A mural by Mauricio Ramirez covers the east wall of 1734 W. Chicago Ave., the side that faces Hermitage Avenue. Behind it, in a building that used to hold a Catholic Charities grocery store, Surge Billiards opened on Aug. 24 with more than two dozen pool tables, a separate room with seven Sway Golf simulators, a drinks menu and no kitchen.
Leaving out the kitchen was on purpose, and this year's other openings fit the same pattern. The businesses that opened on the neighborhood's two edge avenues in 2026 don't compete for the same hours. Each one covers a different part of the day and counts on its neighbors for the rest. Put them in order and the neighborhood between Division and Chicago, Ashland and Damen has a full indoor day for the cold months, starting before sunrise and ending after midnight.
The owner who designed around dinner
Surge's co-owners, Wahib Merchant and Kareeshma Ali, already run pool halls in Logan Square and Albany Park. The West Town location is the first to add golf simulators. Merchant told Block Club Chicago why they skipped the kitchen:
"We really want to be a spot that people can go to before and after dinner, and … give them other things that they can do in the area, rather than eat and then have to leave."
He told the outlet that complementing Chicago Avenue's restaurant scene is "how we've envisioned being in this space, and that's why we designed it without a kitchen." Surge sells cocktails, coffee and espresso, carries pre-packaged snacks, and may host pop-ups from local vendors.
That makes Surge a business whose plan depends on the storefronts around it. The rest of this year's openings follow the same logic. Some do it on purpose, some simply because of the hours they keep.
The day, in order
These are the times each business published when it opened, as reported in June through September. Confirm current hours before you go.
- 6 a.m. Saturday and Sunday: Sway Golf's simulators open inside Surge. On weekdays they open at 9 a.m.
- 7 a.m.: Ann Sather, 1819 W. Division St., served its first breakfast at this hour on opening day in July.
- 9 a.m.: Guillotine Bakery, 1711 W. Chicago Ave., opened its doors at this hour on June 17.
- Midday: Josephine's, the cafe inside Every Now and Then at 1843 W. Chicago Ave., and Buona's Beef Stand window at 1750 W. Division St.
- 11 a.m. weekends, 4 p.m. weekdays: Surge's pool tables open.
- 1 a.m. weeknights, 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday: Surge closes.
Most of the gap between Surge's morning simulator hours and its afternoon pool hours is covered by places a short walk away on the same two avenues.
Morning belongs to the Division Street edge
Ann Sather moved its flagship to Division this summer. Owner Tom Tunney told Block Club Chicago that the longtime restaurant at 909 W. Belmont Ave. in Lakeview would close as a developer prepared an apartment building on that site. The new location took over the former Yolk space at 1819 W. Division, which closed last year.
Much of the decor and many of the murals from the Belmont dining room were recreated in the Division Street space. The restaurant serves breakfast and lunch from its standard menu. The detail that matters most for a quick morning is the to-go bakery section for the cinnamon rolls and other pastries, which means a stop on the way somewhere else doesn't require a table.
Block Club placed the address on the Wicker Park and West Town border. From the interior blocks of East Village, it's the closest full breakfast menu on the north edge.
Late morning moves to Chicago Avenue
Guillotine Bakery occupies the former Rhona Hoffman gallery space at 1711 W. Chicago Ave. Co-owner and baker Vincent Didry runs it with co-owner Alizé Bikard and head baker Vince Le Bec. The bakers import French flour and butter for baguettes, sourdough loaves, croissants and kouign-amanns, and they work in an open kitchen visible from the dining area. Coffee comes from Chicago's Sparrow Coffee, and the bakery serves lunch, including a few sandwiches.
The owners were explicit that this is a place to stay. In a March interview with Block Club Chicago, Didry described taking "American inspiration, like [having] coffee and a place to sit." The outlet reported that the bakery is meant to work as a gathering place or a spot to work. That makes Guillotine the room on the avenue where the late morning can turn into a long lunch.
Midday has two speeds
A block and a half west, Every Now and Then opened in July at 1843 W. Chicago Ave. The store sells sneakers, T-shirts and apparel designed by Joe Freshgoods and others. It also has a DJ booth, designer furniture, and a full-service cafe called Josephine's, named for Freshgoods' grandmother. The walls hold paintings and other art from Freshgoods' friends, plus items reflecting the history of Black Chicago.
Freshgoods told Block Club Chicago he hopes the space becomes a gathering hub for Chicago's creative community, and he summed up the pitch this way: "there are one zillion cafes and there are one zillion retail spaces, but there's only one me."
The fast version of lunch is back on Division. Buona's Beef Stand, a walk-up window next to the Original Rainbow Cone at 1750 W. Division St., opened Sept. 2. According to Eater Chicago, the menu is regular and large Italian beef sandwiches with mozzarella and giardiniera options, plus Italian beef protein bowls, vegan beef sandwiches, kettle chips, drinks and Rainbow Cone shakes. A walk-up window is quickest when the line is short, which makes it a handy lunch before an afternoon at the tables a few blocks south.
Evening returns to the room with no kitchen
This is where Merchant's plan pays off. Surge's pool tables open at 4 p.m. on weekdays, in time for the hours around dinner, and the hall stays open until 1 a.m. Sunday through Thursday and 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Because it serves no food, dinner happens somewhere else on Chicago Avenue, and Surge gets the hours before and after.
The simulator room has its own schedule. It runs on software from Trackman and sits apart from the main pool hall. Merchant told Block Club he hopes neighbors will come by the 6 a.m. weekend slot before starting their busy weekends. The same building that closes at 2 a.m. on Saturday opens again four hours later.
Surge originally hoped to open last year. Construction delays and permitting pushed the launch to this August. The renovation kept the building's facade, which is why the Hermitage mural is still the easiest way to spot it from the corner.
Three dates on the neighborhood's own blocks
The holiday calendar follows the same pattern. Each event lands at a different time of day and a different kind of venue, and all three are within walking distance of the interior streets.
- Tuesday, Nov. 10, 7 p.m.: A West Town Singles & Social Folks Mixer at Surge. According to the do312 listing, it includes pool and a welcome shot.
- Saturday, Dec. 5, noon to 5 p.m.: The Sip & Shop kickoff for It's A Wonderful West Town, the West Town Chamber holiday shopping promotion that runs Dec. 5 through Dec. 24. The chamber promises carolers, sips, treats and deals all over the neighborhood, and says more details will come closer to the holiday season.
- Saturday, Dec. 12, 2 to 4 p.m.: Santa & S'mores at Commercial Club Playground, 1845 W. Rice St. The Chicago Park District lists it as free and open to all ages, with music, holiday arts and crafts, hot cocoa, s'mores and a photo with Santa Claus at the end. No pets are allowed during the event, and the Commercial Park Advisory Council co-sponsors it.
The Dec. 12 event is the only one on the list held inside the rectangle rather than on its edges. Commercial Club sits on Rice Street between the Division and Chicago corridors, so an afternoon there leaves time for a pastry at Guillotine or a late lunch on Division before or after.
If you're keeping track of how East Village's storefronts fill in, and what these businesses on Chicago Avenue and Division Street mean for the blocks between them, Carol Collins follows those changes block by block. Book an appointment to talk through what's opening near your street.
