It's a good day outside and with the combination of springing forward the clocks, the South Side Irish Parade Sunday, and warmer temps next week there are plenty of weeks to go out. Start the weekend off by leaving work early and heading to the Artisan Cellar at the Merchandise Mart, where they'll be having a tasting of the new-to-the area Graham Beck wines from South Africa. The free tasting runs from 3:30-6 p.m.,......

The listed events were chosen by the editors of Chicagoist and brought to you by the 2009 Toyota Corolla. Music Gypsy jazz guitarist Alfonso Ponticelli and his band, Swing Gitan, are one of the go-to acts to fill in at the Green Mill whenever Kurt Elling is out of town for his regular Wednesday engagement. Ponticelli's faithful recreations of old Hot Club of Paris numbers, complemented with original compositions, are fresh and accessible without......

We just learned that tickets to ALL Metro and Smart Bar shows are only available through their websites, or the Metro Box Office. There will still be service fees for tickets bought online, though we believe they will be much reduced due to Metro handling all sales internally, and there is still never a service fee for tickets bought at the Box Office. What does this mean? Ticketmaster has just lost one of the venues......

The listed events were chosen by the editors of Chicagoist and brought to you by the 2009 Toyota Corolla. Music Spazz-poppers Hidden Mitten play Double Door tonight. The band specializes in turbo-charged melodies and, from what we can tell, super-short mini-skirts. How can that not rock? If you miss them tonight we also hear they're playing The Mutiny tomorrow, mini-pitchers in hand. 1572 N. Milwaukee, 9 p.m., $8, 21+ Wine We used to do......

The Greater North Michigan Avenue Association wants us all to “Feel Magnificent,” and this month apparently that means knocking back the bubbly. Throughout February, businesses on the Magnificent Mile and its surrounding area have been serving champagne to diners and shoppers all along the Avenue, which means we have T minus 7 days to score some free (or reduced) sparkling goodness. The Mag Mile web site can fill you in on everywhere that’s filling flutes,......

The listed events were chosen by the editors of Chicagoist and brought to you by the 2009 Toyota Corolla. Music The Chamber Strings have a turbulent history, but leader Kevin Junior -- having left many of his demons behind him -- is experiencing a joyous resurgence lately. The band's recorded output falls into the dreamy orch-pop category, but the songs really come alive and gain some grit on stage. Hideout, 1354 W Wabansia, 10......

Let's start things off right this weekend with a grappa tasting this evening from 6-7:30 p.m. at Taste Food and Wine in Rogers Park, shall we? Yes, we shall. As we mentioned a few weeks ago, the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau's first restaurant week, Eat It Up, begins this evening. Through next Friday, participating restaurants three-course price fixe lunches for $21.95 and dinners for $31.95. Congratulations to Provenance Food and Wine, which celebrates......

The City is running low on de-snowing dollars. We've already plowed through over $14 million of an $18 million budget. [S-T] Can someone please manufacture and buy us this striped Barracuda from what appears to be the magnificent past? Thank you. A Joliet man robbed the same Chase bank twice. He's been apprehended. [Trib] Com Ed busts ass to keep Hugo's Frog Bar, Tavern on Rush, Lux Bar and Gibsons open yesterday. [S-T] Traffic is......

Some say that all great works of art are inspired by something or someone: the ever elusive muse. For many, the muse is a real person, be it someone to impress or just someone to one up. Many times these people are the stories behind the story, which is why "For Whom" is the theme for tonight's reconstruction room reading. So saddle up to the bar and listen to stories by "lovers, fighters, funhousers and......

Who needs a drink after this year's primaries? Don't worry, with both Mardi Gras and Super Tuesday today, there's plenty going on around town where you can get your drink on, and watch the election returns. Crew Bar and Grill, at 4804 N. Broadway is hosting a Super Tuesday Primary Returns watching party. Bring your voting receipt and the first drink's on them (up to a $5 value). Piece, at 1927 W. North Ave. is......

So how's the smoking ban going so far? Y'know, other than cold? Well, Helen's Two Way Lounge on Fullerton nabbed the coveted title of First Bar to be Cited by a City Inspector. (The bar owner got off on a technicality.) But maybe people would be more willing to step outside if bars has "smoking shelters." Companies across our fine state are putting up these bus stop–like structures, where smokers can huddle together with a......

We chronicled our Saturday night earlier this week, and we need remind no one that it was colder than a witch's tit in a brass bra all day long. We arrived at Sheffield's with about twenty minutes to spare, and decided that a hearty beer was needed to both whet the appetite and warm the bones. We'd been dying to try out some selections from Minnesota's Surly Brewing for a while. The folks at Sheffield's......

The clock is winding down for drinkers who enjoy a cigarette with their booze. The Smoke-Free Illinois Act is set to go into effect at midnight on Jan. 1, 2008. Illinois will officially join the list of states that have banned smoking in almost all indoor spaces. Besides bars, Illinoisans will not be allowed to smoke in such cigarette bastions as factory floors, stadiums, casinos, and prisons. However, Chicago residents shouldn't expect John Q. Law......

We were one of the few lucky enough to catch Jon Brion when he stopped by The Hideout earlier this year. His one-man band is truly an awesome spectacle top behold, and will seriously leave anyone withing earshot slack jawed. When we heard he was coming back to Chicago to play a New Year's Eve show at the Harris Theater in Millennium Park we immediately thought, "This is the show to beat." So far, no......

