Latest news with #LettuceEntertainYou
Axios
16-07-2025
- Business
- Axios
Chicago's $20 cocktail era may be coming to an end
Chicago restaurants and bars are adjusting the price of cocktails. The big picture: In some cases, drink prices have soared above the $20 threshold, but in recent weeks, high-profile restaurants, like Avli in River North, have announced they are modifying their cocktail menus, bringing them down to more reasonable prices like $14 or, in some cases, less. This trend is exemplified in Lettuce Entertain You's latest venture, Gus' Sip and Dip, which offers classic cocktails for $12. Reality check: The price reduction is not just altruistic. The strategy is to get customers to hang out longer and order more cocktails. The latest: Logan Square restaurant Daisies just announced it is opening an all-day cocktail bar, called The Radicle, in its old space on Milwaukee. It will open this fall with $10 aperitivo-style cocktails. The other side: Restaurants are hoping the strategy works because it's already been a rough year with increases in labor costs, plus many are paying much more for expenses like appliances and ingredients. While it's still just a handful of restaurants adjusting their cocktail prices, many others are putting more energy into happy hour menus, hoping to bring in customers during off hours.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Today in Chicago History: Tribune announces contest to build ‘world's most beautiful office building'
Here's a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on June 10, according to the Tribune's archives. Is an important event missing from this date? Email us. Weather records (from the National Weather Service, Chicago) High temperature: 98 degrees (1911) Low temperature: 42 degrees (1980) Precipitation: 2.94 inches (1967) Snowfall: None 175 years of the Chicago Tribune: How the newsroom — and city — has evolved since June 10, 1847 1847: The first copy of the Tribune was published, but no copies of that original exist. They were lost in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. 1922: The Tribune Tower design competition was announced as part of the newspaper's 75th birthday celebration. In the words of co-publishers Robert R. McCormick and Joseph Patterson, it was to be 'the world's most beautiful office building.' They offered $100,000 in prize money. First prize of $50,000 went to New York architects Raymond Hood and John Mead Howells, who designed a soaring Gothic skyscraper with a spectacular topside treatment. 1961: Bill Veeck, who bought the team in 1959, sold his Chicago White Sox holdings to Arthur Allyn Jr. Veeck returned as owner in 1975. The Rolling Stones in Chicago: A timeline of the band's 55-year fascination with the city's blues 1964: The Rolling Stones recorded in the United States for the first time, at Chess Records studios in Chicago. 1971: RJ Grunts — the first restaurant from Lettuce Entertain You — opened at 2056 Lincoln Park W., Chicago. Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises: How the Tribune reviewed 50 years of the restaurant group's concept debuts 'That might have been one of the worst restaurant names of all time,' Rich Melman, co-founder and chairman of the board of Lettuce Entertain You, told the Tribune in 2021. 'R was for Richard and J was for Jerry. He had a girlfriend Debbie, who was terrific, and her nickname was Piggy. She used to make these guttural sounds when she ate. That's where the name came from, the R and the J and the sound pigs make grunting.' Also in 1971: Ten people were killed and more than 100 injured when Amtrak's southbound City of New Orleans passenger train derailed near downstate Salem. 5 things you might not know about Chicago native Ted Kaczynski — the 'Unabomber' 1980: 'Unabomber' Ted Kaczynski struck again. Percy A. Wood, United Airlines president and chief operating officer, was injured after opening a book inside a package that had been left in his mailbox at his Lake Forest home. He suffered burns and lacerations to his face, body, left hand and left leg. In a coded entry in his journal dated Sept. 15, 1980, Kaczynski wrote, 'After complicated preparation I succeeded IN INJURING THE PRES. OF UNITED A.L. BUT HE WAS ONLY ONE OF A VAST ARMY OF PEEPLE WHO directly and indirectly are responsible for the JETS.' 2016: There was fear that Lionel Messi wouldn't play in the Copa América Group D match against Panama at Soldier Field because of a lower back injury. So when he entered during the 61st minute, the crowd erupted in cheers. 