Just wanna say congrats to the Hawks for eliminating The Wild last night. I'm sure any of you who watched realized this was a really tough series. Minnesota has a really talented and physical team. Thankfully, Corey Crawford was an impenetrable goaltender, and stole more than a few games for the Hawks. The talking heads in the NHL commentary have to finally acknowledge him as an elite goaltender, and stop talking that BS about his weak glove hand. GO HAWKS!

^^^ Go Hawks!


Also, check out this sick proposal:

http://assets.dnainfo.com/generated/...extralarge.jpg

http://assets.dnainfo.com/generated/...extralarge.jpg

http://assets.dnainfo.com/generated/...extralarge.jpg

http://assets.dnainfo.com/generated/...extralarge.jpg

http://assets.dnainfo.com/generated/...extralarge.jpg

All photos from this DNAinfo article: http://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20140...sion#slideshow


They claim it will only cost $177 million, but that sounds cheap especially after hearing about projects like the Red Line extension costing billions. Just think what we could buy with $2.3 billion if it were spent on a practical project. This group is also claiming they can raise that $177 million privately a la Millennium Park. This would be an excellent improvement to our city.

There's no way in hell that all of that could be done for $177M.

just. no. way.

looks cool though...........

Maybe they mistakenly put an "m" instead of a "b." It would probably cost that much just for the breakwater island.

Nevertheless, what an amazing proposal. What I love about it most is replacing all the concrete between Oak St beach and North Ave beach with green space. It would be great to be able to just hang out in that area without having to either sit on concrete, or be in the sandy part of the beach. That's one thing that's great about Milwaukee's lakefront. It has a much more natural feel (although, of course, Chicago's lakefront has 10x more life).

Looks like the James Beard Award will be held in Chicago this year, the first time it is being held outside of NYC

^ Wow, I'm kinda surprised there has been no discussion of this since I posted it. This is pretty great news for Chicago, and if there were any doubts that our city is a global center for cuisine, this news pretty much eliminates that.

That is pretty huge, given that the Beard Awards are like the academy awards for foodies. It may signal their desire to seem less New York centric, as that could undermine their credibility. It was interesting that when Melman (Lettuce Entertain You) won the Beard award for Best Restauranteur a few years ago, he wasn't even at the ceremony. When asked why he didn't go, he replied he didn't think they would ever give that award to anyone not from NY. Great to see them come to Chicago, although I can't see it being a permanent move.

With Michelin, Zagat and AAA diamond awards, Beard is not the only game in the culinary world.

Maybe not, but it's good news regardless. I've long thought that Chicago needs to start acting like a national leader in the fields where it is strong: food, music, architecture, comedy, Latino culture, etc. To act like a national leader, we definitely should be hosting more awards ceremonies, among other things.

The Civic Opera House and the Auditorium Theater seem perpetually under utilized. Both are fantastic venues that could host a variety of high culture activities, awards ceremonies being one of them. I don't think these civic spaces can be utilized enough, so any time I see a major event headed for them, I am happy.

Don't forget the Arie Crown. Even conventions that host presentations which need a huge theater and stage sometimes don't use it. I wonder if the pricing is that out of line with the rest of the McCormick Place?

Well..... guess it's time to say farewell to this season's Hawks. What an emotional last series, and at least they fought hard to the end, proving what a great team they still are. Regardless, my congrats to the Kings, and should make for an interesting cup final NY vs LA.

But while Los Angeles produced a pedestrian 4.8 rating, Chicago delivered a whopping 22.7 figure, which translates to more than 800,000 homes. That's a number even New York can't match. The Rangers, who punched a ticket to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1994 last week by beating the Canadiens, earned an 8.5 rating for their Game 6 clincher.

Clearly, the Blackhawks -- and their loyal fans -- will be missed.

Article: http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports...,5689044.story

Pretty pie in the sky idea I think but why not.



http://www.chicagobusiness.com/artic...-lake-michigan

Next stop for fun: A pool-equipped barge on Lake Michigan?



By Brigid Sweeney June 10, 2014

If a local entrepreneur has his way, Chicagoans will have an entirely new way to enjoy Lake Michigan and the city's warm-weather social scene next summer.

