The Chicago Traveler

• In Roscoe Village, the Harvest Fest celebrates the 100th anniversary of Jahn World Language School with live music, carnival rides, and food vendors. (Sept 12-14)
• The 19th annual Festival de La Villita features carnival rides, live music, lots of food, and arts and crafts vendors, commemorating Mexican independence from Spanish rule. The fair is also the end location of the 26th Street Mexican Independence Day Parade (with floats, mariachi bands, and folk dancers) on Sunday. (Sept 12-14)
• A new art festival has arrived in Bucktown and Wicker Park. The smARTshow showcases the works of 75 artists inside the Flat …read more

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More and more people have been making a conscious effort to live “green.” The popularity of Chicago’s Green City Market is proof of that, as customers support local farmers and buy high-quality, organic foods. You can easily keep away from foods that put chemicals in your body, but what about the products you put on your body?
Many companies use animal byproducts, mineral oils, artificial colors, and harsh chemicals in their soaps, cosmetics, and lotions. In response to all this manufactured nastiness, Chicagoan Victoria Slone created Lotions & Potions. She has extensively studied the practices of aromatherapy, herbalism, and homeopathy and …read more

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It’s that time of year again. The Taste of Chicago is an annual food festival, where dozens of restaurants from across the city gather along Columbus Drive. Millions of locals and tourists sample hundreds of dishes from every cuisine imaginable, from hot dogs to ravioli to veggie gyros to pad thai to empanadas to omelets… Everything and anything edible can be found at the Taste, along with cooking demonstrations, live music, a wine garden, and kids’ activities. New additions this year include a sports pavilion and an international entertainment pavilion.
Admission is free, but the food and drinks aren’t. Tickets come …read more

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If you’ve seen one cupcake, you’ve seen them all, right? Think again.
Cupcakes puts together their namesake like no one else. Using the finest ingredients, these chefs bake the mini-masterpieces in small batches and frost each one by hand. The tasty treats have been featured on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and the Food Network’s The Secret Life of… series. With references like those, you know they have to be good.
You can even make sure the cupcakes are as unique and perfect as you are. Cupcakes specializes in customizations. Have a favorite color, flavor, logo, or picture in mind? Want them to …read more

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Welcome to 2008! If you’re starting off this New Year with a headache, a stomachache, and a dry mouth, I’m going to guess that you had a very good time last night. But now, you barely have enough energy to read this sentence! Don’t worry; we’re all guilty of a little overindulgence now and then. But before you reach for that hangover-helper myth, here are a few facts:
• Eating greasy food does not help cure a hangover. Eating fatty foods before you start drinking may help slow the absorption of alcohol, giving the liver more time to do its job. …read more

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My cooking skills are limited to tuna sandwiches and grilled cheeses. Fortunately, for the holidays, I have a rather large family full of talented cooks who make a great Christmas dinner. However, if you’d rather eat out and let the professionals handle the kitchen heat, here’s a list of Chicago restaurants that will be open for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Christmas Eve
• Deleece: The popular Lakeview restaurant will serve up a four-course family-style meal along with its regular menu. (5:30 p.m. – 10:00 p.m., $35) link
• Cyrano’s Bistrot and Wine Bar: The prix-fixe here includes dishes like roasted goose …read more

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Back to our International Tour, it’s time for Asia. While many may be familiar with Chicago’s Chinatown down on the South Side, there is also a New Chinatown developing and growing near the intersection of Argyle St and Broadway Ave. It’s a mix of Chinese, Vietnamese, Laotian, Cambodian, and Thai shops and restaurants. Because Asia is the largest continent, there are plenty of cuisines to choose from. Sushi places and Chinese food are so common though, so let’s focus on some of the lesser-known tastes of Asia.
Zen Noodles in Wicker Park (around the corner from People Lounge) does offer sushi, …read more

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Thanksgiving is perhaps my favorite holiday, but I can’t imagine putting together an entire holiday feast. If you want to leave the cooking to the professionals this Thanksgiving, make reservations at one of these restaurants that will be open on the special day (Nov 22).
The Chicago Diner ($35.95-$40.95; $20.95 for kids): 3411 N Halsted St; 773-935-6696
12 noon – 6:00 p.m.
Multi-course vegan menu and raw dinner with selections like roasted “turkey” (tofu roulade), “beefy Wellington” (pastry crust with seitan mushroom pate and tofu filling), pumpkin ravioli, sweet potato soufflé, savory herbed loaf, and pumpkin cheesecake.
http://www.veggiediner.com/
Nix Restaurant @ Knickerbocker Hotel ($48; $18 …read more

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Chicago is inhabited by people from around the world, which you can see in its neighborhoods, shops, and restaurants. Take for example the neighborhood just a couple blocks from my apartment: Andersonville. It started as a Swedish community, but if you look around, Middle Eastern spots are popping up too. So let’s begin our International Tour of Chicago by looking at the Middle East.
Our first destination: Afghanistan. Tucked away in a mini-mall on Dempster Street in Skokie is Kabul House. This authentic Afghan eatery is the only one of its kind in town, and its name comes from the …read more

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Chili cheese dogs, buffalo wings, philly cheesesteaks… sound good to you? Me too! But at Veggie Bite, there’s one thing missing from these tasty items: meat.
Veggie Bite is the first fast-food vegan restaurant, and is hoping to provide a healthy alternative to traditional fast food. Vegans are vegetarians who not only don’t eat meat but also omit all animal products (cheese, eggs, etc.) from their diet. “What’s considered junk food in our society, we have it, and we’ve made it healthier, as healthy as possible,” says Sylvia Watycha, co-owner.
The moment you step foot in the door, you will be amazed …read more

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