I didn’t want to make a big deal about my birthday this year. Like I said last week, approaching your mid-30s isn’t necessarily an occasion to celebrate. That said, I had the best birthday weekend this year, simply because I spent it with good friends and family. My pizza party at Piece was great; we … Read more
Some of you may have noticed I haven’t been blogging about my love life lately. That’s because I actually have one right now, and I don’t want to mess it up! What can I say; I guess I’ve learned some lessons along the way, especially from my very first post about the doctor – although … Read more
Who says hanging out in a garage isn’t cool anymore? Cortland’s Garage (1645 W. Cortland St.) opened Friday night in the old Leopard Lounge space; the new bar bears only a minimal resemblance to the old 23-and-up hangout. Gone are the Bettie Page-esque pinups and leopard print; the fireplace is history, too, replaced by cube … Read more
Industry insiders tend to think of Fridays and Saturdays as "amateur nights": Only the uninitiated, the masses, go out on weekend nights. The really good stuff usually happens on Thursdays. Since a few readers have asked for recommendations, here are some of tonight’s top events, all of which are open to the public. This is … Read more
My target destination Friday night was the Tokyo 21. Over a sushi sampler and a couple of bottles of hot sake at the bar, we made a new friend, Michael Laungani, 31, a Chicago-based consultant and contestant from season five of The Apprentice. Laungani was also one of People magazine’s hottest bachelors last year – … Read more
Who: Joey Vartanian, 43, Lincoln Park ("born and raised")Job: Owner of Maxbar, and Tin Lizzienow resides (2483 N. Clark St.). "There were no big clubs back then,"he says. "Just smaller new-wave neighborhood bars like Exit." Twenty years later, in 2002, Vartanian made a risky move by taking over ownership of Crobar (1543 N. Kingsbury St.), … Read more
I met a couple of the boys at Cans, sans strippers. After the disappointing outcome, I needed some cheering up, so I headed to an engagement party at The Underground with the birthday boy and his posse. On my way over, I sent a text to the owners to see if we’d have any trouble … Read more
In my
I got my first fake ID when I was a senior in high school; according to it, I was 23 and from Lincoln, Nebraska. I’m not sure how anyone bought it then, since, at 32 now, I still get carded. But in Rogers Park circa 1991, it got me into the now-closed Biddy Mulligan’s every … Read more
I’ll admit it: I’m not what you’d call a sports nut; I’m more of a fair-weather fan. But I did fill out two brackets for this year’s March Madness at espn.com. Even if it’s not likely, I figured I could win $10,000-plus, a vested interest keeps me mildly plugged in to the NCAA tournament. And … Read more