'Every time he touched the ball, it was hard to hear yourself think,' the Tribune reported. Vintage Chicago Tribune: Pelé, Hamm, Beckham, Rapinoe, Messi and more. When soccer's big names came to play Seven minutes later, Messi had his first goal for Argentina. Two more followed, for a hat trick, during his short appearance. Argentina won and advanced to the quarterfinals. Subscribe to the free Vintage Chicago Tribune newsletter, join our Chicagoland history Facebook group, stay current with Today in Chicago History and follow us on Instagram for more from Chicago's past. Have an idea for Vintage Chicago Tribune? Share it with Kori Rumore and Marianne Mather at krumore@ and mmather@
Chicago Tribune
10-06-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Today in Chicago History: Tribune announces contest to build ‘world's most beautiful office building'
Here's a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on June 10, according to the Tribune's archives. Is an important event missing from this date? Email us. Weather records (from the National Weather Service, Chicago) 175 years of the Chicago Tribune: How the newsroom — and city — has evolved since June 10, 18471847: The first copy of the Tribune was published, but no copies of that original exist. They were lost in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. 1922: The Tribune Tower design competition was announced as part of the newspaper's 75th birthday celebration. In the words of co-publishers Robert R. McCormick and Joseph Patterson, it was to be 'the world's most beautiful office building.' They offered $100,000 in prize money. First prize of $50,000 went to New York architects Raymond Hood and John Mead Howells, who designed a soaring Gothic skyscraper with a spectacular topside treatment. 1961: Bill Veeck, who bought the team in 1959, sold his Chicago White Sox holdings to Arthur Allyn Jr. Veeck returned as owner in 1975. The Rolling Stones in Chicago: A timeline of the band's 55-year fascination with the city's blues1964: The Rolling Stones recorded in the United States for the first time, at Chess Records studios in Chicago. 1971: RJ Grunts — the first restaurant from Lettuce Entertain You — opened at 2056 Lincoln Park W., Chicago. Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises: How the Tribune reviewed 50 years of the restaurant group's concept debuts'That might have been one of the worst restaurant names of all time,' Rich Melman, co-founder and chairman of the board of Lettuce Entertain You, told the Tribune in 2021. 'R was for Richard and J was for Jerry. He had a girlfriend Debbie, who was terrific, and her nickname was Piggy. She used to make these guttural sounds when she ate. That's where the name came from, the R and the J and the sound pigs make grunting.' Also in 1971: Ten people were killed and more than 100 injured when Amtrak's southbound City of New Orleans passenger train derailed near downstate Salem. 5 things you might not know about Chicago native Ted Kaczynski — the 'Unabomber'1980: 'Unabomber' Ted Kaczynski struck again. Percy A. Wood, United Airlines president and chief operating officer, was injured after opening a book inside a package that had been left in his mailbox at his Lake Forest home. He suffered burns and lacerations to his face, body, left hand and left leg. In a coded entry in his journal dated Sept. 15, 1980, Kaczynski wrote, 'After complicated preparation I succeeded IN INJURING THE PRES. OF UNITED A.L. BUT HE WAS ONLY ONE OF A VAST ARMY OF PEEPLE WHO directly and indirectly are responsible for the JETS.' 2016: There was fear that Lionel Messi wouldn't play in the Copa América Group D match against Panama at Soldier Field because of a lower back injury. So when he entered during the 61st minute, the crowd erupted in cheers. 'Every time he touched the ball, it was hard to hear yourself think,' the Tribune reported. Vintage Chicago Tribune: Pelé, Hamm, Beckham, Rapinoe, Messi and more. When soccer's big names came to playSeven minutes later, Messi had his first goal for Argentina. Two more followed, for a hat trick, during his short appearance. Argentina won and advanced to the quarterfinals. Subscribe to the free Vintage Chicago Tribune newsletter, join our Chicagoland history Facebook group, stay current with Today in Chicago History and follow us on Instagram for more from Chicago's past.
CBS News
18-04-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
What restaurants and stores are open or closed on Easter Sunday 2025?
