It’s last call for Wishbone. Regulars will remember ‘comfort’

First publishedAug 12, 10:30 UTC

Last updatedAug 12, 11:40 UTC · 10m ago

110:30–10:32 UTC1 outletChicago Sun-Times

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Chicago Sun-Times6It’s last call for Wishbone. Regulars will remember ‘comfort’Aug 12, 10:30 UTCOpen ↗

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<p>A couple years after Joel and Julie Nickson opened the Southern-inflected Wishbone restaurant at 1800 W. in 1990, Bill Grant came in for the first time on a friend’s suggestion and ordered the Cajun-style shrimp with cheesy grits.</p><p>He’s been ordering them for breakfast ever since, usually twice a month.</p><p>“I’ve had shrimp and grits at 100 places across America, and these are still the absolute best to me,” said Grant.</p><div class="Enhancement FormEnhancement" data-align-center> <div id="Form-newsletter-wrapper" class="Form-newsletter-wrapper" data-module data-has-background ><a class="AnchorLink" id="custom-form-c10000" name="custom-form-c10000"></a><bsp-form class="Form-newsletter" data-form-container data-has-background style="--color-form-background: #e8dbed;; --color-form-link: var(--link-color); --color-form-link-hover: var(--color-link-text-hover); " data-ajax-submit="true"> <div class="Form-newsletter-logo"> <picture data-crop=""> <source type="image/webp" width="840" height="555" data-srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/8d5b965/2147483647/strip/true/crop/985x651+33+0/resize/840x555!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F71%2Ff5%2F2243263a48c7a1d6e81fedce4f15%2Fgr-wordmark-rgb-dkgreen-newsletter.png 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/a4ff6fd/2147483647/strip/true/crop/985x651+33+0/resize/1680x1110!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F71%2Ff5%2F2243263a48c7a1d6e81fedce4f15%2Fgr-wordmark-rgb-dkgreen-newsletter.png 2x" data-lazy-load="true" srcset="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI1NTVweCIgd2lkdGg9Ijg0MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=" /> <source width="840" height="555" data-srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d21ec76/2147483647/strip/true/crop/985x651+33+0/resize/840x555!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F71%2Ff5%2F2243263a48c7a1d6e81fedce4f15%2Fgr-wordmark-rgb-dkgreen-newsletter.png" data-lazy-load="true" srcset="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI1NTVweCIgd2lkdGg9Ijg0MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=" /> <img class="Image" alt="GR-wordmark-RGB-DKgreen-Newsletter.png" srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d21ec76/2147483647/strip/true/crop/985x651+33+0/resize/840x555!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F71%2Ff5%2F2243263a48c7a1d6e81fedce4f15%2Fgr-wordmark-rgb-dkgreen-newsletter.png 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/aaee62a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/985x651+33+0/resize/1680x1110!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F71%2Ff5%2F2243263a48c7a1d6e81fedce4f15%2Fgr-wordmark-rgb-dkgreen-newsletter.png 2x" width="840" height="555" data-src="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d21ec76/2147483647/strip/true/crop/985x651+33+0/resize/840x555!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F71%2Ff5%2F2243263a48c7a1d6e81fedce4f15%2Fgr-wordmark-rgb-dkgreen-newsletter.png" data-lazy-load="true" src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSI1NTVweCIgd2lkdGg9Ijg0MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4=" > </picture> </div> <div class="Form-newsletter-text-wrapper"> <div class="Form-newsletter-title"> Green Room Newsletter </div> <div class="Form-newsletter-submissionSuccess"> <p><b>You’re subscribed!</b></p><p></p><p>Please check your inbox for your confirmation.</p> </div> <div class="Form-newsletter-description">Stay ahead of what’s hitting Chicago stages, galleries, museums and more with Green Room, WBEZ’s weekly arts &amp; culture newsletter!</div> <div class="Form-newsletter-errorMessage"><p>Sorry, there was an error registering your email.</p></div> </div> <form data-ajax-endpoint="https://sfmc-subscribe.wbez.org/v1/subscription" class="Form-newsletter-form" method="POST" > <div class="Form-newsletter-item"> <div class="EmailInput"><label class="EmailInput-label"><span>Email</span> <input class="EmailInput-input" type="email" name="email" placeholder="name@email.com" required aria-required="true"> </label> </div> <button class="Button" type="submit">Sign Up </button> </div> <div class="Form-items-item"> <input type="hidden" name="acquisition_campaign" value="ARTS_Affordance"> </div> <div class="Form-newsletter-disclaimer"> <p>By subscribing, you agree with WBEZ’s <a class="Link" href="https://www.wbez.org/terms-of-use" target="_blank" >Terms of Use</a> and <a class="Link" href="https://www.wbez.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" >Privacy Policy</a></p> </div> </form> </bsp-form> </div> </div><p>On a muggy, gray Thursday morning, he sat across from his sister, Jacqui Grant, herself a Wishbone regular since 1998, as he tucked into this creamy, gently spicy bowl of comfort for one of the last times. 3 this West Loop fixture for Southern cooking and warm hospitality announced that<a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/restaurants/2026/08/03/wishbone-closing-after-36-years-co-owners-announce" target="_blank" ><u> it’s closing for good</u></a> at the end of August. No new tenant has been announced yet.</p><p>“By the way, I’m going to need that recipe,” Grant told Joel Nickson with a laugh.</p><p>Since last week’s announcement, Joel, the chef and longtime friendly face of this relaxed brunch spot, has felt a little like Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn might have while watching their own funeral service.</p><p>“It’s been kind of overwhelming with people coming by and kids you used to get high chairs for are grown up bringing their kids,” Joel Nickson said.

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  It’s last call for Wishbone. Regulars will remember ‘comfort’

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  Chicago Sun-TimesAug 12, 10:30

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