—Bon Appetit presents Chicago Gourmet's annual online auction is now live. With registration now open at BiddingForGood.com/ChicagoGourmetAuction, gourmands can bid on a lineup of experiences and packages, including private tastings in the PreVail Room at California's Ferrari-Carano Vineyards and Winery; and 30 minutes of tableside service at Chicago Gourmet. Chicago Gourmet's events will take place at Millennium Park on Sept. 26-30; visit www.chicagogourmet.org/ . ( Bidding will be live for applicable items on BiddingForGood.com/ChicagoGourmetAuction until 12 p.m. CST Tuesday, Oct. 2. )
—Roots Homemade Pizza Lincoln Square, 2200 W. Lawrence Ave., is joining forces with Crafty Women Chicago to present "Chug It Like A Lady" on Thursday, Sept. 27, 6-9 p.m. The event will raise funds to support GirlForward, a community dedicated to creating and enhancing opportunities for girls who have been displaced by conflict and persecution. Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/286741905265215.
—Short Stack Eatery—a Madison restaurant specializing in breakfast cuisine—was chosen as the Allied Business of the Year by the Wisconsin LGBT Chamber, Channel3000.com noted. A release said Short Stack Eatery was chosen for the award due to its active participation in the newly formed Hospitality Council and the chamber in general. The restaurant has also hosted Coffee Connection, a morning networking event for the chamber.
—Smoke Daddy—3636 N Clark St., the Wrigleyville BBQ joint located in Hotel Zachary—has announced Amanda Downing as the restaurant's executive chef. Downing was formerly executive chef and partner at Chicago's Rockit Bar & Grill and Rockit Burger Bar and, most recently, chef de cuisine at Bistronomic.
—Chef-owner David Choi of Seoul Taco has announced the brand's Chicagoland expansion. Beginning this winter, Seoul Taco fans can patronize the Korean-Mexican fast casual at locations in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood ( 1321 E 57th St. ) and suburban Naperville ( 206 S Washington St. ). Choi currently owns and operates five Seoul Taco locations in Illinois and Missouri. The brand's Chicago flagship location opened in 2017 in the city's River North neighborhood.
—Located on the 103rd floor of the Willis Tower, Skydeck offers a "Pie in the Sky" dinner experience serving local favorite Giordano's pizza as part of a three course meal for $100 per person. The experience is available Sunday through Thursday starting at 8:30 p.m., and Friday and Saturday at 9:30 p.m. At this time, Skydeck is closed to the public. Visit theskydeck.com .
—River Roast, 315 N. LaSalle St., is serving a 45-minute power lunch daily featuring three courses and dessert. For a flat fee of $35, guests get a choice of two starters in each category, an entree and dessert. Items include charcuterie, mushroom toast, arugula salad, curry chicken-salad sandwich, key-lime pie and much more. See RiverRoastChicago.com .
—In recognition of National Coffee Day on Saturday, Sept. 29, Caffe Umbria in Logan Square and River North will donate 10 percent of proceeds from the day to the Salt and Light Coalition—a Chicago-based non-profit dedicated to empowering female survivors of trafficking to find freedom through faith, self-care practices and job training. See CaffeUmbria.com .
—Also to mark National Coffee Day, on Sept. 29 Sprinkles is giving away free High Brew Coffee—cold-brew coffee with twice the caffeine of a regular cup of coffee. Just visit one of the 20 Sprinkles stores High Brew is sold at nationwide ( including Chicago's 50 E. Walton St. location ) to receive a free can ( with flavors like Black & Bold, Mexican Vanilla and Double Espresso ) with the purchase of one regular cupcake, while supplies last.
—The Lakeview East Wine & Sweets Stroll will take place Sunday, Sept. 30, 3-6 p.m. There will be two routes ( Clark Street and Broadway ), offering 26 stops and 25 wines to sample. A $25 ticket ( for either route ) includes a wine-tasting glass and two Laugh Factory tickets; call 773-348-8068 or visit LakeviewEast.com .
—Noyane, 101 E. Erie St., is offering a special branded lunchbox promo with a portion of the proceeds go toward CPS just in time for back to school. Guests can add the souvenir lunch box to their orders for $9 to donate ( $5 going to CPS fundraisers ) through Sept. 30 during Lunch & Dinner service ( opens at 11 a.m. daily ). Noyane will be donating proceeds to the Back To School Campaign.
—Fall flavors are rolling in to Stan's Donuts & Coffee. The donut maker has launched two seasonal donuts: Apple Cider Cake Donut and Pumpkin Spice Old-Fashioned, as well as a half-dozen festive drinks. Made with cider, the Apple Cider donut is coated in cinnamon sugar and drizzled with a cinnamon glaze, while the Pumpkin Spice Old Fashioned features real pumpkin in the dough and glaze. Both are $2.75 each, $15 for a half-dozen and $29.95 for a dozen. On Sept. 21, Stan's unveiled a third donut: the Pumpkin Pie Le Stan.
