Eat. Watch. Do. — Wrigleyville bar guide | Ken Burns’ new Hemingway doc | Should Lolla happen?
It might really be spring, Chicago.
And that’s no April Fool’s. This weekend’s forecast calls for 60-degree temps and sunny skies, so with any luck, we’ll all be frolicking in the beautiful outdoors — safely, of course!
If you’re taking yourself out to the ballgame, check out our guide to every single bar in Wrigleyville. It’s also a great weekend to start spring gardening. Meanwhile, we’re ready for the newest episode of “Falcon and the Winter Soldier,” not to mention the new “90 Day Fiancé” spinoff. Oh, and we’re skipping the giant ham for Easter this year. Have a good weekend, everyone.
— Adam Lukach
Wrigleyville bars: Your opening day guide to all 46 spots around Wrigley Field
Even if the Cubs lost their home opener, this weekend should at least bring some beautiful baseball weather — certainly nicer than Thursday’s nippy start.
While Wrigley Field is operating with reduced capacity, our ultimate guide to every bar in Wrigleyville — all 46 of them — provides everything you need to know about which spots have outdoor seating, reservations and massive screens where you can watch the game.
Not going to Wrigleyville this weekend? You can still satisfy your ballpark cravings with our list of 23 hot dog stands in Chicago and the suburbs. Tell us how you prefer your Chicago dogs in our Twitter poll below.
— Chicago Tribune Food & Dining (@ChiTribFood) April 2, 20211/4 n 1/4 n","width":550,"height":null,"type":"twitter","cache_age":"3153600000","provider_name":"Twitter","provider_url":"https://twitter.com","version":"1.0","_id":"https://twitter.com/ChiTribFood/status/1378001175799283718","additional_properties":{"comments":1/83/8,"_id":1617391718936 3/43/4,"referent":{"id":"https://twitter.com/ChiTribFood/status/1378001175799283718","service":"oembed","type":"twitter","provider":"https://publish.twitter.com/oembed?url=","referent_properties":{"additional_properties":{"comments":1/83/8,"_id":1617391718936 3/43/43/43/4,{"_id":"BBRRJGQQJJGUNIJ4DEXESOEZ7I","type":"header","level":2,"additional_properties":{"comments":1/83/8,"inline_comments":1/83/8,"_id":1617383115309 3/4,"content":"What to Watch: Chuckle with ‘Bad Trip’ and get hyped for the new episode of ‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’
Meanwhile, Wrigley Field’s new mobile ordering system made getting a garden-dragged dog much harder than expected during the season debut.
— Chicago Tribune Food & Dining (@ChiTribFood) April 2, 20211/4 n 1/4 n","width":550,"height":null,"type":"twitter","cache_age":"3153600000","provider_name":"Twitter","provider_url":"https://twitter.com","version":"1.0","_id":"https://twitter.com/ChiTribFood/status/1378001175799283718","additional_properties":{"comments":1/83/8,"_id":1617391718936 3/43/4,"referent":{"id":"https://twitter.com/ChiTribFood/status/1378001175799283718","service":"oembed","type":"twitter","provider":"https://publish.twitter.com/oembed?url=","referent_properties":{"additional_properties":{"comments":1/83/8,"_id":1617391718936 3/43/43/43/4,{"_id":"BBRRJGQQJJGUNIJ4DEXESOEZ7I","type":"header","level":2,"additional_properties":{"comments":1/83/8,"inline_comments":1/83/8,"_id":1617383115309 3/4,"content":"What to Watch: Chuckle with ‘Bad Trip’ and get hyped for the new episode of ‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’
Chicago native Lil Rel Howery co-stars with Eric Andre and Tiffany Haddish in “Bad Trip,” a series of hidden-camera pranks anchored around a narrative, “Borat” style. Tribune critic Michael Phillips found it to be “unaccountably well-sustained raunch and harsh revelry.”
Meanwhile, new series “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” is playing out on Disney+ with just the right mix of action and intrigue — although the first episode begs a major question: Why should Falcon have to beg for a bank loan?
Read up on those new releases, along with more suggestions on what to watch this weekend, here.
