TikTok food influencer Keith Lee awards $50,000 to Amici-Chicago

By Sara Tenenbaum

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    CHICAGO, Illinois (WBBM) — TikTok food influencer Keith Lee, in partnership with Toast, has awarded $50,000 to Amici-Chicago in the city’s Lakeview neighborhood.

The money comes from Toast’s “It’s the Little Things” campaign, which seeks to highlight restaurants that take special care with the little things that make dining experiences special.

Lee personally selected Amici to receive the money, saying the family owned and operated restaurant is run with clear passions and has a commitment to fresh, high quality ingredients, with everything made to order “with evident care.”

Amici-Chicago at 3933 N Broadway specializes in homemade arancini, or fried Italian rice balls, with twists on the classic dish inspired by Mexican, Indian, African, Chinese and other global cuisines. Alfio Sciacca opened it in the summer of 2024.

Lee already shone a spotlight on the restaurant through his TikTok page, sampling the arancini in July 2024 and posting a glowing review. The sudden fame meant the previously mostly empty storefront suddenly found itself with lines out the door.

Lee is so recognizable he does food reviews anonymously by ordering take out through an online app and then tasting the food in his car outside the restaurant.

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