Good afternoon, Chicago. ✶
Earlier today, Chicago firefighters lost one of their own while battling a blaze at a building in Lincoln Park.
The tragic loss is one of several this year suffered by the firefighting community.
Below, we have more on the deadly blaze and how local firefighters are coping. 👇
Plus, we’ve got more community news you need to know this afternoon.
⏱️: A 7-minute read
— Matt Moore, newsletter reporter (@MattKenMoore)
TODAY’S TOP STORY
Chicago firefighter Andrew ‘Drew’ Price dies after battling Lincoln Park blaze: ‘A lovely man’ who ‘made the ultimate sacrifice’
Reporting by Kaitlin Washburn, Sophie Sherry, Isabel Funk and David Struett
Firefighter dies: Chicago firefighter Andrew “Drew” Price died this morning after battling an extra-alarm fire at a Lincoln Park building, according to fire officials. Price, 39, was on the roof of a four-story building in the 2400 block of North Lincoln Avenue opening holes for ventilation when he fell through a light shaft, officials said. He was taken to the hospital, where he died of his “significant injuries.”
‘Loved by so many’: “We all knew Drew,” Chicago Fire Department Commissioner Annette Nance-Holt said during a news conference outside Advocate Illinois Masonic Hospital. Price joined the department in 2009 and was assigned to Engine 55 and Truck 44 for the last decade. He was “loved by so many. He will be missed by all,” Nance-Holt said.
How firefighters are coping: Price is the fourth Chicago Fire Department member to die in the line of duty this year. Nance-Holt said the firefighting community coming together is how they will cope. “I think having all the members behind me, our command staff, the members of the fire department with me, the hugs we share with each other, we work through our grief,” Nance-Holt said.
WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
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Protest at Ogilvie Transportation Center: Hundreds of protesters chanting “ceasefire now” blocked escalators to the Israel consulate above the Ogilvie Transportation Center this morning. Organizers said the protest was the largest Midwest gathering of Jews in solidarity with Palestinians.
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Former Chicago cop pleads guilty: James Sajdak, 65, a former police sergeant, pleaded guilty to a federal charge alleging he kidnapped and sexually abused someone in a squad car on the West Side in 2019. He faces up to one year in federal prison.
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Chicago’s new health commissioner: New York City public health professional Dr. Olusimbo “Simbo” Ige has been chosen by Mayor Brandon Johnson to be Chicago’s next commissioner of the Department of Public Health, making city history as the first Black woman to hold the position.
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Mental health care in Chicago: Chicago’s model for providing mental health care is riddled with barriers to access, particularly for undocumented and uninsured residents, according to a new assessment by health care advocates who want to reopen the city’s public mental health clinics.
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Stewarts Coffee and the competitive grind: Overshadowed by national brands, the 110-year-old area coffee company is seeing more grocery distribution and other sales outlets. And Stewarts is doing it all with a staff of four people.
- 4 stars for ‘Twelfth Night’: Set in the sunny Caribbean, Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s current iteration of “Twelfth Night” is breezy and bouncy, like a reggae beat paired with a rum drink, writes Sheri Flanders in her review for the Sun-Times.
SUN-TIMES STAFF SUGGESTS 🌮
Grab a bite at Su Taqueria El Rey Del Taco y Sus Mariscos
Su Taqueria El Rey Del Taco y Sus Mariscos in Rogers Park | Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
I recently talked with Sun-Times photographer Ashlee Rezin, who suggests this week checking out Su Taqueria El Rey Del Taco y Sus Mariscos in Rogers Park, saying it’s “my favorite taqueria in Rogers Park — maybe all of Chicago. But it helps that I can walk there.
Why you should go: El Rey has a big menu of authentic Mexican cuisine, including excellent fresh seafood, with good prices, Ashlee tells me. “Upon seating, your table is served with chips and two types of salsa, both with a nice kick. The margaritas come with a cute flower garnish. They occasionally have live music performances in the evenings. And, who in Chicago doesn’t love a large outdoor patio?”
What to order: Get the ceviche mixto, which Ashlee says is the best she’s ever had.
Pro tip: Service can be on the slow side when they get busy. “But, relax and enjoy a delicious margarita, michelada or horchata. The food is well worth the wait.”
📍Su Taqueria El Rey Del Taco y Sus Mariscos, 7138 N. Clark
BRIGHT ONE ✨
Chicago’s Smyth joins elite group of Michelin three-star restaurants
Reporting by Katie Anthony
Chicago’s Smyth has joined an exclusive culinary club. Last week, the tony West Loop eatery was awarded its third Michelin star, making it one of only 13 restaurants in the country that have earned the industry’s highest accolade.
“It was a complete shock,” chef/co-owner John Shields told the Sun-Times in an interview Thursday.
Shields and his wife, executive pastry chef Karen Urie Shields, opened the restaurant in 2016. The spot serves contemporary cuisine out of an open-concept kitchen in the West Loop, with the tasting menu starting at $285 per person. Smyth was awarded its first star in 2016 and its second in 2017.
As Shields accepted the honor in New York, back home his restaurant was erupting in applause as guests popped bottles of Champagne for the staff, the chef said.
“Some of our close family and friends were downstairs (at the chef’s other eatery, The Loyalist) and they came up yelling ‘three stars’ in the dining room, and the whole dining room got up and started clapping for the whole team,” Shields said.
YOUR DAILY QUESTION ☕️
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Editor: Satchel Price
Newsletter reporter: Matt Moore
Copy editor: Angie Myers
