Chicagoist got a tip on Friday from a loyal reader named Diana who got to drink at the not-yet-opened Aviary, Grant Achatz's newfangled cocktail-gastronomy concept on W. Fulton. They were wandering around the area, looking for a bar and saw a likely looking spot. Turned out it was a dry run for servers at The Aviary, and the staff let them stay and try a drink! We checked, and the liquor and restaurant licenses for Next were issued on Friday, so it was even nice and legal. Full details post haste. more ›

Last night, over a hundred people filled the Intelligentsia Coffee and Tea roasting facilities on West Fulton for a tasting of La Esmeralda Especial, the Panamanian Geisha coffee that made headlines in May when Intelligentsia paid $130 a pound for the beans at the "Best of Panama" auction. For the event, both Intelligentsia coffee buyer Geoff Watts and La Esmeralda estate owner Daniel Peterson were on hand to discuss the coffee and why it's become,... more ›

Last night Chicagoist was among a few hundred people who attended the Goose Island brewing facilities on West Fulton. The occasion was to celebrate the official launch of their new "312unes" music sponsorship program. The concept behind 312unes is to show continued support of the local rock music scene while simultaneously promoting one of Goose Island's two flagship brands, according to Goose Island marketing director Darrell Jursa. "Goose Island has been supporting local acts for... more ›

Greg Hall, Brewmaster, Goose Island Beer Company more ›

With apologies to Eric Zorn if it weren’t for Phil Rosenthal’s media columns and “The Boondocks” Chicagoist’s Bridgeport correspondent would have no concrete reasoning for actually reading the Tribune. However, when someone (um, Scott Smith) clues us to an article like this from Tuesday’s edition of the World’s Greatest Newspaper (an aside to Neil Steinberg: that’s the Tribune’s slogan) and asks us if we can work a local angle into this we’re happy to oblige,... more ›