est. 2020
A love letter to Midwestern ingredients, written in elevated and honest French-Canadian cuisine. Rooted in classic technique. Relying on the passion and ingenuity of a year-round preservationist’s kitchen and larder. Reminiscent of that welcoming feeling at a grandmother’s table. We are Dear Margaret, and we can’t wait to feed you.
But what is French-Canadian cuisine?
French-Canadian cuisine focuses on what’s available in this moment, cooked with a balance of comfort, necessity, and care—and sometimes, indulgence (hello, foie gras!).
Our menu draws from Chef Ryan Brosseau’s childhood in southern Ontario, the “fertile bread basket of Canada” and the nation’s largest farming region—where there is an emphasis on cooking what one grows and raises, making use of the whole animal, canning and preserving, and having very little food waste.
The region’s ingredients—including a cornucopia of produce, heritage pork, game meat, wild fowl, lake fish, and artisan cheeses—are also readily available in Chicago for a French-Canadian menu with a distinctly Midwestern viewpoint.
Awards & Recognition
Jean Banchet Awards 2024 Best Hospitality nominee
Michelin Bib Gourmand 2022, 2023
Chicago magazine 50 Best Dishes 2023
A USA Today “10Best” Best New Restaurant 2022
The New York Times 50 Best Restaurants in America 2022
Jean Banchet Awards 2022 Best New Restaurant winner
A Chicago Tribune 2022 Best New Restaurant
A Chicago magazine 2022 Best New Restaurant
5 stars from Time Out Chicago (2022)
An Infatuation Chicago 2021 Best New Restaurant
3 stars from Chicago Tribune (2021)
More On Us…
Executive Chef
Ryan Brosseau
Executive Chef Ryan Brosseau brings a passion for preservation and pickling, whole-animal butchery, and bread baking to Dear Margaret. His menu pays homage to his French-Canadian mémé (grandmother) Margaret, with a nod to the farmers and purveyors from whom he sources high-quality local ingredients. A self-professed “old-fashioned cooking dude” who believes food culture is crucial to understanding who we are, he is dedicated to the details that elevate familiar flavors to accessibly innovative, inherently satisfying, and wholly nourishing.
Originally from Canada—he grew up in Merlin, Ontario, an hour east of Detroit—Ryan moved to Chicago in 2010 to pursue cooking and devoted time to working in the kitchens of Perennial Virant, Found, and Table, Donkey and Stick. He served as opening executive chef for Le Sud, earning citywide accolades.
Ryan was recognized as a 2021 Rising Star from StarChefs and a 2022 Chef to Watch from Plate magazine.
Owner
Lacey Irby
Owner Lacey Irby has flirted with the hospitality industry for more than a decade. She got her first taste as managing editor of a magazine for professional chefs. She then switched sides of the desk, taking on promotional, marketing, and editorial roles for nationally renowned hospitality public relations firms before starting her own F&B communications company in 2018, which she operated until 2022. A Northern Virginia native, Lacey acquired an insatiable appetite for both food and storytelling at a young age. Dear Margaret is her first restaurant.
Wine Director
Terry McNeese
Wine Director Terry McNeese has managed operations and curated wine lists at many renowned Chicago establishments, including Blackbird, Le Sud, The Gage, De Quay, Bistro 110, Le Lan, and Chicago Firehouse. Terry was nominated for Best Sommelier from the 2022 Jean Banchet Awards.
Our namesake
