Chicago French Market presented with Friends of Downtown’s “Welcome to Downtown” Award

Non-profit civic group Friends of Downtown presented Chicago French Market (131 N. Clinton St., Chicago; 312-575-0306) with the “Welcome to Downtown” award at the organization’s annual awards presentation Wednesday, May 5 at ZED 451 in Chicago’s River North neighborhood.

Accepting the award on behalf of Chicago French Market, U.S. Equities Realty and the Bensidoun family were Jennifer Siragusa of U.S. Equities Realty and Chicago French Market manager Leslie Cahill.

“Chicago French Market, U.S. Equities Realty and the Bensidoun Family are honored for the recognition by Friends of Downtown,” said Sebastien Bensidoun of the Bensidoun family, owners and operators of Chicago French Market and other farmers’ and French markets throughout the Chicago suburbs and Paris metro area. “We truly feel we have been welcomed to downtown Chicago.”

Other award winners included “Coolest Things,” The Ledge at Skydeck Chicago at Willis Tower (also managed by U.S. Equities Realty); “Best Commemoration,” Burnham Plan Centennial; “Quality of Life,” CTA Bus Tracker; “Best New Open Space,” The Riverwalk Extension; “Life Boat,” Water Taxis; “Best Restoration,” Sullivan Center Ironwork; “Best New Office Building,” 300 N. LaSalle; “Best New Building,” Trump International Hotel & Tower; and “Best Ripple Effect,” Aqua.

Founded in 1981, Friends of Downtown is a not-for-profit civic group that promotes intelligent planning, superior design and awareness of important issues affecting Chicago’s downtown area. Friends of Downtown creates awareness of important issues affecting downtown, enabling citizens to develop their understanding and voice their opinions of Chicago’s physical and social environment. For more information on Friends of Downtown, call (312) 458-9454 or visit http://www.friendsofdowntown.org/.

Chicago French Market is a European-inspired market offering an array of local produce, meats, seafood, breads, pastries, cheese and wine, chocolates, pastas, artisan-made goods, flowers and a seating area for customers. Chicago French Market’s 30 vendors stay open year-round, six days per week, and is located within the new MetraMarket development at 131 N. Clinton St. (between Washington and Randolph Streets). For more information, visit http://www.chicagofrenchmarket.com/.

Green City Market's 12th Outdoor Season Opened Today

Opening Grand Celebration May 15

 

Chicago's Green City Market (GCM) opened for its 12th outdoor season today (May 12) and is set for a lively grand opening celebration this Saturday (May 15). In addition to the wealth of farmers and producers, there will be a number of special activities during the opening celebration.

n 7:30 a.m. – Guided tour

n 8:00 a.m. – “Container Gardening” workshop taught by Edible

Gardens manager and organic gardener Jeanne Pinsof-Nolan

n 8:30 a.m. – Guided tour of Edible Gardens in Farm-in-the-Zoo led by

Jeanne Pinsof-Nolan

n 9:30 a.m. – Savor the Seasons Lettuce Fest

§         Featuring chefs from Mon Ami Gabi, Big Bowl, Foodlife, Frankie’s and Café Ba Ba Reeba

n 10:30 a.m. – Chef demos with James Beard award winning chefs Carrie

Nahabedian of NAHA and Sarah Stegner of Prairie Grass Café and

Prairie Fire.

§         NAHA chefs Carrie Nahabedian and Craig Harzewski will collaborate with Sarah Stegner and George Bumbaris (Prairie Grass Café and Prairie Fire) on demos featuring local goat cheese, rhubarb, duck eggs, bacon and bread from Bennison’s Bakery. Pastry chef Harzewski will demo making Goat Cheese Ice Cream topped with Rhubarb Compote made by Prairie Grass. The collaborative demos also will feature a grilled cheese, bacon and duck egg sandwich and a salad of spring greens, asparagus and herbs – all ingredients are available at GCM.

New this year:

Green City Market boasts an impressive list of 55 vendors for its 2010 outdoor season with two new vendors: Dietzler Farm and Becker Lane Organic Farm.

A family-run beef operation, Dietzler Farm is located in Elkhorn, WI. They raise a mixture of Angus and Hereford cows that are custom slaughtered and dry-aged for 28-days.  They are awaiting confirmation of their Food Alliance certification.

Becker Lane Organic Farms is Green City Market's first Iowa farm, located in Dyersville, just north of Dubuque. Jude Becker's farm has been in his family since 1850. He raises Heritage Breeds Cheshire White and Berkshire pigs. The animals graze on 100 percent Certified Organic pastures and are supplemented with acorns, corn, and hay in the winter. 

Bite Into a Juicy Angus Burger for National Burger Month at Birch River Grill

Join Birch River Grill (75 W. Algonquin Rd., Arlington Heights, Ill.; 847-427-4242) in celebrating National Burger Month every Friday in May. Enjoy a half-priced All Natural Certified 8 oz. Angus Burger with a choice of Wisconsin Cheddar, Swiss, Provolone, American or Jack Cheese with lettuce, tomato or onion on a pretzel bun served with sweet potato fries or regular fries.



