Chicago-based restaurant-retail hybrid Foxtrot Cafe & Market, which shuttered all 33 units in April and filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection, is being revived this week by its co-founders—with an expanded foodservice offering.
Foxtrot's first reopening is slated for Thursday, at 23 W. Maple in Chicago’s Gold Coast neighborhood.
The location will offer an expanded coffee experience and reimagined food offering that will span all reopened stores, the company said.
“Foxtrot Cafe & Market is taking its cafe experience to the next level with an expanded, full-day menu featuring delicious breakfast, lunch and afternoon offerings,” Foxtrot said. “Its signature breakfast tacos will remain a beloved staple, and the new menu introduces made-fresh-daily panini sandwiches, salads and bowls for lunch, alongside an assortment of freshly baked, delicious cookies.”
Foxtrot is offering promotions to celebrate the grand opening. From 6 to 10 a.m. Thursday, customers can enjoy a free coffee along with complimentary samples of new cookies and berry chai refresher.
On Friday, there will be a happy hour starting at 3 p.m. that features $4 local draft pours and $7 wine pours until close.
Coffee offerings include exclusive blends The Milk Man Blend and Early Train Espresso, crafted specifically for Foxtrot cafes. Foxtrot will continue to offer retail bean and consumer-packaged goods (CPG) selections from longtime Chicago roasters and partners including Metric and Kyoto Black.
“Our new coffee and food menus are a true reflection of Foxtrot’s founding principle: taking the ingredients we’re passionate about, partnering with the best purveyors and making them a special part of our day—and yours—every day,” said Foxtrot Chairman Mike LaVitola.
Foxtrot stores, more of which are scheduled to reopen in Chicago and Dallas through 2025, also will reintroduce customer favorites such as their gummies and gummy mixes, along with its “highly curated market featuring the best new products from small and local makers, alongside the most innovative brands in CPG—offerings that have set the brand apart from traditional convenience stores throughout its decade in business,” the company said.
Some brands that are returning include: All Together Now, Barbet, Bawi, Better Sour, Big Fat Cookie, Bon Bon, Chai, Cookies, Courtside, Dad Grass, Do-Rite Donuts, Fishwife, Frankies 457, Freeman House, French Squirrel, Gelato Boy and Gemma Foods.
Also, Heywell, Hop Butcher, Hopewell, Joggy, JOM, Jumbo Times Wine, Kyoto Black, La Boulangerie, Laoban, Leisure Water, Lexington Bakes, Life Raft Treats, Mama Teav’s, Marz, Mercado Famous and Metric Coffee.
Foxtrot was founded in 2014 as a delivery company selling snacks, beer and wine, and grew into a corner store-restaurant hybrid that featured high-end package goods, prepared foods, coffee bars and wine bars. The chain, once billed as the “convenience store of the future,” raised more than $160 million to fuel its growth over its lifetime.
This story originally appeared in sister publication CSP Daily News and has been modified slightly.
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