See what a Chicago cast member has to say about “90 Day Fiance” after divorce, new spinoff
More like ‘When Hairy met Scaly’: How does HBO Max’s “Godzilla vs. Kong” stack up against other titan flicks?
Column: Too soon for Lolla? 6 ideas for Chicago’s summer of live entertainment
Chicagoans are feeling understandably restless more than a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, especially with vaccines offering a potential end in sight.
But after a recent spike in coronavirus cases that Mayor Lori Lightfoot described as a “quantum leap,” Tribune critic Chris Jones suggests it’s too soon for massive events like Lollapalooza. Vaccinating artists and other cultural professionals is a vital next step, and the industry will have to consider vaccinated-only events as a potential way forward, he writes.
Lolla’s 2021 plans are off to a bad start in Sweden, as Lollapalooza Stockholm will not be returning this year.
James Taylor plans to kick off his 2021 tour in Chicago this summer (at least for now), and Jackson Browne plans to join him.
Getting back into your garden is the perfect antidote to a long winter, not to mention being indoors for most of the past year. Having the tools to get the job done right will make things easier for you and your garden.
Whether you’re growing flowers or food, nursing a container garden on the deck or planting backyard beds, design editor David Syrek shares some must-have tools for both new and seasoned gardeners.
Watch this. Eat that: Inspired by ‘Nailed It’? We’ve got a cake that defies physics.
Netflix’s popular baking series “Nailed It!” — which follows amateurs as they attempt to recreate over-the-top cakes — is back with a twist. Pairs of bakers are now competing for the $10,000 prize.
If, like many of the contestants on the show, your kitchen confections tend to look more like a mad scientist’s experiment than something you want to taste, pick up an Atomic Cake from Calumet Bakery and enjoy the sweeter — and stress-free — things in life.
Explore the history of the Atomic Cake — an iconic South Side creation that defies gravity.
‘Made for Love’ review: HBO Max’s tech satire is both sardonic and deeply, deeply creepy
Cristin Milioti takes another time-bendy sci-fi role after her fantastic turn in last summer’s acclaimed “Palm Springs.” In “Made for Love,” she plays a woman on the run after her tech-bro husband implants a chip in her head, and the show toggles between the stories of before and after her escape. Back in her hometown, her dear old dad — played by Ray Romano — tries to help her.
It’s both funny and unnerving, writes critic Nina Metz, but worthy of a spot in your queue. Just know: “Made for Love” might be a satire, but it ain’t “Silicon Valley.”
Ernest Hemingway’s legacy — once a kind of common language in American culture — has grown quiet lately, but it could get a big boost this week: A new six-hour Ken Burns-Lynn Novick documentary about the author’s life debuts Monday on PBS.
In Hemingway’s birthplace of Oak Park, John Berry, chairman of the Hemingway Foundation, says he’s optimistic that interest from the film will help turn things around. Writer Chris Borrelli visited the house where Hemingway was born to see if it stirred any feelings ahead of the doc’s premiere.
It’s been almost nine years since former Chicago Tribune columnist Dawn Turner introduced us to Gloria Allen, a transgender woman known to many as “Mama Gloria.” At the time, the then 66-year-old was leading a charm school at the Center on Halsted, wherein she taught teens etiquette — from dining to how to dress and comport themselves.
The profile led to Allen’s story being taken to the stage in Philip Dawkins’s play “Charm.” And that led to a film about Allen, a documentary by Luchina Fisher entitled “Mama Gloria.” Writer Darcel Rockett spoke with the local icon ahead of the movie’s premiere.
An Ikea cookbook? Say no more — design editor David Syrek is hungry!
The Swedish home design brand collaborated with renowned chefs to address food waste and show how easy it can be to repurpose food scraps like kale stems, banana peels or spent coffee grounds. The beautifully designed ebook features 50 simple recipes, plus environmental tips like how to build a backyard compost.
Perfectly easy pork for Easter
Many observers will be settling for a smaller Easter celebration again this year and hoping for a larger, safer gathering in 2022.
Until then, let’s skip the recipes for making massive hams, writes chef Jean-Marie Brownson, and enthrall our small parties with perfectly seasoned pork and a luxurious sauce.
Boozy adult Easter baskets and 31 more Sunday specials in Chicago and suburbs
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