[amoergosum]

Highland Park's Ravinia district revival efforts full of renewal, setbacks

Then came news that Billy Corgan, the Smashing Pumpkins frontman, was closing Madame ZuZu's, the teahouse he opened a few doors east of the barbecue eatery in 2012. Zuzu's had evolved into a cafe and art gallery, with vegan sandwiches and pastries, smoothies and fair trade coffee on the menu board.

"We are forced to move for various reasons which involve tenancy, but certainly nothing to do with the strength of the business (which thanks to all our great customers has been robust and steady)," Corgan wrote when he announced ZuZu's March 18 closing on Instagram.

In the post, Corgan said, "We hope to open a new location very soon, remaining in Highland Park if possible."

Ravinia-area resident Jill Cunniff is among those who will miss ZuZu's.

"The place had a really cool vibe to it," Cunniff said. "We used to play cards there, canasta."

Merlo's, a brick-oven pizza and Italian restaurant across the street from ZuZu's, also recently closed. But Viaggio, a rustic Italian restaurant located on West Madison Street in Chicago, will be opening its second location in the Merlo's space in late April or May, according to Viaggio's management.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburb...319-story.html