Margaritaville To Open On Navy Pier
CHICAGO (CBS) - If you're "searchin' for your lost shaker of salt," you might want to look on Navy Pier.
Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville restaurant opens on Navy Pier next spring. It will replace Charlie's Ale House, which is set to close.
The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, also known as McPier, approved a 10-year lease for the Margaritaville restaurant on Wednesday, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.
The restaurant beat out 10 other bidders for the space.
The Navy Pier Margaritaville will be the first in the Midwest. The original location was in Key West, Fla., and locations have since opened in New Orleans; Orlando; Las Vegas; Myrtle Beach, S.C.; Panama City Beach, Fla.; Glendale Ariz.; Nashville; Honolulu; and the Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut.
Now, McPier chairman David Mosena tells the Chicago Tribune, "We'll have the Caribbean in February on Navy Pier."
Buffett said in a statement: "I couldn't be more excited about Margaritaville arriving on the shores of Lake Michigan. From my earliest days in the city, playing the Quiet Knight on Belmont, to the pinnacle of live performances to me, singing in front of the ivy wall at Wrigley Field, I have had a long and wonderful history and affection for the people, the music, the art and the food of the Windy City. I have always thought Chicago as a beach town, a pretty big one, but still a beach town."
The restaurant will serve classic American and Caribbean-island inspired cuisine, including the famous "Cheeseburger in Paradise." Nightly entertainment and live music will also be featured, and of course, margaritas will be on the drink menu.
Charlie's Ale House has served an assortment of beers and comfort food since the renovated Navy Pier opened as a tourist attraction in 1995. Now, it is the last of what were once four Charlie's locations – in Andersonville, on Webster Avenue in Lincoln Park, and in Munster, Ind. The Andersonville location closed just a couple of weeks ago, and has been replaced by the seasonal American restaurant Acre.
