Dining out: Who's ready for Starbucks' Peppermint Mocha? Holiday drinks return Nov. 3

Starbucks' seasonal sips

Hello, holidays! Almost as anticipated as PSL, Starbucks is debuting its holiday cups and seasonal drinks and bakery items on Thursday, Nov. 3. Now you can once again order a Peppermint Mocha, Chestnut Praline Latte, Toasted White Chocolate Mocha, Caramel Brulée Latte, Iced Sugar Cookie Almondmilk Latte or the Irish Cream Cold Brew to go with the new Chocolate Pistachio Swirl (buttery brioche pastry rolled up with a cinnamon- and coffee-hinted chocolate filling and mint chocolate chips and garnished with chopped pistachios), Snowman Cookie, Reindeer Cake Pop, Sugar Plum Cheese Danish and Cranberry Bliss Bar.

Starbucks has locations across the suburbs. See starbucks.com/.

Family Kitchen

Who's hungry? Entertainment venue Main Event is mixing things up with the debut of its new Family Kitchen concept featuring 50 new and updated handcrafted dishes. New to the menu are the Triple Lava Burger (three, yes three, patties covered with American cheese, caramelized onions and cheese sauce); the PBB&J Burger (two patties, peanut butter, blueberry jam, American cheese and bacon); the crispy chicken sandwich; the MEga Pan Pepperoni Pizza; Mini Mason Jar Cheesecakes in caramel apple, OREO and chocolate hazelnut and more. Plus, they've added Family Feasts meant to feed up to five.

Main Event is at 2575 Pratum Ave., Hoffman Estates, (847) 645-1111, and 28248 Diehl Road, Warrenville, (630) 393-9400, mainevent.com/

Sweet!

Now that Halloween is in the rearview mirror, it's time to think seasonal. New to Jeni's Splendid's limited-edition holiday flavors is the Cranberry Crumble (cranberry cream with cranberry sauce and brown sugar oat streusel), while returning flavors include the Boozy Eggnog, White Chocolate Peppermint, Mexican Hot Chocolate and Pistachio Macaron. They're available in scoop shops, online and on the app for pickup and delivery.

Jeni's Splendid's is at 521 Oakbrook Center, Oak Brook, (630) 822-7996; 218 S. Main St., Naperville, (630) 506-8005; and locations in Chicago; jenis.com/.

A Taste of Legends

Perfect for this time of year, Morton's is hosting A Taste of Legends dinner featuring wine from five French regions paired with five courses. The $179 event, which begins at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5, first showcases Champagne Delamotte, Brut paired with Brie butter brioche toast, caviar potato crisp and hot smoked salmon crostini. Then, seared tuna niçoise salad is paired with Château Miraval, Rosé and prime New York strip with truffle whipped potatoes is paired with Domaine Matrot, Meursault Rouge. Next up is beef short rib paired with Château de Beaucastel, Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2006. The final course highlights the Bordeaux region with French Artisan Cheeses paired with Cyprès de Climens, Barsac. Make reservations at mortons.com/event/mortons-presents-a-taste-of-two-legends/.

Morton's The Steakhouse is at 1751 Freedom Drive, Naperville, (630) 577-1372; 699 Skokie Blvd., Northbrook, (847) 205-5111; 9525 W. Bryn Mawr Ave., Rosemont, (847) 678-5155; and 1470 McConnor Parkway, Schaumburg, (847) 413-8771, mortons.com/.

Real deal

Here's something parents will like: Kids 12 and younger can eat for free from the kids' menu at Kona Grill from 2 p.m. to close every Sunday with the purchase of an adult entree. And did we mention that pumpkin flavors - in the form of Pumpkin Spiced Old Fashioned, pumpkin lobster tortellini and pumpkin pie - are back now through Nov. 30?

Kona Grill is at 3051 Butterfield Road, Oak Brook, (630) 515-8395, konagrill.com/.

Great Reindeer Hoax

It's never too early to get in the holiday spirit, which is exactly what The Chocolate Sanctuary is doing with its interactive Whodunit Murder Mystery Dinner The Great Reindeer Hoax at 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 10. Actors from Improv Playhouse of Libertyville will be performing while diners try to solve the mystery during the $75 event. Dinner features candy cane antipasto, holiday salad paired with Chianti, bacon-wrapped pork Wellington paired with holiday sangria and reindeer cake (carrot cake, chocolate ganache and a cream cheese mousse in a chocolate shell) paired with hard eggnog. Reservations are required.

The Chocolate Sanctuary is at 5101 Washington St., Gurnee, (224) 944-0808, thechocolatesanctuary.com/.

History On Tap

Fans of trivia, history and pub crawls can get the best of all worlds during the History On Tap 2022 Trivia Pub Crawl from 5:30-9:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 10, in downtown Downers Grove. Stop at six watering holes - Ballydoyle, Cadence, Cellar Door, Gatto's, Pierce Tavern, and Orange & Brew - to have a drink (a 12-ounce beer, 5-ounce wine or soft drink, which are included in the price) and find answers to the trivia questions. Turn in the completed trivia card at the last stop for a chance to win a gift card. Sponsored by the Downers Grove Historical Society, the crawl is $40 for members and $45 for nonmembers. Once registered at dghistory.org/, participants will be emailed their starting location before the crawl.

Send restaurant news and events to clinden@dailyherald.com.