"It's the end of the party, and the morning seems so grey." more ›

We spent noon on New Year's Day sealing drafty kitchen windows in plastic, making our traditional good luck hoppin' john and watching a Three Stooges marathon on the WGN's newly launched Antenna TV network. So let us be the first to offer kudos to those of you who jumped in Lake Michigan in what has now become an annual tradition at North Avenue Beach and in Waukegan. We're also glad that, after the balmy temps of New Year's Eve, the weather cooperated in a big way Saturday. more ›

New Year's Day typically consists of sleeping in as late as humanly possible, but we're planning to be up and at 'em Friday for Philly lo-fi rocker Kurt Vile's intimate in-store performance at Permanent Records. If you haven't had a chance to check out Kurt Vile's 2009 release, Childish Prodigy, we highly recommend the album of reverb-soaked outsider Americana. more ›

One of the fascinating aspects of writing about food is the common ground we often discover between seemingly disparate cultures. It can sometimes be the use of an ingredient, similar table settings, or preparations of dishes that triggers a sense of familiarity that we aren't as different as we appear. Long before technology closed the distance between nations and made communication almost immediate, we became a global village by breaking bread. more ›

Behold, Outside the Loop Radio's year in review special, featuring yours truly, Steve Rhodes of The Beachwood Reporter and Dave Schalliol of Gapers Block. more ›

It's been a banner year for eating at Chicagoist. We've tried many new recipes and perfected a few old ones. Between our Chicago restaurant remakes and our simple (but rich) fudge, you could put together quite a nice meal. Starting, of course, with our cheese of the month and ending, perhaps, with a grilled fruit sundae. Cold weather calls for hot toddies while summer shouts for sangria. Luckily, it's all right in our archives, ready to be lovingly remade and placed onto dining-room tables throughout Chi-town. We've had our successes and our failures but it has been a real treat to stuff our faces when things turned out well and it's been a real privilege to fuck up so you wouldn't have to. We, at Chicagoist, on this New Years Day, wish you all the best with your culinary attempts and look forward to continuing with our own (chocolate souffle is definitely in our future). more ›

How Do I Get Lucky in the New Year? more ›

Signs of Vaudeville? more ›