Innholdsfortegnelse for August 2024 i Chicago magazine

While the rest of the world zooms full speed into the modern with cybertrucks and AI and same-day deliveries, the more amazing discoveries these days may be from the past. Consider Chicago’s thriving roller skating scene. Some of the area’s most storied rinks have closed in recent decades. But a steadfast few still bring in thousands of skaters each week for exercise, for lessons, for competition, for breaks from caregiving, for social connection, for love. AARP Chicago was happy to discover that roller skating is alive and well in the area and that many of the people gliding through the rinks are in their 60s, 70s, 80s, even 90s. “Too many older people, they say, ‘well, I can’t do that anymore or I shouldn’t,” says Roger Wampach, 80. “I taught…

REINVENTION COMES naturally to Catherine De Orio. As a young lawyer whose renowned party planning caught Oprah’s attention, she enrolled in night culinary classes at Kendall College, then hopscotched into a foodie career, including a five-year stint as host of WTTW’s Check, Please! Now executive director of the Foundation for Culinary Arts, which helps aspiring teen chefs, she’s also on the verge of launching Casa De Orio, a website devoted to food and design. While still passionate about fitness—she runs on the lakefront and tones up with the Tracy Anderson Method — the 48-year-old West Loop resident leans into doing less: “Ten years ago, I thought I could do everything. Now I’m a big proponent of slowing down and enjoying life.” IT’S IN THE HIPS “I got into Latin dance aerobics…

JUST ABOUT EVERY ASIAN COUNTRY OFFERS a version of a crushed-ice sundae. Unlike with a snow cone, ice and syrup mark just the beginning of these creations—they may include ice cream, sweetened beans, corn flakes, fresh fruit, condensed milk, springy cubes of gelatin, even corn. They look enormous but disappear quickly as the ice melts, the flavors swirl, and you keep assembling surprising, wonderful spoonfuls. Try these five. JAPANESE Kakigori at Gaijin During the warm months in Japan, shopkeepers hang curtains displaying the character for ‘ice’ to entice passersby to come inside and escape the humidity over a giant mound of kakigori. This okonomiyaki spot offers the flavored ice for dessert, and bless them for showcasing the most classic type, Ujikintoki. Named after a town renowned for its green tea, it…

TOMATO SALADS MAY BE ALL OVER MENUS DURING THIS FLEETING season, when the fruit is at its juicy peak, but Tigist Reda’s take is a little different. “I wanted to make something that was familiar, but give it a distinct flavor,” says the Demera chef. To garden-variety ingredients like olive oil and basil, she adds berbere, a brilliant red blend of cayenne pepper and spices like cumin and coriander that’s foundational to the cuisine of her native Ethiopia. The resulting salad—bright and fresh with an undertone of complex heat — feels both classic and new. Along with ambasha (a traditional flatbread that’s cubed and toasted into croutons here), berbere can be found at Ethiopian grocery stores like Edgewater’s Kukulu Market. TIGIST REDA’S BERBERE HEIRLOOM TOMATO SALAD Makes 6 servings Active time…

BEST INTRODUCTION TO CLASSIC COCKTAILS Whether you’re just getting into grown-up drinks or, like me, have a great appreciation for the standards done right, Moneygun in the West Loop is the place to dive in. All 30 cocktails on the menu are well-executed classics with tweaks for modern palates—and all are $15. Complete a punch card by trying each one (no, not in one visit) and join the Dirty Thirty Club. As you make your way through everything from a zhuzhed-up Appletini to a rye-and-cognac-based Vieux Carré, you’ll get a solid cocktail education—plus your name on a plaque and half-price cocktails on Sundays.660 W. Lake St. — AMY CAVANAUGH BEST LOW-KEY PATIO FOR KICKING BACK Summertime drinking should be about ease, which is exactly why Sportsman’s Club in Humboldt Park…

Helmut Jahn died without knowing the fate of his polarizing masterpiece, the James R. Thompson Center. How much longer will it stand? Just five days before the architect’s death in 2021, Governor J.B. Pritzker issued the state’s request for proposals for the sale of Jahn’s long-embattled Loop landmark—without any stipulation that it not be torn down. With its soaring 17-story atrium, the curved glass building, which initially housed state offices, nodded to the domed structures of classical civic structures and symbolized a desire for transparency in government. During the grand public unveiling in 1985, officials unfurled a banner declaring it “A Building for Year 2000,” a sign of optimism for Illinois’s future and Chicago’s legacy of boundary-pushing design. But years of deferred maintenance and political ambivalence eventually took their toll,…

