Ties and tails were everywhere Thursday at the Palmer House Hilton. Dog tails, that is.
People paraded their pooches through the hotel’s opulent Empire Room during the Palmer House’s fifth annual Doggie Tea Party, an opportunity for humans to mingle and sip Champagne while their pets dined on gourmet, chef-prepared food.
For the first time, the hotel partnered with an outside organization, The Anti-Cruelty Society, to host the event, hotel General Manager Dean Lane said.
Guests paid $30 per ticket to bring their canine companions to the event, and all proceeds benefited The Anti-Cruelty Society.
Photographers snapped portraits of dogs and their owners. Servers with trays of Champagne for humans made the rounds while dogs roamed freely — although a few remained on leashes. The animals greeted one another with sniffs of curiosity before sauntering up to a long, low table set with dishes and party hats.
Chef Joseph Giannini, of Urban Out Sitters, a West Loop doggie day care, prepared a five-course lunch for the dogs that included lobster sushi, chicken pie and dog-friendly desserts.
The food was prepared using human-grade products, Giannini said, joking that humans might be tempted by the dishes.
“I hate to say it, but the food they’re going to eat today is probably healthier than some of the things we eat at home,” he said.
The menu impressed Darien residents Georgia and Jason Jochum, who brought their energetic puppy, Rocco.
“What other dog gets a five-course meal from a chef?” Georgia Jochum said, adding she thought the event was for a good cause.
Although humans and canines alike lived it up in high-class fashion, the guest of honor was Wilma, a chocolate Labrador that last month became Chicago’s first Dog of Distinction in a contest City Clerk Susana Mendoza’s office started to encourage dog registration.
