Great sushi can be found all over the city but Hot Box Sushi takes things in a new direction with its namesake dish: A casserole made of rice, crab mix, and Japanese seasonings. It’s meant to be scooped into seaweed sheets for a fun, interactive eating experience. Diners can order online and pick up their food in Northbrook.

Chef Jasmine Sheth features a rotating menu of exciting Indian fare all out of an Andersonville ghost kitchen. Sheth, a Mumbai native, is giving Chicago a more accurate glimpse of food actually served in India, rather than through the Indian-American lens from buffets. Find the latest offerings and ordering details on Instagram.

Angel Chavez, the pastry chef at Bistro Campagne, has borrowed his employer’s kitchen for his new side project: every week, he bakes up a selection of pies, pastry, bread, and cookies that are available for pickup on Wednesdays and Sundays. Leftovers are also available for walk-in customers on Sundays, but for the best selection, Chavez recommends ordering in advance. Oreo-creme pies are among the stars here.

Tony Scardino, a.k.a. Professor Pizza, is the mastermind responsible for this pop-up running out of the Full Shilling in Lakeview. The decorated pizzaiolo has worked at some of Chicago’s top spots, including Paulie Gee’s and Dough Bros, and his square, thin-crust pies are inspired by a Long Island recipe dubbed “grandma-style.”

Whenever the chefs behind this catering company aren’t out and about at events around the Midwest, they’re at home in Irving Park testing out beef-centered new recipes, like a beefy grilled cheese or the Bosnian sausage cevapcici, which visitors can stop by and sample. Follow along on Instagram for more details on where to find them and what they’ll be serving.

When the pandemic started, Eve Studnicka (Dinner at the Grotto) and Alexis Thomas (Black Cat Kitchen), inspired by the Midwestern custom of bringing hash brown casseroles to neighbors in times of need, teamed up to deliver inventive comfort food to Chicagoans who needed it. Menus drop every Sunday afternoon for delivery on Thursday or Friday, and the chefs make regular donations to a variety of local nonprofits.

This one-man ghost kitchen in Logan Square pays homage to famed Chicago pizza maker Burt Katz with impressive pan pies. Milly’s, named after owner Robert Maleski’s grandmother, specializes in a caramelized crust that gets its flavor and coloring from a ring of mozzarella cheese around the pan’s rim. Topping combinations include Que Suerte (pineapple, cherry tomatoes, jalapeno, brown sugar bacon) and Covfefe (Peppadew peppers, sausage, mushrooms, red onions, tomatoes, spinach, ricotta). Each day’s selection sells out early and can be ordered online.

Bumbu Roux has survived Politan Row’s closure, as chef Chris Reed draws on the culinary histories of his Black Louisianan father and Dutch-Indonesian mother to create delectable renditions of seafood gumbo, blackened catfish, Telor Bali, dan Mie Goreng, and more.

At the Qbirria Factory, it’s all birria all the time — not just in tacos, but also in nachos, quesadillas, tostadas, crunchwraps, ramen, sandwiches, and fries. There are also chicken, carnitas, vegetables, and Flamin’ Hot Cheetos options for those who, by chance, don’t like birria, but everything comes with a cup of consomme for dipping.

A host of exciting pizza options have emerged lately and this food truck is at the forefront. Husband-wife duo Steve and Jenn Kaplan started slinging five-inch Detroit-style squares out of a truck in 2019 but are now also offering carryout and delivery on Fridays. The creative toppings include Italian beef with giardiniera; gyro meat; and PBnJ (pepperoni, bacon, pickled jalapeños). Slide into Five Squared’s DMs to order.

Elena Vázquez Felgueres and Tamar Fasja Unikel have combined the flavors of their native Mexico with the baked goods of Fasja Unikel’s Jewish heritage to create a stupendous collection of babkas that taste like cinnamon churro, cafe de olla, and pistachio cardamom, among other things. They sell challah, too, and pastries for the Jewish holidays, all available for delivery or pickup at various points around the city.

It’s no secret that an exceptional burger just hits differently. Those in search of the best will want to follow Chicago Secret Burger for a worthy contender. It features two thin patties, special sauce, lettuce, tomato, onions, and pickles on a sesame bun. Drops are announced on Instagram.

In late 2020, a new taco pop-up, Birria Ta-Ta-Tacos, began selling out at various locations around the city including Easy Does It (nee East Room) in Logan Square. The chef, Oscar Samsony, formerly worked at Mi Tocaya Antojeria. Find quesatacos, beef birria, and more. Keep those eyes open on Instagram for its next appearance.

The bakers at Downstate Donuts make home deliveries on weekend mornings so customers don’t even have to get out of their pajamas to get a dozen sinkers — though Downstate also does pop-ups and recently began selling at Foxtrot Market and several coffee shops around the North Side. These potato doughnuts come in a range of classic and seasonal flavors and can also be ordered gluten-free.