We're excited to announce the launch of our long-awaited expanded bar menu, aptly titled Big Jones' Guide to Good Drinking, featuring a collection of refined cocktails, draft beer, cider, fine wines, and over 90 whiskies to choose from. The cocktail list is the handiwork of new Bar Director Andrew Shay (more on this intriguing character soon) and an extensive program of house infusions, bitters, and preserves, with wines and beers personally selected by Chef/Owner Paul Fehribach.

New cocktails by Andrew Shay include Chatham Artillery Punch, a 19th-century libation whose receipt was passed down by famous Savannah socialite Henrietta Waring to racconteur Eugene Walter and on to you through our painstaking process of infusions and barrel aging. Other new cocktails are the Brandy Fix, and pre-prohibition concoction of brandy, lemon, house-macerated pinapple syrup, and green chartreuse, and Blue Yodel No. 2, a variation of the classic Manhattan including Tennessee rye, Dolin rouge, and a rinse of Balcones Brimstone Smoked Whiskey (TX), A Dry Vodka tonic prepared with house-made dry tonic water infused with lemongrass and galangal and featuring Luksusowa, a dynamite potato vodka from Poland and celery bitters, and the Spring Daisy, a loose variation on the Whiskey Daisy including Death's Door white whiskey, fresh squeezed ruby grapefruit, pickled beet juice, housemade rhubarb bitters, fresh tarragon, and a float of yellow chartreuse, Father Pablo's Mission, a combination of reposado tequila, Benedictine, Ferrand dry Curacao, and lime oil, among many other libations.

The focused beer selection includes mostly local offerings and drafts of Metropolitan, Founders, New Holland, Virtue Cider, and Prima Cider together with a  small but very carefully curated bottle selection.

Executive Chef and Owner Paul Fehribach personally selected the 60-bottle wine list, which includes 40 selections under $40 per bottle, and a globe-trotting style in the search for perfect wines, which landed choices from Michigan as well as many other states and countries.

Guests can expect a cocktail menu that evolves seasonally to incorporate the best local and Southern produce available at any time, with a sensibility that, like our kitchen, mines the vaults of history to find receipts that are relevant, intruiging, and delicious.

Bring the most important woman in your life—mom—to Osteria Via Stato for a very special Mother’s Day Brunch on Sunday, May 12, from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Enjoy Chef David DiGregorio’s mouthwatering buffet of brunch delights, including a made-to-order omelet station, an antipasti station and a main course station that will include dishes such as Egg Strata, Ciabatta French Toast, Roasted Chicken Thighs, Creamy Polenta with Meat Ragu and Orecchiette Pomodoro. A sweets station will finish things off, where—sure to surprise everyone—Ricotta Doughnuts, the tender-on-the-inside, crispy-on-the-outside treats, will be handmade-to-order. A white rose will be given to every mom that joins us as well. The cost of Mother’s Day Brunch is $39.95 per person, plus tax and an automatic 18% gratuity. Children aged 10 and under are half-price and children aged 5 and under eat free. For more information or to make your reservation, call 312-642-8450 or visit www.osteriaviastato.com. The bunch buffet will be available for dinner that evening as well. 

For the next dinner in our ongoing Last Thursdays events, Giuseppe has teamed up with Karen Rose of City Olive in Roscoe Village and Edgewater for an Olive Oil Dinner on Thursday, April 25, 2013.  Karen has paired exquisite olive oils to each of the five courses in this menu that begins with a surprising delicious olive oil cocktail and ends with a decadent chocolate olive oil cake.

Dinner is $50 per person, excluding tax and tip. Wine pairings are available.

The menu is offered at a special price on Thursday, and will be available a la carte throughout the weekend.

It's spring and it's not just flowers that are in bloom - everything is sprouting with fantastic seasonal ingredients. On May 11, in celebration of Mother's Day, Old Town Social is using only the freshest elements from our friends at local farms to create a special brunch menu. Featuring savory options like Quiche Lorraine, Asparagus Tart, Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins with honey butter and Crab Cake Benedict, all in addition to the staples on their award winning menu, there is something for every mom (and you!) to enjoy.

ABOUT OLD TOWN SOCIAL: Our idea is so modest…it’s almost radical: A bar. With food. Old Town Social offers a juxtaposition of equal parts casual and sophisticated—no guest list, no cover, no dress code. The 10,000 square-foot sporting parlor will carefully pay tribute to the most treasured elements of the iconic neighborhood bar, with a handcrafted return to the basics. But make no mistake—as low-key as the attitude may be, Old Town Social is deliberate in crafting a nostalgic experience for a more mature and sophisticated clientele. Located at 455 W. North Avenue, Old Town Social is a collaboration of seasoned hospitality veterans Christopher Dexter & Christopher Freeman, as well as award-winning Executive Chef Jared Van Camp. Serving exceptional food and drinks within uniquely designed settings, Old Town Social is open Monday through Friday from 5pm-2am; Saturday 11am-3am, and Sunday from 11am-2am. For more information please visit www.oldtownsocial.com or call 312-266-2277.  

