Armed with a degree in advertising, Katrina Bravo, co-owner of One MICHELIN Star Esmé, moved to Chicago a year after the 2008 economic collapse. “Everyone was getting fired,” says Bravo, adding, “I felt like I was a professional interviewer.” A friend was bartending at the now-shuttered mk, and when they were down a hostess one night, Bravo offered to pitch in. “I got called in for a night and stayed for four years,” she laughs. Husband and co-owner chef Jenner Tomaska also worked at mk, though the two wouldn’t cross paths until several years later. Still, Bravo found a home, and a family, in the hospitality industry.
“Jenner and I would often talk about what we liked and didn’t like about restaurants and how we’d do it differently when we had our own,” she says. Whether it was driving leftover food to shelters or raising money to help support a co-worker who slipped on icy steps, she learned firsthand the impact of the restaurant family. “That aspect is why I went in for a shift and never left.”
When she and chef Jenner opened Esmé in August 2021, they knew they wanted to do more than feed guests; they wanted to make a difference. The pandemic and civil injustices underscored the immediate need. “After all, what is success if you’re not doing something positive?” she says.
To that end, the couple invites local and emrging artists to reimagine the restaurant’s space every time there’s a thematic menu change (this occurs three times a year). It’s more than just hanging canvases on walls, though. Artists have created lighting and even functional ceramics designed to showcase the food, and the best part is it’s all for sale. “We have a few guests that always buy a different piece of art from each menu,” says Bravo.
“After all, what is success if you’re not doing something positive?”
They also put their money where their mouth is by donating a portion of those proceeds to nonprofits supporting causes tied to the menu’s theme. Beginning this month and running through July, Esmé will be hosting a menu sharing the story and culture of Latin America. It’s close to Bravo’s heart, as she is of Cuban and Honduran descent.
More importantly, the menu will support two causes: SACRED, a not-for-profit that helps improve lives in the rural Mexican communities where heritage agave spirits are made, and LA-based No Us Without You, which works to provide food security for undocumented workers. “These hard workers are always smiling and have always supported our industry—they are the backbone of the back of house,” says Bravo.
In one year alone, the community-minded restaurant raised $200,000 in support to artists and nonprofits. Still, as a new restaurant just getting on its feet, she admits that others advised against their philanthropy model. “Plenty of people told us not to do it, to just open the restaurant. Is it the smartest thing for us to do? Probably not, but we knew we had to, and our guests are proud to be a part of it.”
Hero image: © Daniel Kelleghan Photography
