On the table: Chilam Balam

Before you roll your eyes at yet another new restaurant doing the whole farm-to-table thing, check out the cred of Chuy Valencia, chef/owner of Lakeview’s soon-to-open Chilam Balam. Born in Sonoma, California, to parents who grew their own food, he spent summers on the family orchard in Mexico. Valencia also learned a thing or two from his grandfather, a fourth-generation Mexican rancher who taught him how to butcher whole animals.

Valencia (who is all of 23 years old) plans to tap into all of those skills—in addition to the skills he picked up as sous chef at Frontera Grill and Topolobampo and chef de cuisine at Adobo Grill—when the 45-seat, BYOB restaurant opens in late August. The focus of the monthly-changing menu will be on small plates using as many local products as possible. “The idea is to use traditional Mexican snacks as a vessel for farm-fresh ingredients,” he says. Translation: grilled pork ribs with Oaxacan pasilla glaze, braised mushroom-filled empanadas, and squash-blossom-and-summer-squash quesadillas. And while Valencia isn’t a fan of frills—“Good food sells,” he says—look for plenty of made-from-scratch items, including tortillas, moles and chorizo. That chill vibe will be echoed in the decor too, with exposed brick walls, pillow-topped wood benches and brightly colored walls.

3023 N Broadway (773-296-6901).