Your Bucktown Backyard Just Got Better: Wolf & Company on The 606 Is the Neighborhood Hangout You Didn't Know You Needed

By Socialhood News · Il/Chicago/Bucktown · June 6, 2026

If you haven't made it to Wolf & Company yet, this weekend is your sign. Tucked into 1744 N. Western Ave. inside the Trailhead Apartments building, Wolf & Company holds a distinction no other restaurant in Chicago can claim: it's the only private business in the city with direct physical access to the Bloomingdale Trail — meaning you can literally walk or bike off The 606 and down a ramp straight onto the second-floor café level.

The kitchen is helmed by Executive Chef Graham Akroyd, while the bar program — led by Clare Andrejek and Woody Tauke — leans savory-forward on cocktails. The burger has emerged as the early crowd favorite, with OpenTable reviewers already calling it one of the best in Chicago. The 606-facing patio opens for full lunch service daily and is dog-friendly all day long, making it a natural pit stop for the neighborhood's many trail runners, cyclists, and weekend strollers.

And Wolf & Company isn't the only reason Bucktown's food scene is buzzing this summer. The long-awaited Vienna Beef Plaza café and factory store at 2501 N. Damen Ave. — a $20 million redevelopment of the brand's historic Bucktown headquarters — is still on track for a mid-2026 opening, promising local brewery taps, indoor/outdoor seating, an event space, and a celebration of 130-plus years of Chicago hot dog history. Two neighborhood anchors, one incredible summer. Get out there, Bucktown.

Sources:
1. https://mattlaricy.com/blog/why-bucktowns-best-new-spots-feel-different-from-every-other-chicago-opening
2. https://jaketasharski.com/blog/bucktowns-new-restaurants-are-here-on-purpose
3. https://blockclubchicago.org/2025/10/28/vienna-beef-cafe-factory-store-now-opening-in-mid-2026-at-bucktown-headquarters/