Beau D'Arcy wants to build a 300-by-100-foot floating vessel, nearly twice the length of the Odyssey yacht that operates cruises from Navy Pier, that would have a swimming pool, restaurants, bars, shops and a spa area — all slightly more than a mile out on Lake Michigan, due east of Erie Street and Lake Shore Drive. He says if all goes according to plan, the concept would be a reality by July 2015.

The $23 million project, called Breakwater Chicago, ...


http://www.chicagobusiness.com/apps/...20140610084655

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/apps/...20140610084655




Four min video in this link below

http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local...262519341.html

i'm really hoping this happens. not only would it be cool to see, but this would also be really good exposure for chicago to a global audience, especially the jet-setting high spending tourist types. america's cup yacht racing might not elicit too much enthusiasm from the average joe 6-packs around the planet, but it is something that is noticed in more elite circles. imagine wealthy europeans and asians seeing chicago host the races with a sparkling lake michigan and our glorious lakefront parklands and mighty skyline as a backdrop. they might just say to themsleves "wow, chicago looks like it might be worth a visit the next time we travel to the states".


source: http://www.chicagotribune.com/busine...,3878620.story

^^^ Nice! I would enjoy an America's cup here almost as much as an Olympics. Chicago supposedly has the most public harbor space out of any city in North America (or is it the world?) and this would be a great way to celebrate our large yachting and sailing community. Few cities have their own annual major sailing race like Chicago's Mackinac race so I am not surprised that they liked what they saw when they visited here.

Larry Ellison also grew up in South Shore, I believe.

This is huge news for Chicago and fans.


I was at the very last Greatful Dead concert ever at Soldier Field.


This will bring out Dead Heads across the world for this.....


This is huge




http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/...cago_july.html


http://www.slate.com/content/dam/sla...ediumlarge.jpg

Jan. 16 2015 12:26 PM


The Surviving Members of the Grateful Dead to Play One Last Set of Shows This Summer

By David Haglund


Fifty years after the Grateful Dead first formed, and 20 years after Jerry Garcia died, the band’s original surviving members—Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Bill Kreutzman, and Mickey Hart—will reunite for farewell shows in Chicago this July, Billboard reports. Those four will be joined by Bruce Hornsby, Jeff Chimenti of Weir’s band RatDog, and Trey Anastasio of Phish.

The “Fare Thee Well” concerts will take place July 3, 4, and 5, in Chicago, which is the last city the band played with Garcia. Lesh told Billboard that they were reconvening the band “one last time to celebrate—not merely the band’s legacy, but also the community that we’ve been playing to, and with, for 50 years.” But Billboard says only that it is “unlikely” that the band will play additional shows after the Chicago dates, and quotes Weir as saying, “I know we’ll all continue playing this music forever in our ways. I’ve got some miles left in me.”


The band has set up a website, dead50.net, with more information. Tickets will go on sale in February.



• Video Link

http://www.eastlanddisaster.org/news...saster-Located


First Known Archived Film Footage of the Eastland Disaster Located


Saturday, February 07, 2015


Chicago, Illinois -- EDHS was taken by surprise this morning when a Facebook post to our page came through with incredible news: the discovery of filmed footage of the Eastland Disaster.

Since founding the Eastland Disaster Historical Society 17 years ago, we had always felt that video footage existed somewhere, but were never able to locate it. These two short video clips are the first that EDHS has seen, and likely, the first that the public has seen of the Eastland Disaster as well.

The clips come from EYE Film Instituut Nederland and were brought to light by EDHS Facebook follower Jeff Nichols.

The first clip below (55 seconds) shows first responders walking on the overturned hull of the Eastland, pulling survivors/victims out through a gangway, and several other rescue and recovery efforts.

The Eastland Disaster footage begins at the 1:10 minute mark (so please feel free to advance the video).

Laatste bioscoop wereldberichten

The second clip (30 seconds) depicts the efforts while righting the Eastland weeks after the day of the tragedy.

The righting of the Eastland footage begins at the 9:10 minute mark (so please feel free to advance the video).

