Burger Watch Wilmette: Wednesday’s the big day for Small Cheval

The wait is just about over for local burger and shake fans who have been champing at the bit for Small Cheval’s Wilmette location to open its doors.

Small Cheval, 1139 Wilmette Ave., will do just that at 3 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 13, confirmed Kate Rettker, director of marketing for Hogsalt Hospitality, the ownership group behind the restaurant.

To start, Rettker wrote in an email, Small Cheval will be open 3-9 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday, “with extended hours coming soon.”

In a statement to The Record, Wilmette Village President Senta Plunkett celebrated the news and noted Small Cheval’s role in a rejuvenated downtown Wilmette.

“The community has been eagerly awaiting Small Cheval’s opening and we couldn’t be more excited to welcome them to Wilmette,” she said. “They’re an important addition to our Village Center as we work hard to keep downtown Wilmette a fun and vibrant destination.”

Small Cheval is a spinoff of Au Cheval, a Chicago restaurant that gained national notoriety for its burgers following its 2012 opening.

Three years later, Hogsalt leader Brendan Sodikoff opened Small Cheval as a scaled-down, quick-access version of the Au Cheval experience. Small Cheval offers hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, fries and milkshakes, as well as a selection of beer and cocktails.

The Wilmette location will be Small Cheval’s 11th overall and second in the suburbs. (Its Rosemont location opened in 2024.)

Small Cheval in Wilmette boasts significant outdoor seating capacity, to go with tables inside its historic building, which is a 150-year-old train depot that Hogsalt purchased from the Village of Wilmette in 2023.

Development of the restaurant has been in the works since that purchase, with the most significant challenge being the restaurant’s proposed signage, which needed a Village zoning relief, because Wilmette does not allow rooftop signs.

The Village Board granted the relief via unanimous vote in 2024, despite a negative recommendation from Wilmette’s Appearance Review Commission.

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