In addition to the 'Toast To Tribute', Nellcôte will have a number of brunch specials to dazzle any mother. Whether you prefer Seared Salmon, Tagliatelle, Asparagus Pizza or Lemon Pound Cake, there is something for everyone to enjoy.

Seared Salmon- Sautéed Asparagus, Roasted Fingerlings, Blood Orange and Brown Butter Hollandaise
Tagliatelle- Grilled Squash, Morels, Chili Flake, and Shaved Parmesan
Asparagus Pizza- Roasted Asparagus, Pickled Red Onion, Burrata Cheese, Toasted Pistachios
Lemon Pound Cake- Mixed Berries, and Moscato Sabayon 

ABOUT NELLCÔTE: Located in Chicago’s red-hot West Randolph restaurant corridor, Nellcôte is a $2.9 million dollar restaurant & nightlife concept by leading hospitality group, Element Collective. The 9,000 square foot venue was inspired by Villa Nellcôte, an ornate 16-room mansion in the Côte d'Azur region of southern France where the Rolling Stones recorded “Exile on Main Street” during the summer of 1971. Nellcôte presents innovations from nationally renowned Executive Chef Jared Van Camp (2011 Rising Star Chef, Starchefs; "12 to Watch in 2012" Restaurant Hospitality Magazine; "Best New Chef in Chicago, 2010" TimeOut) that have yet to be executed by even the finest dining destinations in the country. With a custom made 9-by-11ft stone mill, Nellcôte is the only restaurant in the US to mill its own flour in house daily. Van Camp crafts an “obsessively house made” and locally focused bill of fare, which consists of Neapolitan-style pies crisped to perfection in a wood burning oven imported from Italy, over a dozen fresh-from-scratch-daily pastas made using strictly local heritage wheat and a fresh pasta extruder, as well as a variety of meat and seafood dishes. Nellcôte has been names one of the “Best New Italian Restaurants in the US” Food & Wine, April 2013, one of the “Top 20 Best New Restaurants in Chicago” by Chicago Magazine, April 2012, “Best in Nightlife Design” CS Interiors BEST OF Issue, November 2012. For more information, please visit www.nellcoterestaurant.com

Not all of us are lucky enough to still have Mom around this Mother's Day, and for those that have endured a loss, we invite you to join us in celebration of her memory with a toast and tribute. On May 11, Nellcôte will donate a portion of the proceeds from the purchase of select champagne cocktails to the American Cancer Society. Join in and raise a glass in her honor while supporting a very important cause. With your help we can give your mother the legacy she deserves.

ABOUT NELLCÔTE: Located in Chicago’s red-hot West Randolph restaurant corridor, Nellcôte is a $2.9 million dollar restaurant & nightlife concept by leading hospitality group, Element Collective. The 9,000 square foot venue was inspired by Villa Nellcôte, an ornate 16-room mansion in the Côte d'Azur region of southern France where the Rolling Stones recorded “Exile on Main Street” during the summer of 1971. Nellcôte presents innovations from nationally renowned Executive Chef Jared Van Camp (2011 Rising Star Chef, Starchefs; "12 to Watch in 2012" Restaurant Hospitality Magazine; "Best New Chef in Chicago, 2010" TimeOut) that have yet to be executed by even the finest dining destinations in the country. With a custom made 9-by-11ft stone mill, Nellcôte is the only restaurant in the US to mill its own flour in house daily. Van Camp crafts an “obsessively house made” and locally focused bill of fare, which consists of Neapolitan-style pies crisped to perfection in a wood burning oven imported from Italy, over a dozen fresh-from-scratch-daily pastas made using strictly local heritage wheat and a fresh pasta extruder, as well as a variety of meat and seafood dishes. Nellcôte has been names one of the “Best New Italian Restaurants in the US” Food & Wine, April 2013, one of the “Top 20 Best New Restaurants in Chicago” by Chicago Magazine, April 2012, “Best in Nightlife Design” CS Interiors BEST OF Issue, November 2012. For more information, please visit www.nellcoterestaurant.com

On Monday, May 20, executive chef Paul Fehribach in conjunction with Chefs Collaborative will be joined by nine of Chicago’s premier chefs to present a Trash Fish Dinner at Big Jones. The event benefits Chefs Collaborative, a national network of chefs working to make sustainable practices second nature in restaurant kitchens. The dinner will begin with a cocktail reception at 6 p.m. followed by an eight-course, family-style dinner at 7 p.m. Seafood for the evening will be provided by event sponsor Fortune Fish and Gourmet. The cost of the dinner is $125 per person, inclusive of tax, gratuity and alcohol. Tickets are required and can be purchased by calling 617-236-5200 or online at chefscollaborative.org/events.