◼ One of the big differences with Watergate is that the media agreed on the facts. They might argue the meaning or the policy implications, but facts were facts. You had William F. Buckley and Gore Vidal doing their debate show, and it was perfectly civil. It was an intellectual discussion where you could go, “Oh, that’s a rational point of view.” ◼ Trump is toast in terms of convictions as long as we get to trial. All of the cases are clear-cut. There’s no question in my mind. There are times when I would like to be involved, particularly in the investigations. Imagine how we felt listening to the Nixon tapes the first time, or imagine how we felt when we found out there were tapes. It’s very exciting…

ST. PETE-CLEARWATER FLORIDA St. Pete-Clearwater is home to America’s Best Beaches and boasts limitless outdoor adventures, perfect for every type of traveler. Kayaking, paddle boarding, snorkeling and boating are only a few of the ways to explore the Gulf Coast waters. If you prefer your adventure on land, state parks with biking and walking trails, campgrounds and nature preserves offer endless ways to experience this beautiful landscape and its wildlife. Locals love the outdoors as much as visitors and are eager to share it. Captain Dylan Hubbard, a fourth-generation owner and operator of the renowned Hubbard’s Marina, located at John’s Pass Village in Madeira Beach, says he’s still taken by the splendor of his home: “It is really just absolutely breathtaking around here.” He seeks to share that local beauty…

AT 93, POLITICAL STRATEGIST DON ROSE IS OLD ENOUGH TO REMEMBER THE 1968 Democratic National Convention. In fact, he participated in the anti–Vietnam War demonstrations that famously accompanied it. He also recalls how Mayor Richard J. Daley’s reputation in the national Democratic Party never recovered after his police officers clubbed and gassed protesters. Chicago’s image, too, took a hit that tarnished it for years. So Rose knows there’s much at stake for current mayor Brandon Johnson during this August’s DNC, particularly when it comes to handling the Gaza war protesters who are expected to show up in force. And the potential downsides far outweigh the upsides, Rose says: “I am not a believer that the conventions do that much for any particular city, unless something very bad happens. If it…

TWO YEARS AGO, THE Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project’s daylong showcase Reclamation drew 7,000 fans to Millennium Park, marking the end of its three-year pilot program and capping the city’s Year of Chicago Dance initiative. Now, on August 24, the project will see if lightning can strike twice as it sets off another joy bomb at Pritzker Pavilion with its latest showcase, Divination: The Dancing Souls of Black Folk. The subtitle alludes to an early 20th-century W.E.B. Du Bois text on the African American experience. But CBDLP director Princess Mhoon says the project’s broader goal is to reframe Black dance as American dance—for everyone. “We’re not separate,” the veteran choreographer says. “We can find our common humanity on that stage, whether it’s in the church, on your prayer rug, in your…

The luxury French fashion house Celine has boosted the style élevé in the Gold Coast since setting up shop here in December. Its sprawling store satisfies loyalists with signature minimalist men’s and women’s ready-towear, leather goods, accessories, and perfume. (Yes, you can score an iconic crossbody Triomphe bag.) Equally impressive is the Hedi Slimane–designed Brutalist setting, where natural stone statues loom next to mirrored gold glass, making this shop-museum hybrid a thrill for browsers and big spenders alike. 939 N. Rush St.…

YOU WILL FIND A WIDE RANGE OF PLACES TO EAT IN OUR rankings of the 50 best restaurants in town (page 78). But conspicuously absent are Chicago’s only three-Michelin-starred spots: Alinea and Smyth. Alinea’s Grant Achatz “paved the way for a lot of folks in the industry,” says dining editor Amy Cavanaugh, who compiled the list with dining critic John Kessler, “but I think the torch has been passed. If you really want to see the best of fine dining in this city right now, you’re going to find it at restaurants like Oriole and Kyoten, not at some of the places that have been around for a while.” That’s not the only realization she came to in putting together the rankings: “Maybe it’s because of the pandemic and people opening…

Q: Is it true that the term “smoke-filled room” originated in Chicago? Four days into the 1920 Republican National Convention in Chicago, voting was deadlocked among six candidates, none of them close to a majority. That night, party chairman Will Hays invited to his Blackstone Hotel suite “senators and party leaders [who] wandered in and out at random, poured themselves drinks, and talked indecisively through the perfecto smoke,” according to Francis Russell’s 1968 book, The Shadow of Blooming Grove. The GOP pooh-bahs settled on Senator Warren G. Harding of Ohio. He had finished no higher than third in the balloting but had no enemies, looked presidential, and came from a state that had voted for every Republican president. The next day, after Harding was nominated at the convention, a United…

