The Restaurant That Made Chicago Feel Possible
Parachute HiFi is more casual than the Parachute that came before it, but the food, room, and point of view still hit hard.
Before we lived in Chicago, Parachute was one of the places that made us start saying dangerous things out loud.
Things like: “We could really see ourselves living here.”
At the time, Parachute felt like one of those restaurants that made Chicago feel bigger than its reputation. It was Korean, personal, modern, deeply considered, and operating at a level that still felt rare in American fine dining. Beverly Kim and Johnny Clark were not just making great food. They were making the kind of restaurant that could shift how you understood a neighborhood, a city, and what a Korean restaurant in America could be.
And now here we are. Living in Chicago. Still going to that room in Avondale.
Parachute HiFi is not Parachute exactly, and it is not trying to be. After a decade in business, Kim and Clark transformed the original restaurant into something more casual, more accessible, and more built for the neighborhood: a walk-in-friendly hi-fi listening bar with vinyl, DJs, a professional sound system, and food that is easier to drop in for without turning dinner into an event.
But the important thing is that the food has not lost its point of view.
There are still echoes of what Parachute was. The menu is modern Korean, but pulled through a wider lens: a little global, a little playful, never too precious. The burger is rich and shareable, cut in half and served with beer cheese and bordelaise. It sounds almost ridiculous, which is part of the fun. The tteokbokki pad thai is exactly the kind of Beverly and Johnny move I want: Korean ingredients with a Southeast Asian twist, familiar and strange in the best way. The hand rolls are also not to be missed, especially if you remember the Korean sushi from the original Parachute days.
The room still feels recognizable, but the HiFi concept gives it a different kind of pulse. There were always speakers around, but now the music is not background texture. It is part of the restaurant’s identity. There is a wall of vinyl, guest DJs, and a clear love of listening culture woven into the space. The room is warm, wood-filled, upscale without feeling stiff, and casual without feeling lazy.
That is the magic of Parachute HiFi. It is easier now. Looser. More spontaneous. You do not need a reservation or a special occasion. You can just walk in, have something deeply delicious, listen to good music, and feel like you are in a restaurant that still knows exactly who it is.
I miss Parachute. But I am very glad this is what came next.
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