Laatste bioscoop wereldberichten

These clips come just in time as we commemorate the 100 year anniversary of the Eastland Disaster this coming July. The moving pictures humanize the Disaster, bringing to life Chicago's greatest loss-of-life tragedy for the world to see and experience.

Our sincerest gratitude to Jeff Nichols for changing how we see the Eastland Disaster.

You know what else is crazy? Finding Vivian Maier , a documentary about Chicago street photographer Vivian Maier and the discovery of her work, was nominated for an Oscar and stands a good chance of winning it. John Maloof, a local Chicagoan, was the first to publicize her work and is only in his early 30's. I saw the documentary the other night and it is indeed amazing. I love the hidden cultural treasures big cities like Chicago produce like this.

I know! I saw it a couple of months ago and think it's so great - not only was her photography amazing, but she what a great subject matter she herself makes because of her enigmatic nature (translation: she was slightly kooky).

May I recommend In the Realms of the Unreal about the life and work of Henry Darger and his (coincidentally named) Vivian Girls? I saw it at the Gene Siskel Film Center a million years ago during some film festival. It's pretty awesome.

Pretty good Chicago Auto show this year. I love the Alfa display, wich by the way is worth more than all the other cars on the floor combined due to collector value(Alfa classic P3 and 159 worth 40 million. T33 sportscar worth 10 million. Total 50 million collector value. Alfa show girl priceless).

Here are a few pictures:


http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/d...ps24d697ae.jpg

http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/d...psef785e99.jpg

http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/d...psa8ccacce.jpg

http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/d...ps6bb5b93a.jpg

http://www.wsj.com/articles/art-inst...art-1429675261

Art Institute of Chicago Gets $500 Million Gift of Art

Museum to receive trove that includes artwork by Warhol and Johns
A $500 Million Gift of Art for the Art Institute of Chicago In one of the most significant gifts in the history of the Art Institute of Chicago, ...


[email protected]il 22, 2015 12:01 a.m. ET
In one of the most significant gifts in the history of the Art Institute of Chicago, retired plastics manufacturer Stefan Edlis and his wife, Gael Neeson, have promised to give the museum a group of 42 Pop and contemporary artworks valued at roughly $500 million combined.

The trove includes nine silk-screens by Andy Warhol; a trio of Jasper Johns paintings; a pair of paintings by Roy Lichtenstein; a quartet of Gerhard Richter paintings and an early sculpture and painting by Cy Twombly. The gift ranks among the museum’s largest in its 136-year history and puts its contemporary holdings on par with its signature collection of Impressionist masterpieces.

The gift was approved by the Art Institute’s board at a meeting on Tuesday.

...

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/artic...ugh-his-alumni

April 27, 2015

Hot Doug's lives on—through his alumni

It's been six months since Doug Sohn closed his wildly popular Hot Doug's,E and loyal followers have been wondering what might take its place.

Now, two of the four line cooks who worked at the restaurant have opened their own hot dog spot, Hot "G" Dog,E in Uptown, reports DNAinfo Chicago.

Brothers Juan Carlos Garcia and Octavio Garcia were long-time line cooks at Sohn's place, and were "total pros in the kitchen," Sohn told DNAinfo. "They made Hot Doug's as much as a success as I did."

The two have created a similar menu to the one at Sohn's restaurant, with alligator, snake, foie gras and lamb sausages as well as a classic Chicago dog. And yes, there are duck-fat fries on weekends.

The Garcias are using similar ingredients and the same sausage source, Chicago Game & Gourmet. ....

Hot "G" Dog is at 5009 N. Clark St.



http://www.hotgdog.com/


http://www.yelp.com/biz/hot-g-dog-chicago

Additionally:

http://art.newcity.com/2015/04/28/ne...te-of-chicago/

News: Irving Stenn Jr. Gifts Personal Collection of 105 Drawings to Art Institute of Chicago


The Art Institute of Chicago (AIC) recently announced collector Irving Stenn Jr.’s gift of 105 pivotal contemporary drawings by renowned artists. Considered to be one of the most significant contributions of drawings to have ever been given to the museum, the encompassing and vast body of work heavily focuses on works from the 1960s, to which Stenn was keenly attracted. The gifts were exhibited a couple years ago at AIC but will now be part of their permanent collection, put on display on occasion when their inclusion is appropriate to the exhibitions.

