Chả Cá Nuggs takes a nose-to-tail fin approach to eating the invasive copi
Jaren Zacher’s Asian carp nuggets are coming to Monday Night Foodball, the Reader’s weekly chef pop-up at the Kedzie Inn.
Monday Night Foodball
It’s a night of fresh pastabilities with Gemma Foods at the next Monday Night Foodball
Check out chef Tony Quartaro’s menu of fresh, seasonal, local pasta, plated to-order at the Reader’s weekly chef pop-up at the Kedzie Inn.
Nobody makes eating fresh pasta at home easier than Tony Quartaro. Since I wrote about him last summer, the former Formento’s chef installed his roving fresh pasta delivery service Gemma Foods into a permanent Grand Avenue brick-and-mortar. Now you can watch your farro mafaldine rolled out and cut in the window, take it home, and plate it up in your…
Mike Sula
Food books are falling this month
Four Chicago books on pies,
Palestinian cuisine, veggies, and
bread
Pastry chef Ollyvia Putri’s 20-layer cakes are legit
Her Lapis312 is the go-to U.S. supplier of labor-intensive cakes and cookies to Indonesian expats.
We all know Chicago is a food town! But senior writer Mike Sula, with decades of Reader eats under his fingertips, brings depth whether writing about Chicago faves or hidden gastro gems. Every Friday he delivers exclusive highlights and reviews of some of Chicago’s best restaurants and chefs. This free weekly newsletter comes hot off the grill with coveted Chicago food coverage you won’t want to miss.
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It’s chicken and waffle night at Monday Night Foodball
Check out Avrom Farm’s pastured poultry menu, at the Reader’s weekly chef pop-up at the Kedzie Inn.
Umamicue and Friends smoke out the neighborhood at the next Monday Night Foodball
Check out this historic barbecue supergroup’s menu at the Reader’s weekly guest chef pop-up at the Kedzie Inn.
The Melanin Martha gets rational at the next Monday Night Foodball
Check out Jordan Wimby’s menu of soul food favorites and new cravings at the Reader’s weekly chef pop-up at the Kedzie Inn.
Funeral Potatoes get light in the loafers at the Next Monday Night Foodball
Check out the queer cinema-inspired menu at the Reader’s weekly chef pop-up series at the Kedzie Inn.
Vargo Brother Ferments embraces Fast Food Nation at the next Monday Night Foodball
Check out the menu of cult classics with fermented flair at the Reader’s weekly chef pop-up series at the Kedzie Inn.
Be good to yourself with the return of Tasting India to the next Monday Night Foodball
Keep yourself alive with Jasmine Sheth’s menu of Indian comfort food at the Reader’s weekly chef pop-up at the Kedzie Inn.
Bernardo Medina’s Sofrito Manifesto slaps like a flip-flop
The San Juan-based “Jibarito Pop” artist honors granny food in Humboldt Park.
Party like it’s Indonesian Independence Day with Waroeng and Friends at the next Monday Night Foodball
Check out the menu of family holiday recipes on deck at the Reader’s ongoing chef pop-up series.
Like a blazing fried chicken, Thommy’s Toddy Shop rises from the ashes at the Next Monday Night Foodball
Check out Thom Padanilam’s summer-centered, South Indian menu for the Reader’s weekly chef pop-up series at the Kedzie Inn.
SuperHai’s Asian stoner food saves the day at the next Monday Night Foodball
Check out the dynamic duo’s menu collab with Volition Tea for the Reader’s weekly chef pop-up series at the Kedzie Inn.
More: Previous posts in Food & Drink »
Restaurant Reviews
Dawn Lewis of D’s Roti & Trini Cuisine has a sweet hand
A self-taught home cook opens the city’s second Trinidadian restaurant.
A Viagra Triangle dive rises under chef Amanda Barnes
After nearly a half century, Pippin’s Tavern embraces crafty, chef-driven, farm-centric food.
Something magic’s growing at Back of the Yards Algae Sciences
An unlikely team of bioprospectors is experimenting with the green stuff, psychedelic mushrooms, and toxic toads.
The Food Issue 2022
The tastes of home
Reader staffers recount some of their most memorable food experiences from Chicago summers past.
If you teach a girl to pickle
She might also learn to process love, grief, and hope through food.
Sugar and snacks and everything nice
What would you do with 22.4 pounds of treats?
Drink less, party more
Local spirit-free drinks brands and community platforms are creating a booming sober curious movement in Chicago.
The Pride Issue 2022
Where the bars are
Has LGBTQ+ acceptance resulted in losing valuable community spaces?
Where the bars (actually) are
Some Chicago LGBTQ+ friendly bars to check out during Pride Month and beyond
Best hot chocolate mix to sprinkle on everything
Salted caramel drinking chocolate mix by Katherine Anne Confections
Neo: where misfits fit in
The Lincoln Park club closed in 2015, after providing a sanctuary for generations of night crawlers—but its subcultural legacy continues to reverberate.
The Drinks Issue 2021
Drinking and surviving it
On sharing a genetic predisposition to alcoholism
Drinks with drama, cocktails for comedy
A Theater Wit bartender on creating show-themed beverages
The flood that birthed Love Cork Screw wines
Négociant Chrishon Lampley turned a business loss into a trailblazing brand.
Overgrown Orchard makes the best wine in Gary, Indiana
Their wild-fermented dry apple cider is fruity, funky, and very food-friendly.
Social and sober
Eli Tea Bar provides a place to gather without the booze.
Map and Guide
The Iconic Chicago Restaurants Map
A guide to longtime, affordable, and excellent eateries in just about every Chicago community area
Along with Chicago’s many beaches and tons of interesting things to do, our city’s diverse, affordable, and appetizing eating scene is one of the main things that makes this a terrific place to live. All parts of town are worth visiting. The idea was to pick a top eatery in each of the city’s 77 officially designated community areas, along with a few runners-up: delicious destinations that reflect the local culture.