• As expected, the University of Illinois approved a 9.5 percent tuition increase for incoming freshmen.
• Erin Hughes, the New Trier teen charged in the recent hit-and-run accident, has been allowed off electronic monitoring.
• Ten people were hurt this afternoon, one in serious-to-critical condition, in a crash involving a CTA bus on the city's Northwest side.

• A firefighter and a resident died during a fire last night in Homewood; another firefighter was critically injured.
• More details on the Hammond man arrested in connection with the Hutaree terror attack plans.
• If you're gonna head to Millennium Park - and who wouldn't with weather like this - it's probably best to leave the gun and weed at home.

"Your Friday Food Buffet" is a new feature where we combine business-related news concerning food and drink with tastings and fixed-price dinners happening around town this weekend. Pretty cut-and-dried, don'cha think? Anyway, we hope you like it. Starbucks finally drops act, admits inspiration for business model: After test-marketing in Chicago and other markets throughout the country, Starbucks rolled out their breakfast sandwiches and drive-thru service in Boston and select Los Angeles locations. No information... more ›

Even though temperatures are dropping and the temptation to curl up under the covers all evening is at an all-time high, Americans are doing a bit better in getting their heart rate up. Earlier this week, NBC-5 reported Illinois, in particular, has made the most fitness progress overall, according to a report from the United Health Foundation. more ›

It's often said that the best ideas are the ones that are stolen. With that in mind, leave it to McDonald's to test market chicken biscuit sandwiches in 800 stores, including a handful in Ohio and Michigan. Can Chicago, the Promised Land of the Great Migration, be far behind? The sandwich is a response to the successes of the popular Chick-fil-A chain and Wendy's, whose premium chicken sandwich menu consistently outsells Hamburger U's. It could... more ›

Chicagoist loves a good McDonald's story. Hell, we should probably set up a McDonald's Archive Section for all the stories we've published about them. Much like their fries, if we see a news morsel about Mickey D's, we must consume it. Then we lick our fingers, wipe them on our shirt, and feel guilty for indulging the rest of the day. Fine, we overdo it it because we're lucky enough to be the only -ist... more ›

Today at 11 AM, the McDonald’s at 600 N. Clark (nee The Rock and Roll McDonald’s) will serve as the launch party for Nintendo’s Mario Kart DS and the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. Mario himself will take time out of his busy ‘shroom-ingesting schedule to appear along with Ronald McDonald, as customers with a Nintendo DS system compete against Nintendo game programmers and others from around the world in a Mario Kart showdown. The Nintendo Wi-Fi... more ›

Venus and Serena Williams will be in Chicago today kicking off their 3-city McDonald's Williams Sisters Tour to help raise funds for World Children's Day, a fundraiser benefiting the Ronald McDonald House. more ›

The Tribune most definitely does not want fries with that, Rock 'n' Roll McDonald's. We all remember that about a month ago, McDonald's unveiled plans for a redesigned location on 600 North Clark, plans the Trib described as a "super-sized version of a 1950s drive-in." It turns out that McDonald's rejected some more innovative, architecturally interesting designs that are actually pretty rad. Helmut Jahn, Dan Coffey, and Martin Wolf each submitted a contemporary and creative plan, and while Chicagoist doesn't exactly expect McDonald's to be the major sponsor of modern architecture, it would have been kind of cool. more ›