It's a tale of two Tastes—on one hand, there's the Taste of Chicago, a populist eating extravaganza and a 28-year city tradition currently taking over the Grant Park. And, in the West Loop, there is the Taste of Randolph Street, a relative upstart street festival that has recently gained prominence by catering to residents of the affluent neighborhood as well as area foodies for a few days in June. As Crain's Chicago Businessreported this week in an article titled "Execs Take Shelter at a More Elite Taste", the Randolph Street fest may be the better bet of the two, especially for guests who favor quality over quantity.
The story cited the Taste of Randolph Street's V.I.P. tents, which host corporate sponsors and their guests, as well as local media, as a big draw. The Randolph festival's well-edited menu, which includes items from trendy West Loop restaurants such as Veerasway, Sushi Wabi, and Marche, also appeals to a cosmopolitan audience that doesn't want to weed through the randomness of the nearly 70 vendors (ranging from Eli's Cheesecake and Robinson's #1 Ribs to the Billy Goat Inn) at the Taste of Chicago.
Crain's columnist Shia Kapos also said that the come-one-come-all Taste of Chicago could benefit by adding "a preview party for those willing to pony up a special-event price to avoid standing in line holding strips of tickets." —Wendy Wollenberg
Erin Dahl started as the manager of donor events for the Lincoln Park Zoo in March after her position as coordinator for all auxiliary board events was expanded. She plans between 30 and 35 events annually, ranging from the large black-tie gala, Zoo Ball (which is set to take place July 11 this year), to more intimate cocktail parties in donors' homes.
Entertainment: “We used Maggie Speaks for our spring benefit, and they kept the party rocking until 1 a.m. They’re a local cover band, and they do amazing work. We also used them for the Zoo Ball in 2007, and I have done other events with them; they are the ultimate crowd pleaser.”
At the group’s annual meeting this August in Long Beach, California, the Association for Green Meetings & Events will launch the first-ever program for Certification in Green Meetings and Events. CGME aims to help people in the industry successfully produce socially and environmentally responsible events.
Interested business and meeting professionals will receive certification after completing a 25-hour program combining a logistical curriculum and hands-on activities.
"I conducted an independent survey to 200 random meeting and event professionals within the United States and Canada,” said AGME co-founder and president Loriann White in a press release last week. "The alarming statistic was that 85 percent were in favor of a certification dedicated to green meetings." —Michael O'Connell
The esplanade at the Chicago Botanic Garden Photo: Dan Rest
The Chicago Botanic Garden's fifth annual summer dinner dance, a fund-raiser that also serves to kick off the season, took place on the garden’s esplanade Friday evening. The bucolic surroundings, including gardens of annuals in full bloom, stately elm trees, and a towering fountain spouting out of a small lake, made for a fitting backdrop for the warm-weather event.
"Hosting an elegant party at the Chicago Botanic Garden doesn't demand a theme in the traditional sense, especially considering the summer dinner dance is held in late June when the garden's splendor is at its most mature,“ said event co-chair Cathy Busch.
READ MORE RELATED TOPICSChicago Botanic Garden
Cooking classes in the Hearty Boys' studio-kitchen
Photo: Courtesy of the Hearty Boys
Steve McDonagh and Dan Smith, better known as the Hearty Boys, own a local catering company and earned culinary star power as hosts of the Food Network's Party Line with the Hearty Boys. The duo's new corporate cooking classes provide a three-and-a-half hour cooking experience on the kitchen set in the Hearty Boys' HBTV Studio. Teams compete to prepare a menu while Smith and McDonagh act as coaches and judges. A professional videographer captures the event—and guests receive keepsake DVDs. Classes start at $120 per person. Special liquor and gift bag packages are also available. —Jenny Berg
By now Puck is prancing well into his midsummer REM sleep. To inspire you all to make the best of these few fleeting weeks of glory, I decided to ask a few experts whose taste and talents at entertaining are beyond reproach.
1. Suzanne Goin
I was on hand when Suzanne first caught the national spotlight as one of Food & Wine’s best new chefs. She’s statuesque and quietly beautiful, so of course the magazine put her front and center at its New York and Aspen events. My client In Style chose Suzanne’s first restaurant, Lucques, as its night-before-the-Oscars dinner headquarters, and one of my jobs was to ask the chef to come and greet the hoi polloi. She was always intent on the task at hand, with her hair pulled back in a no-nonsense ponytail, but she was gracious and shook hands. Once Lucques had established itself as among the best serious restaurants in Los Angeles, she opened A.O.C. (named for appellation d’origine contrôllé, the geographic determinant of what wine may call itself in France) and the Hungry Cat with her husband, David Lentz.
What would you prepare for guests to see upon arrival and say “wow”? I think it would be a gigantic and abundant grand aioli—with all kinds of summer vegetables, grilled fish, tomatoes, radishes, etc.—on a huge wooden table for people to feast on.
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Rumors are already flying that Britney Spears might return to MTV's Video Music Awards this year to make up for her sleepy comeback performance at last year’s show. In an interview with the Associated Press, Van Toffler, president of MTV Networks Music Group, made comments about offering her a second chance and wouldn’t really acknowledge if he was completely serious.
The show’s new home at Paramount Pictures Studios in Los Angeles does offer a change of pace for staging, with a host of options for performances. Toffler told the AP of his excitement over the new venue’s versatility: "You can do street performances, on-top-of-a-building performances, on-the-side-of-a-building performances, inside-of-a-studio performances, so we're pretty excited."
READ MORE RELATED TOPICSMTV,
MTV VMAs,
Britney Spears
Yesterday, Chicago's Gay Pride Parade—which we ranked as the city's fifth largest parade in our Top 100 Events rundown—was unsubtly influenced by California's recent legalization of gay marriage (check out what L.A. planners had to say about the ruling here). As reported by The Chicago Tribune, the annual Lakeview parade paid homage to the Golden State with everything from a car plastered with a "thank you, California" sign (a gay couple who had recently married in California drove the car along the parade route) to shouted grateful exclamations from the crowd along the lines of "yeah, California!"
To inspire a similar decision in Chicago, one of the parade's floats was decorated in rainbow-colored umbrellas and covered with signage encouraging bystanders to support House Bill 1826, which, if passed, would allow for civil unions among same-sex couples in Illinois. Local politicians also used the parade as a way to demonstrate support for gay marriage: One float sponsored by state rep Greg Harris and alderman Gene Schulter bore the phrase "Equal Marriage Now." One Lakeview resident said, "There were so many more political floats than there ever have been at a gay pride parade." —Jenny Berg
Eno at the Fairmont Chicago Photo: Courtesy of Eno
In May, the Fairmont Chicago opened the city's second Eno outpost, the sleek wine, cheese, and chocolate bar concept owned by Strategic Hotels & Resorts. The hotel management company, which owns the Fairmont and InterContinental properties in Chicago, launched the Eno brand at the InterContinental Chicago in December 2006 and has since opened seven additional locations throughout the country. (Other Eno locales include shops in New York, California, Washington, D.C., Mexico City, and Scottsdale.)
The 1,200-square-foot Fairmont location follows the Eno strategy—fine wines, artisanal cheeses, and gourmet chocolates served in an upscale yet casual tasting-room environment. An ideal spot for a teambuilding activity, Eno focuses on customer education, with staffers guiding guests through custom pairings based on individual moods, tastes, and preferences. Special one-hour "Eno-Versity" classes featuring appearances by winemakers, chocolatiers, and cheese makers take place monthly, and private wine-tasting events can be customized for as many as 10 guests.
READ MORE RELATED TOPICSStrategic Hotels & Resorts
