First Fridays

Nada mal! O atendimento às vezes é bom as vezes não! Comida razoável e bom preço! Recomendo uma passada! Mas não é o melhor restaurante da cidade!

As a former semi-​regular to FF, I am disappointed in the direction it has gone. Some genius over at the MCA probably said at some meeting, «Here’s a great way to make more money: let’s serve even crappier food with less choices — we can even fill one of the chafing dishes with stale colored popcorn AND then we increase the ticket prices! All those in favor, say ‘Aye’»
And guess what the board members said?

had a sexy newly-​single female friend visiting from PVD who loves art but had to see most of the city’s sights on her own during the day while i worked – figured this month’s FF would be a good opportunity to kill a few birds w/​one stone! little did we know they close off more than half of the museum including the 3^rd and 4^th floors (literally…with not-​so-​subtle boulders and rocks barring the staircases), that it is much less singles-​friendly than it probably used to be (nothing like reminding the recently dumped that they used to be happy), and that you, as the consumer, are expected to create most of the exhibits with crayons and colored pencils par exemple:
«using prompts culled from a glossary of ecological disruption and disaster, draw your version of a slow apocalypse on a variety of handmade papers!»
«create your own doomsday animation!»
«design your ultimate emergency response kit… with written or sketched design concepts!»
etc etc. this might have been a fun idea for an installation piece or two, but was just offensively lazy after awhile. if i got appendicitis no ER doc would ask me to diagnose it myself, anesthetize the area, cut it out, sew myself up, then hand her money. [i guess strippers do this sometimes if they have pay the club a stage or music fee to dance, but even then they get tips…]
also, i don’tt think they even serve hors d’hoeuvres anymore, and the booze line was absurd (easily 10 of the 35 minutes we spent there after seeing every possible piece of art). a total bust, and not in the good J. Cole a la Power Trip sense.

After buying tickets in advance and *then* reading Unilocal reviews, I approached the MCA on a Friday night around 8 PM with some apprehension. However, I was actually pleasantly surprised by how much fun I had. Sure, 3 – 4 mixed drinks and a good crew of friends might have been the reason, but I also enjoyed the few exhibits that I saw, the music, and the clever use of Twitter. And maybe we just hit it on a good night, but I also felt like most of my fellow patrons were not the sleazy/​slutty club-​goers that I expected.
Glad I tried it once, might be back if I’m starved for something to do on a Friday night.

First Fridays Admission at the door: $ 18
Suggested General Admission any other day: $ 12
Call it «social-​networking», MCA website, but we all know that for the first friday of the month, you are a club. Maybe a tamer version with less-​than-​impressive finger foods, but loud beats and a main breeding ground of dressed, boozey folks… a club nonetheless. I visited in February, which perhaps was a high tension environment of those looking for Vday dates. Everyone had a numbered sticker upon entering, thus with modern facilitation, let your fingers do the talking as you creepily tweet at foxy lady/​hawt guy for all to see. Maybe foxy lady #558 will see said projected tweet and she’ll agree to meet you by the tapestry piece… match made in heaven!
Jokes aside, I’ve always wanted to visit the MCA and I don’t think First Fridays was the best time to get that experience. If anything, it was a muted backdrop as my shoes slid across fallen bits of fries, popcorn and hot dogs. Yes, they served hot dogs. Classy. I wasn’t too impressed with some of the exhibits, but the one thing I did like was the people watching.

Im a fan of this event. Not only is it packed with tons of people, it’s draws in such a diverse crowd & atmosphere.
Just a warning– this is a breeding ground. I’ve never seen so many men hawking on women. This is probably because they use a social experiment game with colors/​numbers to hook people up.
Definitely something to check out. Be spontaneous & do something new!

Hoo boy… where do I start?
What do you expect a first friday singles mixer at an art museum to be like? Nerdy intellectual boys with Buddy Holly glasses and a willingness to chat you up about Cy Twombly? Or perhaps nerdy girls reminiscent of Ellen Page, interested more in books than fashion?
Alas, Kats and Kittens, toss those notions out the window, for what you will find at MCA’s First Fridays are the sort of riff-​raff that you’d find in any club — girls in skintight dresses, too many feathers, and screw-​me heels and standoffish boys wearing enough cologne to give me a migraine. Throw a bunch of gentlemen with trophy girlfriends and a couple of cougars into the mix and — presto! — expect the unexpected!
Now for the good… if you don’t mind these kinds of people and aren’t much of a dork yourself, then revel in the fact that you’re going to get enough Godiva chocolate to give yourself a toothache. I didn’t try the Wolfgang Puck catered food, so I’ve got no opinion on that, except that the veggies looked fresh. While I dodged a rather socially-​awkward young fellow who wanted to tell me about his weight problem (side note… wtf?), I managed to escape into the gift shop. My nerd senses tingled in the vicinity of so many books, documentaries, and goofy little tchotschkes. I walked out with two books and an Obama documentary, which is always a good thing. And I managed to dodge the rather inept gentleman as I bid this shindig adieu and skipped right on out the door, goodies and chocolates in hand.
But it wasn’t horrible. It just wasn’t a crowd for people looking to find their soul-​geek, if you know what I mean. Cheesy guys who complain about their weight and the whole club scene in general just aren’t that interesting. Again… the Godiva chocolate was devilishly delicious. But I don’t think I’ll go back to one of these things unless I have a partner-​in-​crime.
Au Revoir!