Is Costco open on Easter Sunday? What about ALDI? As the Chicago area celebrates Good Friday, many are thinking about how to celebrate the Easter holiday this weekend with friends and family. While many fast food restaurants and other eateries will be open on Easter Sunday, it's best to double check their hours as they may vary from what's normal. Here are stores and restaurants that will be open or closed on Easter Sunday. If you're looking for some local restaurants to celebrate Easter this weekend, there are plenty of options. Most Lettuce Entertain You restaurants will be open for Easter, offering special brunch menus and deals. Some also offer to-go meal options to help you host a celebration in your home. Some of the specials also begin Friday and last through the Easter holiday weekend. Restaurants with special menus include Aba, Antico Pasta, Beatrix, Café Ba-Ba-Reeba! and Lil' Ba-Ba-Reeba!, Il Porcellino, Miru, Pizza Portofino, and more. The Beatrix Market locations in the Loop and Fulton Market will also offer catering specials. Lavish Easter brunches are also on offer from a number of Chicago restaurants and hotels, including Prime and Provisions, Adorn, The Bellevue, Le Sud, Roof on theWit, IO Godfre, Avli, Sunda, Somerset and Dolce Arte. City Cruises has curated Easter-themed trips on the Chicago River and Lake Michigan. And you're not an early Easter riser, there are dinner specials from the Chicago Firehouse Restaurant, Provare in West Town, Heritage Restaurant & Caviar Bar, and more. Choose Chicago has a full listing of Easter Sunday specials at city restaurants, along with restaurants providing special Passover meals . Easter festivities are also underway at Chicago's 900 North Michigan Shops. Stop by for crafts for kids and a chance to meet the Easter Bunny. There will also be mimosas for the parents. The Easter bunny will be available for photos from 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
The Guardian
27-03-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
US wine sellers and bars nervously wait for tariff decision: ‘It's a sad situation'
As the threat of exorbitant US tariffs on European alcohol imports looms, a warehouse in the French port city of Le Havre awaits a delivery of more than 1,000 cases of wine from a dozen boutique wineries across the country. Under normal circumstances, Randall Bush, the founder of Loci Wine in Chicago, would have already arranged with his European partners to gather these wines in Le Havre, the last stop before they are loaded into containers and shipped across the Atlantic. But these wines won't be arriving stateside anytime soon. After the Trump administration threatened on 13 March to impose 200% tariffs on alcoholic products from Europe, many US importers like Bush have halted all outgoing shipments from Europe. The 1,100 cases of his wine, from family-owned producers in his company's modest European portfolio, have already been paid for. But due to the tariff threat, they will remain stranded at their respective domaines at least until 2 April when the Trump administration is expected to reveal a 'reciprocal tariff number' for each of its global trading partners. The newfound uncertainty around tariffs has many restaurant owners, beverage directors, liquor distributors and wine importers on edge in recent weeks. The only certainty among the trade professionals interviewed is that a 200% tariff would be catastrophic for the wine and spirits industry globally. And while most believe the actual number will end up much lower, everyone agrees that even modest tariffs would send shock waves throughout the entire food and beverage ecosystem, weakening distribution channels and further driving up already astronomical prices. 'What scares me is how these hypothetical tariffs would affect [the many] European-themed restaurants like French bistros, Italian trattorias and German beer halls,' said Richard Hanauer, wine director and partner with Lettuce Entertain You. The Chicago-based group owns, manages and licenses more than 130 restaurants and 60 brands in a dozen different states and Washington DC. Hanauer predicts that concept-driven eateries that rely on European products would have to source wine and spirits from other regions because 'the consumer is not going to accept the markup'. Even though Trump has been known to walk back dubious claims about tariffs before, the wine and spirits industry is taking this recent threat very seriously. Most American importers, such as Loci's Bush, are adhering to the US Wine Trade Alliance's (USWTA) guidance issued in mid-March warning its members to cease wine shipments from Europe. Without guarantees that any potential tariffs would come with a notice period or exemptions for wines shipped prior to their announcement, the organization had no choice but to advise its constituents to halt all EU wine shipments. 'Once the wine is on the water, we have no power,' said Bush. 'We're billed by our shippers as soon as the wine arrives.' Tariffs are import taxes incurred by the importer and paid as a percentage of the value of the freight at the point of entry upon delivery. Since shipments from Europe can often take up to six to eight weeks to arrive, firms like Loci face the predicament of not knowing how much they will owe to take delivery of their products when they reach US ports. 'We've had many US importers tell us that even a 50% unplanned tariff could bankrupt their businesses, so we felt we had no choice,' said Benjamin Aneff, president of the USWTA, of the organization's injunction. 