Moving forward in our quest to give you readers some options for going out on New Year's Eve so you aren't procrastinating. Fat Cat: The theme of the evening is a "Roaring 20's anti-Prohibition" party. Guests are encouraged to dress in zoot suits, feather boas, and flapper dresses. The $75 cover ($100 on NYE) includes top-shelf liquor, a champagne fountain, hors d'ouevres, fondue stations, and 1000 balloons (emphasis Fat Cat's). RSVP at 773-506-3100. Bin 36:......

There are precious few days left for your last-minute holiday shopping. If you're out to get a jump on the crowds, consider catching an early breakfast and shopping through the lunch rush by hitting one of these Near West Side joints. Le Peep: Somewhat Le Dull but at last visit, they did serve Lavazza coffee made in a French press. That is always a good thing. Wishbone: Tagged as "Southern reconstruction cooking," which sounds as......

In high school one of the constants of our Friday nights was a family-sized pizza delivered to the house from La Villa Restaurant and Banquets in Old Irving. We'd fight for a corner slice among our allotment, chase them down with a glass of pop, and head out the house for our other constant: vainly working on our game with every Catholic school girl we could meet. Those pizzas from La Villa, still among the......

With the city being overrun by holiday bar crawls, it might be difficult to walk the streets this weekend without being accosted by a drunk dude in holiday vest or run over by a Santa in a hazmat suit. Throw on your best Cosby sweater and enjoy any or all of these weekend delights.... Head to the nearest cineplex and see Juno, the most talked about movie starring Michael Cera since the last movie starring......

Today we continue our series of letting you know about the New Year's Eve packages being offered by local restaurants so that you have enough information to make a decision and not wait until the last minute to grab a table. In case you missed yesterday's installment, we've linked to it here for your review. Vegetarians rejoice! Green Zebra will offer an all vegetarian, 5 course tasting menu priced at $75 per person, with an......

Is it just us, or has this week sucked ass? It seems like everyone we've talked to has wanted to stab the whole world in the neck this week. At least we have a bunch of things to do that are awesome..... The Old Town School of Folk Music has its annual craft fair tonight, plus their monthly First Friday series. Tomorrow, bust out your wallet at Renegade Craft Fair's holiday bonanza. We've noticed......

'Tis the season for free champagne tastings. Get started tonight at the Artisan Cellar (located on the first floor of the Merchandise Mart) with a sample of some rare bubblies from 4-6 p.m. Learn all about the history of smothered foods from author Wilbert Jones, the author of Smothered Southern Foods. Jones' lecture, "Smothered - Southern Style" is being held Saturday at the Chicago History Museum, sponsored by the Culinary Historians of Chicago. The lecture......

There are good ideas and there are great ideas. Doctors at Loyola University Medical Center have devised a way to make sure surgical sponges don’t get lost in people anymore. Hooray for medical technology! They’re going to put bar codes on the sponges, and a nurse will scan the sponge before it goes in and the system will tell the nurse if any sponges have been left inside. That all seems a little too complicated.......

What? You didn't think you'd go a day without reading something from us, did you? Anyway, we were cleaning up our inbox when we came across a press release trumpeting the Monday opening of Uncommon Ground's new eco-friendly Edgewater location. The space at 1401 W. Devon will feature rooftop solar thermal panels, wood table tops made using reclaimed wood from Jackson Park, a 100-year-old art deco bar and eventually a rooftop will be utilized as......

Hearts all across Chicago were broken last January when Zephyr closed its doors. We walked past its former space a few days ago and wouldn't you know, construction workers were busy building what looked to be another restaurant. Alas, it won't be Zephyr 2.0 but rather an Irish-style bar and restaurant (pictured), opening in March 2008 (to their best estimate). The workers didn't know what it was going to be called. New York Times writer......

The NFL already has fans pretty pissed off because tonight, when the best game in the NFC all season is played, most of us will be stuck watching The Office and Scrubs instead. Why? Because the game will only be carried by the NFL Network, which is available only to those who have satellite or pay an extra fee for the channel. Those of us trying to keep our cable bill in double digits will......

It's National Leftovers Weekend, and while the food you're downing may not be entirely fresh, the live music you check out can be if you're hitting up the Bottle on Sunday night for Tiger Surprise. Some of Chicago's finer players comprise this 5-piece ambient pop group, whose expansive song structures and pinpoint musicianship recall everything from Radiohead to Grizzly Bear to The Police. Flying a bit under the radar thus far, Chicagoist thinks that it's......

We HATE the term Black Wednesday. We hold it in the same regard as other made-up holidays like Sweetest Day and Bosses Day. Growing up, we always knew it as "the weekend everyone is in town at the same time and gets fall-down drunk." Kind of like New Year's Eve, with longer legs and slightly less puking. Here are five spots with terrific musical happenings where we think the displaced weekend warriors will be few......

The video below should infuriate you. And it should bug the hell out of any female DJ trying to be taken seriously today. DJ Colette -- whom we remember stinking up the joint back when she got her start at Liquid Kitty (at least we THINK that was the first bar stupid enough to let her behind the decks) -- is one of those vain, semi-talented knob-twiddlers that wouldn't garner any attention if she wasn't......

U.S. Soccer announced the selections for the 2007 Best of U.S. Soccer Awards and Chicago has several representatives in the competition. For Best Fan Atmosphere Chicago's Soldier Field gets two nods: one for this sSummer's Gold Cup Final in which the United States defeated Mexico and the other for the U.S. game versus Brazil in September. Chicagoist is voting for the Gold Cup game--it wasn't the most pro-U.S. crowd, but the fans filling Soldier field......

It's no Werewolf Bar Mitzvah, but this shot from Speedyhed is definitely spooky, scary.......