We've been sitting on our hands the past few days, trying to resist calling/emailing/texting/sending passenger pigeons to Ald. Helen Shiller's 46th Ward office (again) for an answer to the weeks-old question "what, exactly, is going on in Uptown?" She finally posted a press release yesterday, which we've been reading... and rereading... for substance all day. It's lacking. But it does finally address the Aug. 13 Uptown Riot. more ›

Every blog out there has jumped on yesterday's press release from Mambo Grill, which announced that it was temporarily closing and laying off 75 percent of its staff at the end of the month while building out a new location at 410 N. Wells. This comes hot on the heels of Time Out Chicago reporting the demise of Harry's Hot Dogs (the building housing Harry's is being razed to make way for a park) and Rockstar Dogs (another "he shoots and misses badly" miscalculation by Dion Antic). more ›

We receive more press releases than we care to sort through. But one from Austrian stemware giant Riedel held our attention, mainly because of all the phallic or sexual entendres that popped in our head while reading. more ›