Blackstone Hotel, site of a recent $139 million renovation, where Lincoln Park Young Professionals ogled a diamond fashion show and downed specialty martinis as part of Billionaire at the Blackstone. On Saturday our shooter captured a bash of a different stripe, the Snuggie Pub Crawl, where revelers hopped from bar to bar (Lion Head Pub..." /> Blackstone Hotel, site of a recent $139 million renovation, where Lincoln Park Young Professionals ogled a diamond fashion show and downed specialty martinis as part of Billionaire at the Blackstone. On Saturday our shooter captured a bash of a different stripe, the Snuggie Pub Crawl, where revelers hopped from bar to bar (Lion Head Pub..." /> Blackstone Hotel, site of a recent $139 million renovation, where Lincoln Park Young Professionals ogled a diamond fashion show and downed specialty martinis as part of Billionaire at the Blackstone. On Saturday our shooter captured a bash of a different stripe, the Snuggie Pub Crawl, where revelers hopped from bar to bar (Lion Head Pub..." />

Weekend Photos: Billionaire at the Blackstone & Snuggie Pub Crawl

This week we pair the high and the lowbrow, the classy and the not so, the bejeweled and the beblanketed. On Thursday our intrepid nightlife photographer headed to the chichi Blackstone Hotel, site of a recent $139 million renovation, where Lincoln Park Young Professionals ogled a diamond fashion show and downed specialty martinis as part of Billionaire at the Blackstone. On Saturday our shooter captured a bash of a different stripe, the Snuggie Pub Crawl, where revelers hopped from bar to bar (Lion Head Pub

Stretched Out

Game day seemed like the only day to hit The Stretch (3458 N. Clark St., 773-755-3980), Wrigleyville’s latest steps-from-the-ballpark sports bar. Which means what follows is the account of one relatively sober person among a sea of disappointed Cubs fans—following Wednesday’s loss to Colorado—who had been drinking since at least 1:20 p.m. So, you can take my opinion with a grain of tequila…

Table of Contents

Cover Story Best New Restaurants by Dennis Ray Wheaton and Jeff Ruby Times may be tough, but this year’s top 22 restaurants are not backing down. They’ve embraced green as the new black, elevated organic pork to foie gras status, and made us feel downright giddy about everything from slippery soba noodles to fiery soft-shell … Read more

Elysian Fields Forever

Into Africa
“Iyanzé is my mother’s nickname,” says Emmanuel Abidemi, partner of Iyanzé (4623 N. Broadway; 773-944-1417), a West African spinoff of Bolat (3346 N. Clark St.) that opened on April 13th. “Iyanzé is very hard to translate because it is a rich word, but it’s like, ‘Man, that lady can cook.’” And cook she does. The restaurant’s chef/mom, Remi Abidemi, attempts to cover four West African countries, with dishes such as…

5 Bars We’re Obsessing Over in April

The 44th Ward Dinner Party 3542 N. Halsted St. Soak up a night’s worth of drinking at this spot, formerly Lakeview Broadcasting Co., where the grilled cheese is a buck after midnight.     The Rocking Horse 2535 N. Milwaukee Ave. The High Dive guys bring their laid-back attitude and a souped-up menu to Logan … Read more

Weekend Photos: Christian Siriano at Lumen

The fierce if compact Christian Siriano, winner of Project Runway’s fourth season, brought his spring and summer 2009 collections to the newly remodeled West Loop lounge Lumen on Friday. Since snagging the show’s top designer title, Siriano has dressed the likes of Victoria Beckham, Anne Hathaway, and Miss auf Wiedersehen herself, Heidi Klum; in Chicago, his clothes are available exclusively at the Wicker Park/East Ukrainian Village boutique Bonnie & Clyde’s, which cosponsored the…