Banchet Winners Announced For 'Best Chef,' 'Best Mixologist' & More

Giuseppe Tentori of GT Fish & Oyster and Sepia's Josh Pearson.

It was a big night Friday for Chicago's restaurant community as the annual Grand Chefs Gala took place at the Fairmont Hotel.

Benefiting the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, the event attracted many of the city's heaviest hitters for the prestigious Banchet Awards, which rewards top talent on the local dining scene.

In addition to the awards ceremony, restaurateurs Jimmy Bannos and Scott Harris were presented with the Founders Award. That achievement honors those who have significantly affected lives in a charitable or humanitarian way. Bannos and Harris also own The Purple Pig, which took home the Peoples' Choice award.

Here are the Banchet nominees and winners (which are indicated by **):

It's All About Brunch on 'G-Spot' Debut Show

Frontier Executive Chef Brian Jupiter delivers a solid, Southern-inspired brunch every weekend with dishes like Bananas Foster French Toast. (Photo: Frontier)

Soul 106.3 FM's The G-Spot featuring music industry legend George Daniels (of George's Music Room) and radio vet Caryn Lee debuted Sunday with 312DD as a featured guest.

We dished on some of the best brunches in Chicago, spotlighting Frontier in Noble Square and Wicker Park's Bangers & Lace.

Frontier was even generous enough to drop by the station during the show with a few fantastic items, driving my point home. We chowed down on powdered beignets with a rum apple dipping sauce; smothered steak with red-eye gravy, Anson Mills grits and Over Easy eggs; and blue crab Benedict with roasted tomatoes, cayenne Hollandaise and toasted English muffin.

Bonsoiree, EL Chefs Collab On 'Anti Restaurant Week Dinner'

Shin Thompson (left) of Bonsoiree and Phillip Foss of EL ideas.

Not every chef slash restaurateur in town is excited about Chicago Restaurant Week, taking place Feb. 17-26.

Bonsoiree's Shin Thompson and EL ideas' Phillip Foss are planning an Anti Restaurant Week Dinner smack dab in the middle of the annual event on Feb. 21, according to GrubStreet Chicago.

"Restaurant Week is based on your ability to add volume, and for a small restaurant like Phillip's or mine, there's no way to make $33 or $44 work for us doing the kind of menu we do," Thompson tells GrubStreet.

They're planning an elaborate multi-course meal at the BYOB Bonsoiree, and they're still working on the details. We were lucky to get a sneak preview of a couple of dishes Foss is planning to serve during a massively delicious 13-course dinner at his restaurant Wednesday.

Update on New Project Going into 33 Club Space

The former 33 Club interior will look entirely different when it reopens as a new concept. (Photo: 33 Club)

Back in November, 312DD broke the story that the guys behind The Boundary, Sweetwater and Trace secured the former 33 Club space to build one of their signature casual venues that combines decent bar fare with a sports bar atmosphere.

Now Chicago magazine's Dish has more info:

MJ Steakhouse's 'Secret' Menu Item . . .

The Killer B at Michael Jordan's Steak House (Photo: Michael Jordan's Steak House)

And speaking of Michael Jordan's Steak House, the Mag Mile resto has just introduced a secret, off-menu, late-night special.

They're calling it the Killer B—which is available by request only and served weeknights after 10pm. For $19, "insiders" get a bacon and blue cheese topped burger, sandwiched between two pieces of signature garlic bread.

MJ, Bill Kim Team Up For Slam Dunk Asian Spot

Now, this is a dream team we can appreciate!

Bill Kim (Belly Shack, Urban Belly) is teaming up with Michael Jordan's Cornerstone Restaurant Group (Michael Jordan's Steakhouse) for a new Asian BBQ concept going into the former one sixtyblue space in the West Loop.

Belly Q—with plans to open later this spring—promises to be all that, as the press release I got Tuesday morning indicates:

The Gage Transforms into a 'Blind Tiger'

Yep, that's a "blind" tiger right there!

Waaaaaay back in the day, there were sophisticated, black-tie speakeasies and there were seedy, illicit speakeasies. These were called Blind Tigers—with the tiger serving as a ruse—which sound a lot more fun than the ones we've heard about.

To school everyone on what they were like, The Gage once again opens its lower-level lounge for the Downstairs bash. The party promises to be a little risque, with some pretty naughty surprises you'll just have to find out about on your own.

Where You Should Be Dining . . . NOW

Bread & Wine's duck confit pierogi, with pickled red onion and herb crème fraiche. (Photo: Bread & Wine)

It might be the dead of winter in Chicago, but that's not stopping a number of restaurants from opening this month and in February.

So I stopped by The U's You & Me This Morning to rap with host Jeanne Sparrow about some of the most anticipated new spots, including red-hot Tavernita in River North and the sexy Storefront Company in Bucktown/Wicker Park.

But wait, there's more!