Weekday Planner: Scotch Tasting, Gold Coast Grub Crawl, Peruvian Independence Day, Ramen-san Omakase
Scotch Tasting at Devon Seafood Grill
Scotch-lovers, take heed. Devon Seafood Grill is paying homage to Scotland's signature tipple with a special tasting event on Monday, July 27. Starting at 6:00 p.m., guests will sample four Scotch selections matched with a variety of apps. Scotches to be sampled include Glenmorangie Rare 18, Ardbeg 10 year, Glenfiddich 15 year, and Balvenie 14 year. To snack, there will be oysters Rockefeller, shrimp skewers with Scotch-maple glaze, wood-grilled ribs, and lamb lollipops. For those who stay after the event for dinner, they'll receive $25 off their meal with purchase of $75 or more. Tickets for the Scotch tasting are $45 per person and reservations can be made by calling the restaurant.
Gold Coast Grub Crawl
Think of the Gold Coast Grub Crawl, taking place July 29, as a higher end Taste of Chicago. With more meat. Between 6:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m., attendees will mosey around a handful of the neighborhood's finest restaurants, spending time at each stop to sample signature dishes and drinks. The best part of it all? 100% of proceeds from the event benefit the Northwestern Brain Tumor Institute of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Each stopover consists of 30 minutes of noshing and sipping, with layovers at Lou Malnati's, Gibsons Bar & Steakhouse, Hugo's Frog Bar and Fish House, Tavern on Rush, LUXBAR, and Carmine's. Tickets are $150 per person and can be purchased here.
Peruvian Independence Day
American Independence Day has come and gone. So has French Independence Day. But there's still another country ready to celebrate its freedom. In honor of Peru's Independence Day, celebrated July 28 and 29, Tanta is hosting a week-long celebration from July 28 through August 2, featuring a festive prix fixe menu filled with traditional Peruvian dishes and cocktails. The special menu includes a first course choice of causa antigua with fish escabeche, avocado, huacatay, and tomato; cebiche criollo with fish, scallop, shrimp, and smoked creamy aji amarillo; or quinoa solterito with lima bean hummus, beets, tomatoes, and goat cheese. Second course options are a lomo saltado with beef tenderloin stir-fry, tomatoes, cilantro, garlic and soy sauce, rustic potatoes and rice; carapulcra with crispy pork belly, potato stew, and huacatay sauce; and quinoa chaufa with wok-fried quinoa, bell pepper, mushroom, bean sprouts, soy sauce, and sesame oil. For dessert, there's vanilla and chocolate shortbread cookies with dulce de leche filling or a honeycomb orange cake with cinnamon meringue and chicha morada sorbet. The prix fixe is $45 per person.
Omakase Dinner at Ramen-san
In other prix fixe news, July 27 marks the next monthly edition of Ramen-san's Omakase dinner series, this one showcasing locally sourced produced from Marigold Hill Organics from Grayslake, Illinois. Available from 6:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m., the six-course omakase tasting goes farm-to-table with summery dishes like grilled baby gem lettuce with melted pork cheek and cured egg yolk, and Tsukeman with soy tomatoes, Japanese eggplant, and bok choy. The dinner is $42 per person and reservations are limited, so call the restaurant now or visit their website to book your spot.
- Matt Kirouac