Oak & Char opened in River North in October. With a rustic interior featuring linen lamps and overhead fixtures inspired by clouds, the venue holds 50 people for semiprivate dinners; the bar holds 75 for cocktail receptions. There’s also a 24-seat private dining room that has a 110-inch video wall suited for presentations and videos. On the menu is Midwestern fare such as cider-brined pork collar and roasted acorn squash.
The Betty came to the West Loop in January. The 5,000-square-foot tavern has living-room-inspired design from Studio K and serves handcrafted cocktails, craft beers, and menu items such as rib eye steak with frites and pan-roasted chicken. The venue seats 180 in total. There's also a raised lounge that can host private cocktail receptions of 50 or seated functions of 32.
Miami
#1 Food & Restaurant Industry Event
The premier food festival crams more than 70 events into its four-day schedule. Sponsored by the Food Network and Food & Wine magazine, the event features celebrity chefs headlining dinners, demonstrations, concerts, and other gatherings. The 2014 festival saw $5.1 million in ticket sales and $4.3 million in sponsorship sales. Next: February 19-22, 2015
To represent the Food Network magazine, artist Clare Herron spent the event inside an 8- by 8-foot Plexiglas cube with stacks of back issues and a pair of scissors. Throughout the evening, she created a collage by taping magazine cutouts to the walls.
