A Streeterville Institution Goes To-Go — and Lurie Children's Hospital Gains Room to Grow
By Socialhood News · Streeterville ·
Streeterville closes out its most eventful fall in years with two developments that reflect the neighborhood's dual identity as both a culinary destination and a world-class medical campus. A beloved Italian restaurant that has anchored the neighborhood for nearly three decades is expanding its footprint with a brand-new carryout location, and one of the country's premier children's hospitals has finalized a landmark real estate deal that sets the stage for a significant expansion of its Streeterville presence.
Volare, the Italian restaurant that owner Benny Siddu opened at 201 E. Grand Avenue in 1997, is preparing to open a dedicated carryout location at 111 E. Chestnut Street in the Gold Coast, just steps from Streeterville's northern edge. The Chicago Business Journal first reported the plan earlier this year, with an opening targeted for around September. For a restaurant that has spent nearly 30 years building its reputation in Streeterville on the strength of housemade pastas, shareable plates, and a room that regulars treat like a second living room, the move into carryout reflects genuine demand: Volare's following has long extended well beyond the dining room, and a dedicated pickup address on Chestnut Street puts the kitchen's gnocchi alla vodka — made with homemade ricotta dumplings in vodka sauce — within reach of a Gold Coast clientele that previously had to travel for it. Siddu expanded to a second full-service location in Oakbrook Terrace in 2008, and the Chestnut Street carryout marks his latest investment in keeping Volare's reach growing. It's also worth noting that the main Streeterville restaurant at 201 E. Grand will eventually need a new home: the building was recently sold, and Volare's lease there runs through 2030, giving the neighborhood several more years with its anchor Italian institution before any relocation becomes necessary.
On the institutional side of the neighborhood, a major real estate transaction is reshaping the long-term map of Streeterville's medical corridor. Crain's Chicago Business reported that Lurie Children's Hospital has finalized its purchase of the American Dental Association's longtime headquarters building, with the ADA planning a move to a new location on the Magnificent Mile. The deal gives Lurie — already one of the defining anchors of Streeterville's northern blocks — additional real estate for campus expansion at a moment when the neighborhood's healthcare footprint is growing on multiple fronts. The ADA's departure from its longtime Streeterville home is a meaningful shift for an organization that has been part of the neighborhood's institutional fabric, but the incoming use represents a deepening of Lurie's already substantial presence in the area.
Taken together, these two developments capture something true about Streeterville in late 2026: the neighborhood is simultaneously doubling down on the local businesses and institutions that have defined it for decades and actively expanding the infrastructure — medical, residential, and culinary — that will shape it for decades to come. Volare's carryout push is a small-scale but telling move by a restaurateur who has watched the neighborhood change around him for nearly 30 years and keeps finding ways to stay relevant. The Lurie-ADA deal is a larger-scale signal that Streeterville's role as one of Chicago's premier healthcare destinations is still very much in growth mode.
Have you tried Volare's gnocchi alla vodka, or are you keeping an eye on the Lurie campus expansion? Drop your thoughts in the Socialhood comments — your Streeterville neighbors are always paying attention.
Sources:
1. https://whatnow.com/chicago/restaurants/volare-in-streeterville-to-open-additional-carryout-location-this-fall/
2. https://www.chicagobusiness.com/topic/streeterville