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Alan Carter

  • SOFA Chicago- See this show!

  • Chicago Gourmet- a celebration of food and wine

    If anyone ever needed proof that Chicago is one of the world's

  • Onesti Dinner Club- a Chazzy night in the burbs

    Chazz Palminteri dropped by the Onesti Dinner Club in west suburban St. Charles tonight to help kick off their updated menu and bring some publicity to the upscale restaurant. Mr. Palminteri, fresh off a 2 week Chicago run of his one-man show "A Bronx Tale", and a friend of owner Ron Onesti, seemed a bit subdued during his brief appearance, undoubtedly due to the rigors of live performance, but it didn't really matter because the joint was jumpin'.

    St. Charles mayor Don Dewitte, Ron Onesti, and Chazz Palminteri (l to r)
  • A foray into 4 stars in the ‘burbs

    Sometimes you just want to be pampered, and a new luxury boutique hotel in the western suburbs is doing its best to spoil you rotten. The Hotel Arista, which opened in September, offers high end accommodations and dining in the land of strip malls and big box retailers.

  • Chicago Sinfonietta MLK concert

    As I watched the inauguration of President Barak Obama, a thought came to mind regarding the previous night's Chicago Sinfonietta annual Martin Luther King concert.

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  • One of a Kind show at Merchandise Mart

    By Alan Carter

     

    This last weekend, Dec. 4-7, the Merchandise Mart in Chicago hosted the annual One-of-a-Kind show. 500 artists jammed onto the 8th floor plus another 50 on the 7th made for an exhausting and occasionally frustrating excursion in holiday shopping.

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  • No couch potatoes for this SOFA

    by Alan Carter

    This was quite a week for Chicago. On Tuesday, the city hosted the celebratory rally for President-elect Barak Obama. This weekend one of the world's premiere art events was held at Navy Pier. SOFA is the acronym for the rather awkwardly named Sculpure, Obect, and Functional Art Exhibit, now in its 15th year in Chicago.

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  • Barrington Concours d'Elegance car show at Arlington Park

    By Alan Carter
     
    Arlington Park racetrack in Arlington Heights was home to a different kind of horsepower this weekend as it hosted the 2nd annual Barrington Concours d'Elegance, a showcase for classic antique cars and motorcycles. This was a car show the same way Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew was just another race horse. A truly remarkable collection of 100 vintage autos and bikes was on dislplay, proudly reflecting decades of creative design and technology.

  • Ravinia- where’s the CSO?

    Ravinia. That wondrous music park in Highland Park just north of Chicago. It's very name evokes an almost fairy tail setting. For decades it's been the summer home of the magnificent Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Where else could you sit under the stars, drink in hand and hear the powerful CSO thunder through Mahler or delicately lace its way through Mozart? At 10 bucks a pop for lawn seating, it's a true bargain and a perfect way to spend a summer evening. You could even buy a 10 ticket pass, called Classical Grass, and hear them for even less.

  • Bicycles part 2- an epiphany of sorts

    I've been riding my bike for around 7 weeks now, pedaling around 20 to 25  miles a day, weather permitting, except for weekends. I have to stock up on  nachos and beer sometime, after all. I've gotten pretty comfortable with it and  haven't had any major problems. One minor spill, but that was just to satisfy  the guy at the bike store who told me there are 2 kinds of riders- those that  have fallen and those that will. I guess now I'm part of that fraternity.