AMARA Chicago: Balkan Mezze, Rakija & a Fulton Market Table Made for Sharing

AMARA Chicago is the fall Fulton Market night you want when the craving is mezze that actually fills the table — warm somun torn by hand, ćevapi still glistening from the grill, a copper ramekin of ajvar bright enough to stop conversation, and a rakija cocktail that tastes like someone finally took the Balkans seriously on Randolph. Targeting fall 2026 at 844 W. Randolph Street in the former Gino & Marty’s, AMARA Chicago is chef-partner Nemanja Milunovic’s first sit-down restaurant built around the Belgrade table he grew up at — shareable Balkan and Mediterranean plates, Levantine accents from his years at Aba, and a bar led by his brother Marko with managing partner Vincent Martin (Carbon) keeping the room food-first.

This is not a booking tutorial. Reservations are not live yet. It is a reason to get excited — what the room is aiming to feel like, who is cooking and pouring, what to chase on the plate and in the glass, and the light practical notes that keep you ahead of the opening.

What is AMARA Chicago?

AMARA Chicago is a Balkan-inspired Mediterranean restaurant opening in Fulton Market, built for mezze-style sharing rather than a single-entrée sprint. Block Club Chicago’s August coverage framed it as a tribute to Milunovic’s upbringing in Belgrade — crowded rooms, shared plates, and cooking that stays with you after you leave home. The Infatuation’s fall 2026 openings guide put AMARA Chicago on the city’s watch list for shareable Levantine and Balkan dishes, flame-cooked seafood, and rakija in the cocktails.

The menu spans the map on purpose. Expect seafood-leaning notes from Croatia and Montenegro, meat-forward dishes from Serbia and Bosnia, breads and pastries that travel the region, and Levantine touches — hummus, falafel energy — that Milunovic sharpened while cooking at Aba. Food lands mezze-style so the table looks like a family gathering: bread, small plates, wine, roasted meats, desserts that invite one more bite.

Bookmark these public channels:

• Site: amarachicago.com
• Instagram: @amarachicago
• Address: 844 West Randolph Street, Chicago, IL 60607
• Mailing list: join on the site for first access to reservations, the opening date, and notes from the kitchen

The house is still Coming Soon on the website. Treat fall 2026 as the window and watch the channels for a hard date.

Why does AMARA Chicago feel like a Belgrade table on Randolph?

Because that is the design brief and the emotional one. Milunovic has said the project is deeply personal — a tribute to his heritage and to the people who taught him that food is about more than what is on the plate. The room, as Block Club described after the Gino & Marty’s turnover, leans earthy green, with greenery draped across the ceiling, warm wood, soft lighting, and olive-colored seating. It reads Mediterranean without tipping into nightclub glow.

Vincent Martin has been clear that AMARA Chicago is not Carbon after dark. No late-night club energy here. This is full dining-focused fine dining, 100 percent about the cuisine — a different Fulton Market vibe from his modern steakhouse and lounge a few blocks away. For a date night, a celebration, or a four-top that wants to order the whole mezze board, that distinction matters. You come for the table, not the DJ.

Fulton Market already has coal-fired rooms, tasting menus, and big-name arrivals. AMARA Chicago is pitching something rarer on this stretch: a Balkan mezze house with Chicago polish, brothers in the kitchen and behind the bar, and a menu that wants you to say, when you eventually travel to the Balkans, that you already tasted this in Chicago.

What should you eat at AMARA Chicago?

Start with the dish Milunovic has been chasing for years. Ćevapi — an 80/20 blend of beef and lamb — lands with ajvar (roasted red pepper and eggplant spread), kajmak (rich, creamy dairy), and somun, the pillowy bread he perfected with a French Pastry School background and time as head baker at Stephanie Izard’s Little Goat Diner. He has talked about returning to Belgrade and watching a food expert make proper ćevapi with five ingredients and walking away blown away. That plate is the house signature to watch.

Then build the table the way a Belgrade family would:

• Burek — flaky savory pastry filled with minced meat, cheese, or potatoes
• Pašticada — slow-cooked Croatian braised beef
• Handmade pljukanci — Croatian pasta shaped by hand
• Levantine hummus and falafel notes from the Aba chapter
• Crudos, pastas, flame-cooked whole fish, and octopus (as Infatuation’s fall guide and review stub preview)

House Instagram stills already tease the mood: ćevapi with onion and that copper ramekin of ajvar, mezze spreads with Balkan wine in the glass, a crudo pool of yellow sauce under chili and herb oil. Exact menus will evolve closer to opening — follow @amarachicago for the first real previews — but the shape of the night is already clear: share everything, leave room for bread, and let the grill and the pastry case fight for your attention.

What should you drink at AMARA Chicago?

Marko Milunovic leads the bar. The brief is rakija-forward cocktails — fruit brandy that runs through Balkan nights — plus wines from the region, not a default California-by-the-glass wall. Vincent Martin has said that when he first met Marko, he challenged him to create something different; Marko delivered, drawing on experience with hospitality groups including Lettuce Entertain You and Boka Restaurant Group.

Plan the glass for the plate. Rakija cocktails with ćevapi and ajvar. A Balkan white with crudo and seafood. Something herbal and amaro-adjacent if you are the friend who always orders the interesting pour. WTTW’s fall preview also flagged a barrelful of amari, vermouths, and other herbal drinks alongside Mediterranean wines — the kind of list that rewards curiosity. No public cocktail names have posted yet; when they do, expect the same story the kitchen is telling: Belgrade memory, Mediterranean range, Chicago execution.

