First Bites Bash

#16
Getting to «sample» the various menus before CRW begins, well, simply FABULOUS! Beginning with delicious foods, to amazing wines – everything was perfect. We tried some jellyfish, some cake, some wines, some of everything you can imagine. I mean «hello» this IS Chicago, arguably the best food in America. I did not have one single «bite» the whole event that I did not enjoy. A bit pricey (over $ 100 per person), but hey, you get what you pay for – right?
I heard about the event from an old friend in the neighborhood who has ventured in and ate and drank for, I think, the past two years. All she could do was rave about the event and tell me, «Nothing you guys do out in Cali can compare.» Oooooookay… Let’s see, I am a HUGE ORW fan so I am game – show me what you got Chi-​town.
The bites gala was somewhat challenging. If you were not early in, one was expected to stand and eat while pairing of wines was also taking place. The table seating was sparse; yet, what else did I expect from this elite preview of RW in Chicago? I totally understood the concept: small bites and tastes – FAST! Get your bite, grab your wine and keep it moving. I think that was part of the charm of the whole event. We had so much fun eating, drinking and making new friends.
Whoever did the wine pairing was spot on – I mean really did their homework. Each table had a wonderful bite of food pre-​placed alongside of a delicious and perfectly accompaniment of vino. Nothing was haphazard, rather, thoughtfully and elegantly planned. Union Station never looked prettier or cooler.
Though we did not get a chance to try everything we wanted to – because we got so full after a couple hours, we did try so many things, so much great food and wine. I have tons of places to try out while I am here, if I can find the time.
From the DJ, to the vino, to the food and back to the people – this was a blast! I love any event that I can wear a cocktail dress and stilettos all the while eating superb foods and sampling delicious wines. I mean, it is not everyday a girl gets to wear her pearls, right?
Stephani Smiles for FBB ;)
#bloatedbuthappy

Getting to «sample» the menus before Restaurant Week begins, how cool is that? Great food, great wines to compliment them all. Loved it. Jellyfish was probably my favorite, but honestly I didn’t have a bad «bite» anywhere. If you get a chance to do this next year, take advantage and buy some tickets. It was a great time.

This was an incredible event and I highly recommend going if you get the chance. The hall in Union Station is gorgeous and works well as a stunning event space. This was the launch of Chicago’s Restaurant Week. About 60 participating restaurants provided sneak peeks (bites?) of what they’ll be serving guests at their establishments throughout the rest of the week.
Check in was very easy and painless. There were no congested lines when I came in so I was able to quickly check my coat, turn in my tickets (or have them scanned from my mobile device), have a wrist band secured, and grab a map. This was a classy affair. If folks didn’t come directly from work (in their business attire) they were glammed up in cocktail dresses and stylish suits.
The lighting took the august structure of Union Station into the 21^st century. Sponsors were tastefully projected onto the walls. A DJ spun his/​her tunes which went well with the lighting and alcohol and bottled water samples scattered between all of the restaurants. This was a party and there wasn’t a moment when you could forget to have a good time!
It was a sold out event (which is amazing considering that tickets were about $ 125 each) and it was crowded. However, since everyone was classy, there were only a few times when I was bumped or had a hard time approaching a table.
At one point some coordinators came on stage and made some introductory announcements. They introduced the hostess Apana Singh who then presented Inspiration Corporation with a check for $ 10,000. The total time for speaking was probably less than 10 minutes which was perfect.
Another thing that was perfect was that the alcohol was carefully placed besides restaurants serving particular food. It was delightful to have specific wine pairings rather than something random.
I have only two criticisms of the event:
1) There was SO MUCH plastic waste that it made me feel very uncomfortable. Nearly every table (restaurants and alcohol) had their own plastic plates, cups, forks, and spoons. Every restaurant had their bites ready on plates to grab and every wine table had their beverages already poured. It was nearly impossible to reuse plates and cups so we clung to our forks and spoons rather than grabbing new ones each time. Chicago Gourmet had tasteful biodegradable plates that I wish were also used at First Bites Bash.
2) It was very difficult to stand and eat each of the bites with the coordinated wine pairing. Tables were scarce and the crowd (although polite) was still a crowd. If I stood somewhere I was sure to be in someone’s way. It made me feel rushed to eat after each table, find a trash receptacle to discard my plate and cup, and then move onto the next restaurant and pairing. It would have been nice to have tall tables lining the perimeter of the room.
Besides those two complaints, we had a lovely time trying bites from various restaurants. It was a perfect way to get excited about Restaurant Week if I wasn’t already exuberant before!

Our «first» FBB 2014. I was expecting it to be über crowded as previously noted. Didn’t seem to be the case for this time. it was actually quite comfortable walking through and sampling. I did take advice I’d read and ditched the handbag at home to free up some space for holding small plates and drinks. Bistro tables, loungers were available throughout your stroll so if we wanted to sit we could. I basically passed over things that didn’t strike me as innovative or that we had already been too. This worked out well for us. Union Station as a backdrop was beautiful. Overall, I came away with ten or so new places to try out. The standouts for us were Beatrix and TWO. I did wonder why some folks seemingly didn’t use this «bite» plate to REALLY showcase their best. Personally, I used this as a preview for restaurants I’d not tried yet. So it gave me the opportunity to really see what they thought was good enough to both present to the masses yet also showcase their food. All in all, a nice evening good food and drink for a couple great charities. I don’t know that I would do this every year, but recommend doing at least once!

The three hours flew by! Quite possibly one of the best events I’ve been for food, fanciness, and f (ph)ilanthropy. For its second year running, I had a fun time kicking off restaurant week ’13 while supporting a great cause. Admission might be a little pricey but for the plethora of «bites» (we didn’t get around to all of the tables), pleasantries with restauranteurs and chefs, plus varying cocktail-​wine-​beers… it was well worth it. I loved that it all took place at Union Station– the Great Hall was such a beautiful backdrop for the event.
Get there as early as possible as some tables already started running out of their bites. There were limited places to sit (skip the stilettos ladies!) and keep the chunky bags/​clutches at home– it was a little awkward balancing beverages and a multitude of eats.