Eater Chicago is a local food site that reports on restaurants and bars, dining and dining trends, food pop-ups and food trucks, and the business of restaurants throughout the metro area. It is part of the Eater network and under the Vox Media umbrella.
How to Pitch Stories to Eater Chicago
Freelancers looking to pitch to Eater’s Chicago-based city site should start here
Eater
Our goal is to tell readers where to eat and why it matters. We deeply value the expertise of local freelancers who can communicate the culture and values of their city through the lens of restaurants and bars.
Eater Chicago accepts pitches on the following: local restaurant and dining news, dining guides, maps to popular travel destinations, and reported features on local restaurants and food trends. We prioritize pitches in the following areas:
- Map updates where the writer has strong local knowledge or perspective. Eater Chicago already has an arsenal of maps and therefore rarely, if ever, assigns brand new maps.
- Notable Openings or Coming Attractions: Features that cover the opening of a new and important or buzzy restaurant joining the Chicago scene. Ideally, these stories are pitched in well in advance of the opening with the aim of getting an exclusive.
- Notable Closings: Given the turnaround for these pieces, these pitches must offer a deeper second-day angle than a straightforward closing story.
- Highly Opinionated: A series where a writer highlights the top picks in a certain specific food genre (Wild rice soup! Breakfast Sandwiches! Burritos) in a voice-y, authoritative way. This story is ideally submitted in combination with photos procured by the author.
- Scene Report: A series that explores the experience of dining at a local restaurant through the eyes of a reporter in a structured, voice-y way. This story is ideally submitted in combination with photos procured by the author.
- Trend Reports: Stories focused on a dining trend happening within the city or region; successful pitches have at least three examples.
- Local Legends: A rich, interview-driven feature spotlighting a local, iconic business.
- Second-Day News Features: Stories that build on a local news item that is driving conversations with a more evergreen approach. These stories should explain how/why something happened, or how it is impacting certain restaurants or diners.
- Sample angles for reference: How Trump’s Immigration Crackdown Is Impacting Restaurants in Pilsen. Why Restaurants in Chicago Are Bringing Back Tipping. Why This Chicago Neighborhood Is Still Struggling to Bounce Back From the Pandemic.
We encourage freelancers to pitch ideas and work with editors to tweak an idea. If you think you have a great scoop, we want to hear about it!
What we don’t do: The site does not accept pitches regarding recipes, food holidays, or grocery products, nor does it conduct restaurant reviews. Chef shuffles and new seasonal menus typically aren’t our bag unless it’s particularly notable. Eater does not accept prewritten stories.
How to Pitch: All pitches should include a subject matter with a clear angle (Ask yourself: What is the headline here?) and why the story is relevant to the dining scene in Chicago or beyond Chicago — in other words, “Why should readers care?”
When submitting a pitch, please provide a short summary of your background, as well as any previous relevant work via links or an online portfolio. Experienced writers are preferred, but new writers shouldn’t feel deterred. If you don’t have published clips, send unpublished writing samples that show voice and style.
We also love to know a bit about your interests and expertise. Are you really knowledgeable about Somali restaurants? Are you wild about wine bars? Is there a neighborhood that you know like the back of your hand? Even if we don’t accept your first pitch, we might have an assignment for you.
Send pitches to chicago@eater.com. Please include the word “Pitch” in the email subject line.
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