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Taste of Chicago tells vendors from outside Chicago that they are no longer welcome
The yearly "Taste Of Chicago" is one of the highlights of the summer festival season in Chicago - it is when thousands upon thousands brave the overpriced city parking to spend an insane amount of money on fairly mediocre food. In recent years, the assortment of vendors included several restaurants from outside the Chicago city limits - something that has come to an end.
According to the organizers, all vendors were told back in 2007 that participants had to be Chicago based, and they had a three year grace period to comply. For the 2010 lineup, five suburban vendors have been dropped, and the Taste is going back to its "roots" of only allowing Chicago based firms to sell their goods.
One of the city Aldermen even suggested that the city grant preferential treatment to Chicago residents for seating at the Pritzker music pavilion. Apparently he was "fed up with suburbanites who park their fannies in the Pritzker Pavillion's 4,000 seats and on the lawn".
Well, there really isn't any better way to tell tourists that they are not welcome, and I'm sure many of those suburbanites and tourists wouldn't mind spending their money at other festivals. Take for example the fantastic Summerfest in Milwaukee, where in my opinion the variety of food is much better than that on offer at the Taste Of Chicago.
Have you ever been to Taste Of Chicago? What did you think of it?
| Love it - go every year | |
|---|---|
| Been once - would love to go back | |
| Been once - will never go again |
Filed under: Festivals and Events, Food and Drink, North America, United States
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
chrislrob Apr 17th 2010 10:25AM
Chicagoan all of my life.
Preferred seating for the pavillion is silly.
But I agree with returning to a Chicago focus.
The Taste is a great event, but over the years it changed considerably. My understanding is that it started out as a way to highlight Chicago restaurants. You went to the festival, you had a small "taste" of a restaurant there, and that prompted you to seek out that restaurant later. Accordingly, the price was such that you could go to several vendors and hopefully get a real sampling. Many vendors complained about the costs of participating in the event.
But nowadays, many restaurants sell what amounts to full meals, and in most cases, sell them at full-meal prices. And that has led to the event going from a loss leader to a profit center for several restaurants. I suspect that is why restaurants from the suburbs can make a go of it--they're not there to drum up business--they are there to make money. Of course, any business they do drum up then goes to Riverside or Berwyn or wherever. Great places, but I'm not sure how that helps Chicago.
Not sure why you think a Chicago festival that focuses on Chicago vendors will discourage tourists from visiting Chicago.
But you're right about Milwaukee's Summerfest--it's great. And the suburbs have a number of great festivals. But when I go there, I don't go for Chicago's Harold's Chicken or Eli's Cheesecake.
Scott Carmichael Apr 17th 2010 10:31AM
Excellent comment - what bothers me about Taste is how it is often the same vendors over and over again. Yes - several small vendors manage to sneak in each year, but on the whole, the lineup rarely changes.
I think the organizers are wrong to think that the really close suburbs are not "Chicago enough". Take Eli's for example - they are so far from Chicago that most people in the city would never bother drive all the way there. How an Eli's (which is pretty much in Harwood Heights) is Chicago enough, but a fudge store from Riverwoods is not, is beyond me - but like a lot of things in Chicago, I'm sure politics play a major role. Eli's said that Chicago restaurants equal Chicago jobs - but I'd love to know just how many of the Eli's employees at their plant actually live in the burbs.
If they really want focus on Chicago food, they need a 100% different lineup each year, with the best the city has to offer.