May 27--Taste of Chicago will have a bit of James Beard flavor this year.
The Celebrity Chef Du Jour Pavilion -- each day featuring a guest chef preparing a three-course, $45 dinner served in an air-conditioned tent on the Taste site -- will feature chefs who are James Beard Foundation Award semifinalists, nominees or past winners: Tanya Baker of Boarding House (2015 nominee for Rising Star Chef), Thomas Lents of Sixteen (Best Chef: Great Lakes semifinalist), Giuseppe Tentori of GT Fish Oyster (a multiple Best Chef: Great Lakes semifinalist), Jimmy Bannos Jr. of Purple Pig (2014 winner for Rising Star Chef) and Phillip Foss of EL Ideas (multiple Best Chef: Great Lakes semifinalist).
Tickets for the Chef du Jour dinners go on sale Friday at tasteofchicago.us.
The full lineup for the 35th annual Taste of Chicago, which will take place July 8-12 in Grant Park, was announced Wednesday morning. The largest food festival in town will feature 60 restaurants, 19 of them newcomers. Of those newcomers, five are food trucks and eight are pop-ups (one- and two-day participants).
New five-day restaurants are Dia de Los Tomales, Emerald Isle, Farmer's Fridge, La Bomba Restaurant, La Mexicana and Miller's Pub. New Pop-Up restaurants are Burger Bar Chicago, Dinky Donuts, DonerMen, Haire's Gulf Shrimp, Luke's Lobster, Old Crow Smokehouse, Puffs of Doom and Sono Wood Fired.
New food trucks are Bruges Brothers, Jack's Fork in the Road, La Cocinita, The Crave Bar and Yum Dum.
Familiar names returning to Taste include Billy Goat Tavern Grill, BJ's Market Bakery, Bobak Sausage Co., Connie's Pizza, Eli's Cheesecake, Franco's Ristorante, Iyanze, Lawrence's Fish Shrimp, Lou Malnati's, Mariano's, Oak Street Beach Cafe, O'Brien's Restaurant, Ricobene's, Robinson's No. 1 Ribs, Tuscany and Vee-Vee's African Restaurant.
Conspicuous by their absence are longtime Taste participants Bacino's and Original Rainbow Cone, which has been at Taste for 29 straight years.
"We're taking a pass this year," said Original Rainbow Cone owner Lynn Sapp. "We love Taste; it's a great event, but we're looking to do some other things, some expansion, so we just decided to take a year off."
Taste of Chicago's hours will be 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday to Friday and 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
For more information, call 312-744-3316 or visit tasteofchicago.us.
