Mickey Mouse leads the holiday procession on Saturday.
Magnificent Mile Lights Festival All day Saturday along the Magnificent Mile; free
Let the holiday season begin! Mickey Mouse leads the parade of floats down Michigan Avenue as more than 1 million lights are illuminated to kick off the season. There will be music all day at the Harris Stage (401 N. Michigan Ave.) including Plain White T's at 3 p.m. There's also a fireworks display over the river starting at 7 p.m. Need some help getting into the holiday spirit? Check out our holiday guide.
Author Jonathan Safran Foer (Everything Is Illuminated) comes to the Harold Washington Library Center (400 S. State) tonight at 6 p.m. to promote his new book, Eating Animals in a free event. While he insists the book is not just about becoming vegetarian, we're guessing that after an hour or so of hearing about the meat industry, you're not gonna be feeling like grabbing a burger. With that in mind, here are some dinner spots around the library that go easy on the meat:
Opera
In addition to vegetarian-friendly dishes like spring rolls, Sichuan peanut noodle salad and several sides, the venerable South Loop Chinese kitchen offers a full vegan menu including eggplant quinoa with cilantro pesto sauce ($14), kung pao tofu ($16) and Hainanese-style Kaipong with twice-cooked coconut curry rice, stir-fried choi sum, forest mushrooms, peanuts and sweet peas wrapped in lotus ($14).
Amarit
Thai is usually a safe bet for veggie eaters, and at Amarit you'll be able to subsitute tofu for meat in most dishes, or just spring for a light meal of spring rolls, miso soup and cucumber salad. Other Thai choices in the area include Tamarind and Thai Spoon.
India Grill
For a quick Indian fix, you may want to stop into Chutney Joe's just down the street from the library, where you can top rice or naan with a variety of vegetarian entrees like red bean rajma, spinach paneer, gobi potatoes, garbanzo masala and kali daal for as little as $5.99. But if you want more of a sit-down meal, head a bit further south for a full slate of meat-free cuisine, including vegetable korma and bhindi masala (okra with onions, tomatoes and spices, $9.99). India Grill is BYOB.
For more vegetarian, vegetarian-friendly and vegan-friendly dining options around the city, visit Centerstagechicago.com.
So, it's been a rough year for many Chicagoans. The murder rate is rising. The economy is tanking. The Cubs choked, again. But you know, there's always one place you can go to get away from all that, a place you know you'll feel safe and secure: home.
Of course, home usually comes with its own set of problems - annoying parents, socially awkward cousins, repressed childhood memories. So before you make that trip back, you might want to loosen up by partying on Thanksgiving Eve (aka Black Wednesday), the biggest bar and club night of the year.
We're giving away a free ticket ($25 value) to District Bar's party, which includes three hours of gourmet food, cocktails and beer (plus specials afterward). View the full menu here.
To enter, send a Twitter message ("Sign me up for Black Wednesday contest") to @CstageChicago by Wednesday, November 18 at 3 p.m.
Artwork by Sergei Isupov looks over Navy Pier's Festival Hall during SOFA setup Wednesday. (Al Podgorski/Sun-Times)
SOFA Chicago Through Sunday at Navy Pier; $15-$25
Celebrating its 16th year, the Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Fair hits Navy Pier's Festival Hall to present work from top international galleries and dealers. Check out the opening night preview gala on Thursday ($50) to get a first glimpse at the show's best work. Hors d'oeurves and wine are included. Tickets for the rest of the show are $15 a day, or $25 for a three-day pass. Get them here or at the door. More: Check out the Sun-Times' SOFA photo gallery.
The Rocky Horror Show 8 p.m., through Saturday at the Athenaeum Theatre; $20
Do the Time Warp (again!) at this live theater production of the musical cult classic, with shows running through Halloween night. Dress up as your favorite character (and who wouldn't take the opportunity to emulate Meat Loaf as much as possible?), but leave the props at home. There are special goodie bags you can buy at the theater to join in on the action.
Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers 8 p.m. Thursday at Cadillac Palace Theatre; $37-$75
The longtime funnyman drops the standup routine for a five-string banjo at this leg of a nationwide tour for charity. He's joined by the Steep Canyon Rangers, who are regulars on Grand Ole Opry. And did you know Martin now has three Grammys to his name -- two for comedy albums and another for his collaboration with Earl Scruggs on Foggy Mountain Breakdown in 2001.
We all knew that one guy in high school or college who loved beer a little too much: he'd fantasize about beer popsicles, beer slushies, beer milkshakes. But in all his hop-fueled ravings, did he ever think of beer soup? Well, new C-House executive chef Nicole Pederson did - and it's on the menu, in the form of a spiced Goose Island Matilda broth that's poured over and around a piece of pan-seared halibut along with roasted pumpkin seeds. It makes for a fine fall entree (we should know, as we just slurped some today).
But Pederson isn't stopping there with the beer-love. From now through October 31, C-House is offering a $39 three-course dinner menu featuring Goose Island beer pairings. You'll start off with beer-battered oysters with bacon mayo and bitter greens (paired with Sofie, a Belgian-style ale), then choose either the aforementioned halibut dish or the Matilda-braised pork shoulder with parsnip and mustard greens (paired with Matilda, natch). For dessert, executive pastry chef Toni Roberts has made a "black & tan" -- butterscotch panna cotta and Bourbon County Stout gelee with pecan sandies, paired with, you guessed it, Bourbon County Stout.
