We don't usually think of the esteemed Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba as a restaurant to stumble into in our pajamas. Actually, since our college dining hall, we haven't thought of ANY restaurant as someplace to stumble into in our pajamas. But once a year, on New Year's Day, such behavior is more than a tolerated consequence of publican excess; it is encouraged. At Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba, the 7th annual Pajama Brunch starts at 10 AM on January 1, 2011. Make it your first meal of the new year. more ›

We woke up this morning to another fresh coat of snow on the ground. While we're certainly among the ranks of those who just wished this winter would end already we have to concede that we have lived through worse. more ›

href="http://londonist.com/2008/02/air_bound.php"> remove one man from Gatwick.

Longtime "BotW" readers might remember that we reviewed a barley wine last spring from Louisville's Browning's Brewery. We bought it retail in town but, after making a phone call to the brewmaster in Louisville, didn't disclose where we made the purchase for fear of outing the store in question for selling booze outside the three-tier distribution system. more ›

Ludwika Szynalik was run over by a CTA bus on New Year's Eve, and now her family is suing the transit authority, saying the bus driver behind the wheel of the 152 was negligent. Szynalik was getting her bike off the bus's front-mounted rack when the driver ran her over. She was dragged for 80 feet before the driver noticed, and she died later that day. The whole thing was caught on CTA surveillance video, and it's really fucking disturbing. more ›

While Thursday was the Chinese New Year, today was the annual Chinese New Year parade. With the temperature near zero and wind chill making it feel like 20-below, the crowd was very light. Nevertheless, the Year of the Rat, known by its formal name Wu Zi, year 4705, has begun. In ancient times, the rat was welcomed as a protector and bringer of material prosperity. According to Wikipedia, the rat is “associated with aggression, wealth, charm, and order, yet also associated with death, war, the occult, pestilence, and atrocities.” more ›

There were some firecrackers a-poppin' last night: today is the first day of the first Lunar Month. So that means it's beginning of the Chinese New Year Festival, which started at midnight and traditionally lasts until February 15. Also known as the Lunar New Year, festivities are meant to celebrate and welcome the Year of the Rat. more ›

Pack an umbrella, bring your galoshes, and dress in layers. It's been that kind of week. Here are some events to brave any extreme in weather. more ›

Some events in the next seven days to consider saving your freshly shoveled parking space with a few chairs. more ›

It's the 4th week in January. Do you know where your diet is? more ›

It's the end of the line in our pre-coverage of the Tomorrow Never Knows festival, which can only mean one thing: you're well-prepared for the weekend rockness. more ›

The Museum of Science and Industry is raising its prices. Adult Chicago residents will now pay $12 (up from $10), adult non-Chicagoans $13 (from $11), Chicago children $8.50 ($6.25), non-Chicago children $9 ($7), Chicago seniors $11 ($8.75), and non-Chicago seniors $12 ($9.50). more ›

Different cultures around the globe have certain foods that are purported to bring about good luck if served and eaten at the start of a new year. While researching a story idea last month we spoke with Professor Bruce Kraig, President of the Culinary Historians of Chicago. Professor Kraig told us that, in Italy, lentils represent coins and that eating lentil soup is regarded as wishing for prosperity for the eater. more ›

Oh Steve. Steve, Steve, Steve. We had really hoped that with the new year you might finally catch up to current trends and we could put this column to rest. But, alas, your foot once again finds your mouth. more ›

Ah, it's a new year and a whole new slew of opportunities to catch our favorite hometown gossip mill grinder in action on his native turf. First up: a "private" Malibu-hosted party at the Congress Theater tomorrow night, featuring the sweet, sweet sounds of young Wentz on the turntables (or iPod, as it may be), as well as complimentary Malibu cocktails and hors d'oeuvres. more ›

Hope the new year is treating you well so far. Here's the first Made in Chicago of the year to help you spend the rest of your Christmas monies from estranged family members. more ›

In a day packed with college football bowl games, the coolest televised sporting event on New Year's Day had to be watching the Buffalo Sabres and Pittsburgh Penguins play an NHL game outside in Buffalo, in front of over 71,000 fans. It brought the game back to its roots, played outside on frozen ponds and lakes throughout the Midwest and Canada. Now imagine that same game outside, only featuring two of the NHL's "Original Six." With the Black Hawks roaring back from the brink of irrelevance in the months after Bill Wirtz's passing, playing hockey in a sold-out Soldier Field, for example, would be the capper on an impressive resurrection. more ›

The tuna melt is to a menu like a sweater vest is to a wardrobe. One of the most versatile fashion staples, a vest can be dressed up, or dressed down. The tuna melt comes in as many varieties as there are restaurants that serve it up. We’ve found some restaurants add spices for zing, while some keep it simple. Others serve it open-faced for more formal fork-and-knife consumption, while others piece it together for casual, two-fisted power chowing. more ›

We're still suffering from the post-New Year hangover, so we're going to start off this year's run of "BotW" with a crisp, refreshing palate cleanser. more ›

The Sun-Times giveth, and the Sun-Times taketh away. How great: a list of 10 inspiring women of 2007! Wait a second...Jennifer Love Hewitt and the beauty queen who thinks we don't have maps? Come on. And what exactly do Paige Wiser and Lisa Donovan mean when they say that Laila Ali "redefined our idea of a female athlete"? [S-T] more ›

Who's ready to bid 2007 adieu? Well, ready or not, here it comes. But people get so worked up over New Year's Eve, and it never winds up being as big a deal as you think. Smooched, not smooched, party, no party, fancy dress or sweat pants--this shit does not matter. Just have a good time. Here are few things we've learned along the way: more ›

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. more ›

It's been a banner year around these parts, with stories big and small, comments bold and beautiful, politicians grand and grandly inept. The last 12 months were filled with sports, food, music and mayhem. What were we all talking about in 2007? more ›

The clock to '08 is ticking. What are you doing to ring in the new year? If the answer to that question is a desperate, collar-loosening, sweat-inducing "I don't know!" then here are a few last-minute suggestions. Everything listed here will cost you less than $40 and was not sold out at the time of posting. more ›

• SFist saw Christmas Day turn tragic after a Siberian tiger escaped from her pen at the San Francisco Zoo, killing a visitor and mauling two others.
• Phillyist counted down the top ten items on Philadelphia's New Year's wish list.
• Gothamist looked at the wooden bikes being offered for NYC's first bike share program on Governors Island.

If you’re lucky, your toddler will be asleep, blissfully unaware when the last minutes of 2007 tick by. An earlier bed time doesn’t mean that he or she has to miss out on the festivities, though; a handful of places in and around Chicago are hosting New Year’s Eve parties for the little ones, with dancing, snacks and party favors at an earlier countdown. more ›

For those of you who are checking in today, we thought we'd also take some time to pay our respects to two giants who passed away on Christmas Day. It was one year ago that James Brown passed away. If you don't have a copy of "James Brown's Funky Christmas", buy it or download it now. It is a necessity of Christmas listening. We managed to find a clip of "Soulful Christmas" dubbed into some footage of the Godfather's legendary 1968 Boston concert for your listening and viewing pleasure. more ›

You shouldn't need tooooo many awesome things today--most people are off work, gift giving is on the horizon and such--but that doesn't mean your day couldn't use at least a little perking up. Seek and ye shall receive, readers. more ›