—HotChocolate owner Mindy Segal will discuss and sign her book Cookie Love on Thursday, June 18, at 7:30 p.m. at Women & Children First, 5233 N. Clark St. In the book Segal, a James Beard Award-winning pastry chef, shares all of her secrets for turning classic recipes, such as spritz and shortbread, into more elevated, inspired re-interpretations. Visit www.womenandchildrenfirst.com .
—Tortoise Club, 350 N. State St., will offer off-the-grill specials for Father's Day. Among the items are BBQ baby-back ribs, shrimp skewers and a combo plate of both. Visit TortoiseClub.com .
—Michael Jordan's Steak House, 505 N. Michigan Ave., will offer complimentary engraved steak knives to the first 23 fathers who order Jordan's favorite steak, the Prime Delmonico ( $54 ), on Father's Day. On the same day, Unite Urban Grill, 1450 W. Chicago Ave., is offering giant 22-ounce cowboy steaks to dads, and will gift them with bottles of its signature basting sauce; call 312-455-8900.
—For Father's Day, June 21, guests can treat their dads to one complimentary Peroni or Hoegaarden with the purchase of any meatball dish at the recently opened Mondo Meatball, 1467 N. Milwaukee Ave. Among several options is the Big Salad: three meatballs on a big mixed salad with bread ( $12 ). Visit MondoMeatball.com .
—This Father's Day, June 21, Shaw's Crab House in Schaumburg is offering a brunch ( 9 a.m.-3 p.m. ) and dinner buffet ( 3:30-9 p.m. ). Plus, all dads will receive a special $25 Shaw's Crab House gift certificate. The brunch buffet is priced at $75 for adults and $20 for kids 12 and younger ( limit 2 children per adult ) and will feature many Shaw's favorites including a Grand Hot Buffet with scrambled eggs, caramelized bacon, mini-crab cakes, Belgian waffle station, shucked oysters and desserts. Reservations are recommended; call 847-517-2722.
—On Father's Day, French restaurant Bistronomic, 840 N. Wabash Ave., will offer seasonal brunch and dinner options. The holiday brunch offerings consist of a mimosa for $15 and a two-course brunch meal for $27, which includes any appetizer and entree from the brunch menu. For Father's Day dinner, a three-course menu with one choice from the Small Plates, Large Plates and Dessert sections will be available for $44 per person and is created from the dinner menu. Call 312-944-8400 or visit bistronomic.net .
—At the recent Wingfest Chicago, a panel voted Take Me Out's Hotties the Best Overall Wing, Output Lounge's Sweet/Spicy as the Most Original, and Viand Bar & Kitchen's Spicy Spring the wing with the Best Kick. The event was held in the St. Michael's in Old Town parking lot.
—Magnolia Bakery, 108 N. State St., is showing its support of the LGBT community with the Pride Cupcake. It's a classic chocolate or vanilla cupcake topped with celebratory rainbow decorations and confetti. Cupcakes are $3.50 each, and will be available at the store June 19-29 or through pre-order by calling 312-246-7777.
—On Thursday, June 25, the Latin-focused Carnivale, 702 W. Fulton Market, will hold "Dessert, Drag and Cabaret" at 9:30 p.m. The evening, hosted by Aly Bockler of You & Me This Morning and Angi Taylor of 103.5 KISS—FM, will feature the talents of Natasha Douglas, Tila Von Twirl, Ray Ray Sunshine, Switch Boi Wonder, Siren Jinx, and DJ AJ Dubbz & Carla Starla. The show is for those 21 and over, and tickets are $30; visit CarnivaleChicago/features.
—The Green City Market Junior Board will present the "Meet the Market" summer series Thursday, June 25, 6-8 p.m., with a pizza and cocktail party on the patio at The Duck Inn, 2701 S. Eleanor St. Chef Jared Batson of Nomad Food Company will park his wood-fired oven pizza truck on the street and sling freshly-baked pizzas covered with fresh produce from Growing Power urban farm—free—for all at the event. There is a $10 suggested donation. Visit the Facebook event to RSVP.
—Piccolo Sogno, James Beard Foundation and Bon Appetit Presents Chicago Gourmet are hosting "Gourmet in the Garden" ( a Friends of James Beard benefit ) at Piccolo Sogno, 464 N. Halsted St., on Saturday, June 27, 1-4 p.m. Items will include wild-boar croquettes, razor clams alla Milanese and assorted pizzas, among other items. Tickets are $50 ( including tax and gratuity ); visit GourmetInTheGarden.Eventbrite.com .