Absolutely. Check out ChicagoGreeters.com. Our tourism numbers are going through the roof. European, Asian, and Latin American markets are on fire for us right now, we just opened another auxiliary center in Chengdu, China to further promote the city. Chicago, it seems, far exceeds their expections - I constantly hear "This city is so much prettier and cleaner than New York." "I had no idea Lake Michigan was that big and beautiful." "Everyone here is so friendly!" "I had no idea a city this big existed between New York and Los Angeles." We hit our 'expected number of guests' for the first quarter (Jan 1- April 30) back in the beginning of February.

The momentum is growing, we just need to capitalize on it.

Oh yeah, thanks! Funny you mention China. My girlfriend who's originally from China (Dongbei region originally but moved to Shanghai over a decade ago) and lives in NYC (I split my time between these two cities every week) was in Chicago for her 2nd time. The first time was a few years ago and she didn't seem much. Cold March weekend.

She was amazed by how clean the city was compared to NYC. She never saw Lake Michigan her first time and couldn't believe it - how blue it was, how big, etc. She took pictures of it, posted it on the Chinese equivalent of FB and asked "Guess where!?" A handful of people thought it was Miami. She started asking me about real estate prices here and was absolutely amazed at how cheap everything is relatively compared to SF, DC, NYC, etc and Shanghai. She kept remarking how the South Loop's skyline reminded her of some cities in China - the architecture, modernity of the buildings, and spacing of the buildings. She said Roosevelt Collection looks exactly like where her parents live in an outer ring of Shanghai and asked if a Chinese architect had designed it.

I guess recently she's been telling some of her Chinese friends about Chicago. Most of them just say "Yeah, but the winters!" -- and yes winters are rough, but the difference in winter between NYC and Chicago isn't really THAT great minus the snow totals. This last winter was about even between the two cities too with temperatures. I'm usually in both cities every week and I see the potential for Chicago to really grow again right now.

In the context of China, our climate, including winters, are very similar to Beijing for that matter.

At the risk of steering this ship further off topic: I've had similar experiences with friends who had never been to the city. One dude gazed out at the lake for the first time and remarked, "I thought you'd be able to see to the other side?!" (...a real idiot, that one, but I hear this is a depressingly common exclamation among first-time visitors. I guess "lake" sounds quaint? Perhaps to get a real sense of their scale, it would probably be better to describe the Great Lakes as inland seas.) A friend from college, originally from Calgary, visited one weekend with her fiance. I took them to Watershed on a Saturday night. We walked around River North a bit, and, observing the nightlife there, she made a surprised comment about how Chicago, "is, like, a real city!" Another friend from college made a similar remark about Downtown's scale the first time she was here.

The gulf between what people think they know about Chicago and the reality of the city never ceases to amaze me. Lots of people get defensive about their hometowns, but, IMO, few are as justified as Chicagoans.

the word "lake", really does throw a lot of people off because to 95% of the world's people, lakes are smallish bodies of freshwater that you can always see the other side of. "freshwater sea" would really be a more accurate, if verbally cumbersome, term for the great lakes.

this reminds me of a conversation i had years ago with my british friend's father who was visiting chicago for the first time. i took the family up to milwaukee for a little day-trip. upon arriving at the milwaukee art museum, my friend's dad looked out across the vast blue expanse of lake michigan and remarked:


friend's dad: "my god, another great lake just like the one down in chicago. these lakes truly are remarkable, we've nothing like them back in blighty."

me: "oh no, this is still the same lake as the one down in chicago, it's all lake michigan."

friend's dad: "you mean we've just been traveling for a couple of hours on the motorway and we're still along the shore of the same lake?! unbelievable. exactly how large is this lake?"

me: "about 300 miles long in the north-south direction."

friend's dad: "bloody hell! 300 miles long! that's almost the length of england itself! and you yanks call this vast sea a mere lake?"

me: "well, it is all freshwater....... and there are 4 more of them to boot."

friend's dad: "unbelievable." <shaking his head in disbelief>


he had some prior awareness that the great lakes were big, but in his mind, when we traveled up I-94 from chicago to milwaukee, he had assumed that we had traveled from one great lake to another great lake, his mind had come nowhere close to wrapping itself around the true size and scale of the great lakes, because back home in britain, what he knew as "lakes" are simply small puddles in comparison to a body of water like lake michigan.

