Dining events: Big Chef Burgers now open
Bapi chef opens Big Chef Burgers
Chef Cristiano Bassini, owner of the popular Bapi Ristorante in Arlington Heights, recently opened Big Chef Burger in Schaumburg. The casual, full-service restaurant serves gourmet burgers — like a half-pound, hormone-free Angus beef patty topped with grilled shrimp, cream cheese, lettuce, tomato and tarragon mayo for $12 — as well as brick-oven pizzas and milkshakes.
Big Chef Burgers is located at 1602 E. Algonquin Road, Schaumburg. (847) 221-8539 or bigchefburgers.com.
Farmers market feast at Found Kitchen
Fresh produce from downstate Spence Farm will take the spotlight at a family-style feast starting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 21, at Found Kitchen and Social House. Diners will learn more about the farm to plate connections while they nosh on the likes of heirloom squash soup and tart apples; living water lettuces with pickled sweet potato and sunchoke chips; braised rabbit blue Hopi cakes and corn velouté; roast pork with fire-roasted Iroquois corn, purple kale and fresh sausage; and poached Winesaps with toffee cake and crabapple sorbetto. Dinner costs $80 per person (tax and tip not included); a portion of the proceeds benefit the Spence Farm Foundation.
Found Kitchen and Social House is at 631 Chicago Ave., Evanston. (847) 868-8945 or foundkitchen.com.
Tuscany’s soup month
Celebrate national soup month by dipping a spoon into a steamy bowl of chef Fernando Garcia’s red potato parmigiano soup topped with herbed garlic croutons. The soup costs $6 a bowl and will be available through the end of the month.
Tuscany Restaurant is at 1415 W. 22nd St., Oak Brook. (630) 990-1993 or tuscanychicago.com.
— Sara Hooker