through Thursday with the kitchen open until 10:30 p.m. on those evenings, and 3 p.m. to 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday with the kitchen open until 11:30 p.m. on weekends.