Yeah, I find that most people, especially foreigners, have absolutely no concept of the true scale of the interior USA. This is a useful image I've sent to my friends in the UK:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B6mm_Y-CIAA8j1x.jpg
Peter Campbell on Twitter


One of my business partners from there said something along the lines of "Well, that's a proper city isn't it!" when the skyline first came into view while driving in from O'Hare. I feel like Chicago is lumped in with all the lesser Central US cities like Cleveland, Detroit, St. Louis, etc in most people's minds until they actually see it and realize few cities globally are even on Chicago's scale.

Another great bit of fun with foreigners is forcing them to drive across the great plains. I had one of my British friends remark "What city are we in now? St. Louis" after we sat in traffic for a bit more than an hour and arrived in Oakbrook. I was like "We haven't even left the outskirts of Chicago yet..." Same guy was asking if we were "almost there" when we were rolling into Omaha. Broke his heart to find out we were not quite halfway to Denver yet.

They must not have been too traumatized though because they opted to drive from Vail to Las Vegas instead of grab a flight the next week.

Yep, and she's from NE China and so are some of her friends. The winters there are worse than Chicago - at least as bad as Minnesota if not worse. They think Chicago is somehow worse than that - lot of misinformation.

Yeah. I find that most people don't actually have a clue. I mean, I'll admit it too. I grew in Minnesota but didn't have a real clue. People also always say "lake" like it's some small lake in Maine. They don't have a clue of how massive that thing is. At 500 mph, it will still take a plane 15 minutes to fly over it between Michigan and Illinois.

Even regarding culture - a lot of people come for the first time and expect to see people who look like hicks all over the place with no swanky anything. It's just funny - I have a coworker in NYC who's never been there and the way she talks about Chicago is just hilariously wrong. I show her that she hasn't a clue and now she wants to visit.

yeah i visted the great wall and chengde in december.
cold, and WIND.

most people dont have a clue about anywhere outside of their immediate surroundings. ask an average American to find Poland on a map and I suspect they will fail, much less articulately be able to describe what life is like there or any level of its history/geography/culture. this isnt somehow unique to chicago, although people here do seem to take it more personally.

the fact is everyone forms sterotypes about places, and most will see a mere fraction of the planet in their lifetimes, even if theyre lucky. we have kids on the southside who have never seen the lake or a world outside of their neighborhood, much less a forest or a mountain.

No, it's not a matter of accurately knowing what life is like elsewhere, it's about the manner in which their expectations tend to be inaccurate. Certain places tend to be over-exaggerated and certain places tend to be under-exaggerated. You always hear the tales of immigrants from Europe expecting the streets to be paved with gold in NYC. People tend to underestimate Chicago in many ways while also overestimating some of our negatives like crime. And, Chicago, still being a relatively young city, perpetually feels like it has something to prove when it comes to the other great cities of the world. So we take it personal when people underestimate us and we collectively seem to feel the need to correct that. That's why we're the windy city, it really hasn't changed much at all from the days of the Tribinue and other paper chiefs on the next train to NYC the day after the fire. Always boasting, but usually backed up with the facts. Always the city on the make, trying to prove itself.

Chicago Tribune, Nov. 20, 1892

^ Spot on, LVDW.

The issue Chicago deals with is that it really is such a great city which is so under recognized. Hell, the city right now even is changing at a whirlwind pace. It's hard for its reputation to keep up with what is happening. If you aren't on the ground here you will just expect a glorified Cleveland. Chicago needs to do away with this perception problem for once and for all with a dedicated, expensive global marketing campaign.

I went to the NFL draft Saturday with my son and brother and his boy.


