Chicago Foodies

Chicago Foodies Food Truck Bash: 3 Food Trucks, 2 Brothers & 1 Green Lady

 

Wednesday February 22nd at 6:30 is your chance to see 3 of Chicago's finest food trucks flex their culinary muscle at The Green Lady on Lincoln for Chicago Foodies Food Truck Bash

La Adelita, The Brown Bag Lunch Truck, and Cupcakes for Courage will provide a tasting menu that will be paired by Two Brothers Brewing.

Expect sharp and sweet. Savory and sultry. A veritable bonanza of flavors coming together all for $35 bucks!

Double IPA's For Single People at Jerry's Sandwiches

Think your are going to spend the night of Valentine's Day sad and alone, or at one of those "I'm not bitter. No really" Screw Cupid bar events drinking $2 jello shots?   Well, we're not having it.  Those are for losers.  The winners will be out drinking double IPA's at Jerry's Sandwiches in Wicker Park which is featuring Double IPA's For Single People night.  Jerry's is spreading the love with elite double IPA's destined to set your forsaken heart aflutter. 

Lincoln Square Beer Festival At Dank Haus

Winter hasn't been that tough on us yet but don't take that to mean there isn't trouble ahead.  You could be experiencing the winter blahs before you know it if you aren't already.  And if you're already in the doldrums over winter, well, you clearly live  in the wrong city.  But there is hope.  There's a sure-fire means of coping out there and it's called beer.  In fact, the denizens of Lincoln Square want to remind you of the healing power of beer through their winter beer fest starting at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 28, 2011, at the Dank Haus on Western Avenue in the Lincoln Square neighborhood. 

Local Option Beer Event - Thursday, December 15, 2011

It is being referred to as "biblical."  Maybe so.   Under any moniker, The Local Option in Chicago is having its final beer event of the year, featuring some rock solid beer offerings including some of the Evil Twin lineup, Dark Horse 4 Elf, Jolly Pumpkin La Parcela, Lost Abbey Angel's Share, Surly Darkness, and Victory Yakima Glory.  Stouts, stouts, and more stouts dominate this event, so expect a lot of dark, chocolatly, viscous, amazing, sludge-in-your-glass beers to be featured, and to disappear fast.  Here is the list.

This insanity begins at 3 p.m. Thursday night, so be there to get your favorites.  Local Option is located at 1102 W. Webster Ave. in Chicago.   

In Defense of "Too Much" Food Writing

"Just shut up! Get into the kitchen and cook!" This is the exasperated cry of Martha Nichols' otherwise thoughtful, measured argument against "literary food fatigue" that she published Wednesday on her blog, Athena's Head. Nichols is tired of written foodie culture. She is exhausted by page-long descriptions of heirloom tomatoes and bored by poetic musings on Nova Scotia scallops. What makes her argument more than just populist noise is her vantage point: Nichols herself is a literary magazine editor whose latest publication is an entire issue devoted to food. So what are we, the food-obsessed writers and readers, to make of her assertion that "food writing has reached a choking point"?

Win a Free Pair of Tickets to Pinot Days Grand Tasting at Navy Pier this Saturday!

Here's a great opportunity to win a pair of tickets to Pinot Days this Saturday! Simply fill out our Facebook poll letting us know which region makes your favorite Pinot! Washington's Willamette Valley? France's famed Burgundy? Cali's Russian River? South America's Chilean? So many choices! They're all good and it's not that any one's better than another but they're different enough to have a favorite, right?

The 5th Annual Pinot Days is this Saturday afternoon at Navy Pier. Here's our post about it.

5th Annual Pinot Days – Grand Festival Tasting @ Navy Pier Saturday Nov. 12th

Do you prefer Pinot from Oregon or from California? What about New Zealand or simply an old school Burgundy? November 12th at Navy Pier is the perfect time to understand what the difference is when you have a chance to try over 300 different wines. Over 70 producers will be included at this year's event from around the world.

This year there are specific focuses including a Burgundy corner as well as a VIP tasting. TIckets are $50 in advance and available on their website.

"About Hunger & Resilience" CLOSES TOMORROW at St. James Cathedral

I was walking down Huron and saw a sign for Michael Nye's interactive art show at the St James Cathedral. The show closes tomorrow. Inside the church... inside the chapel are over 50 portraits around the grand room. Headphones accompany each portrait. It was the middle of the day and the church was empty except for a small group at the front. A woman was teaching a prayer whch is simply credited online to Latin America,

To all those with bread have hunger for justice.
To all those with hunger have bread.

While the last day of the show is Sunday, the portraits and audio excerpts are available on the artist's website. For a food community who very much has bread, both literally and figuratively, this site should have more interest in social justice. We'll have to work on that.

