Bring on the Chicago barbecue bonanza!

I can see that, when even Mr. Zee’s, a Greek snack shop in Morton Grove has rebranded itself as Mr. Gee’s B.B.Q. on Demand, the barbecue trend might be getting a little ridiculous. But I think it’s fantastic — bring it on! All styles, all flavors, the more the merrier. Let’s have Kansas City-style, St. Louis-style, Texas-style, South Carolina-style, you-name-it-style … heck, we can even encompass Western Kentucky barbecued mutton.

Eat this! The ‘Hass’ avocado, black and green and creamy

At Prasino in LaGrange, Chef Scott Halverson tops avocado halves with lobster, mango salsa and chili-butter sauce.

Five ways to commemorate Earth Day in Chicago

Happy Earth Day! Today is the 40th anniversary of the first hippie-inspired, national environmental consciousness raising in 1970. Here are a few things you can do to mark the day.

Drink a Treetini.
For every one of the $9 cocktails — blended frin VeeV Acai Spirit with fresh agave nectar, club soda, a splash of white cranberry [...]

This week on the foodie book tour beat

Two foodie book events are on the menu this week:

Jeff Hertzberg and Zoë François will kick off the promotional tour for their new cookbook, “Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day,” with a signing at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 28, at Borders in LaGrange.

David Sax will give a talk and reading from his book, “Save [...]