There were tons of people from out of town wowed by the city. " Chicago is so beautiful I never knew it." "Look at the view of the Lake !!!" ect all heard from the many first time out of towners.


The draft experience was a good time really and heavily attended at least the day I went. Plus the weather was just about perfect that day. I certainly hope Chicago can continue to host the Draft. Its 3 days of national showing the city exposure viewed by millions. Most all of the broadcasts were outdoors and lots of skyline backdrops vs the inside of theater of NYC that has held them for decades.





http://www.bizjournals.com/chicago/n....html?page=all

NFL Draft —judged by attendance numbers — was certainly not lacking

May 4, 2015, 1:53pm CDT Updated: May 4, 2015, 2:34pm CDT


The hype was unending.

But when it all finally did end Saturday night, the 2015 NFL Draft — unfolding in Chicago for the first time in more than 50 years — had attracted an estimated total 200,000 visitors to both the Draft Town fan festival sprawled across Grant Park and to the NFL Draft ritual itself across the street inside the relatively more intimate Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University.

NFL executives did not break down the size of the crowd that congregated at each location. But undoubtedly the much larger majority of the total attendance was mixing and mingling in Draft Town, which covered an expanse equal to several football fields.

...

Chicago's deal to host the event was for one year only. But with Chicago Mayer Rahm Emanuel, —who took a large part of the credit for luring the Draft to Chicago — back in office, it's likely he will push hard to get it back in the Windy City as early as next year

It feels like Chicago's finally getting a critical mass of high-profile cultural events. Consider this roster, and how many of them are recent additions: James Beard Awards (food), Chicago Architecture Biennial (design/architecture), EXPO (visual art – gaining momentum, and before Miami, Chicago was America's art fair town), Lollapalooza (music), and the NFL Draft (sports).

That might be true, but at the same time, we are on the verge of financial calamity in the city and the state. Our precarious financial position may limit what we are able to do to promote the city's cultural assets going forward. I hope I'm wrong. :runaway:

Well, we can argue about crime, and while I think some people's perceptions of day-to-day life may be inaccurate (or borderline paranoid), its still a massive problem that will hold this city back until it can figure out a way to address it.

Its simply not normal in other civilized countries to see headlines like this every single Monday morning in the summer
http://www.myfoxchicago.com/story/28...o-gun-violence

and they will continue to be the headlines that the national media runs with, that the rest of the world will read and form their opinions on
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2...ings/70787110/
http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2...ead-22-injured

ironically, the Guardian wasnt too fond of the draft either
http://www.theguardian.com/sport/201...ork-measure-up

but again, the constant need for external validation has never really been something i care about. i know the cities beauties, and i know its faults, because ive dedicated 30 years of my life here and im interested in fixing things at the ground level. the last thing i care stay up at night thinking about is how a fly by night jetsetter perceives us.

This is what I was getting at really. People know about the city, at least in the US, but their perceptions are at least 2 decades behind. There are many people who expect the entire city to be something like Wrigleyville with a bunch of uneducated people walking around. The city has come a long way since 20+ years ago in both of these regards.

^ Yeah, but does this surprise you?

Chicago can't do anything in a positive light without, by some media outlet or journalist somewhere, being compared negatively to New York. It's Chicago's fate to be compared to New York....for basically eternity.

It's definitely something that used to bug me but now I shrug it off.

That Chicago vs New York article in the Guardian was written before the event even took place. It's a fluff piece that goes on comparing the pizza, sports fan celebrities, Sinatra albums, and taxi drivers of the two cities? Based on those mostly irrelevant topics the writer was predicting that it will be here one year and move on. Let's wait and see what the people that actually attended it and the people that run the thing have to say, not some shitty article based on pointless stereotypes.

Isn't this an event the NFL wants to take on the road, though? They want another Super Bowl like event to promote the NFL brand, and they want cities to fall all over themselves competing to hand the NFL money. A strong showing of 200,000 fans in Chicago is a huge thing the NFL can tempt Indy or Tampa with. Even moreso the cold weather cities like Denver, Buffalo, and Boston that don't have domes and therefore can't host the Super Bowl.

