Gino & Marty's Avoids Eviction After $137K Rent Settlement

Gino & Marty’s, the splashy Italian restaurant that drew celebrities and social media buzz to Fulton Market’s Restaurant Row, has dodged eviction for now after reaching a settlement with its landlord over more than $137,000 in unpaid rent.

A Cook County judge dismissed the eviction case against That’s Gino & Marty’s LLC on March 4, noting that all “parties have complied with the terms of the agreed settlement order.” Owner Gino Bartucci confirmed this week that the back rent has been paid and the restaurant will keep its space at 844 W. Randolph St.

What happens next is less clear.

The restaurant opened in 2022 and quickly carved out a reputation as a high-profile destination along one of Chicago’s most competitive dining corridors. Kevin Hart, Kevin Durant and Megan Thee Stallion were among the names associated with the spot. The glamour masked serious financial trouble brewing beneath the surface.

Gino & Marty’s closed quietly last summer, with Bartucci announcing plans to reimagine the space with a redesigned interior, expanded dining room and elevated lounge. That September press release painted an optimistic picture. The balance sheet told a different story.

Court records and public filings show the business carried more than $400,000 in unpaid debts, rent and taxes at the time of its closure. The Illinois Attorney General’s Office has since sued the restaurant for unpaid employee wages, and complaints submitted to the Illinois Department of Labor document additional alleged wage violations affecting former staffers.

When asked this week about his plans for the space, Bartucci did not commit to a specific path. “We are still assessing the best avenues and strategies, as several options are currently on the table,” he wrote in an email.

Reopening as a restaurant would require clearing several bureaucratic hurdles, and the liquor licensing situation alone presents a significant obstacle. The restaurant’s state liquor license expired June 30. Court records and accounts from former staffers indicate Gino & Marty’s continued selling alcohol after that date without a valid state license, while allegedly passing off cheaper liquor as premium product. Sales reports reviewed by Block Club Chicago appear to support those accounts.

The city-issued liquor license expired Aug. 15, according to the city’s data portal. Both licenses are required to legally serve alcohol.

Obtaining a new city liquor license means Bartucci must file an application with the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, disclosing full ownership details. The process includes a window for public objections. The city’s liquor commissioner has final say on whether to grant the license, but local alderpersons can formally weigh in during the review period.

That puts real power in the hands of the ward’s representative. Ald. Walter Redmon covers the area and could submit a formal objection during any future licensing review.

The Illinois Liquor Control Commission declined to comment on the matter.

The broader picture at 844 W. Randolph is one of a business that burned bright, ran into serious trouble and now faces an uncertain path back to legitimacy. The settlement buys Bartucci time and a physical address, but it does not erase the wage complaints, the debt history or the licensing complications that any reopening would require him to resolve.

Fulton Market has proven to be an unforgiving stretch for operators who overreach. The neighborhood rewards concept and execution but punishes neglect of the basics, and a stack of unpaid obligations alongside a lapsed liquor license is about as basic as it gets.

For now, the space sits empty. The September promise of a completely redesigned restaurant has not materialized, and Bartucci has not committed publicly to any timeline or concept. What the settlement guarantees is simply that nobody is changing the locks on Randolph Street this week.

Whether that grace period turns into something more is a question Bartucci has not yet answered, and the creditors, former employees and neighbors waiting on him have heard optimistic language before.