My girlfriends were going to this event and wanted us along, so several of us dragged along our hubbies, and there we went. It was a meh experience for us. We liked the Modern Wing Art After Dark better. We would have had no fun at all if we weren’t in a big group. It’s definitely a good place to pick up on people, one of my girlfriends got a bunch of numbers.
$ 10 early bird member tickets, that supposedly included some eats. The «food» consisted of exactly 3 items — salad and 2 kinds of deep fried cream cheese puffs. All were nasty, and after one bite, I had to toss mine. We were screwed as there’s no re-​entry privileges, so we couldn’t eat elsewhere then return. After buying tickets for our drinks, I got a full cup of ice with a liiiiitle splash of cranberry juice in it. At least Hubby’s beer was from a bottle so no way to cheap out on that drink.
An arts & crafts table to whip out your inner artist, but it’s so crowded you really can’t do anything, if you manage to wait out the line to step up to the table.
The DJ spinning on the inside balcony was nice, but there’s no speakers outside, so it’s all awkwardly quiet there. Also, they need to give the staff some courtesy lessons — bellowing that everyone needed to get out NOW! was a pretty unpleasant way to end that experience.
Fun event for: groups of single 20-​somethings trying to flirt with others. If this is you, definitely give it a shot — the crowd was mostly business-​casual after-​work, well-​behaved, nice percentage of good-​looking people, and no real weirdos. Lots of pseudo-​intellectual-​looking types. There’s a good chance to chat someone up for a number upstairs in the galleries since people wander away from their group as they’re perusing the artwork. Good luck!

I wasn’t sure what to expect here but they need to do some serious work to make this an event that people will want to come back to.
The whole «ticket» business here is ridiculous. You pay and they give you a ticket… you walk 2 ft and then you drop your ticket into a bowl. Really? Is that necessary?
Then, the bar only accepts tickets for drinks. Is this a carnival? So then you have to go and wait in another line to buy drink tickets. It would’ve been helpful if someone would have said that upon first entering.
I ate before I came here which I’m happy about. The food didn’t look great… mind you, I didn’t taste it but eating chicken wings while standing up and holding a wine glass is not my idea of good time. I thought the food would be a lil more upscale and creative.
The other annoying part of this event is that you can’t drink and walk through the exhibits. I understand what they are afraid of but this isn’t a roaring crowd where beer or wine was going to go flying everywhere. So you have to stand in a crowded area, drink your wine and then you can go look at the exhibits.
It was boring and there are too many other great things to do in the city than to waste your time on this.

I didn’t really know what to expect from First Fridays at the MCA, but I jumped at the chance to check it out last weekend after work. I was very pleasantly surprised by how much fun I had at the event! There was Andy’s custard (peanut butter, yummmmmmmmmm) and some crazy weird real-​life Operation game. They had a free photo booth with costume pieces (although I really didn’t get to try that one out). The food buffet was pretty good and there was plenty to go around. They had little hot dogs wrapped in croissants, salad, and sweet and sour fried cauliflower. Oh and little heart cookies. After all, Valentine’s Day is coming up!
Drinks were a little on the more expensive side, but the DJ was great and we got to walk around all of the exhibits. I was happy to go with a big group of friends because the other big groups of friends were a little intimidating.
It is a small world at these things, though. I saw like 5 people from 5 different groups of friends throughout the course of the night! Oh and the CEO of North and South America for my company. I work across the hall from him, but I don’t think he knew my name when I made him shake my hand. Oh well, at least I was sober!

I have visited one of these events and had to review it!
This is a great, casual event that is definitely a way to have a unique friday night. Food is set up and is delicious and enough to have a bit of a meal or just a light snack. The bars are pretty crowded, but the lines move quickly. I do wish the drink prices were a bit lower, considering the entry fee to get in (but, they are relatively inexpensive for drink prices in the city, so I’m not complaining).
The museum is fun to walk around and there are lots of people to mingle with.
Definitely a different way to spend an evening with a group of friends.

