Warlord chef-partners say they won’t back planned expansion to Humboldt Park

Plans appear to have been called off for the popular restaurant Warlord to expand to Humboldt Park. The news comes months after Trevor Fleming, chef and co-owner of the Chicago restaurant, was charged with sharing sexually explicit images of a woman without her consent.

During dinner service last week, co-owner Emily Kraszyk confirmed with a Sun-Times reporter that Fleming previously signed a lease for the space at 2803 W. Chicago Ave., the former home of Feed diner, without consulting with her and her business partner, John Lupton. Fleming did not appear to be in the building when a reporter approached the staff.

Kraszyk said that she and Lupton are not involved in anything related to Lords, and the lawsuit they filed in February against Fleming says “the Company and Kraszyk and Lupton have been forced to cancel the Lords expansion project entirely.”

In a now-deleted Instagram post in December, Warlord announced it would open a second concept called Lords in Humboldt Park, featuring live-fire dry-aged burgers. But local Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36th) said he would block any attempt by Fleming’s attempts to open his own restaurant in his ward, which includes the vacant space on Chicago Avenue.

His office sent out a statement of support for the victims, “once I found out about some of the serious concerns and allegations,” Villegas said in an interview.

“We [are] not gonna support any business that treats their employees in that fashion,” he continued, noting that he’s met with concerned residents and local hospitality industry groups to make sure that any licenses or activity under Fleming’s name, in his ward, would be denied. “We will always stand with victims of this type of assault.”

As first reported by Block Club Chicago, Kraszyk and Lupton have fallen out with Fleming and are suing their former partner, alleging breach of fiduciary duty. Their lawsuit, filed on Feb. 19 in the Cook County Circuit Court, seeks to expel Fleming from their company and bar him from Warlord.

Kraszyk and Lupton allege Warlord “has lost favorable media coverage and industry recognition.” The complaint also states employees have told Kraszyk and Lupton they’ll walk out if Fleming sets foot in the establishment again.

Kraszyk and Lupton have not responded to multiple follow-up interview requests, nor have their lawyers. Fleming’s own plans remain unclear. Attempts to reach Fleming through his lawyer were unsuccessful.

Villegas said the “Lords” name for the restaurant is a poor choice, given the Humboldt Park neighborhood’s history with the Young Lords, a street gang that fought gentrification and discrimination in the 1960s and ’70s. The Young Lords were led by Cha-Cha Jiménez, who was once married to Villegas’ grandmother.

“[If] they're gonna utilize their name, then there should be discussions around what benefit it is gonna [have] to the community,” Villegas said. “Based on what I saw, there weren't really those efforts to put forward a plan that would give back to the community, similar to what the Young Lords were attempting to do back in the ’70s.”

Villegas said no applications have been submitted to the city for a new restaurant at the former Feed space. He said his office is in contact with the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection.

In their lawsuit, Kraszyk and Lupton allege Fleming has nearly ruined their hospitality company, Diamond Hands, LLC.

The allegations against Fleming have turned Kaszyck and Lupton’s restaurant dreams into a “nightmare,” according to the lawsuit, which called Fleming’s conduct “ nothing short of reprehensible.”

According to Kraszyk and Lupton’s lawsuit, business at Warlord has fallen by 46% since reports of Fleming’s misconduct surfaced in January.

The restaurant doesn’t take reservations, and wait times for a table once were as long as two hours. On a recent weeknight, however, there was no wait for a table, the bar was empty and the chef’s counter, where Warlord chefs prepare food in front of guests, had plenty of open seats up for grabs.

Note: This story has been updated to correct the ward overseen by Ald. Gilbert Villegas.