If you're not quite that brew-crazy, don't worry; the full C-House menu is available, and there's plenty to recommend, including a refreshing yet indulgent heirloom apple salad (with gouda, mustard greens and croutons), hanger steak with sweet corn, shell beans, pickled peppers and corn puree (the perfect comfort food with just a little kick) and a pumpkin-caramel bread pudding that you might grow to love as much as your buddy loved Budweiser.
For many people, when you say the word wings, they think "buffalo sauce." (Ok, maybe some think "Sandpiper Airlines," but they watch too much TV.) But Rockit chef James Gottwald is different. To him, a chicken wing is simply a blank slate, to be slathered with any creative sauce he can concoct. At least, that's the way he thinks during Wingfest, the weeklong ode to the chicken wing running October 19-23 at Rockit's River North and Wrigleyville locations.
The out-of-the-box flavors available all week long include truffle and foie gras (truffle butter-tossed chicken wings with foie gras gravy), sweet chile & lime (with lime wedges and soy sauce), lemon grilled wings (with wild oregano, garlic and feta fondue), pomegranate port wine (with mango dipping sauce) and, for the traditionalists, "Nuclear" (tossed in super spicy buffalo sauce). Each variety costs $10 per dozen wings. Because wings of any flavor go well with beer, there will also be $3 drafts of Goose Island Harvest Ale available throughout the week.
Mike Doughty 7 p.m. Thursday at Schubas, 9 p.m. Friday at Lincoln Hall, $20-$22
If you like studio works from Doughty (of Soul Coughing), like the recent Golden Delicious album, you absolutely can't miss seeing him in person. If possible, ind yourself a ticket to Friday's sold-out show at the brand-new Lincoln Hall, a live music venue just recently opened by the Schubas crew. Doughty will be joined on stage by cellist Andrew "Scrap" Livingston, who played guitar on Golden Delicious.
Riot Fest Through Sunday, various theaters, prices vary ($70 for a three-day pass to Congress Theater)
Several rockin' shows (not to mention a bowling tourney) are spread out across five venues (Congress Theater, Metro, Subterranean, Double Door, Cobra Lounge) during this fifth-annual fest. We're talking mosh-inducing rock and punk including Chicago's own Screeching Weasel, NOFX, Alkaline Trio, Naked Raygun and more. Oi!
Former "Top Chef" champion Stephanie Izard has done a great job building buzz for her eventual new Chicago restaurant, The Drunken Goat, with tons of appearances and promotions. Her Wandering Goat series of exclusive dinners has been particularly successful, with tickets being snapped up in no time at all, even when she's hidden the tickets. The next dinner will have a special twist: one lucky person will get to cook alongside Izard and her team.
Stephanie will be judging the latest installment of Red Eye's Virtual Kitchen Stadium, in which would-be chefs get 24 hours to cook up a dish featuring three secret ingredients, then submit the recipe and a photo of the dish to be voted on (there will be no tasting). The contest will have three rounds, beginning this Sunday, with each week having a separate winner. Stephanie will then choose one person from those three for the coveted spot.
Your Tuesday evening happy hour (don't pretend like you don't have one) just got a little more interesting if you work in River North -- and have $50 to spare. The progressive OctoberFeast features 25 venues, split up into eight different routes featuring five venues each (yes, math majors, there is some overlap). Participants will get 45 minutes of signature food and drink at each of the venues on the chosen route, which could include restaurants like Ai Sushi, Bull & Bear, Mercadito, Sunda, Naha, Osteria Via Stato, Zocalo and others. Everyone will meet up at the after-party at Martini Park.
If that's gotten your stomach rumbling, head to the River North Business Association site for tickets or call (312) 645-1047.
How much would you pay for this?(Photo: Clifton Henri)
Believe it or not, Blind Faith Cafe has been serving up creative vegetarian fare for 30 years now. The Evanston restaurant was way ahead of the local-and-organic trend, and continues to churn out dishes like Sagamite' (hominy corn, wild mushroom, jerusalem artichoke, wild rice and applewood-smoked squash sauteed in a rich vegetable reduction) and Pastel Azteca (layers of spinach, black bean, tortillas and poblano peppers baked with roasted tomato salsa and topped with melted cheese) for an appreciative audience.
Want to try one? Now is the time, because through Saturday, Blind Faith is celebrating its anniversary by letting customers decide what they want to pay for their entrees. So go ahead, try that shiitake walnut loaf you've been curious about -- if you don't like it, you don't have to pay the full $14 price. But since a restaurant doesn't get to the ripe old age of 30 by sending out tasteless food, we're guessing you'll end up parting with at least a little bit of cash.
You know what they say about doctors and apples, right? Well, you can get your daily fix of crunchy fruit goodness without leaving the Loop on Thursday, as Chicago's Downtown Farmstand (66 E.Randolph) is celebrating its one-year anniversary by offering free apples all day long (the market is open from 11 a.m.-7 p.m.), according to The Stew.
While you're at the farmstand, we suggest you pick up a whole bag of locally sourced apples -- after all, you've gotta practice for the upcoming Bucktown Apple Pie Contest, which goes down Sunday, October 18 at Holstein Park (2200 N. Oakley) from 2-5 p.m. The event costs $15 to enter; if you're not the baking type, you can visit for free (each slice will cost ya, though). Just remember, that whole "apple a day" thing doesn't apply to pies.
