Happy Wednesday, Chicago.
It feels a little like I’m tempting fate to say it, but summer seems to be off to a very fun (if horridly hot) start.
This week’s lineup of Tribune arts and food coverage is proof of just that. There’s a laugh-packed new show at The Second City, a Vietnamese restaurant in Lakeview that excels at what it does best, and lots of delicious things in store for Juneteenth and Father’s Day celebrations this weekend.
Even if you’re sticking indoors this week to shelter from extreme temperatures, there are ways to enjoy yourself: A new anthology of poems about Chicago, a new home renovation show showcasing how Hollywood does decor, and some hilarious historical hot dog recipes you can test out for yourself.
Stay cool, and see you next week.
— Ariel Cheung, food and travel editor
Review: Sochi Saigonese Kitchen is a Vietnamese restaurant of subtle surprises in Lakeview
“Small revelations” delight Tribune critic Nick Kindelsperger at this Lakeview neighborhood restaurant from industry newcomers.
“It’s not a restaurant that wallops you on the head with heat or heft,” Kindelsperger writes. “Instead, you’ll walk away thinking about the tiny details, like how the spring rolls come with a peanut-based sauce that trades overt sweetness for a captivating funk. Or how each slice of meat in the seared duck salad is so stunningly tender.” Read his full review here.
Chicago as a poem: The birthplace of slam poetry finally gets a contemporary anthology of poetry
The poems cover Montrose Beach and the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. The Bucket Boys and Smartbar. Police shootings and monarch butterflies. Gwendolyn Brooks and Carl Sandburg.
Altogether, 134 poems about Chicago comprise the city’s first anthology from contemporary poets writing about all aspects of what makes it great. But editors had to jump through roughly a decade of hoops to get it published.
Chicagoan Perteet Spencer believes everyone deserves to see themselves when they walk down the grocery aisle. But that wasn’t happening for people of African descent like her.
“We’re talking about an entire continent not represented in grocery stores,” she said. “Every tribe, every country, they all have their unique way of doing things.” So she and her husband launched AYO Foods, focused on African cuisine and high-quality ingredients — and in two short years, they’ve reached stores nationwide.
Cake, cobbler and cocktails: Black-owned businesses across Chicago gear up for Juneteenth
Across Chicago, Black small business owners are gearing up to mark Juneteenth with celebratory food and drink, events and acts of service. From Brown Sugar Bakery’s colorful slices of cake to free books for CPS students, here are ways for you to celebrate.
Review: ‘Grandma’s Jukebox’ cranks out advice in the sweet, new Black Ensemble Theater musical
29 Father’s Day specials at Chicagoland restaurants, from beer subscriptions to whole fried lobster
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What’s in! What’s out! What’s haunted! A visit to the Midwest Haunters Convention.
Halloween might be four months away, but the true scream queens know that planning can never start too early.
The Tribune’s Chris Borrelli is here to help, with a rundown of the coolest ghoulish accessories for 2022 at the Midwest Haunters Convention, a trade show for mom-and-pop scare shops, haunted houses and other horror hobbyists.
James Beard Awards return to Chicago after two-year hiatus: See who won
Considered the Oscars of the restaurant industry, the James Beard Foundation Awards returned to Chicago after a two-year hiatus, prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic and a racial reckoning in 2020 that led to a pledge for more equitable judging processes by the foundation.
It was a night that saw some tough losses for Chicago nominees, but also some heartening wins.
James Beard Awards in Chicago: Our live blog tracks big moments, from red carpet to Chicago wins
‘SNL’s’ Sarah Sherman makes a revolting return to Chicago and vomits up stardom
Sarah Sherman, aka Sarah Squirm, aka the freshest new face last season on “Saturday Night Live” is a safe bet for stardom, writes the Tribune’s Chris Borrelli of the latest in a line of Chicagoans on the storied sketch show.
And her most recent visit to Chicago stages proves she’s got plenty of fresh — albeit rather disgusting — ideas to share.
The latest show at The Second City is impressively fast-paced, with a cast that unflinchingly pokes fun at itself and cultural powers on a larger scale, writes the Tribune’s theater critic Chris Jones.
And it’s well worth checking out, especially if you haven’t been to the legendary improv theater in awhile, he says in his review.
‘Prince: The Immersive Experience’ opens in Chicago
Ditching the nasty interpersonal drama that fueled much of the previous show, “Hollywood Houselift” centers on an element that always interested Tribune critic Nina Metz more: The weirdness of working with high-end clientele.
Though the Chicago-style hot dog is arguably the greatest hot dog in the country, for most of the 20th century, Tribune reporters and recipe writers mostly acted deeply embarrassed about the dish.
The resulting recipes and recommendations are pretty hysterical through a 2022 lens, and food critic Nick Kindelsperger takes a historical wander through the Tribune archives
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