Rising Chicago Chef Jake Potashnick of Feld Shares His (Unexpected) Favorites in His Native City

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Every month, people from Chicago's hospitality industry share recommendations for food, drink, ingredients, and more as part of our Chef Picks series.

In 2024, Jake Potashnick opened Feld, a fine dining “relationship to table” restaurant in West Town with a multi-course tasting menu rooted in seasonality and local produce. The ever-changing roster of 25-30 dishes is composed from carefully sourced ingredients from his farmer friends and plated in the open kitchen by Potashnick and his team. 

Feld earned a Michelin star in 2025 and two awards at Chicago’s local Jean Banchet Awards this year. Now Potashnick is nominated for the national James Beard Awards’ Best Chef: Great Lakes; the winner will be announced at a ceremony in Chicago on June 15. 

The Chicago native loves his city; he told us where he likes to hang out and what he likes to eat here.

Favorite restaurant

There’s too many to choose from. So instead of a single favorite, I’m going to answer the restaurant I’ve frequented the most in the past two years: Odge’s. I know, I run a fine-dining restaurant. You expected a fine-dining spot. Nope. Odge’s is everything I love about Chicago. A second-generation-operated gem with a perfect Italian beef, homemade chili with a Chicago tamale, and a greasy burger made with high-quality local beef. Shoutout to Eddie who is the owner/chef and makes the best rice pudding and chocolate cake in the city. They’re a West Town gem and rarely a week goes by where I don’t stop in for a bite.

Favorite dish

Fried dried beef with sticky rice at Siam Noodle and Rice (4142 N. Broadway). This would be my death row last meal. It’s perfection. What really makes the dish is the homemade hot sauce that’s the perfect level of spicy with comical amounts of chopped garlic mixed in. The Seoul sassy fried chicken at Crisp is a close runner-up.

Favorite place to drink

I love rum, so for my birthday every year I have a new tradition of going to The Bamboo Room. The team there is so knowledgeable about all things rum, going there is like a history lesson. For something more casual, I’ve been crushing on Friends of Friends recently. It’s pretty close to Feld, so the team can go for an after-service drink.

Favorite place to buy ingredients

We buy a dominant amount of our produce at Feld from Green City Market farm vendors. It’s my favorite farmers market in Chicago. All of our tomatoes come from Jerry Boone at Froggy Meadow Farm. We get greens and corn from Hayloft Homestead. The Flatwater Farms stand has these blackberries in August that are the best fruit of the entire year. The market is just great for discovery.

Favorite local brand

Edgewater Candles. The loveliest people making the loveliest of scents.

Favorite place in the city to bring an out-of-town guest

The Tiffany Dome in the cultural center followed by lunch across the street at the Pittsfield Cafe. I also like bringing visitors to see The Infinite Wrench at the Neo-Futurists theater.

A person in the industry you admire

There’s a group of veteran chefs who show up to the farmers market every week. Jason Hammel [of Lula Cafe], John Shields [of Smyth], and Sarah Stegner [of Prairie Grass Cafe] all jump to mind. All three of these chefs are about as professionally decorated and renowned as you can be in this industry, and yet they still show up early to pick out their produce and meet with farmers. I have a lot of admiration for those who don’t rest on their laurels but instead use them as a launching point.