The story
Frontera Grill serves Mexican food at 445 N. Clark St. in Chicago, and the kitchen earned one Michelin star in 2026. Chef Rick Bayless opened the restaurant in 1987 after five years living in Mexico and traveling through its states, and the menu still draws on that regional cooking.
Bayless wrote Authentic Mexican, his first cookbook, soon after the restaurant opened. Sous chef Javauneeka Jacobs won the Julia Child-themed round of Chopped, and her winning dish now appears on the Frontera Grill menu. The restaurant is tagged for vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free guests.
The Bayless Gardens occupy a 1,000 square-foot backyard in Bucktown, where 13 raised beds grow salad greens, edible flowers and herbs for the group's restaurants. Production moves into heated greenhouses in the cooler months. A rooftop garden above XOCO adds tomatoes and chiles each season.
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good quality, good value cooking
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