—Labriola Ristorante & Cafe, 535 N. Michigan Ave., and Stan's Donut & Coffee ( two Chicago locations ) are sending two winners and their guests to see the Grateful Dead in concert at Soldier Field on Saturday, July 4. Stop by either of the Stan's Donuts locations or Labriola from through Monday, June 29, and try one of the limited-time Grateful Dead specials to automatically be entered to win.
—On Saturday, June 27, The Chardonnay Run ( www.thechardonnayrun.com/ ), a national 5k wine-racing series, will take place at Grant Park, 337 E. Randolph St. The Chardonnay Run is an athletic social event where racers are rewarded with wine at the finish line, but there will also be food trucks and live music. Start times are 5, 5:30 and 6 p.m.
—Ampersand will host "AmperBash," the eatery's grand opening, on Saturday, June 27, 6-10 p.m. at 4845 N. Damen Ave. Ampersand Wine Bar Chef Darren McGraw will host a neighborhood grand-opening wine walk, presented by the Lincoln Square Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce and Greater Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce. Tickets are $25; visit amperbash.chirrpy.com .
—The 14th AlphaBeer will take place Saturday, June 27, 6-9 p.m., at A. J. Hudson's Public House, 3801 N. Ashland Ave. This event ( with 26 different beers, one representing each letter of the alphabet ) will spotlight "Women in Beer," and will take place in a bar that a woman co-owns. Tickets are $50 each, or $250 for a table of six; visit AlphaBeer.com .
—Windy City RibFest in Uptown will take place July 3-5 at Lawrence Avenue and Broadway. In addition to slabs, libations and music, there will also be arts & crafts and kids' activity areas ( art, games, inflatables, etc. ). Rib vendors are Aussom Aussie Australian BBQ, BBQ King Smokehouse, Chicago BBQ Company, Arkansas' Porky Chicks BBQ, Sweet Baby Ray's and Texas Lightning BBQ. Visit WindyCityRibfest.com .
—Pinstripes Chicago, 435 E. Illinois St., is hosting a four-course dinner overlooking the Chicago River for the Fourth of July. Items include antipasto-and-cheese platter, market salad, filet mignon trio or pine nut-crusted halibut, and housemade gelato. Admission is $49 per person ( not including alcohol, tax or gratuity ). Reservations are required; visit http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1644856.
—More than a dozen local restaurants will fire up their grills when Roscoe Village Burger Fest returns for its sixth year on Saturday-Sunday, July 11-12, 11 a.m.-10 p.m., on Belmont and Damen avenues. Judges will include Doug Sohn of Hot Doug's fame, ABC-7's Janet Davies and another to be announced. The music line-up includes New Jersey alt-rockers The Smithereens and Chicago electronic pop-rockers I Fight Dragons, among others. Visit RoscoeVillageBurgerFest.com .
—Bistronomic, 840 N. Wabash Ave., will offer a three-course gluten-free Bastille Day menu from Monday, July 13, to Sunday, July 19, during dinner for $39 per person. ( Bastille Day is July 14. ) The gluten-free menu is a remembrance to the period when flour was scarce and the French had to make do without bread because of high grain prices. Items include country pate and chicken-liver mousse, or oven-roasted summer carrot salad ( appetizers ); a duo of New York steak and steak tartare, or Faroe Island salmon ( entrees ); and Floating Island and Baked Alaska ( dessert ). Visit Bistronomic.net .
—Chicago's Best Summer WingFest—advertised as "a bigger and better version" of Chicago's Best WingFest—will be held Saturday, Sept. 5, 1-7 p.m., at the Bailey Auditorium, 1340 W. Washington St. Chicago's Best Summer WingFest will feature double the wing-slinging restaurants, live music, carnival games, a vendor market, craft beer and a full bar. Tickets for Chicago's Best Summer WingFest ( $40 ) will go on sale Wed., June 24, at 12 p.m; visit www.WingFest.net .
—After a short period of closing for an overhaul, Embeya, 564 W. Randolph St., has unveiled a new menu. Highlights include seared tuna with roasted beets, Thai chili, coconut and mint; poached halibut with mini fumet, coconut and heart of palm; Peking-style duck with blood-orange hoisin and spring-pea green curry; and ganache with whole-wheat graham cracker and miso-caramel ice cream. Call 312-612-5640.
—Originally debuting as a neighborhood bar on Clark Street in 2007, an entirely new iteration of Villains Chicago officially returns for business this summer with a 4,000-square-foot South Loop location at 730 S. Clark St. Executive Chef Dennis Stover ( Vie, The Publican, Longman & Eagle, Big Star, HotChocolate ) takes the helm in the kitchen with American fare, alongside spirits director and head bartender Nick Salazar ( Billy Sunday, Yusho ) and General Manager Marco Silva. See VillainsChicago.com .
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