Birch River Grill is a contemporary restaurant that serves as a showcase for hearty American cuisine. It is open seven days a week and accepts all major credit cards. Complimentary parking is available. Birch River Grill is open for breakfast Monday – Friday, 6 a.m. – 11 a.m., Saturday and Sunday, 7 a.m. – 11 a.m.; Lunch hours are Monday – Sunday, 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.; Dinner hours are Monday - Thursday and Sunday, 5 p.m. - 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 5 p.m. - 11 p.m. The Birch River Grill Lounge menu is limited from 3 p.m. – 5 p.m. The Birch River Grill Lounge is open one hour later than the restaurant daily.



For Reservations please call (847) 427-4242 or visit www.birchrivergrill.com. Tweet them at @birchrivergrill

Photo: Getty Images

2010 James Beard Foundation Winners Announced

Reprint from DineWise column featured by StreetWise
By Lee Barrie and Cindy Kurman

Writing restaurant features for DineWise has its perks. We’ve met a lot of wonderful restaurateurs and have eaten some tremendous meals. Along the way, we’ve been fortunate to attend a lot of fabulous events, including this week’s 2010 James Beard Foundation Awards, the nation’s most prestigious recognition program honoring professionals in the food and beverage industries.

Chicago can be proud as it takes home a number of Beard awards including two Journalism Awards, one for Multimedia Food Feature, Kevin Pang, Chicagotribune.com for “The Cheeseburger Show;” another for Newspaper Feature Writing went to Cliff Doeksen, Chicago Reader, “The Real American Pie.”

The Outstanding Service Award went to Chicago’s Alinea, chef/owner Grant Achatz. Koren Grieveson, Avec chef, took home the award for Best Chef, Great Lakes.

Whether or not nominees took home an award, being recognized by the James Beard Foundation is an honor for chefs, restaurants and journalists who cover them.

Chicago’s nominees represented our best, Michael Carlson, Schwa; Arun Sampanthavivat, Arun’s; Mindy Segal, Hot Chocolate, and Bruce Sherman, North Pond.

Journalists nominated included WLS-TV’s Hungry Hound Steve Dolinsky; Mike Sula, Chicago Reader; Kevin Pang, Chicago Tribune, and Monica Eng, Chicago Tribune. Rick Bayless was nominated as a TV Food Personality for his PBS series, Mexico One Plate at a Time.

Restaurateurs are known for mentoring young professionals interested in the business. This year’s theme embraced the idea at all levels. In addition to the luminaries, the function showcased up-and-comers at the post-event reception including Priscilla Satkoff (Salpicon), serving Miniature Tostadas with Shredded Pork, Chorizo and Roasted Tomato-Chipotle Sauce, and Curtis Duffy (Avenues) who showcased Alaskan King Crab with Cucumber Consomme, Kalamansi, Floral Cream, and Lemon Balm.

During a ceremony hosted by Lidia Bastianich, Alton Brown and Wolfgang Puck at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall, awards in the Restaurant, Chef, Design and Graphics categories were presented, as well as a number of special achievement awards including Who's Who of Food and Beverage in America, America's Classics, Lifetime Achievement, and Humanitarian of the Year. Winners of the Foundation's Book, Broadcast Media and Journalism awards categories were presented the evening before, on Sunday, May 2, 2010, at the annual Media and Book Awards dinner at Espace in New York City, hosted by Kelly Choi of Bravo's Top Chef Masters and Andrew Zimmern of the Travel Channel's Bizarre Foods.

A complete list of all award-winners can be found on http://www.jbfawards.com/.

Highlights from this year's list of winners include:

Outstanding Chef: Tom Colicchio (Craft, NYC)

Outstanding Restaurant: Daniel (NYC, Chef/Owner: Daniel Boulud, Owner: Joel Smilow)

Rising Star Chef: Timothy Hollingsworth (The French Laundry, Yountville, CA)
Best New Restaurant: Marea (NYC, Chef/Partner: Michael White, Partner: Chris Cannon)

In addition, special achievement award honorees included:

Who's Who of Food and Beverage in America: Leah Chase (Chef/Owner, Dooky Chase Restaurant, New Orleans, LA); Jessica B. Harris (Author and Historian, CA); Paul C.P. McIlhenny (President/CEO, McIlhenny Company, Avery Island, LA); David Rockwell (Founder/CEO, Rockwell Group, New York, NY); L. Timothy Ryan (President, Culinary Institute of America, New York, NY); Susan Spicer (Chef/Owner, Bayona, New Orleans, LA)

America's Classics: Al's French Frys (owners: Bill Bissonette and Lee Bissonette, South Burlington, VT); The Bright Star (Owners: Jimmy Koikos and Nicky Koikos, Bessemer, AL); Calumet Fisheries (Owners: The Kotlick and Toll Families, Chicago, IL); Gustavus Inn (Owners: JoAnn and David Lesh, Gustavus, AK); Mary & Tito's Cafe (Owners: Mary Gonzales and Antoinette Knight, Albuquerque, NM)

