Taste of Chicago Summer Festival
2008 Grant Park Event Features Food and Free Entertainment
Taste of Chicago will take place June 27 through July 4, 2008. Taste is a popular food festival event is held in Grant Park on the lake front in the City of Chicago. Taste of Chicago features food from Chicago restaurants and music.
The Taste of Chicago was born in 1980, when a group of Chicago restaurateurs approached Mayor Daley with the idea for a food festival on the Fourth of July. The one day festival was a huge success. The food oriented event has grown to an eight day event that attracts millions of people. The 2007 Taste of Chicago was attended by over six millions festival goers from around the city, suburbs and even internationally.
Stages of Entertainment at Taste of Chicago
The Petrillo Music Shell features the headlining entertainment. There are eight stages featuring a full day of constant music and entertainment. Stages at Taste of Chicago include Petrillo Music Shell, Dominick's Cooking Corner, Family Village, Fun Time Stage, International Pavilion, Taste Sports, Taste Stage and Toons @ Taste,
Headlining Entertainment at Petrillo Music Shell
The Petrillo Music Shell features headlining entertainment. Admission to the concert is free. Following is a lineup of the performances at Petrillo Music Shell at Grant Park. For additional information about the musical lineup, see Taste of Chicago Music Lineup
- Friday, June 27: Chaka Khan and Angie Stone presented by City of Chicago and V103 at 5:30 pm
- Saturday, June 28: Stevie Wonder presented by City of Chicago and U.S. Cellular at 5:30 pm.
- Sunday, June 29: Plain White T's and Josh Kelley presented by City of Chicago at 5:00 pm.
- Monday, June 30: Broadway in Chicago headlined by the Chicago casts of Jersey Boy, Legally Blonde, A Chorus Line, Wicked and others. at 6:00 pm.
- Tuesday, July 1: Joss Stone and Ryan Shaw presented by City of Chicago at 5:30 pm.
- Wednesday, July 2: Fantasia and Estelle presented by City of Chicago and WGCI at 5:30 pm.
- Thursday, July 3: 28th Annual Independence Eve Concert and Fireworks Spectacular presented by City of Chicago. The Annual Independence Eve Concert is at 8:00 pm. The Fireworks Spectacular lights the skies starting at 9:30 pm.
- Friday, July 4: Gomez and Alejandro Escovedo and Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular are presented by City of Chicago and 93XRT at 3:00 pm. The Fourth of July Fireworks spectacular lights up the Chicago skyline starting at 9:30 pm.
- Saturday, July 5: Bonnie Raitt and Dave Barnes are presented by City of Chicago, Bud Light Music and 93XRT at 5:30 pm.
- Sunday, July 6: Aly & AJ, A Cursive Memory and Keke Palmer are presented by City of Chicago and Radio Disney at 2:00 pm.
Restaurants at Taste of Chicago
Taste of Chicago features 65 restaurants offering tastes of local cuisine. Food tickets allow festival goers to sample tastes of cuisine for the following Chicago eateries.
A Natural Harvest, Abbey Pub, Adobe Grill, Arya Bhavan, Aunt Diana's Candy Makers, B.J. Market & Bakery, Bacino's Pizza at Lincoln Park, Bella Luna Cafe, Billy Goat Inn, Bobtail Ice Cream Company, Bolate African Cuisine, Buona, C'est Si Bon., Canady Le Chocolatier, Celebration Creamery, Chicago Chocolate Company, Chicago Joe's Connie's Pizza, Costa's Dominick's, Eli's Cheesecake, Father & Son Pizzeria Fireplace Inn, Franco's Ristorante, Graziel Ristorante, Guey Lon, Harold's Chicken #71, Harry Caray's Hashbrowns, Helen's Home Run Inn Pizza.
JR Dessert Bakery, Kasia's Deli, La Justicia, Lagniappe-Creole Cajun Joynt, Las Tabias, Los Dos Laredos, Lou Malnati's Pizzeria, Mazzone's Italian Ice, Now We're Poppin', O'Briens, Oak Street Beach Cafe, Original Rainbow Cone, Polka Sausage & Deli, Polo Cafe & Catering, Reggio's PIzza, Ricobene's, Robinson's #1 Ribs, Sabor Latino, Soul Vegetarian East, Star of Siam, Suparossa Pizza, Sweet Baby Ray's Tamarind, Taqueria Los Comales, The Breakfast Clue, The Grill On the Alley, The Noodle Vietnamese Cuisine, Tiparos Thai Cuisine, Tuscany, Tutto Italiano, Vee-Vee's African Cuisine, Vermilion Latin-American Cuisine, Vienna Beef/Gold Coast Dogs and Wow Bao.
Taste of Chicago Ticket Information
Taste of Chicago is a free event. Tickets to purchase food and beverages are sold in strips of 12 for $8. There are over 200 food items available. No one food item costs more than 10 tickets. "Taste of" portions are smaller offerings of the restaurants menu items. Most offered items are available for one to four tickets. Tickets can be purchased in advance at Dominick's Stores with a Fresh Values Card. Tickets purchased in advance are sold at a discount. The advance tickets are $6 per strip, with a limit of 4 strips per purchase. Advance tickets at Dominick's Stores are available from June 20 to June 26.
Additional information can be found at the City of Chicago Taste of Chicago website. Information is subject to change.
Chicago has public transportation and a seasonal free trolley system. See Getting Around City of Chicago
There are festivals around Chicago's suburbs celebrating the Fourth of July. See Fourth of July Chicago NW Suburbs and Ribfest Weekend in Naperville, IL
