The New Chicago Diner CookbookMeat-Free Recipes from America's Veggie Diner

In 1983, there was no shortage of critics, loan officers, and family members who scoffed at the idea—often vehemently—of opening a strictly vegetarian restaurant. But that’s exactly what Mickey Hornick and his partner, “Chef Jo” Kaucher did. Thirty years later, the Chicago Diner is still the Windy City’s premier vegetarian eatery, now with two locations and a national fan base. In honor of this momentous anniversary, the Chicago Diner is releasing this new full-color cookbook, reflecting the wealth of new recipes, vegetarian and vegan dining sensibilities, and anecdotes from the kitchen of this award-winning favorite.

Hornick and Kaucher’s business partnership is an unlikely story that began unexpectedly enough at the Chicago Board of Options. That’s where Hornick worked as a fairly successful, though unsatisfied, commodities trader. In an attempt to eat healthier, he became a regular at a local hippie haunt, the Breadshop Kitchen, where Kaucher baked bread. One day, Hornick quit his job and took a position in Kaucher’s kitchen as a dishwasher, despite warnings that the restaurant would soon go under. Two weeks later, Hornick told the owner he thought he could save the restaurant, leveraging his background in finance and overcoming his rudimentary knowledge of vegetables.

While Hornick and Kaucher were too late to save the Breadshop, they soon reunited to found the Chicago Diner. Predating the exponential growth of veggie-friendly dining in the 1990s and 2000s, the Chicago Diner set an example of how a successful vegetarian restaurant could thrive, even in meat-and-potatoes cities like Chicago. The Chicago Diner has become a staple of the city’s culinary scene, earning a Michelin Guide recommendation as well as numerous local and national accolades. This cookbook takes many of the restaurant’s best recipes and offers them up to readers as full meals with a new, healthy twist.