Example of commonly observed phenomenon at First friday:
Group of guys on the left. Group of girls on the right. Guy eyes girl and pretends he hasn’t. Girl meets eye contact and then plays aloof, laughing at some hilarious thing her friend may or may not have actually just said. Repeat ~4 times until guy comes over to make lame comment about weak drinks or needing a light, while girl plays oblivious and laughs too enthusiastically at guy’s not funny «jokes».
This is so not my scene.

I think it’s a good event to get togther with friends, have some drinks and take a look at some interesting art. The food is not that great but it’s better than nothing.

I recently had a friend come to visit Chicago from out of town, way out of town, from Austria. He decided he wanted to check out what First Friday’s at the MCA was all about. He was properly updated about the event and still wanted to come. The concept is a good one, having a singles mixer at an art museum. Plus you can view all the regular exhibits while a dj spins in the background. Plus after buying drink tickets, you can enjoy a refreshing drink from the bar. How many tickets each item costs is listed conveniently on the table where you buy the tickets, so plan wisely. Somehow amongst all the culture, beautiful scenic view on the patio and music the even has turned into a very cheesy pickup scene. My friend and I ended having as much fun people watching as looking at the exhibits. Being summer, the museum wasn’t as full as at peak times during the winter but still there was a lot to see. The 20 something girls in ridiculously tight, short outfits, the older men trying to hit on said girls. The men lined up against the wall devouring the women with their eyes. And by the way, don’t come hungry, the food has diminished in quality. At least now there is a large quantity of food but it is rather tasteless and boring. When I went, there was pizza, tater tots and cookies. I can’t picture Wolfgang Puck making tater tots, must be someone’s idea of a joke on Chicago. So if you want a fun night of people watching and don’t mind the crowds, First Fridays is a fun must to check off on the «to do» list of Chicago events.

MCA’s description of this event is terribly misleading. From their website:
«Happy hour takes on a new meaning with First Fridays at the MCA. Relax after a long workweek with a cash bar featuring specialty drinks and free Wolfgang Puck appetizers. Enjoy live music from local DJs, the world’s only iMac G5 digital dating bar, creation stations, and more.»
No.
Just no.
There’s nothing relaxing about it. The cash bar involves buying (nonrefundable) tickets in a separate line, and then buying the drinks with purchased tickets at the bar. I saw no ‘specialty drinks’. $ 8 for a less-​than-​spectacular screwdriver? Ugh.
The Wolfgang Puck appetizers are, uhh, potato chips and watermelon and coleslaw? w-​t-​f MCA, w-​t-​f. The worst part was there wasn’t even any food for sale, if you didn’t like these options.
I don’t know what the «world’s only iMac G5 digital dating bar» is supposed to mean, because it was literally a few iMacs on which you could take a quiz entitled «What’s your color?»
You could still check out the museum’s exhibits, but I’d probably opt to do that at a cheaper price during regular hours if I go back (or Free Tuesdays).

The focus here is not art… or at least, not the art on the walls. People come to First Fridays to stare at one another while appearing metropolitan and urban-​chic. You will have a much better time if you are in that frame of mind from the get-​go.
Striking up a conversation over Calder not your thing? No worries. The MCA has gimmicky little icebreaker games for you to play. The first time, we registered our cell phone numbers and were assigned an «alias» number to display to the masses on nametags. You then sent texts to a certain phone number they were projected on a large screen on the wall, enabling you to text-​flirt anonymously as follows:
541: Hey, 36, you have a nice smile! Meet me by the Koontz.
The next time we took quick personality tests and were assigned a color. Everyone spent the evening looking for their complementary color (I found no Teal boys that evening… hopefully the MCA isn’t trying to tell me something).
All the while there are appetizers and drinks. You have to buy tickets for the drinks, so of course they gouge you. Appetizers are hit or miss. One time there was salad… how am I supposed to mingle with salad? Eeesh… Don’t come for the food — come for the people-​watching.

Came to check this out with an old friend from college, and truth be told, she was the only reason why I had any fun. The «free appetizers» consisted of popcorn chicken, popcorn shrimp, and salad. The cash bar had good wine, and the milky way martini was yummy – but at $ 8 and $ 12/​glass, respectively. It got really crowded at around 8pm, but there really wasn’t anything to do there other than walk around and look at art and get drinks at the bar, so it was hard to meet people (except when older men try to pick you up by offering you entrance to the Macy’s VIP lounge. ladies, beware!)
Don’t think I’d go back again. I guess I was expecting it to be like a Unilocal elite event (I know, how silly of me), and thus was disappointed. Not worth the $ 15 ticket, for sure. Oh well, at least my curiosity’s been satisfied!

