Ballyhoo’s concept for One Winnetka — called Arkadia — will open in 2027

One of the North Shore’s most anticipated restaurant openings cleared another checkpoint in advance of its eagerly awaited 2027 opening.

Winnetka trustees during their Tuesday, Feb. 3 meeting approved an agreement with Ballyhoo Hospitality that will give clearance for its newest restaurant to slightly encroach into the public right-of-way.

As previously reported by The Record, Ballyhoo Hospitality — the team behind Wilmette’s Sophia Steak, Winnetka’s Pomeroy and Highland Park’s DeNucci’s — confirmed last spring that it will open a Mediterranean-inspired restaurant within the much-publicized development commonly referred to as One Winnetka.

The powerhouse restaurant group in late 2025 revealed the new eatery will be called Arkadia and will open at some point next year, according to information on Ballyhoo’s website.

Ballyhoo also previously confirmed that Arkadia will be a Mediterranean concept and will feature live fire cooking, seafood, dips and more. It reportedly will span 6,700 square feet with capacity to seat 200 inside and another 40 outside.

The council’s approval of the punch-list item came as part of the Tuesday meeting’s consent agenda, meaning trustees devoted no time for further discussion of the topic.

But documents included in the meeting’s agenda packet provide additional details regarding the need for council action this early into the restaurant’s rollout.

Previously approved plans for Arkadia showcased a recessed entry to the tenant space along Elm Street, per a memo from Scott Mangum, Winnetka’s community development director; however, Arkadia’s interior floor plans have changed to the point where the proposed door is now flush with the building facade, resulting in a 6-inch encroachment into the public right-of-way when fully opened.

As extensively detailed by The Record over years of reporting, One Winnetka is a four-story, mixed-use development with 20,955 square feet of commercial space planned for the first floor. The remaining three floors will hold up to 59 residential units.

One Winnetka planners reported in late 2025 that the development’s first-floor retail space is sold out. As part of that, The Record reported, six tenants will cover approximately 20,955 square feet of commercial space on One Winnetka’s Elm-Street facing first floor.

The massive project first broke ground in 2025 with plans for completion in December of this year. Tenants are slated to first begin opening in early 2027.

Arkadia will be Ballyhoo’s second venture into Winnetka’s dining scene after the group in 2021 opened Pomeroy, a French bistro at 844 Spruce St. that draws inspiration from Parisian cafes. Other local Ballyhoo projects include Jackman and Co. in Glenview and Pizza By Sal and Buck Russell’s in Wilmette.

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