Jonny Ifergan 11/27/21 Jonny Ifergan 11/27/21

Meet Chicago The Bear

When we traveled to Chicago during spring, there seemed to be a restless energy, an eagerness to burst out from the coronavirus’s period of hibernation. After seeing the characters that inspired the beers at Ørkenoy, we asked Brewer Jonny Ifergan and illustrator Katie Lukes to bring Chicago the Bear—a representation of the Chicago hospitality industry—to life.

Kendyl Kearly 11/23/21 Kendyl Kearly 11/23/21

Rewriting History

Beverage director Sarah Syman turns to The Official Mixer's Manual for the "Historically Inspired" section of The Dandy Crown menu.

Brad Japhe 11/16/21 Brad Japhe 11/16/21

The Flavor Brewer

Gastronomy informs the farmhouse-style beers at Averie Swanson's Keeping Together.

Erin Lettera 11/12/21 Erin Lettera 11/12/21

Fair Share

Chef Jennifer Kim empowers hospitality workers with information at Chicago start-up, Alt Economy.

Kendyl Kearly 11/8/21 Kendyl Kearly 11/8/21

Perfect Pairings

Sherry with caviar and white Burgundy with chawanmushi are the new Champagne and oysters. We share some of our favorite pairings from our time on the ground in Chicago.

Team StarChefs 11/5/21 Team StarChefs 11/5/21

Spring Fever

Forced to make due with root vegetables and shipped-in produce much of the year, Chicago chefs love spring. Twelve chefs write their love letters to the season.

Amelia Schwartz 11/1/21 Amelia Schwartz 11/1/21

From Bean to Babka

In partnership with vnlla Extract Co., the StarChefs team dives into the story behind Masa Madre babka's namesake ingredient.

Misha Garza López 10/28/21 Misha Garza López 10/28/21

Mole on the Rise

After much trial and error, Pastry Chef Valeria Taylor’s mole croissant at Loba Pastry + Coffee is a nostalgic treat packed with mole in every layer.

Audarshia Townsend 10/24/21 Audarshia Townsend 10/24/21

A Piece of the Pie

Chef Erick Williams of Virtue Restaurant reclaims the term "farm-to-table" in a discussion of African American foodways.

Carrie Schedler 10/21/21 Carrie Schedler 10/21/21

Red Gold

When Mohammad Salehi left Afghanistan, he found a new passion as a saffron importer. Salehi’s start-up, Heray Spice, is now bringing top-quality saffron to the United States.