Cultivate Takes Over Lincoln Park Next Saturday

By Amy Cavanaugh in Food on Sep 9, 2012 3:00PM

The first Cultivate Chicago was held last fall in Lincoln Park and it'll be back for round two on Saturday. The free event, put on by Chipotle, aims to raise awareness about sustainable food through eating, drinking, and music.

The food side includes tacos, tortas, and chili created for the festival with ingredients from local farms. You'll also get to try food from ShopHouse Kitchen, the company's Southeast Asian concept, which only has a D.C. outpost right now. (We tried it out on a visit to D.C. last year, and while not totally wowed, want to give it another go). There's also a Brewers' Hall and Artisans' Hall, so you'll get to sip suds from Half Acre, Five Rabbit, Metropolitan, and other breweries, and eat Black Dog Gelato, Rare Bird Preserves, and Puffs of Doom cream puffs, among other items. There's also a chef tent, with local chefs like Paul Kahan and Sarah Grueneberg, and national chefs like Richard Blais and Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo serving up dishes. We recently got a preview of the tomato salad Balena's Chris Pandel will be serving, and it's great.

The music side includes performances by G Love and Special Sauce, JC Brooks and the Uptown Sound, LP, and others.

There are also activities that can earn you a free burrito and an area geared toward kids.

Cultivate will be held September 15 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Plan your visit by checking out the whole schedule.