Ward Eight Owner Makes Zagat “30 Under 30”

Cody Modeer, co-owner of Evanston’s Ward Eight wine bar, was listed as one of 30 young culinary rising stars in Chicago by Zagat.

A Zagat Guide list of 30 culinary rising stars in Chicago includes Cody Modeer, co-owner of Evanston’s Ward Eight cocktail bar.  Modeer, age 26, opened Ward Eight at 629 Howard St. last winter along with his wife and co-owner, Anne Carlson. The two met at Andersonville’s In Fine Spirits, where Modeer ran the cocktail program for several years, according to the Zagat Guide.  Ward Eight’s creative cocktail list focuses on locally sourced spirits from places like Evanston-based FEW Spirits and North Shore Distillery in Lake Bluff.  Modeer’s inspired concoctions include the Blood & Sand, which dates to 1922, (incorporating Monkey Shoulder Blended Scotch, cherry brandy, sweet vermouth and orange juice) and the new invention A Sunshine Fix (…

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Microbrewery Seeking TIF Funds On Howard Street

City council members are expected to consider making a $200,000 grant to the owners of a restaurant and brewery called Peckish One, proposed for 623-627 ½ Howard St.

The owners of a proposed restaurant and brewery on Howard Street are expected to come before Evanston aldermen Monday, seeking a $200,000 grant and a lease for city-owned property. Debbie and Jamie Evans, former managers and partners at the Celtic Knot, hope to open a microbrewery at 623-627 ½ Howard St. called Peckish One, according to city documents. The name plays off the British term “peckish,” meaning “somewhat hungry.” They hope to enter into a lease-to-own agreement with the city, which purchased the space and two others on Howard Street in February 2011 using tax-increment financing (TIF) dollars from the Howard/Ridge TIF district. A cocktail bar called Ward Eight opened in December at one of the other properties, 629 Howard St., …

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Ward Eight Nominated As 'Best New Bar'

Evanston's new wine and cocktail bar, Ward Eight, was nominated as one of the best in the Chicago area in Time Out Chicago's 2013 Eat Out Awards.

Just two months old, Evanston's Ward Eight cocktail bar is already up for "Best New Bar" in Time Out Chicago's annual dining awards. The bar at 629 Howard St. was the only Evanston establishment nominated in any category for the magazine's 2013 Eat Out Awards. “We want it to be a community type bar,” co-owner Cody Modeer told Patch when the bar opened in December. “We want people that are intellectuals, like the old artist bars in Paris.” For more news about Evanston restaurants and bars, sign up for our free newsletter. Modeer opened the bar and small plates restaurant along with his wife, Anne Carlson, both of whom previously worked as bartenders at In Fine Spirits in Andersonville. The couple will focus on creative cocktails …

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Ward Eight Officially Opens On Howard Street

A new cocktail bar at 629 Howard St. in Evanston held a grand opening celebration on Tuesday night. Neighbors say it’s a positive development on a street with many vacancies.

Co-owner Cody Modeer says he hopes his new bar, Ward Eight, will be place for “good drinks and good conversation.”  Located at 629 Howard St. in Evanston, the new cocktail bar and small plates restaurant held a grand opening this past Tuesday, Dec. 12.  “We want it to be a community type bar,” explained Modeer, who opened Ward Eight along with his wife, Anne Carlson. “We want people that are intellectuals, like the old artist bars in Paris.” Standing behind the bar with their one-year-old daughter, Keira, in his arms, Modeer said he had seen plenty of patrons from the neighborhood since the bar held a soft opening a week and a half ago. He and Carlson both worked as bartenders at In Fine Spirits in Andersonville, and once they got behind …

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Comings & Goings

Ward Eight Serves Its First Cocktails On Howard

Cocktail bar Ward Eight held a soft opening last weekend, with a grand opening planned Dec. 12. Other business news includes a new women's boutique and two businesses celebrating one year in operation.

Ward Eight Already Open, Serving Cocktails The cocktail lounge at 629 Howard St. began serving patrons last weekend, and a grand opening is planned for Dec. 12, according to co-owner Anne Carlson. Carlson says the business will be open during regular hours Wednesday through Sunday starting at 5 p.m. Carlson is opening the restaurant along with co-owner Cody Modeer, both of whom worked for In Fine Spirits in Andersonville. Some of their recent concotions include the Blood & Sand, which dates to 1922, (incorporating Monkey Shoulder Blended Scotch, cherry brandy, sweet vermouth and orange juice) and the new invention A Sunshine Fix (blueberry tea-infused Journeyman gin, ginger syrup, lemon juice, soda water and bitters). Along with cocktails…

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Comings & Goings

5 Eateries Opening Downtown, On Howard Street

Found Kitchen and JT's Bar and Grill are opened this fall in Evanston, while Chicago's Home of Chicken and Waffles, Ward Eight cocktail bar and Sol Cafe are set to open soon.

New restaurants are sprouting up around Evanston, including Found Kitchen and JT's Bar and Grill downtown. Two openings are also planned very soon on Howard Street, too: for Ward Eight, a cocktail bar, and for a new coffee shop called Sol Cafe. Read on for all of the latest business openings, closings and relocations in our Comings & Goings column, which chronicles the business scene in Evanston. Found Officially Opens Its Doors on Election Day Restaurateur Amy Morton and chef Nicole Pederson officially opened the doors to Found Kitchen and Social House at 1631 Chicago Ave. on Election Day, Nov. 6. With an eclectic design inspired by 1920s Paris salons and the Beat poets of the 1950s, Found Kitchen has garnered lots of press, most recently…

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Best Buy Donates Appliances to New Cocktail Lounge Neighbor

Alderman Ann Rainey and Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl held a press conference to announce Best Buy's donation of $10,000 in appliances. "Watch out, Rogers Park, Howard Street in Evanston is on the rise,” Rainey said.

With the help of a donation from Best Buy, the owners of a new small plates bar on Howard Street are moving closer to their dream of opening the business they'll live above. On Wednesday, eighth ward Alderman Ann Rainey and Evanston Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl held a press conference outside the Best Buy at 2301 Howard Street to announce the store’s $10,000 donation, to be used in the affordable housing apartments above the new business, called Ward Eight. Owners Anne Carlson and Cody Modeer, who met at Andersonville’s upscale liquor store In Fine Spirits, plan to open the restaurant/bar in August or September, when construction is complete. They are leasing the building, at 629 West Howard, from the city of Evanston, along with an apartment …

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Council Grants Liquor License to Ward Eight Bar

A cocktail lounge planned for 629 Howard Street moved one step closer to opening when the city council approved its liquor license Tuesday. Eighth ward Alderman Ann Rainey also defended the city's involvement in the project, saying "There is no giveaway."

Chicago’s proliferation of high-end cocktail bars is creeping over the border into Evanston with the establishment of Ward Eight, a cocktail lounge and small plates restaurant planned for Howard Street.  On Tuesday night, the city council unanimously approved a liquor license for the venture, which will open at 629 Howard Street sometime in the next several months. Owners Anne Carlson and Cody Modeer still have to obtain a license from the state of Illinois, a process that can take up to three months, according to eighth ward Alderman Ann Rainey.  Carlson and Modeer, both of whom worked at In Fine Spirits in Andersonville, will live above the restaurant. They are leasing the restaurant and residential space from the city, which owns the …

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