Memorial Day weekend is here: We taste test hot dogs and ‘all-in-1′ Chicago sauce, plus more things to do

Adam Lukach, Chicago Tribune
·6 min read

Three. Day. Weekend. It’s here!

The city has plenty to offer as it reopens, so check out our list of what to do for this Memorial Day weekend.

Meanwhile, we’ve got everything for your cookout that you didn’t know you needed: vegan hot dogs, vegetables for the grill, the “everything in one” Chicago hot dog condiment sauce — plus, for a memorable pour, the wildest glassware you’ve ever seen.

Or, if you prefer: We’ve got the scoop on the return of giant sculptures at Morton Arboretum, a review of McDonald’s BTS meal and the return of the Pride Parade in the fall.

Here’s to an extra day off work, Chicago.

— Adam Lukach

What to do Memorial Day weekend in Chicago

Check out Michelada Fest, live music on Division Street, fun on the Boardwalk on 75th, and a half-dozen other events in Chicago this weekend.

Watch this. Eat that: Where to dine out before a movie at the Music Box Theatre?

This week’s pairing marks the first time we’ve featured a *live movie showing* in Eat This, Watch That — an exciting development.

So what’s the show? Critic Michael Phillips implores you to check out the “Back to the Big Screen” vintage movie festival at Music Box Theater. Food critic Louisa Chu suggests chowing down first on the messy, meaty and acid-y Sister-in-Law at Steingold’s next door.

Memorial Day taste tests: Chicago-style hot dog sauce and vegan hot dogs

Look, if you’re a grillmaster, you don’t need us bossing you around about your proteins this weekend. But, if you’re a more curious grillmaster, let us introduce you to the best vegan hot dogs. Not sure about plant-based sausages? Think of it this way: You weren’t even sure what was in the hot dog before!

We also tasted all of the Chicago hot dog toppings, mixed together, as a sauce. It’s a thing, and although it’s definitely not an attractive condiment — resembles your lunch going the other way — how does it taste? If guests greet this menu with skepticism, blame us.

‘Human+Nature’ opens this weekend, bringing huge sculptures back to Morton Arboretum.

Roses are red / Fee fie foe fum / Giant sculptures are back at Morton Arboretum.

No, not trolls, but you’ve gotta take a look. Check out all the details.

Column: This Memorial Day weekend, can ‘Quiet Place Part II’ and ‘Cruella’ get butts back in seats?

Once upon a time, when people used to go to movie theaters, Memorial Day weekend was a blockbuster weekend kicking off the summer slate of big studio releases. You could go and catch a flick, plus a couple hours in the A/C before the cookout.

After our pandemic year, going to the movies is maybe feeling a little weird for a lot of people. With a pair of highly anticipated movies finally getting a theatrical release, film critic Michael Phillips takes a look at an early “stress test” for the silver screen’s big comeback.

Check out our reviews of the weekend’s two big releases:

What to watch: PBS documentary for anniversary of Tulsa massacre, CNN series about late-night TV

If you happen to find yourself in front of the TV looking for something to watch during the long weekend, check out our critics’ picks.

“Goin’ Back to T-Town,” a PBS documentary, is a solid way to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa, Oklahoma, massacre, and Netflix’s acclaimed “High on the Hog” dissects the huge influence of African American cuisine in American culinary culture.

Chicago Pride Parade set to return Oct. 3 following 2020 COVID-19 cancellation

Well, it won’t have its usual sweltering summer temperatures, but Pride Parade will return in Chicago in 2021, choosing early October as its comeback date after missing last year due to the pandemic. We have all the details that we learned from this week’s announcement.

Carryout cocktail laws are set to expire next week in Illinois and Chicago. Here’s what’s being done to extend them.

Could “one for the road” go back to being “none for the road” once again in Chicago?

Last year’s legislation that allowed Illinois restaurants and bars to sell mixed drinks to-go provided a major lifeline for many bars and restaurants — but it also contained a sunset clause that will kick in next week.

The same team that helped to get last year’s bill passed is once again fighting to keep this cocktail law on the books.

Shedd Aquarium welcomes third Magellanic penguin chick

Send chick pics please! ;)

All jokes aside, these photos of the first three penguin hatchlings of 2021 at the Shedd Aquarium are absolutely share-worthy.

Glassware that takes your outdoor party to the next level. OMG, did you see this?

People are finally coming back over for patio parties, and it’s been awhile, so you’re looking for something to make an impression. Enter: some of the wildest glassware you’ve seen, sure to catch eyes with every pour.

We try the new McDonald’s BTS Meal. Spoiler alert: It’s all about the sauce.

First Travis Scott, then J Balvin, and now BTS. McDonald’s “celebrity meals” marketing campaign has been a huge success so far, and based on early responses, the BTS drop has been no different.

How is the meal, though? We had food critic Louisa Chu apply her expertise to BTS’s choices at McD’s.

Ola Ali is steering Chicago music label OTF and his artists into a renewed world of live concerts

Music wasn’t initially part of Ola Ali’s path. Born in Nigeria, Ali is best known as the general manager of the Chicago-based music label and collective OTF and manager for rapper Lil Durk.

He has quickly made a national name for himself and his label’s controversial artists through hard work, hustle and creativity. Now that the world has begun to open up again, Ali talks about his plans for getting the OTF lineup back on the road and what else is next.

Column: We need our moment of triumphant liberation from the traumas of COVID-19. In every story, endings matter.

As we start to get a peek at the other side of the COVID-19 pandemic, theater critic Chris Jones is wondering about what an “ending” might look like. When do we celebrate our liberation? Or do we at all?

“All endings are artificial constructs,” he writes, but getting one remains important.