A taste of Paris in the Loop

Heather Terhune, executive chef at Atwood Cafe (Photo: Atwood Cafe)


Heather Terhune, cuisine queen at Atwood Cafe (1 W. Washington St., 312-368-1900), is one of my favorite local chefs because she loves to have fun with her food.

And her latest creation, American in Paris, is no exception with its quirky offerings of fantastic spring fare. Highlights of her menu include soup au pistou with spring vegetables and rich chicken broth; Coriander-crusted butterfish with fingerling potatoes, French green beans, grape tomatoes and a warm niçoise olive-lemon-caper vinaigrette; oven-roasted Georgia quail with garlic-herb butter, mashed potatoes, sweet onion jus and crispy onion straws; and a heavenly-sounding vanilla bean crème brûlée.

It's $45 per person (with wine pairing for each course, an additional $20), and only available through April, so get on it.

A 'Star' is born and other openings

As you can see, there's never a shortage of hot new restaurants and bars in Chicago. There's quite a few openings this week that may pique your interest:

Formerly known as Jay's Amore, Viaggio (1330 W. Madison St., 312-829-3333) opened yesterday in the West Loop. After shutting down for a few weeks for renovation and overhauling the menu, they're now ready to serve a contemporary menu of Italian classics.

Starfruit Cafe (1745 W. Division St., 773-328-2900), boasting froyo parfaits, smoothies and frozen treats made from kefir, opens today in Ukrainian Village.

And Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar (25 E. Ohio St., 312-329-9463) actually opened last Friday. It's a national chain, but don't let that scare you away.

A toast to Tax Day . . . going away

Well, it's here. Tax Day, that is. It's time to celebrate with a cocktail or two, or three . . .

Get a jumpstart on some fabulous finds for Mother's Day tonight at the tony Tory Burch boutique (66 E. Walton St., 312-280-0010). Author Melanie Charlton Fascietelli will be there to celebrate the launch of her new tome, "Shop Your Closet," and all guests get 20 percent off on all purchases. Cocktails, light appetizers, but they'll need your RSVP for entry at kelly@michiganavemag.com. 6-8pm. Free.

Don't pull your hair out about your tax woes. Instead head to Juicy Wine Co. (694 N. Milwaukee Ave., 312-492-6620) for its fourth-annual 1040 Tasting. Taste 40 different shackle-breaking wines and swirl against the machine to seething jams from DJ Fiscal Response. 5:30-7:30pm. $10.

Pops For Champagne (601 N. State St., 312-266-7677) hosts its annual 1040 Tax Relief Celebration, which includes bubbly and food specials for $10.40, including three premium sparkling wines: Rosell Boher Brut Rose from Mendoza, Argentina, a North American exclusive at Pops; Argyle 2002 Brut; and Ruggeri & C. Prosecco. Also, guests may enjoy a discounted cover charge to the Jazz Club ($10.40 for two) to listen to the Chris Sargent Trio.

CityScape Bar (350 W. Mart Plaza Center Dr., 312-836-5000) is really offering some relief with a complimentary appetizer buffet from 5-7pm and drink specials all night. Go for the Effen IRS Blue Lemonade Martini, In The Red Bloody Mary, In The Black Russian or the Deduction Draft (Samuel Adams Draft)—all for $4.15.

And if you're still in need of relief by tomorrow, make your way over to Martini Park (151 W. Erie St., 312-640-0577) for Tax Bash 2008. The Karaoke Dokies will perform popular money-themed songs (“The Taxman” by the Beatles, “Take The Money & Run” by Steve Miller Band). The karaoke starts at 8pm, and there will be a $500 “refund” prize for the best performance of the evening. Judges will be, ahem, Amanda Puck from X/A PR, LeeAnn Trotter (entertainment reporter for NBC-5) and 312 Dining Diva (!!!). There is also some crazy rumor going around that we're supposed to perform too. I think I'll suddenly get a case of laryngitis. . .

Goose Island brew pub loses lease

The Stew reports that Goose Island will close the Clybourn Avenue brew pub location by year's end. They lost their lease. Wow. Just wow.

RSVP list closes today at 5pm . . .

. . .for the KRS-One event happening tomorrow evening at Blu 47 (4655 Martin Luther King Dr., 773-536-6000), the sleek, soul food-focused spot in Bronzeville.

I was going to write something about it tomorrow morning, but I just got word that they're shutting down the guest list because it's such a hot event.

The former frontman for seminal hip-hop group Boogie Down Productions, KRS-One is in town to host a dinner reception that will also serve as a wake-up call to our communities with a Stop the Violence message. It's from 7-10pm, with comp cocktails, dinner and music served up by DJ World.

RSVP@richmondgrouponline.com to get in.

Wind down with wine after tax time

More than ever this week you're probably trying to save some dough, especially after being in tax preparation hell. These budget-conscious wine events should put you in good spirits:

Every Monday in April La Pomme Rouge (108 W. Kinzie St., 312-245-9555) dedicates its Dinner and a Movie! night to fun 1980s Brat Pack films. Get there at 7pm for one of my all-time favorites, "The Breakfast Club," starring Molly Ringwald, Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson and Ally Sheedy. You'll also get half-priced bottles of wine when you order dinner.

This week marks the fourth-year anniversary for Green Zebra (1460 W. Chicago Ave., 312-243-7100), the hip vegetarian-focused spot in West Town. They're doing it up big with a special four-course prix-fixe menu and wine pairings for $4 a glass.

Tonight's the second session in the six-part Global Grapes Series at Just Grapes (560 W. Washington Blvd., 312-627-9463). Guests will get the chance to learn about Cabernet and taste four to six different wines. 6-7pm. $35.

And as always, cool, Euro-style Taste Food & Wine (1506 W. Jarvis Ave., 773-761-3663) in Jarvis Square hosts its weekly Monday night tasting event where shoppers get the opportunity to sample specially selected vino and/or spirits. 6-7:30pm. Free.

Nacional 27 chef resigns

(Photo: Laurie Proffitt Photography)


HUGE news for the local dining community: Randy Zweiban—who's been the executive chef at Nacional 27 (325 W. Huron St., 312-664-2727) since it opened in 1998—just announced his resignation from the highly acclaimed Nuevo Latin restaurant. He's moving on to work on opening his own downtown restaurant, according to one of my Ultimate Insiders.

Bon Appetit called Zweiban's modern Latin cooking "a bold combination of flavors," so look for him to continue his stride when it opens. We'll be following this one closely.

Zweiban is one of several high-profile chefs breaking off to do their own thing this year. Graham Elliot Bowles, the former chef for Avenues (108 E. Superior St., 312-573-6754) in Peninsula Chicago, is set to open a "bistronomic" eatery by May 13. "Top Chef" finalist Dale Levitski plans to open Town & Country at Canal and Monroe this summer. And "Food Network Challenge" contestant Jason Paskewitz is also working very hard to open his Jackson Park Bar & Grill (444 N. Wabash Ave., 312-644-7200) by late April.

Coming at ya . . .

. . . on May 15 is Salute (44 E. Superior St.), an Italian wine bar and eatery opening right near the Peninsula Chicago (108 E. Superior St., 312-337-2888). There's also going to be a 2,000-square-foot party space right next to the restaurant as well as two really nice outdoor patio spaces you'll want to check out when everything else gets crowded this summer. Developing . . .