Chicago Gourmet [Photo: BizBash]
From our headline, it seems the obvious answer of what to do during Chicago Gourmet would be to eat and drink, as that's what Chicago Gourmet is all about. But beyond the dozens of food stations where Chicago's top chefs will dole out bite-size tastes of their culinary creations and wine tents where you will have sip after sip and won't be able hide those purple-stained teeth and fingers, there are actually some activities. There are wine tasting seminars, cooking demonstrations, book signings and more. So what to pick? In addition to meandering about the tasting pavilions as you sample your way through the weekend, we offer some ideas if you want to attend some seminars or demonstrations. And the things in bold? We highly recommend, mostly for the entertainment factor.
Friday:
Your only option is the Hamburger Hop and it's gonna be a stellar affair. Set on the roof of the Harris Theater, 15 local chefs, including Stephanie Izard, Carol Wallack, John Coletta, Radhika Desai and more. It's being judged by Thomas Keller, Bon Appetit Editor in Chief Barbara Fairchild and a handful of other notables. Should be a fun night. Tickets are still available for $75.
Saturday:
- 12 p.m.: Luxury Guacamole Bar Cocktail Party with Rick Bayless (Frontera Grill)
- 12:15 p.m.: Wines of Chile with Alpana Singh
- 12:30 p.m: A Classic Revisited with Bruce Sherman (North Pond)
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12:45 p.m.: Mixology Competition with Lynn House (Blackbird), Josh Pearson (Sepia), Ben Schiller (Boka), Debbi Peek (Bristol), and Todd Appel (Crimson Lounge)
- 1 p.m.: Chocolate: Sweet & Savory with Cat Cora and Jacques Torres
- 1 p.m.: Taste, A Life in Wine book signing with Anthony Terlato
- 2 p.m.: Cooking From Your Pantry with Tony Mantuano
- 3:30 p.m.: Taste of the Season with Randy Zweiban (Province)
- 4:30 p.m.: Sustainable Seafood Choices
- 4:30 p.m.: The Food You Want to Eat book signing with Ted Allen
Sunday
- 12:15 p.m. Greece is the Word wine chat with Serafin Alvarado
- 12:30 p.m. Culinary Artisans with Cat Cora and Marcus Samuelsson (C-House)
- 1 p.m.: Same Chef, Same Dish ... New Kitchen with Todd Stein (The Florentine) and Rodelio Aglibot (BLT Group)
- 1:30 p.m.: Asian Indulgence with Takashi Yagihasi (Takashi), Jackie Shen (Red Light) and Massimiliano Ziano (Grand Hyatt Shanhai)
- 1:45 p.m. Culinary Conversation: Demystifying Beef with Bon Appetit's Andrew Knowlton
- 2 p.m. Family Table with Jimmy Bannos Sr. and Jr. (Heaven on Seven, The Purple Pig)
- 4 p.m. Cooking with Wine with Shelley Young (Chopping Block)
- 4:15 p.m. Discover Chile with Lori Tieszen (Wines Of Chile)
- 4:30 p.m.Cooking From Your Roots with Art Smith ( Table 52)
