An off-the-cuff list of Chicago faves from White House Chef and foodie hero Sam Kass is heavy on eateries South of Madison. Who says the North Side has all the good restaurants? more ›

Better Homes and Gardens and Weber Grills are throwing one heck of a party this weekend in Lincoln Park - a "Chill and Grill."This Saturday and Sunday, watch grilling demos, take classes on better outdoor fire-cooking and sample tastes from some of Chicago's best restaurants. Admission to the festival (and all the demos) is free, and you can see some of Chicago's best, including Stephanie Izard, the Hearty Boys, Gale Gand, Ina Pinkney, Steve Dolinsky and others, share their best grilling tips. More on the schedule after the jump. more ›

This morning, while perusing our Google reader, we almost went into a diabetic coma. We can't decide if we should thank Steve Dolinsky or send him our future medical bills. Despite our moral concerns we decided to inflict the pain upon you. more ›

"Our third course, a homemade pappardelle with fresh ricotta was just plain boring. It needed lemon juice to brighten it up, as well as salt and pepper; there was allegedly some marrow in the sauce, but we couldn’t detect any; the pasta - while clearly hand-formed - was gummy and not exceptionally pleasing." more ›

The business partnership between Shawn McClain, Peter Drohomyrecky and Sue Kim-Drohomyrecky has been slowly dissolving over the past year. McClain decided to retain the vegetarian-focused Green Zebra while also focusing on Sage, his restaurant in Las Vegas' Aria hotel; while the Drohomyreckys now own Custom House Tavern outright. more ›

WBEZ's Vocalo blog made a splash late last year when they added former Sun-Times media columnist Robert Feder to their roster in a bid to up their web presence. Now, they're adding three more well-known names of the Chicago media world to their roster: architecture critic Lee Bey, Steve "The Hungry Hound" Dolinsky, and Amy Krouse Rosenthal. The trio start action next Monday. more ›

The Hound twittered about an hour ago that Le Lan is closed. We can confirm that, having just called the restaurant. (via) more ›

Hosting ad-hoc soup kitchens have been all the rage this winter. From 1-4 p.m. Sunday at Custom House (500 S. Dearborn, 312-523-0020) the big boys get in on the act. more ›

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"When I was a kid, I wanted to be a pilot," started Abeng Stuart (at right in the picture, with partner Dre Palmer), owner of the Bronzeville eatery Wings Around the World. "With these wings, it's the next best thing." Stuart isn't just spouting mere hyperbole. Since opening last September, Wings Around the World has steadily been bringing in customers from all over the city. more ›

Color us not too shocked. Monday night's James Beard Awards were handed out in New York City, and Chicago's Shawn McClain took home the Best Chef: Midwest prize, beating out Naha's Carrie Nahabedian for the coveted award. McClain won for his work at Spring. Other Chicagoans weren't so lucky. Poor Grant: Danny Meyer over at NYC's The Modern beat him out for Best New Restaurant and Thomas Keller's famed French Laundry whupped both Jean Joho's... more ›