THE OBAMAS’ HOUSE 5046 S. Greenwood Ave. It may be Chicago’s bestguarded house without permanent residents. The good news: Concrete barriers have been partially removed and you can now walk (but not drive) on this public street (though not on the sidewalk), right in front of the Georgian Revival mansion the Obamas bought in 2005. It’s a secret how often the former first family stays here, but it’s often enough that the tree out front has been cicada-proofed. THE OBAMAS’ FIRST-KISS ROCK Corner of 53rd Street and Dorchester Avenue No one knows what powers this spot holds, but the Obamas’ first-date lip embrace, in 1989, must have been special to earn a plaque, attached to a boulder in front of this strip mall. The Baskin-Robbins where Barack treated Michelle to…

GOTTA HAVE FAITH In First Floor Theater’s religious-ish rom-com In His Hands, Christian (played by Alex Benito Rodriguez, pictured) and Daniel might be falling in love, as long as God doesn’t get in the way. Through Aug. 24. firstfloortheater.com CURRENCY AFFAIRS Cash is king at Rosemont’s World’s Fair of Money, where vintage coin and currency collectors can browse dealers’ wares and ogle rarities like a 1794 U.S. silver dollar. Aug. 6–10. money.org GAY RITES Queer-friendly music acts fill five stages at Northalsted Market Days, the long-running street fest that brings 100,000 visitors to the city’s official gayborhood. Aug. 10–11. northalsted.com BLAST TO THE PAST It was only a matter of time before Back to the Future became a musical. The tuner based on the 1985 time-travel caper sets the Cadillac…

AMICI-CHICAGO 3933 N. Broadway, Lake View ▪ Perfect order Italian arancino with pasta salad ▪ Amici-Chicago, a counter-service spot that opened in September, is Italian in origin — owner Alfio Sciacca moved here from Sicily at the age of 24 — but as he’ll tell you, it isn’t solely an Italian restaurant. “Amici” means “friends” in Italian, but here it is an acronym for African, Mexican, Indian, Caribbean, and Italian. Sciacca, who has worked in Chicago restaurants, including Topo Gigio, for 36 years, specializes in arancini (fried Italian rice balls), which he stuffs with dishes from these countries and regions. Try the Masalacino, filled with chicken tikka masala; the Birriacino, packed with beef birria; or the Jambacino, a recent addition made with sausage, shrimp, and seasoned rice that’s a fried…

1 PETITE VIE BRASSERIE What Paul Virant (Gaijin) gets back to his French roots with this newcomer in Western Springs, just around the corner from his now-closed favorite, Vie. Why We’ll go anywhere Virant is cooking, and we’ll give you two reasons why: duck confit with roasted leeks in vinaigrette and gnocchi Parisienne with peas and spring onion. Where 909 Burlington Ave., Western Springs 2 BAYAN KO DINER What Bayan Ko’s Cuban-Filipino fusion makes its way down the block to this more casual diner. Why We’ll take a Cubano breakfast burrito for breakfast and cola-glazed chicken skewers at lunch. Dinner is coming soon. Where 1820 W. Montrose Ave., Ravenswood 3 MINYOLI What Rich Wang cooks the Taiwanese dishes of his youth at this Andersonville newcomer. Why Try classics of the cuisine like fried…

BEST EXCUSE TO GO OUT ON A MONDAY NIGHT The dark confines of the Green Mill are superb for winding down after the week’s first day of work. Sit back and watch one of the city’s most impressive guitarists, Joel Paterson, masterfully flick his Epiphone’s strings to conjure slinky melodies—from Benny Goodman to the Beatles—before switching to the plaintive crying of his pedal steel guitar. His weekly show at this Uptown institution runs from 8 p.m. to midnight, but the final minutes are when you’ll hear lovely lullabies like “Mr. Sandman.” As Paterson remarked during one recent show, “We need you late-night people.” 4802 N. Broadway — ROBERT LOERZEL BEST STOREFRONT THEATER INCUBATOR Chicago has earned its reputation for adventurous stage productions that lure audiences well beyond downtown. But even the…