Who is behind AMARA Chicago?

Three names carry the opening, and they fit together.

Nemanja Milunovic is executive chef and partner. His Chicago résumé includes Aba, Prime & Provisions, River Roast, and most recently executive chef at Adalina Prime. He also ran a popular 2021 Avondale ghost kitchen where ćevapi and somun already had a following. AMARA Chicago is his first sit-down restaurant centered on the cuisine that shaped him.

Vincent Martin is managing partner — owner of Fulton Market’s Carbon — making his entry into fine dining with a room that stays food-focused. He has said Chef Nem’s talents are worthy of a restaurant of his own, and that the team wants a place fully dedicated to the cuisine in a neighborhood they love.

Marko Milunovic leads beverages. Brothers in the space is part of the story Martin wanted to tell: kitchen and bar speaking the same Balkan language, one night at a time.

When does AMARA Chicago open?

Fall 2026 is the public target from Block Club (August 17), The Infatuation’s fall openings guide and September 23 review stub, WTTW’s fall playlist, and the house site’s Coming Soon banner. A specific ribbon-cutting day has not been posted. Treat fall as the window and watch amarachicago.com plus @amarachicago for the hard date and the first reservation drop.

Hours are not posted yet. Reservations are not live on OpenTable, Resy, or Tock as of late September 2026. The practical move right now is the mailing list on the house site — first access to reservations, opening announcements, and quiet notes from the kitchen.

Where is AMARA Chicago, and how do you get there?

844 West Randolph Street, Chicago, IL 60607 — Fulton Market / West Loop, in the former Gino & Marty’s space. The address sits on a Randolph stretch that already draws dinner traffic from the whole metro; the white exterior sign reading AMARA by Chef Nemanja Milunovic is already part of the street’s coming-soon theater.

Practical notes for later:

• CTA Green/Pink Line to Morgan or Clinton puts you in walking range; the neighborhood is also an easy rideshare drop.
• Randolph evenings get busy — plan a few extra minutes for the last block.
• Private-dining details and hours will land closer to opening; inquire through the house once contact paths go live.
• Right now the public path is the website mailing list and Instagram; phone and email are not listed on the house site yet.

How should you plan a first night at AMARA Chicago?

Start with the feeling you want. If you want the mezze energy, book for a table that can hold bread, ćevapi, a couple of seafood plates, and dessert without rushing. If you want a date night, ask for the softer light and let Marko’s rakija program set the pace. If you are hosting a celebration, think group from the start — mezze is built for passing plates, not for one person guarding an entrée.

Then dress the night like a fine-dining room that still wants you to tear bread with your hands: polished enough for braised pašticada and a Balkan wine, relaxed enough that Fulton Market still feels like a neighborhood. Follow @amarachicago in the weeks before fall so you catch menu teasers, booking links, and any soft-open whispers the house chooses to share. Join the list at amarachicago.com so you are not scrambling when the books open.

Why is AMARA Chicago one of fall’s most watched openings?

Because Chicago has been waiting for a Balkan mezze room with this kind of résumé. AMARA Chicago is not a concept dropped onto Randolph for the Instagram carousel alone — it is a chef cooking the food that made him, a brother pouring the spirits that shaped the same table, and a Fulton Market partner who deliberately chose fine dining over late-night. Block Club told the Belgrade story in August. Infatuation put it on the fall map. WTTW listed it among the season’s new restaurants. The house is mailing-list building, posting food stills, and hanging the sign on the stone facade.

For ChiVibe readers who love a room with a story, this is the fall watch: olive seating under ceiling greenery, ćevapi with ajvar and kajmak on somun, rakija in the glass, and hospitality aimed at making Balkan cooking feel familiar even on a first visit. When the books open, you will want to already know why you are going.

FAQ

When does AMARA Chicago open?

Fall 2026 is the public target from Block Club Chicago, The Infatuation’s fall openings guide, WTTW’s fall preview, and the house site’s Coming Soon banner. A specific opening-day date has not been posted yet.

Where is AMARA Chicago located?

844 West Randolph Street, Chicago, IL 60607, in Fulton Market in the former Gino & Marty’s space.

What kind of food will AMARA Chicago serve?

Balkan-inspired Mediterranean mezze for sharing — ćevapi with ajvar, kajmak, and somun; burek; pašticada; handmade pljukanci; Levantine hummus and falafel notes; plus crudos, pastas, and flame-cooked seafood as previewed in press. Full menus will land closer to opening.

Who is behind AMARA Chicago?

Chef-partner Nemanja Milunovic (ex Adalina Prime, Aba, and more), managing partner Vincent Martin (Carbon), and bar lead Marko Milunovic (rakija-forward cocktails and Balkan wines).

Are reservations open for AMARA Chicago?

Not yet. Join the mailing list at amarachicago.com and follow @amarachicago for opening announcements and booking news. OpenTable, Resy, and Tock are not live for the restaurant as of late September 2026.

Is AMARA Chicago the same vibe as Carbon?

No. Vincent Martin has said AMARA Chicago is full dining-focused fine dining with none of the late-night club energy associated with Carbon — a food-first Balkan and Mediterranean room on Randolph.