'It's a sad situation. These are mostly small, family-owned businesses.' Europe's wineries can also ill afford to be dragged into a trade war with the United States. According to the International Trade Center, the US comprises almost 20% of the EU's total wine exports, accounting for a total of $14.1bn (€13.1bn) of exported beverage, spirit and vinegar products from the EU in 2024. Many independent importers still recall Trump levying $7.5bn of tariffs on exports from the EU during his first presidency, which included 25% duties on Scotch whiskey, Italian cheeses, certain French wines and other goods. These retaliatory measures, which took effect in October 2019, resulted from a years-long trade dispute between the US and the EU over airline subsidies. 'We were hit with duties in late 2019. But we negotiated with a lot of our suppliers, so we were able to stave off any significant price increases,' said André Tamers, the founder of De Maison Selections, a fine-wine importer with a large portfolio of French and Spanish wines and spirits. But because the Covid-19 pandemic hit shortly thereafter, Tamers admitted, it was difficult to gauge the impact of the first round of Trump tariffs. The Biden administration eventually rescinded the measures in June 2021. To pre-empt any potentially disastrous news on the tariff front, many restaurants and bars are ramping up inventory purchases to the extent that their budgets allow. 'We made some large commitments for rosé season,' said Grant Reynolds, co-founder of Parcelle, which has an online wine shop as well as two bars and a bricks-and-mortar retail outlet in Manhattan. 'To whatever we can reasonably afford, we've decided to secure those commitments sooner than later so that we can better weather the storm.' The same is true for many cocktail-focused bars around the country, which are looking to shore up supplies of popular spirits that could end up a victim of tariffs, including allocated scotches and rare cognacs. Sign up to This Week in Trumpland A deep dive into the policies, controversies and oddities surrounding the Trump administration after newsletter promotion 'If it becomes very apparent that these tariffs are going to go live, we could be looking at dropping close to $100,000 on inventory just to insulate ourselves because it will save us so much money over the next six months,' said Deke Dunne, beverage director of Washington DC's award-winning cocktail bar Allegory. 'It will have to be a game-time decision, though, because the last thing I want to do is to buy up a lot of inventory I don't need.' Hanauer said that he's seen some vendors offering wine buyers heavy discounts and incentives to stockpile cases of European products to prepare for the possibility of onerous tariffs. One bar owner feeling a little less panic compared with his industry counterparts is Fred Beebe, co-owner of Post Haste, a sustainability-minded cocktail bar in Philadelphia. Since it opened in 2023, Post Haste eschews imported spirits of any kind; the bar is stocked exclusively with US products from east of the Mississippi River. 'We always thought it would be advantageous to have our producers close to us for environmental reasons and to support the local economy,' said Beebe, 'but we didn't necessarily think that it would also benefit from fluctuations in distribution or global economic policy.' Instead of serving popular European liquor brands such as Grey Goose vodka or Hendrick's gin, the bar highlights local craft distillers such as Maggie's Farm in Pittsburgh, which produces a domestic rum made from Louisiana sugar cane. After the recent tariff threats, Beebe says, the decision to rely on local products has turned out to be fortuitous. 'I feel really bad for anyone who is running an agave-based program, a tequila or mezcal bar,' said Beebe. 'They must be worried constantly about whether the price of all of their products are going to go up by 25% to 50%.' On the importing side, there is agreement that this is an inopportune moment for the wine industry to face new headwinds. Wine consumption has steadily declined in the United States in recent years as gen Z and millennial consumers are turning to cannabis, hard seltzers and spirits such as tequila, or simply embracing sobriety in greater numbers. 'Unfortunately, the reality is that wine consumption was already down before this compared to what it was five years ago,' said Reynolds. 'This obviously doesn't help that. So, with more tariffs, you would start to see a greater shift of behaviors away from drinking wine.' But despite slumping sales and the impending tariff threats, niche importers like Tamers say they have little choice but to stay the course. 'You leave yourself vulnerable, but if you don't buy wine, then you don't have any wine to sell. So, it's a double-edged sword,' he said. 'Our customers are still asking for these products, so there's not much else we can do.' Aneff hopes that commonsense negotiations will lead to both parties divorcing alcohol tariffs from other trade disputes over aluminum, steel and digital services. 'I do have some hope for a potential sectoral agreement on wine, and perhaps spirits, which would benefit domestic producers and huge numbers of small businesses on both sides of the Atlantic,' he said. 'I can't think of anything that would bring more joy to people's glasses than ensuring free trade on wine.'