BEST DESIGNER FOR DRESSING YOU LIKE MICHELLE OBAMA Say you are in town for a certain convention and have long admired the stylish fits of a certain former first lady. It’s time to get acquainted with Maria Pinto (that’s her, pictured at left), Michelle O’s go-to designer throughout her husband’s presidential run (who can ever forget that ocean-blue 2008 DNC dress?). Pinto’s designs aren’t reserved for just political power players. Her new boutique in River North is all about catering to busy women. That translates to ready-to-wear pieces, from A-line dresses to sleek suits, all machine washable and travel friendly. And if you happen to pick up a body-grazing jewelneck dress worthy of the Governor’s Ball, well, all the better. 710 N. Wabash Ave. — KELLY AIGLON BEST PLACE TO SAMPLE…

ALTHOUGH HER ART IS BIG and bold, muralist Emmy A Star Brown keeps a modest footprint. “I love supporting small businesses and independent makers,” says the Logan Square resident. She hunts for treasures at her favorite flea markets, art fairs, and gift shops: “I’m very loyal to specific, unique places.” Kimball Arts Center in Humboldt Park is one of many local buildings emblazoned with her colorful abstract paintings. (Her @emmystar brown Insta has more.) Her work also adorns smaller canvases, like Yeti drinkware and Field Notes journals. DESIGN AT 329 329 W. 18th St., South Loop “From vintage clothing to furniture and antique birdcages, you never know what you’ll stumble upon inside this multifloor warehouse.” WISH LIST • Oversize paintbrush (1) “It feels like a treasured artifact with stories to tell. I…

IT’S BEEN A ROUGH RIDE of late for homebuyers in the Chicago area. With inventory shortages plaguing the local market, prices rose 4.6 percent last year, while the number of sales fell 20 percent. Real estate agents have felt the pinch, too. In our latest annual rankings, 477 agents reached residential sales of at least $10 million in 2023. That’s a sharp drop from 2021, when 861 did. It is a similar story for agent teams, with just 276 of them hitting at least $20 million, down from 435 two years earlier. So why is housing supply struggling to keep up with increased demand, particularly in the suburbs? “Last I checked, there weren’t UFOs that dropped off more people. We didn’t create a bunch of new 22-to-45-year-olds,” quips agent Matt…

SALES ABOVE $15 MILLION ◼ Darren Allen Compass ◼ Elizabeth Amidon Jameson Sotheby’s ◼ Deb Baker Compass ◼ Cathy Balice @properties Christie’s ◼ Mary Baubonis @properties Christie’s ◼ Roger Blomgren Baird & Warner ◼ Fabio Brancati @properties Christie’s ◼ Bradley Brondyke Jameson Sotheby’s ◼ Ben Broughton RE/Max ◼ Tom Campone Compass ◼ Maria Castillo RE/Max ◼ Houda Chedid Coldwell Banker ◼ Robin Chessick Dream Town ◼ Terri Christian @properties Christie’s ◼ David J. Cobb RE/Max ◼ Carol Collins Jameson Sotheby’s ◼ Linda Conforti Jameson Sotheby’s ◼ Courtney Cook @properties Christie’s ◼ Ashley Cox Compass ◼ Meg Daday Keller Williams ◼ Brooke Daitchman Dream Town ◼ Sheila Dantzler Jameson Sotheby’s ◼ Mariah Dell Compass ◼ Sarah DePasquale @properties Christie’s ◼ Ann deVane John Greene ◼ Ardit Dizdari @properties Christie’s ◼ Rory…

SALES ABOVE $35 MILLION ◼ Connie Antoniou Luxury Lifestyles Jameson Sotheby’s ◼ ATM Team BHHS Chicago ◼ Capitanini Team Coldwell Banker ◼ Alice Chin Team Compass ◼ Corteam RE/Max ◼ Corwin Partners Jameson Sotheby’s ◼ Dobbs Group Compass ◼ Owen Duffy Group Fulton Grace ◼ Essence Realty Team Keller Williams ◼ Foley Group John Greene ◼ Graff Group Compass ◼ Judy Greenberg Group Compass ◼ Brian Grossman Group @properties Christie’s ◼ Holzl Homes Keller Williams ◼ Kasper Group Compass ◼ Kim and Katie Group @properties Christie’s ◼ Jackie Mack & More Jameson Sotheby’s ◼ Kathryn and Kelly Mangel @properties Christie’s ◼ Matlin Group Compass ◼ McCarthy Schwager Group @properties Christie’s ◼ O’Connor Group Dream Town ◼ PAK Group @properties Christie’s ◼ REV Group @properties Christie’s ◼ Riverwalk Partners Coldwell Banker…