Lite Bites: What Your Favorite Chefs & Mixologists Are Up To Around Town This Week

Your first look at Bub City, which houses Paul McGee's Three Dots and a Dash on the lower level. (Photo: Bub City)

Raise your glass . . .

• Can you believe Quartino's been around for seven years?! It feels like it just opened a few years ago. To celebrate, chef/partner John Coletta's doing $7 specials of all the food on the menu, plus two wines by the bottle. But you'll have to wait; the deal only happens on Jan. 7. That's perfect timing because right after the holidays, we'll all be trying to save those $$$.

• Three Dots and a Dash maestro Paul McGee previews the cocktail list of what to expect when the subterranean spot has its soft open this weekend. We're really excited about the frozen Mexican Firing Squad special of Corozon blanco tequila, pomegranate, lime and angostura.

Alpana Singh's Boarding House Has An Opening Date

Master Sommelier Alpana Singh

For those dreaming of the day they can finally get their mitts on The Boarding House's signature pork tots, the wine-focused restaurant finally has an opening date: Dec. 20.

Owned in part by master sommelier Alpana Singh, the restaurant has been one of the hotly anticipated openings of the season.

According to Singh, the restaurant will "soft open (Dec. 13) with the Bar & Cellar. (It) will be available without reservations."

That's the 100-seat, first floor bar and the intimate, 75-seat subterranean cellar lounge. In both areas, guests can experience Singh's 20 wine selections by the glass as well as craft cocktails and beers alongside a modest menu by Executive Chef Christian Gosselin.

Stephanie Izard's 'Little Goat Bread' Opens Inside Little Goat On Dec. 13 in the West Loop

Chef Stephanie Izard of the Goat empire. (Photo: Girl & the Goat)

Fans of the highly personable Stephanie Izard are going to have to wait until the end of the month to finally check out contemporary diner concept Little Goat, but they'll get a sneak preview when Little Goat Bread opens Thursday.

Here are some facts about the venue within a venue:

Is This The Best Grilled Cheese in Chicago?! Food & Wine Says Yes . . .

grahamwich's grilled cheese. (Photo: grahamwich)

A chilly day like today is ideal for chowing down on a luscious grilled cheese bubbling with brie, cheddar or pepper jack, and according to Food & Wine, the best spot to snap one up in Chicago is grahamwich:

There’s Something About Sherry . . .

A flight of sherries at Vera. (Photo: Vera)

Sherry's no longer exiled to the back of menus as wine directors and bartenders have given the Spanish fortified wine new life.

From BIN 36 to Vera, several Chicago bars and restaurants put sherry back in the spotlight this season . . .

Acadia's Ryan McCaskey Insists That He Has No Plans To Open Additional Venues

Ryan McCaskey, owner/chef of Acadia (Photo: Anthony Tahlier for Acadia)

According to Acadia publicist Jenn Galdes, this is not true:

"(Ryan) McCaskey's long-term goal is to make Acadia the cornerstone of his restaurant empire and branch out into more casual endeavors. 'I want to open up a bar and a more casual spot. A dingy clubby little restaurant. I want to open a breakfast/lunch place. Right now I'm kind of in the mood to open up a killer bar with family meal food,' he says."

Apparently the quote originated in a mock article posted on Eater Chicago on Monday. A candidate for the open editor position submitted the story following a "mock" interview with the chef/owner, and for some odd reason, they decided to publish it.

Spread Joy & Cheer To Those Less Fortunate At These Restaurant And Bar Holiday Events

From BIN 36's annual Bubble Bath sparkling wine party to the food drive at Publican, here's where you can spread a little joy:

• A number of the city's top pastry chefs compete in the annual Holiday Rock & Roll benefit at Cafe des Architectes. The likes of Dana Cree (Blackbird), Meg Gaulus (NoMI) and Amanda Rockman (Balena) will present their modern interpretations of the Bûche de Noël, a traditional French holiday dessert. Yours truly will serve as one of the media judges. There will also be savory appetizers, punch bowl cocktails and plenty of holiday jingles from Rod Tuffcurls and The Bench Press. Proceeds from the $35 ticket benefit Share Our Strength. 6-8pm Dec. 10.

• Indulge in three hours of all the sparkling wine you can gulp down at BIN 36's annual Bubble Bath. In addition to more than 75 bubblies, you'll get appetizers and enough desserts to send you into sugar shock. A portion of the proceeds—as well as retail sales through Dec. 31—benefit Lincoln Park Zoo. 6-9pm Dec. 12. Get the $48 tickets right here.

• The decadent turtle pie at Joe's Stone Crab is the December feature for the Pie It Forward program. Order a slice and $1 benefits the Greater Chicago Food Depository.

Lite Bites: What Your Favorite Chefs & Mixologists Are Up To Around Town

Tad Carducci and Paul Tanguay of the Tippling Bros. (Photo: Mercadito Hospitality)

Countdown to Christmas cocktails . . . and more:

• Little Market Brasserie's set to open later this month, and we're especially excited about its innovative new beverage program. Of course that program's from the dynamic duo The Tippling Bros.—who are also behind the cocktails at Mercadito and Tavernita. At LMB, they're doing what they've dubbed as "charged cocktails" with five different charger (or soda) flavors made from fresh juices, exotic teas, fruit peels, flowers and herbs. The flavors will be Meyer lemon sour, hibiscus vanilla, smoked salted cream soda, cornflower yuzu and blood orange cinnamon, and they may be combined with the guest's spirit of choice (e.g. gin, vodka, tequila, whiskey). The cocktails will be priced $10-$14. On the menu also will be a number of stirred or shaken specialties such as a Champagne Cobbler, Ginger Smash, and Bengal Sidecar of chai-infused cognac, curacao, lemon, blood orange, and a Bengali Tiger IPA Float.

• Curtis Duffy, Michael Muser and the team at Grace have to be ecstatic and anxious at the same time. The long-awaited, fine-dining restaurant finally has an opening date: Dec. 11.

• Save Chrissy Camba! The Bar Pastoral exec chef was sent packing her knives on "Top Chef" last week, but here's a way to bring her back on the show. Don't forget that she was the only Chicago chef on this season!

• Speaking of "Top Chef" contestants, former fiery contender Heather Terhune of Sable Kitchen & Bar has teamed up with Falafill to create an exclusive Mediterranean treat, the December Chefs for Charity Wrap. For every wrap purchased, $1 will be donated to Purple Asparagus, a charity dedicated to nutritional education for families.