A suspicious call made to Columbia College Chicago over the weekend led to the closing of one of their campus buildings at 618 S. Michigan until 5 p.m. today. We'll be following this story for further updates. more ›

Sad news food writing wise on two fronts today. First comes news that the venerable Gourmet magazine will be shutting down operations as part of a cost-cutting move spurred by a decline in ad revenues by parent company Conde Nast. A Gourmet byline is a holy grail among food writers and, under the editorial leadership of Ruth Riechl, some of the magazine's content was simply poetic. The loss of Gourmet's print concern leaves a void. A Conde Nast memo indicates that Gourmet's tv programming, book publishing, and recipes on epicurious.com will remain unchanged. more ›

The Health Department shut down another Bar Louie yesterday, this time at 741 W. Randolph (a press release from Tim Hadac at the CDPH says that it's still shut down as of post time). The major violation was the discovery of over 1,000 rat droppings in a basement storage area. Inspectors also found doors with gaps allowing insects and rodents easy access, fruit flies, overflowing dumpsters, no hot water and no sanitation solution in an automatic dishwashing machine. more ›

This summer may have been pleasant, but there are still fruit flies out there. Fruit fly infestations, among other violations, led to the closings of Flat Top Grill's Old Town location (319 W. North Ave.) and Gum Fung Restaurant in Marquette Park (6835 S. Pulaski). Both restaurants also had food stored at unsafe temperatures; inspectors found 20 pounds of bok choy and other vegetables found in open containers on the floor at Gum Fung. more ›