St. James Cathedral
65 E Huron
Chicago IL 60611

*photo from http://www.michaelnye.org

The Sixth Sense of Dining: Inside the StarChefs Conference

Want to rub elbows with the nation's brightest culinary stars? The 6th annual StarChefs conference opened yesterday in New York with a star-studded roster of speakers.

The event is open only to industry professionals, however for culinary students and restaurant workers, this is a dazzling opportunity to ask questions and get your hands dirty with a workshop from your favorite kitchen god (or goddess). There is also opportunity to walk away with a dash of fame; 20 rising pastry chefs are in fierce competition to win the International Pastry Competition.

This year's theme was "The Sixth Sense: Intuition, Emotion and Experiential Evolution in Dining." Lots of fancy words, to be sure, but there is nothing pie-in-the-sky about Grant Achatz's determination to enter your psyche as a diner, as he spoke about the broadening role of food as entertainment.

The StarChefs conference is certainly smaller than other industry conferences (like the National Restaurant Association show), but the more intimate vibe allows you to dive in without feeling overwhelmed. There is a good smattering of equipment vendors, food suppliers and other merchandise to check out, but the real meat of the conference is not the Australian lamb, but the main stage presentations and workshops.

Want to hear about building a charcuterie empire? Daniel Boulud will enlighten you. Interested in making ethereally light macarons? Pierre Herme has traveled straight from Paris to guide you in an interactive seminar. Curious about the thought process that pushes a concept to a plate? Laurent Gras demonstrates visual storytelling through a fish eye and Picasso paintings.

More highlights and photos from the StarChefs conference after the jump:

Limited Edition Hennessy Bottle Designed by KAWS

On Wednesday this last week, Hennessy had a release party for their new, limited-edition, bottle designed by artist KAWS at Blackbird restaurant.  Eager to learn more about Hennessy, I jumped at the opportunity, and, hey, it's Blackbird!

Walking in I tried to hide a smile on my face when I noticed models, bodies painted to reflect KAWS' work, and scores of cocktails that no one was drinking as of yet, something that I had mentally called into question (Fortunately that situation was rectified later in the evening).

  The event provided an opportunity to showcase other products in the Hennessy line but focused on the V.S., of which only 420,000 bottles with the label are to be sold.   Blackbird house mixologist, Lynn House, provided some great cocktails to start, among them being the Plum Smash, which is muddled plums, lime, mint, and mint blossoms, which Lynn told me she harvested from her back garden earlier that day.   The mint blossoms, in particular accentuated the cocktail's flavor with their fragrance, which was not dissimilar to a mint julep, but not as strong,  less cloying, and much more refreshing.

Stoned 75 was Lynn's other pre-dinner cocktail, mixed with peach puree and apricot jam, Ruinart Blanc de Blanc Champagne, and  Hennessy Privilège V.S.O.P.   Using Ruinart as an ingredient was rather decadent in my opinion, given its sticker price of around $60 per bottle, though it was a nice cocktail, especially for a brunch or summer afternoon.

Kouzina – Food and Wine to Benefit the Hellenic Museum Sept. 21st-23rd

The Hellenic Museum will be the first Greek cultural museum in America and it will be in Chicago! This is a great chance to not only taste some unique and awesome food but to get to preview the museum as well.

Tonight begins "Kouzina", their tasting-fundraiser that spans 3 days. This evening features their Chef Tasting and includes award winning and celebrated local chefs:

Would You "Grub With Us"?

There are tons of ways to experience dining in Chicago, and the newest trend is group dining deals. Haven't heard of any? Grub With Us is taking Chicago by storm, and they are expanding as we speak.Here's how it works. Grub With Us pairs with a restaurant and offers a set menu at a set date and time. There are a limited number of spots - generally about 7 per meal. You pay online, and the cost covers tax and tip. 

So, what's the catch? The point of the site is basically to meet new people. You go by yourself, enjoy sharing a three course meal with 6 strangers, and possibly leave as friends. The community on the site is still small, so if you are a big grubber, you're likely to see the same people at another meal. A new feature of Grub With Us is meals for certain interests. Are you a vegetarian? A techie? Or just single? Sign up for a meal with people just like you. 

When I tried Grub With Us, I was extremely impressed at the amount of food that was involved in the meal. While there was a bit of scrambling to take my share for each course, everyone was polite and respectful. We're all hungry after all! Did I mention I brought to friends to dinner with me? This leads me to my next point...

Today at Lunch – The Daley Plaza Farmer's Market Chef Challenge

Thursday at high-noon three chefs square off to see who does what with the local produce at the 2011 COUNTRY Chef Challenge at the Daley Plaza Farmer's Market.

This year the three chefs include Iliana Regan from One Sister underground dining, who overwhelmingly won our reader poll, Luca Corazzina, the Executive Chef at 312 Chicago and Chris Pandel Executive Chef and Partner at the Bristol.

