Locavores unite: Pastoral’s summer culinary road trip leaves bright and early at 7:30 AM this Saturday, rain or shine. Breakfast will be served en route to the Urbana-Champaign area, where stops will include a farmer’s market, lunch at Champaign’s Cafe Luna, and Prairie Fruits Farm, Illinois’s only farmstead goat dairy–which means its cheeses are made from milk from the farm’s own herd. On the return trip wine and cheese will be served, the latter presumably selected by Daniel Sirko, Pastoral’s fromager, who will be leading the trip. Tickets are $100 per person and must be purchased online in advance.
Shedd Aquarium‘s Right Bite program to encourage sustainable seafood choices features a dinner at 6 PM this Monday at Shaw’s Crab House. In addition to sustainable seafood dishes, the evening will include talks from Shedd specialists. Tickets are $75 per person ($60 if you sign up for more than three dinners); ages 21 and over only.
Monday is the deadline to buy early-bird tickets to Chefs and the City, a tasting event on August 3 featuring 20 celebrity chefs. The event aims to raise $100,000 to support low-income people affected by HIV and AIDS. Early-bird tickets are $175; VIP tickets are $250 (after July 9 they go up to $200 and $275, respectively).
The annual Green City Market Summer BBQ Festival runs Thursday from 6-8 PM at the south end of Lincoln Park (Green City Market’s regular home). It will include offerings from more than 50 Chicago chefs, including Paul Kahan (Blackbird), Stephanie Izard (Scylla), and Paul Virant (Vie), plus wine, beer, and live music. Tickets are $50 in advance, $60 at the gate.Â