Vela Slated to Open in the River North Area

According to a recent permit filing, Hubbard Street Hospitality Llc’s concept Vela has filed for a River North location at 352 W Hubbard Street.

A representative of Vela was not immediately available for commentary upon What Now Chicago’s request.

While an official opening date and what Vela plans to offer have yet to be confirmed, according to Vela’s liquor licensing permit, the people behind the concept are Rafid Hindo, Nader Hindo, Fadi Hindo, and Arturo Gomez.

When doing a bit more research, according to LinkedIn , the Hindo’s are also partnered with Bonhomme Hospitality Group. “Bonhomme Hospitality Group is a hospitality development and management company with an in-house integrated marketing team specializing in branding, content creation, and communications.”

“Today, this diverse group led by partners Daniel Alonso, Nader Hindo, Fadi Hindo and Rafid Hindo includes Beatnik (restaurant & cocktail bar), Black Bull (Spanish restaurant), Bordel (cocktail bar & cabaret), Celeste (cocktail bar & restaurant), DISCO (nightclub & music venue), Café Bonhomme (European-style cafe/bar), Beatnik On The River (restaurant & cocktail bar) and soon-to-open PORTO (seafood restaurant and wine bar).”

“Founded in 2012, the name for the Group traces its origin to the two main qualities that their bars and restaurants strive for in service: to be humble and good-natured.”

“In French, ‘bonhomme’ means good-natured, so the translation itself is a reminder of the character that we constantly work towards,” says Daniel Alonso, Bonhomme’s co-founder and managing partner. “Bonhomme was also the name of the street that I grew up on, and by sharing the name it too serves as a cue to remain humble and never forget where we came from.”

According to an article from the Chicago Eater written in 2015, “Five years ago, brothers and real estate investors Nader, Rafid and Fadi Hindo purchased the historic three-floor building at 111 W. Hubbard St. with plans to bring on a hospitality group to implement and operate a concept.”

“But as time passed, the Hindos began to see a very ambitious “polished, glamorous, sophisticated” concept of their own, where each floor had a “different flavor,” and, after talks with various operators, they “didn’t see anyone that could consummate the vision” and decided to take the plunge and become owner-operators of the space themselves. Following two years of secretive construction and high-profile hirings, deliberately without marketing, they unveiled Celeste on February 3, 2014.”

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