—Mike's Cannoli Bar will open at the Chicago French Market, 131 N. Clinton St., on Monday, Oct. 1 ( with a FREE sampling to the public of their mini-cannolis and espresso on Tuesday, Oct. 2, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.. Four years ago, owners Anthony and Michael Ferrazzuolo, under the mentorship of their father Tony, opened "The Original Meatball Vault," now called Polpetti ( the Italian word for "meatball" ), in the market. For more information, visit polpettiespressobar.com .
—On Sunday, Sept. 30, at noon-10 p.m., Thalia Hall and Dusek's Board & Beer are hosting the 4th Annual Blocktoberfest. Located outside Thalia Hall, 1807 S. Allport St., the free event will feature a variety of craft beers and specialty cocktails for purchase. In addition, there will be items such as Dusek's soft pretzels with house-made beer mustard ( $4 ); garlic sausage served with chips, sauerkraut and beer mustard ( $5 ); and local apple streusel ( $5 ). There will also be DJs like Jesse De La Pena, Darryn Jones and Yessenia G.
—Chicagoans who visit Hubbard Inn, 110 W. Hubbard St., during October ( Breast Cancer Awareness Month ) have the opportunity to give back during "Ladies Night" every Wednesday at 8 p.m. Hubbard Inn will donate $1 from any entree or specialty cocktail purchase to the Lynn Sage Foundation's In Good Taste Campaign; all guests will also have a chance to win a weekly $1,000 cash raffle prize. See HubbardInn.com .
—Shaw's Crab House is celebrating its 30th "Pearl" anniversary of Oyster Fest on Oct. 4-12 at Shaw's Crab House Chicago, 21 E. Hubbard St., and Shaw's Crab House Schaumburg, 1900 E. Higgins Rd. Events will include oyster happy hours, pop-up 50-cent oyster hours, slurp-off competitions, oyster-centric menus, tap parties, live music and a dinner in partnership with Shedd Aquarium to kick-off Lettuce Entertain You's strawless initiative. See ShawsCrabHouse.com .
—James Beard-awarded chef Debbie Gold will host an intimate dinner with Billy Harris on Monday, Oct. 22, at Tied House, 3157 N. Southport Ave., 6:30-10 p.m. Guests will enjoy a multi-course wine paired dinner, a chef meet-and-greet plus a hosted cocktail hour with hors-d'oeuvres. Tickets are $155 each ( including tax and tip ), with proceeds from the live auction benefiting The Trotter Project and presented by Barilla. Visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/chef-debbie-gold-at-tied-house-hosted-by-billy-harris-tickets-47964297505.
—The Trotter Project is presenting its Second Annual Excellence Gala on Saturday, Oct. 27, at 5:30 p.m. at at Revel Fulton Market, 1215 W. Fulton Market—and the evening celebrating the achievements of culinary scholarship recipients as well as the legacies of Chefs Charlie Trotter and Homaro Cantu will feature headlining Chef Andoni Luis Aduriz. Andoni's visit is supported by a team of alumni from both Charlie Trotter's restaurant and Chef Homaro Cantu's Moto, as well as The Trotter Project culinary supporters; this all-star team is led by host of Cooking Channel's Carnival Kings and Top Chef's Richie Farina. Tickets are $500 each; visit TheTrotterProject.org/excellence-gala-2018/ .
—Kouzina, a "twist on the classics" hosted by the National Hellenic Museum ( NHM ), 333 S. Halsted St., is returning Thursday, Nov. 1, 6:30-10 p.m. There will be dining, drinking and mingling with culinary masters such as Chef Louie Alexakis of Avli Restaurant, Chef Larry Feldmeier of the Albert and Chef Nate Henssler of Portsmith—all with the influence of Greek culture. Tickets are $100-$125 each; visit www.nationalhellenicmuseum.org/calendar/kouzina/ or call 312-655-1234.
—The not-for-profit organization Pilot Light will host its sixth annual Feed Your Mind Gala, to be held Friday, Nov. 2, at Revel Fulton Market, 1215 W. Fulton Market, 6-10 p.m. Guests can purchase a seat among nine other diners and will be assigned to the table of one of almost two dozen chefs, including Grant Achatz ( Alinea ), Stephanie Izard, Rick Bayless ( Frontera ) and Noah Sandoval ( Oriole ). Individual tickets are $350 and ticket prices have not yet been determined; visit FeedYourMindGala.org .
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