Okay, so anyone who knows me knows that this is my type of event. That being said it really was NOT my type of event. It may be because I am new to the are and I don’t know very many people. Maybe because I am not the biggest fan of crowds. I really don’t know.
I used to attend a similar event in Birmingham and I loved it. They had great food, great music, cash bar. So, why did this event not have the same effect or is it affect on me? Who knows. Would I go again. sure! I just did not love it.

My husband and I didn’t realize what a «singles mixer» this event is supposed to be. Apparently other people (Mihir S.!) have run into the same problem.
I guess if you are single and into people-​crammed spaces it would be a cool event, but it wasn’t for me.
The food was mediocre, the music mediocre, and the whole meat-​market vibe totally unappealing.

The events that led up to this unfortunate rating and the aftermath, unabridged:
1. Melanie hears about MCA’s first Fridays for over a year. She is consistently intrigued, but also consistently forgetful. Terrible combination.
2. Melanie realizes that she has nothing to do on Friday, February 7, 2009. The first Friday of the month. She makes the connection. Gathers some gals. Gets cheap tickets online. Gets glam (debateable-​and I hate that word). And gets on the El’ (public transit chic).
3. Melanie approaches the usually airy MCA to find three stories of people and a line out the door. She becomes tentative, but determined.
4. Melanie stands in line to get in. Melanie stands in line to pick up tickets. Melanie stands in line to get drink tickets. Melanie stands in line to get a drink. Melanie gets out of drink line to go to another supposedly quicker drink line. Melanie realizes this is a lie. Melanie stands in a line to steal a meat ball that pales in comparison to Ikea meatballs. Melanie finds the wine line. Melanie waits in line. Melanie leaves line empty handed. Melanie walks upstairs in a line. Melanie hopes you get a clue about the cues…
5. Melanie realizes some things:
–2/​3s of Chicago’s 24 – 34 year-​old yuppie population is here in this now-​tiny building.
-…most of them are annoying.
-…probably not inherently annoying, but add heat, desperation, loud music, sweat, and feathers and things get messy.
–this isn’t really that fun.
–she hasn’t seen one piece of art or had one meaningful exchange.
–she wants to leave. And she isn’t really the leaving type. Maybe she is now.
6. Melanie sneaks into the MCA gift shop. She enjoys the peace and quiet and overpriced museum swag. This is the highlight of her MCA related evening.
7. Melanie decides with friend that this isn’t worth it. Warns others who will be meeting us to turn around.
8. Melanie sells $ 20 of unused drink tickets to a gaggle of girls with no idea what they are getting in to.
9. Melanie actually asks for a refund. Manager gives an «I-know-it-is-freaking-absurd-in-there-I-don’t-blame-you» smile and two vouchers to come again for free. Yeah, right.
10. Melanie promptly sells vouchers at discounted rate to unsuspecting people outside.
11. Melanie celebrates with friend over break-​even victory. Melanie laments with friends that we have not yet had drinks.
12. Melanie heads to a pub and enjoys delicious guacamole, $ 4 margaritas, and meaningful conversation.
13. Melanie showers the sweat of 3,478 yuppies in black off of her body.
14. Melanie deliberates on whether to give the event one or two stars. Melanie feels miserly. And bitter.
15. Melanie potentially gains street cred on Unilocal for giving a 1-​star rating after 18 enthusiastic reports. She also probably loses some street love with those Unilocalers at the first Friday who are offended because they felt cooler having gone to such a supposed swanky affair. Melanie doesn’t really care.
16. Melanie contemplates her stance on second chances. She remains irresolute on this point.
17. Melanie assures people that the MCA is a fine establishment that has indeed enriched the Chicago community and is worth visiting, on any other day but the first Friday of the month.

I don’t «enjoy museums». I don’t «appreciate art». I don’t «look at paintings». So take my review for what it’s worth. The MCA is actually a pretty cool building, contents notwithstanding. First Fridays, however, didn’t really seem to be so much about the art though. It’s more about drink tickets and jalepeno poppers and chemically straightened hair.
All in all, I didn’t really have a good time, but if you’re a single guy with a little game that likes early-​mid 20 somethings, this is a great spot to brush up on your ladykilling skills before heading to Manor or wherever the kids go these days.
Yeah, I know this review sucks, and I’ll try to edit later, but I got shit to do. Sorry.