New York was convenient because NFL headquarters are there, so they held the draft there every year for decades. Chicago has no special significance to the NFL, except as one more city that

One of the only reasons why they didn't do it in NYC was because Radio City Music Hall had a scheduling conflict for some reason. Chicago came in and lured it away from them. I don't think anybody from the NFL ever said, officially, they want to take this on the road or that was their plan from the beginning. Anybody who thinks this isn't really familiar with why it was not in NYC this year in the first place. If it wasn't for that scheduling conflict, they would have never even thought about doing this and it would have been in NYC. It has opened some doors for the NFL though because of it. IMO there's only a few parts of the country where I think the draft could have a response like it did last weekend. I could be wrong, but I don't see it going to LA and it having quite the same response.

NYC sour grapes on the James Beard Awards’. :rolleyes: But I admit Chicago hotels can really gouge when that are at full capacity. So much I went to Sundera spa in the Dells because it was 3 times as inexpensive as a Chicago hotel on a busy convention in town that week. Im talking about no hotel rooms at all at most hotels at least anything under $500. Even out at O'hare they were charging $400-500 a room at low end places. I hope these new hotels coming on line will prevent this type of gouging or if not gouging give us more hotel rooms so if one wanted one he could get one.






http://www.thebraiser.com/everything...ve-to-chicago/

Everything Wrong with the James Beard Awards’ and Their Move to Chicago Awards

by Adam Robb 11:44 am, May 6th


As we fly home to New York this afternoon, we reflect on the shortcomings of this year’s James Beard Foundation Awards, and what it needs to set right before it (potentially) returns to New York in 2018.
It’s was Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel‘s courtship of the JBFA that brought the awards to Chicago not just in 2015 but through 2017, and it’s clear the city didn’t really need the business. Taking place in the same stretch as the NFL Draft and Microsoft Ignite, the city lacked the means, and hotel capacity, to accommodate those who made the trip

...

Rather than Chicago’s tourism board making outreach, guests faced another kind of midwestern hospitality — hotel rates 500% higher than their New York counterparts. Finally dining editors from across the country discovered what their political counterparts already know: Emanuel’s ambitions outpace his capabilities.

^^^ Lol, what a whiny little bitch. The room rates were out of control for the past week, what a problem to have! That's why we have thousands of new hotel rooms under construction and even more in the pipeline. What doesn't make sense about hosting the Beard Awards back to back with the National Restaurant Association conference? What they lost paying for pricey rooms they saved in airfare.

People like this in NYC (and elsewhere) better get used to travelling to Chicago because I have a feeling that we are going to poach a whole lot more events given the spectacle put on over the past week. The Draft coverage was like 50% football related images and 50% breathtaking skyline shots of Chicago with a massive party going on in front of it...

That guy is a fucking idiot. They aren't 500% higher than NYC. I've been staying at hotels every week in Manhattan since last July. Most of the time, my hotels are over $300/night for a standard hotel like Hilton Midtown, Hilton Fashion District, Hilton Times Square or closer to $400/night for stuff like the W Times Square or W Union Square. Even if $500-$600/night were average for Chicago, which it's not, it's not even close to 500% higher. Anybody who knows anything about hotels knows that NYC hotels are more expensive than Chicago ones.

This week my hotel is $430/night before tax when I've gotten it for $290/night before. Next week even the fucking Hilton Garden Inn, not even a great hotel, on 35th costs $450/night. Two of the W's that I've stayed at (Times Square and Union Square) were listed at over $650/night minimum. The St. Regis is over $1000/night when it's usually around $550.

Not to mention that he's using his sample size of just a few days for Chicago. I could easily do that for NYC and claim that everything is out of control because even a shitty HGI is over $430/night but the fact of the matter is that the prices are jacked up for the next few weeks, just like what happened in Chicago. It's not the norm.

This guy basically hasn't a fucking clue of what he's talking about. Most people are clueless about the average hotel prices in their own cities and how there are a few weeks every year where the prices go way up. The pure fact that this guy thinks this is 500% higher than anything in Manhattan makes me believe he either probably has a mental disorder or he failed out of 2nd grade math.

Lol, so true. The guy sounds like a moron.