1. Brunch on Taco in a Bag
Old-school cartoons meet walking tacos at a pop-up brunch from Taco in a Bag, a Lincoln Square restaurant taking over Long Room for an afternoon. The restaurant, known for its bags of freshly fried tortilla chips loaded with taco fixings, will serve dishes like the Big Jim Benedict (chips with a poached egg and chorizo country gravy), chilaquiles and root beer floats; eat to the backdrop of old Saturday morning cartoons and vintage cereal and toy commercials. If you care to get competitive, the person who eats an entire box of cereal fastest wins free Taco in a Bag for one year. 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 28 at The Long Room, 1612 W. Irving Park Road, www.chicagoevents.us
2. Pick your festival: Wine, beer or cider
In another city, wine, beer and cider festivals occuring on the same Saturday might be called epic. In Chicago, we just call it the weekend. From noon to 4 p.m., the River North Wine Fest ($50) offers more than 35 wines for the tasting; from 1-4 p.m. or 6-9 p.m., the Frost Fest Craft Beer Festival in Boystown hosts 41 local brewers serving their wares in a 5,000-square-foot heated tent with music and food trucks!; and from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. or 4-8 p.m. on Navy Pier, the Cider Summit brings together 48 cider makers pouring about 140 ciders. We guess technically it’s possible to hit them all…
3. Hit a midnight ramen party
Does chef Mike Sheerin ever sleep? Besides just opening Packed Dumplings in Hyde Park while continuing to head Embeya in the West Loop, he’s also hosting a series of midnight ramen events at Trinity Bar in Lincoln Park, where he recently partnered with owner Ryan Holden to overhaul the menu. This weekend only, get his Peking duck broth ramen with housemade noodles, pork meatballs, charred scallions and a soft-cooked egg. Only 75 bowls are available; tickets ($15) to receive your order at midnight go on sale at 10 p.m. and must be purchased in person. Midnight on Saturday, Feb. 27 at Trinity Bar, 2721 N. Halsted St., 773-697-3032.
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4. Team high tea with a history lesson
The rise of Tupperware parties in the 1950s may be more interesting than you think: In just three years, divorced mother Brownie Wise took the sales force from 200 women to 9,000, then was forced out of the company for her rising fame. Leslie Goddard, an actress who holds a Ph.D. from Northwestern University in women’s history, portrays Wise during a living-history program and high tea hosted by the Greater Midwest Foodways Alliance ($55 in advance, $65 at the door). The menu includes smoked salmon, pear slices with Roquefort, tea sandwiches, scones with lemon curd and Devonshire cream, and rhubarb-apple pie. 1-3 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 28 at the Highland Park Community House, 1991 Sheridan Road, Highland Park, www.greatermidwestfoodways.com
5. Dine around the Alps at Eataly
You don’t have to throw down the money for Next to get a food tour of the Alps. For one night only ($55), Eataly, the massive Italian market in River North, is turning its brewpub, its cooking school and its private event space into three different regions of the Alps. Start at Valle d’Aosta, then “travel” to Lombardia before finishing in Trentino-Alto Adige. At each stop, you’ll get the traditional food and drink of the region. 6, 7 or 8 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 26 at Eataly, 43 E. Ohio St., 312-521-8700, www.eataly.com