The featured chefs will showcase lesser-known fish species in each course, like dogfish, smelt, speckled trout and triggerfish. These sustainable fish, often known as “trash fish,” have traditionally been left off the menu by chefs, discarded by fishermen as bycatch, and are virtually unknown to the general public.

The Trash Fish Dinner chef lineup is as follows:

Hosted by chef Paul Fehribach – Big Jones
Erling Wu-Bower – Avec
Paul Kahan - Blackbird
Bruce Sherman - North Pond
Sarah Stegner and George Bumbaris - Prairie Grass Café
Laura Piper - Trattoria No. 10
Michael and Patrick Sheerin - Trenchermen
Paul Virant – Vie; Perennial Virant 

The Trash Fish Dinner sponsors are as follows:

American Harvest Organic Spirit
Big Jones
Environmental Defense Fund
Fortune Fish and Gourmet
Monterey Bay Aquarium and Seafood Watch
 

Launching April 15th in time for patio season, OTS will introduce new handcrafted artisanal punches, a fresh new take on the classics, and some 'bite-sized' cocktail options such as the Piggy Back, crafted with house made bacon consommé.

This spring and summer, forget the overworked mimosas and the bland gin and tonics, Element Collective's head bartender, Tim Williams announces a new seasonal cocktail menu at Old Town Social…..and it packs a serious punch. The gorgeous mason jars of ladled goodness, renowned for being equally as delicious as they are aesthetically appealing, go hand-in-hand with OTS' unique house made credo and extreme and ambitious commitment to sourcing local fresh ingredients. Historically, punch (which is often also served in bowls) are as old as the Republic and one of the most basic forms of communal libations around. These days, Williams is taking the social cocktails to new heights at OTS with their Gin Elderflower & Prosecco Punch, the Vodka, Orgeat & Mint Punch, and the Whiskey, Cherry & Earl Grey Punch bowl among other craft cocktail offerings. The results? As complex and surprising as any dish on the menu--perfect for patio season.

"When designing the new cocktail menu, we wanted to put a new spin on the old classics, which are recognizable by name, slightly updated in flavors and approach, but most importantly mirror chef Jared Van Camp's hyper-local approach to food," says Williams. For more information or to speak with Williams, please contact me directly.

ABOUT OLD TOWN SOCIAL: Serving exceptional food and drinks within uniquely designed settings, Old Town Social is open Monday through Friday from 5pm-2am; Saturday 11am-3am, and Sunday from 11am-2am. For more information please visit www.oldtownsocial.com or call 312-266-2277.  

Well, the snow has melted and the annual Chicago hibernation is coming to an end. What better way to celebrate the end of winter with the onset of Spring!

Come in to HEARTY and check out our new Spring inspired dinner and cocktail menus with seasonally appropriate dishes and locally sourced ingredients. 

On Wednesday nights for this season we are offering Unlimited Mussels and Fries for only $12! That's right, unlimited buckets of Prince Edward Island mussels with housecut fries and homemade garlic aioli for $12.

As if that wasn't enough, we here at HEARTY know how much everyone loves our fried chicken so we decided to do a Fried Chicken Basket with housecut fries and homemade coleslaw for only $10 a person every single Thursdaty night!

So what are you waiting for? Make a reservation for you and yours at HEARTY now!

Glorious and multifaceted, a ‘wine of love and passion’, sherry, in all its styles, is also one of the finest and most flexible food pairs in the world.

Join us through April 24 on an exploration of this most inspirational of wines in our new four-course Wine Dinner, whose culinary half represents our personal take on regional classics:

1st: smelt and olive fritto misto, roasted garlic aioli
(paired with La Guita's Manzanilla)

2nd: oyster on the half shell, white gazpacho, salmon roe
(paired with Gonzalez Byass’ Fino ‘En Rama’)

3rd: cajun-style boudin noir dolma, speck, hearts of palm, green apple
(paired with El Maestro Sierra’s Fino)

4th: coffee-marinated, grilled teres major (beef shoulder), pickled kumquat, st. malachi cow milk cheese
(paired with Gonzalez Byass’ rare Palo Cortado)

A slideshow of all four dishes is available on our Facebook page.  More info to be posted soon on "On the Menu".  

$35 for dinner
$55 with wine pairings