Judging the challenge is Val Warner host of ABC 7's Windy City Live, Bill Daley Food Critic from the Chicago Tribune and Josh Brusin the Founder and Editor of ChicagoFoodies.com... wait, what?

That's right. I'll be there live and in person. If you're at the market stop by and say hello! The challenge is similar to Iron Chef. Contestants get 30 minutes to shop and 30 minutes to cook... It starts at noon. Grab some food at the market and hang out. It should be fun!

India Pale Ale Festival at Quenchers

If you are a hophead, that is, a fan of hopped up beers (I am), you will appreciate that Quenchers Saloon is having an IPA festival on August 3rd and 17th, 2011, featuring 12 IPA's on tap each night representing all major U.S. geographical regions.  The first week will feature the incredible West Coast lineup versus the upstart Upper Midwest.   The sturdy East Coast will take on the rugged Mountains and Plains division during the second week.  I'm not sure but I think Vegas has the West Coast as a 4-1 favorite. 

Standouts featured will be Port Wipeout IPA, Dogfish Head 90 Minute, Stone IPA, Dark Horse Crooked Tree, Victory Hop Devil, Bell's Two Hearted, and Alpha King.  Note that the website linked below lists Dark Horse "Double Crooked Tree" as being on the list; but the listed ABV and the fact that few double IPA's are on this list would suggest that it's actually the Crooked Tree.  The full lineup is listed here. 

This is a very cool idea to pit IPA's against each other based on region.  Good luck trying them all.  As the craft beer insurgency explodes in our collective Chicago faces, more and more bars are hosting these types of tap takeovers to draw in craft brew lovers.  Bless them for that. 

Quenchers
2401 North Western

FREE Zephyr and Snacks for Charity @Publican

Tomorrow, the Publican is hosting a benefit food drive for the Greater Chicago Food Depository. Everyone who donates will get to try the new beer collaboration between Lagunitas and The Publican/Big Star called the Zephyr. Who better than Hanna's Bretzel to help out the Publican to make beer snacks.

Saturday June 25 from 1:30 - 3:30pm. 
Give some food & drink some beer!

The Publican
837 W Fulton Market
Chicago, IL 60607
(312) 733-9555

El Coto de Rioja Paella Parade – Free Tickets to Rooftop Party Tonight

We're giving away 2 pairs of tickets to the El Coto de Rioja Paella Parade, tonight at the Millennium Park Rooftop Terrace. It goes from 6-9pm with 7 chefs competing for "Best Paella" in Chicago honors. Tickets are usually $60 a pair but if you want them tell us why on our facebook page and you just may win a pair.

El Coto de Rioja Paella Parade
Millennium Park Rooftop Terrace
205 East Randolph Street
Chicago, IL 60606

2011 Taste of Chicago Map

Here's the latest map for the Taste--- Click on it for full a size version. From their website.

The Trip – Coogan, Brydon, Winterbottom – A "Sideways" for Foodies?

Monday night is a screening of The Trip which opens Friday June 17th. Seems like a hoot.We gave away a bunch of tickets on our Facebook page for Monday's screening. Shoot an email... you never know if we have an extra pair!

After a bit of looking around revealed that the flick is a feature-length version of a six-part TV series. It's making waves at state-side film festivals and considering the topic of fine dining, actors that at times might get a bit indulgent could easily fit the bill.

Two comedians riffing, doing impressions and maybe making (new) jokes about foam?  Sign me up.

National Restaurant Association Recap

It's awfully fun telling people you're "at the NRA convention", where admittedly I get a bit of defiant pleasure by gauging reactions of so-called "tolerant" people. Plus I'm secretly envious of people who can bring back freshly-shot deer and wild turkey to their home and cook a delicious meal with it.  This convention isn't about supporting Second Amendment rights and personal freedoms, though.  Instead it was the National Restaurant Association convention, which was held May 21 through 23.

Interview with Belvedere President, Charles Gibb

Before a recent event our own Brian Ziegler had an opportunity to talk with Belvedere's President Charles Gibb.  (Also, a big thanks to Claire Smith, the Head of Spirit Creation and Mixology for Belvedere.)

Foodies: What is your philosophy in relation to other [vodka] products?

CG: The way were were built as human beings is that we don't like the flavor of pure alcohol, making it more difficult to enjoy neat.   The vodka has sweet, soft vanilla characteristics.  We leave the flavor to the vodka, as vodka is the closest to pure alcohol with a little flavor and aroma.

I like to think we are more of a microplayer.  The process is the same as a microdistiller would use.  Ninety-eight percent of all flavored vodka uses chemicals.  We use real fruits and spice in the same way a microdistiller would get from their flavor from.  These seven ingredient [in the Belvedere Bloody Mary vodka] flavors are in the vodka, and we redistill it and make it into a clear product.  We also use blending so the product is balanced.