A good meal out should be a full sensory experience. From the tastes to the smells, sounds, and even sights, it should be almost holistically pleasing. Many restaurants focus their efforts on creating a great tasting dish. There is certainly nothing wrong with that. In fact, it makes those rare occasions when all of your senses are engaged even more enjoyable. Cozy little Crêpes à Latte provided us with just such an experience. more ›

At least on one home in the north center of Chicago. Last night at about 7:52 p.m. a large of chunk of ice fell onto the roof of a house on the 4200 block of N. Wolcott Ave while the family was inside watching TV. They said they heard a loud thud that shook the house like an earthquake. The family collected the balls of ice into a plastic bag and believes a large chuck on ice fell from the sky, hitting the roof and exploded into smaller pieces. more ›

This city is at no loss for South American steakhouses. From smaller, long-running establishments like Tango Sur to newer downtown concepts like Brazzaz, there's a choice for any taste. One of our favorites for ordering a sizzling plate of churrasco or some steaming and fluffy empanadas is the Six Corners location of Las Tablas. In fifteen years Jorge and Soraya Suarez have managed to take Las Tablas from a small storefront in North Center to two large dining rooms in the city. more ›

There are "Adult Fans Of Lego" out there? Really? Actually, we find that kind of awesome. Happy Birthday Lego! more ›

We didn’t grow up in a big city, so as parents we’re a little perplexed about the whole urban trick-or-treating thing. We’ve even heard that it’s taboo to go door to door in any neighborhood not your own (seriously?). Luckily, there are plenty of places in Chicago to celebrate and get your kids' hands on some candy. The Lincoln Park Zoo hosts its annual Spooky Zoo Spectacular Saturday. Kids trick or treat in the zoo's... more ›

This week's theme: soul food, y'all. We ate enough of it last week to pine for the days of Ms. Biscuit on South Chicago Avenue (located next door to Mr. Biscuit's Hand Car Wash and Auto Detail). Here we go. City Mouse: Chef Gilbert Langlois (Rushmore, SushiSamba Rio) describes his new North Center-based concept Chalkboard as "new American cuisine," drawing inspiration from French country, classic Southern, and the less spicy elements of Creole for his... more ›

Last week, we went to Chalkboard, the new restaurant in North Center owned by former SushiSamba Rio chef Gilbert Langlois (we'll have a recap of the experience in "Your Friday Food Buffet" later this week). Now, Langlois and his staff have compiled a pretty impressive wine list, but on the day of our visit it was so warm. We wanted a beer that complemented the weather as well as the food. This wasn't a problem... more ›

Tribune food critic Phil Vettel enlisted the help of some fellow Trib staffers last week in another of those "What if?" columns; this time Vettel managed not to mistake two separate chefs with the same surname as brothers on a lost weekend in Vegas. The mission of the article was to test the newly enacted "cork-and-carry" law, an amendment to the State Liquor Control Act that allows restaurants to let customers leave with unfinished bottles of wine, permitted that the wine was a part of their dinner, placed in a sealable plastic bag, and with a dated receipt attached. more ›

The United States Soccer Federation selected two Chicago watering holes as finalists for the Best Soccer Bar in America as part of the 2006 Best of U.S. Soccer awards. The finalist will be decided by votes cast by soccer fans who visit USSoccer.com. Voting is open until Wednesday. Representing Chicago are Ginger's Ale House and The Globe Pub. Chicago is the only city to have two finalists for Best Soccer Bar. Chicagoist assumes that U.S.... more ›

You’ve probably noticed more posts on Chicagoist lately. We’ve been stepping up our efforts to provide coverage of daily news, events, food, the arts and all the miscellaneous things on your mind. We’ve also brought in some new blood to keep the rest of us on our toes, and cover all the important goings-on here in the city. Say hello to our newest batch of writers: On the general news beat, we’ve got Old Town... more ›

Normally Chicagoist isn't big into reporting on every restaurant/bar/whatnot that has its door shuttered for health code violations. But this one we couldn't let pass by. This morning, a Chicagoist operative was on assignment out in North Center (read: drinking many beers at the Globe watching the World Cup) when he stumbled on over to Lincoln Restaurant only to find the doors locked and a big ol' neon-green sticker on the front, which means... more ›

If you’re like Chicagoist, summer is usually a time for a renewed effort to eat better and exercise more, mostly to offset our time spent at various drunkfests. We usually find inspiration for healthy, or at least more wholesome, eats at local farmers markets, which are now in full swing around the city. more ›

It is way too early to say the Chicago Fire are in a must win position this weekend but the combination of starting the season with a loss and a tie and seven straight games on the road ahead, a victory against division rival Columbus Crew is very important. Saturday's game against the Crew represents the Fire's best opportunity to earn three points during the first half of this long road trip. The Columbus Crew... more ›

You just never know who that white-haired old dude that lives around the corner really is, do you? In the North Center neighborhood, an 86-year-old Ukranian carpenter named Osyp Firishchak is on trial for allegedly assisting Nazis in their quest to "cleanse" Jews from the earth during the 1940s. Firishchak, who has lived with his family in Chicago for fifty years, apparently worked for a Nazi-affiliated force called the Ukrainian Auxiliary Police and helped to... more ›

This past week Chicagoist has been envying friends who work in air-conditioned comfort. Yes, summer’s finally here and that means: festivals! Anyone who’s been paying attention knows that Blues Fest will take over Grant Park through Sunday. But if you’re looking for something a bit more low key this weekend, check these out: The Merit School of Music comes to Pilsen’s Harrison Park this Sunday to present the Alegre StringTacular. All semester this South Loop... more ›

Ben Joravsky's column in the The Reader this week addresses something every property owner is thinking: Cook County's property tax assessments are wack. We briefly mentioned this fact earlier this week, but Joravsky's article picks up on an interesting study by Merlin Tripp, of Citizens for Fair Assessments and Taxes. Tripp's study uses the financial disclosures of various Chicago public officials to get a sampling of how much property tax bills have actually risen over... more ›

Rachel Barton Pine is a violinist on a mission spread classical music. And she's doing it by going on rock stations and playing heavy metal songs on her Guarneri violin. more ›