Mike Sula

The Climb

In Chicago, Mike Sula has taken that post as a working job of reporting, tasting, observing, and returning to the same basic question: what is the plate doing, and how well? The title reflects accumulation rather than pose, a practice built through repetition and attention.

Today

In Chicago, those two roles continue with the same restraint that marks the writing. When asked about craft, Mike Sula keeps the focus on the subject he covers: “The most important thing is the food itself.” The line reads as method as much as philosophy, with the critic’s presence held in check so the plate stays central. Even the logistics follow that logic. “I’m not as obsessive about keeping who I am a secret as I used to be, but obviously if I have to make a reservation, I use a fake name.”

Career - writer — Chicago Reader - lead restaurant critic — Chicago Reader

Signature

Chicken of the Trees is listed among Mike's signature dishes, a name with enough bite to stick in the mind without needing explanation. For a writer, a signature dish works as shorthand for taste and attention: a marker of what catches the eye, what gets repeated, what earns a second reading.

In Their Words “I’m not as obsessive about keeping who I am a secret as I used to be, but obviously if I have to make a reservation, I use a fake name.” “The most important thing is the food itself.”

Recognition

James Beard Foundation M.F.K. Fisher Distinguished Writing Award (2013) sits comfortably beside a body of work built on close observation and controlled language. For Mike's writing, the recognition points to a practice that treats food as serious subject matter, not side note, and criticism as a form that rewards precision.

FAQ What is Mike Sula's current role? As of 2026, Mike Sula is lead restaurant critic. What recognition has Mike Sula received? James Beard Foundation M.F.K. Fisher Distinguished Writing Award (2013).