Some good news is coming to fans of Rick Bayless’s staggering portfolio of restaurants.
Rick Bayless is an American chef and restaurateur known for his mastery of Mexican cuisine. While he has been a legend in the industry for decades, many readers may recognize him from Bravo’s Top Chef Masters, which he handily won out with his authentic Mexican cooking. He has even been awarded multiple Daytime Emmy nominations for his Public Television series Mexico – One Plate at a Time.
Primarily based out of Chicago, Rick is perhaps best known for his Frontera Grill concept, which was founded in 1987 and earned the Outstanding Restaurant Award from the James Beard Foundation. The Frontera concept has since evolved into an icon of its own and can be found in multiple locations across the nation. In fact, Rick’s Mexican cuisine is so widely celebrated that he was even bestowed the Mexican Order of the Aztec Eagle by the government of Mexico.
Most recently, Bayless launched his newest restaurant Tortazo at the Willis Tower. Inspired by the vibrant food, colors, and culture of Mexico, Tortazo uses only the freshest, highest quality ingredients, sourced from either Mexico or local Midwestern farms. Begun in 2020, the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic put a significant damper on Tortazo’s growth and expansion, but it appears that Rick is once again moving forward with a brand new Tortazo.
Tortazo’s first expansion since opening in 2020 will see the elevated fast-casual restaurant moving to the One Chicago complex between Chicago Avenue and Superior Street. According to Bayless, the new location is envisioned as an all-day hang-out, where locals can grab takeout for lunch or stop for some beer and wine at happy hour and then stay for dinner. At the moment, the new location is scheduled to open in early 2023. For further updates as well as recipes and cooking advice from Rick, you can follow Chef Bayless on Instagram.