Lifetime Achievement Award: Ariane and Michael Batterberry (Founders, Food and Wine and Food Arts)
Humanitarian of the Year: Wayne Kostroski (Founder, Taste of the NFL)

The Book, Broadcast Media and Journalism awards categories were presented on Sunday, May 2, 2010, at the annual Media and Book Awards dinner at Espace in New York City. Highlights included:

Cookbook of the Year: The Country Cooking of Ireland by Colman Andrews (Chronicle Books)
Cookbook Hall of Fame: A Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden
M.F.K. Fisher Distinguished Writing Award: Francine Prose, Saveur, "Faith and Bacon"

Television Show, In Studio or Fixed Location: French Food at Home with Laura Calder, Host: Laura Calder, Network: Food Network Canada, Producer: Johanna Eliot
Television Show, On Location: Chefs A' Field: King of Alaska, Host: Rick Moonen, Network: PBS, Producers: Heidi Hanson and Chris Warner
TV Food Personality: Andrew Zimmern, Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern, Network: The Travel Channel
Newspaper Food Section: The Washington Post, Joe Yonan
Craig Claiborne Distinguished Restaurant Reviews: Jonathan Gold, LA Weekly, "Sauced," "Hot Birria, Cold Cerveza," "Hare Today"
Website Focusing on Food, Beverage, Restaurant, or Nutrition: Chow.com, Jane Goldman
Food Blog: Serious Eats, Ed Levine, Seriouseats.com

Industry leaders from across the country attended the highly-anticipated festivities, which celebrated this year's Awards theme of "The Legacy Continues," a tribute to the enduring impact of the standards of culinary excellence set by James Beard himself and all the talented professionals who keep those traditions alive. In a nod to this year's theme, each of the Outstanding Chef winners honored over the years, including Mario Batali, Thomas Keller, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Daniel Boulud, Nancy Silverton, Rick Bayless, Grant Achatz, Alfred Portale, Dan Barber, Larry Forgione and David Bouley, served as award presenters throughout the evening at the Awards Ceremony on Monday, May 3, 2010. At the Gala Reception immediately following the Awards Ceremony, guests enjoyed a dine-around gala prepared by notable chefs from across the country, each of whom was personally selected by a past Outstanding Chef winner.

Established in 1990, the James Beard Foundation Awards recognize culinary professionals for excellence and achievement in their fields and continue to emphasize the Foundation's mission: to celebrate, preserve, and nurture America's culinary heritage and diversity. The annual James Beard Foundation Awards honor the best and the brightest talents in the food and beverage industries, celebrating outstanding achievement in each of the following categories: Restaurant and Chef, Restaurant Design and Graphics, Books, Broadcast Media, Journalism, and special achievement awards. Each category has an individual Awards Committee made up of industry professionals who volunteer their time to oversee the policies, procedures, and selection of judges for their respective Awards program. All award winners receive a certificate and a bronze medallion engraved with the James Beard Foundation Awards insignia. There are no cash prizes.

The 2010 James Beard Foundation Awards are presented with support by the following companies: In Association Sponsors: All-Clad Metalcrafters, Visa Signature®; Premier Sponsors: Green and Black's® Organic Chocolate, Lenox Tableware and Gifts, Mercedes-Benz; Supporting Sponsors: The Coca-Cola Company, Delta Air Lines, Food Network NYC Wine and Food Festival, illy caffe North America, Inc., Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, Southern Wine and Spirits of New York, Stella Artois; Gala Reception Sponsors: Acqua Panna® Natural Spring Water, Beijing Tourism Administration, Ecolab, Food Network South Beach Wine and Food Festival, Pernod Ricard USA, Rums of Puerto Rico, S.Pellegrino® Sparkling Natural Mineral Water; Media Sponsor: The Wall Street Journal and with additional support from Chefwear.

About the James Beard Foundation

Founded in 1986, the James Beard Foundation is dedicated to celebrating, preserving, and nurturing America's culinary heritage and diversity in order to elevate the appreciation of our culinary excellence. A cookbook author and teacher with an encyclopedic knowledge about food, James Beard, who died in 1985, was a champion of American cuisine. He helped educate and mentor generations of professional chefs and food enthusiasts. Today, the Beard Foundation continues in the same spirit by administering a number of diverse programs that include educational initiatives, food industry awards, scholarships to culinary schools, and publications, and by maintaining the historic James Beard House in New York City's Greenwich Village as a "performance space" for visiting chefs. For more information, please visit http://www.jamesbeard.org/. Find insights on food at the James Beard Foundation's blog Delights & Prejudices. Join the James Beard Foundation on Facebook. Follow the James Beard Foundation on Twitter.

Photos of the May 2 Media & Cookbook Awards.
Photos of the May 3 Awards.

Photos:
Cindy Kurman, Kurman Communications and Lidia Bastianich, Felidia, Becco, Esca, and Del Posto
Grant Achatz, Alinea and Lee Barrie, Kurman Communications
Mindy Segal, Hot Chocolate and friend
Kevin Pang, Chicago Tribune and Andrew Zimmern, The Travel Channel
Koren Grieveson, Avec