It is with the heaviest of hearts that I have decided to pause service and hibernate for the remainder of the winter and spring seasons.

While my concern for the safety of our team and our guests is paramount, our location and the size of our kitchens and patio has actually enabled us to trust that all have felt safe both working and dining. But as the temperatures dip, and the pandemic continues, I recognize that our brand of hospitality does not translate easily into the next few months. Jose cannot serve you the cocktail you need just now, Elisa cannot ask about your family, our pig roast or your rehearsal dinner is not the same without the lively unmasked banter of your fellow attendees.

Yes, the stimulus funds and the generosity of the city of Lake Forest helped get us this far, but the cold weather safety guidelines barring normal operations limit us significantly. Without full capacity indoor dining, without the holiday parties, business lunches and dinners and meet-ups with friends for a festive cocktail, we will not have what we need to get us through the long winter months.

Instead, we will hold onto the great memories, the friends made, the drinks poured, the hospitality served and look forward to seeing the patio buzzing again next summer.

Our last curbside service will be Wednesday, December 23rd.

Meanwhile, we are doing our best to help our team find employment. If you have any leads, please let me know. My team has become family to me and I care for them deeply.

Thank you again for your support through the pandemic, as well as your encouragement through the years. For me, one of the best parts of the last eight years has been getting to know all of you, watching your children grow, celebrating milestones with you, grieving with you, and learning from you. Closing Market House, even temporarily, will leave a void in my life.

I will continue my work with Beacon Place, and have begun working with others to help shape Market House on the Square as it moves into the future

Until we meet again, stay well and have a wonderful holiday season.

With optimism for 2021,

Carla