Taste of Chicago, the city’s largest outdoor summer festival, opens Friday for 10 straight days of food, free entertainment and myriad diversions along Columbus Drive, between Monroe and Balbo Drives.
On balance, Taste of Chicago puts on a pretty decent show. I wish the food vendors more accurately reflected Chicago’s diverse restaurant scene and stayed away from the fried-and-true carny food, but I make that complaint every year.
I’ve covered every Taste of Chicago since 1985 (the first four years of Taste it was somebody else’s job). I’ve tasted most of the food, though there are a few newcomers every year, and I’ve walked the hasn’t-changed-in-years layout so often that I could do it blindfolded this year. And maybe I will.
I realize that of the millions of people who will visit Taste this year (3 million, according to city estimates), some will be doing so for the first time. For those people, and others looking for a fine-detailed look at all things Taste, you’ll find everything you need to know (and then some) at www.cityofchicago.org/specialevents. For the rest of you, here are the best ways to enjoy the Taste of Chicago.
Think 11 and 3
Taste of Chicago runs from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily through July 2, and 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m. July 3 and 4. The best times to visit, from a crowd-avoidance point of view, are a few minutes before opening and the lull between peak lunch and dinner hours.
Paper or plastic?
The only currency accepted by Taste merchants is Taste Tickets, which are sold in strips of 11 for $7 (food and beverage items cost between three and nine tickets). Six ticket booths are scattered about the Taste site; major credit cards are accepted, but the cash-only lines move much faster.
Downsizing pays
A day of eating at Taste will not be cheap. However, every booth offers a Taste portion–a little sample of food, which not coincidentally is what Taste should be about–for two or three tickets. Do you really need a full portion of saganaki, a large slice of pizza? Sample more, eat less, pay less.
Biggest guilty pleasure
I love that silly Flume Ride. Sue me.
The worst two days
Everybody shows up on July 3, for the city’s annual fireworks spectacular, and July 4, for WXRT’s annual concert (Counting Crows headline this year). The crowds are so dense it actually can be difficult to walk. One year I saw a woman pushing a stroller through the throng, which may have been the most irresponsible act I’ve ever observed at Taste.
Pack sensibly
Smart things to bring include napkins, premoistened towelettes (invaluable), sunscreen (ditto) and maybe a blanket for picnicking. Bottled water and/or soft drinks are good ideas, even though they’re for sale at Taste. (Water is offered free at the Senior Citizens Pavilion, if you qualify.) Alcoholic beverages and glass containers are not permitted.
Five things I never pass up
I am absolutely addicted to the mustard-fried catfish at BJs Market, a fixture at Taste the last few years. The jerk chicken at Vee-Vee’s is one of the few spicy dishes you’ll find. Crablegs seem like odd things to eat outdoors, and I suppose they are, but Grazie does a nice job with them. The fresh fruit offered at Dominick’s booth is Taste’s healthiest option and one of its biggest bargains. And I always indulge in a slice of cheese pizza at Malnati’s, because 24 years ago I held my wedding rehearsal dinner at the Lincolnwood location.
Odd ethnic experience
Kitty O’Sheas’ booth is staffed with genuine Irish folk (I stop by just to hear their brogues) but serves such Irish staples as chicken fingers and cheddar-cheese fries. (What, no Begorrah Burger?) And ice cream made with Bailey’s Irish Cream.
The one thing I avoid
Helen’s Kitchen’s BBQ turkey leg is big, hot and dripping with sauce. The only way to eat the thing is to assume some sort of osteoporotic stance and gnaw at it carefully. Even so, you’ll need a very large napkin or a very small carwash afterwards.
Check out these newbies
Abbey Pub (fish and chips, curry fries), Chicago Joe’s (firehouse chili), Penang (curry hicken pancake), Stanley’s Kitchen & Tap (Binyon’s Turtle Soup, a bit of Chicago history) and Tacqueria Los Comales (steak, pork tacos).
Eat elsewhere
Not many people realize this, but the 10 days of Taste are the best times to get into the city’s “hot” restaurants. Places that ordinarily have a two-week wait for reservations have free tables, because the whole world is heading to Grant Park. Try it.
Go gourmet
Each day, the Gourmet Dining Pavilion, near the northwest corner of Buckingham Fountain, features offerings from one restaurant that are generally a notch above the day-to-day Taste items. Highlights include eggplant rotolo from Rosebud (Friday), Korean specialties from Jin Ju (Monday), grilled oyster with spicy butter from Riva (Tuesday), Wagyu (American kobe) steaks and burgers from The Saloon Wednesday) and shrimp on hoecake from Wishbone (July 4).
Potty hearty
If you don’t mind walking a ways for the Royal Flush experience, answer nature’s call by quick-stepping it to the “Potty Palooza” located along Balbo Drive near the Family Village. Sponsored by Charmin (natch), the Palooza an 18-wheel semi outfitted with 27 private restrooms, each equipped with hard-wood floors, real sinks and air-conditioning.
Save gas
If you have any sense, you’ll park the car in your own driveway or at the commuter rail station. Traffic around the Taste is abysmal; parking is available at the Grant Park north and south garages and the Monroe Drive garage, but even these reach capacity on busy days. Public transportation makes a lot sense; call 836-7000 (all Chicagoland area codes) for route info. Free trolleys connect from Grant Park to Metra stations, CTA stations and the Museum Campus.
———-
TASTE OF CHICAGO
When: June 25-July 4
Hours: 11 a.m.-9 p.m. through July 2; 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m. July 3 and 4.
Where: Grant Park, Columbus Drive between Monroe and Balbo Drives
Admission: Free
Food tickets: Sold at six on-site booths. Major credit cards accepted. ATMs available.
For more information: www.cityofchicago.org/specialevents
