Friday Foodie Forecast: Summertime treats

Friday Foodie Forecast: Summertime treats
'Donuts & coffee' ice cream at David Burke's Primehouse. Courtesy of David Burke’s Primehouse
Friday Foodie Forecast: Summertime treats
'Donuts & coffee' ice cream at David Burke's Primehouse. Courtesy of David Burke’s Primehouse

Friday Foodie Forecast: Summertime treats

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Jumbo cone from the pop-up shop at David Burke's Primehouse.

Rain or shine, summer has finally arrived in Chicago. What better way to celebrate than with ice cream, barbeque and booze?

Get the Scoop at David Burke’s Primehouse

Kick your weekend off to a sweet start and chill out this summer at David Burke’s Primehouse where every Friday in June, the JBar entrance is transformed into an ice cream pop-up shop beginning at 3:00 p.m. and concluding at 5:00 p.m. - or whenever the last scoop is served. Creative, signature ice cream creations by Executive Pastry Chef Jove Hubbard will be featured each week. Tonight’s scoops include a dark indulgence and a light, summertime treat - black velvet (chocolate ice cream, devil’s food, dark chocolate cremeux, smoky scotch caramel), and strawberry rhubarb pie (roasted vanilla ice creamstrawberry rhubarb pie pieces). Guests are invited to stay tuned to David Burke’s Primehouse Twitter and Facebook for weekly flavor updates where feedback and suggestions may be taken into account for upcoming flavors. Jumbo cones are available for $5 a scoop (cash only), and it is a limited pop-up indulgence. David Burke’s Primehouse is located at 616 North Rush at The James Hotel. For more information, visit www.davidburkesprimehouse.com

Farm Tour and Dinner with Slagel Family Farm
Want to see where your food comes from? Here’s a great opportunity to do just that as Slagel Family Farm announces its Farm Tour and Dinner series beginning Saturday, July 2, in Fairbury, IL. From 2:30 - 9p.m. Farmer/Owner Louis John Slagel will start off the afternoon with a tour of his livestock farm where all natural, hormone free pork, beef, lamb, goat, chickens and ducks are raised to butcher and sell to consumers and restaurants throughout Chicagoland. Guests will see a variety of livestock and learn about the old-fashioned production practices the Slagels use to produce their farm fresh meat products.

Immediately following the farm tour, a dinner will be served family style in a new barn next to the livestock pastures. The first dinner of the series will be prepared and served by guest chefs Perry Hendrix of Custom House Tavern, Jeffrey Hedin of Leopold, Charles Burkhardt of Owen & Engine and Mike Sheerin of 3 Floyd’s Brewery. The dinner is BYOB - lemonade and water will be provided. Slagel Family Farm will provide products for purchase on the farm to take home, so bring a cooler to store your products in for the trip home. For a complete list of upcoming farm dinners and participating restaurants, click here. Tickets for the event can be purchased at Brown Paper Tickets - General $125.00/Youth(11-16) - $30.00/Children 10 and under – free. Slagel Family Farm is located at 23601 E. 600 North Road, Fairbury, IL 61739. For more information, call 815-848-9385, or visit Slagel Family Farm.

Elevate BBQ at Mercadito

Mercadito spices up the barbeque with a cooking demo just in time for summer grilling season this Monday, June 27, from 6 – 9 p.m. Held at Double A, the lounge located directly beneath Mercadito, Chef Patricio Sandoval goes beyond hot dogs and hamburgers and will share his summer recipes for how to impress Independence Day party-goers by demonstrating five-courses including authentic parrillada of steak, chicken and vegetables. In addition, Sandoval will also demonstrate a refreshing crudo of scallops, ribs with a spicy chipotle Mexican barbeque sauce, fish tacos and a light fruit dessert with a surprising kick at the end. Priced at $55 per guest (exclusive of tax and gratuity), each dish also comes paired with summertime cocktails. For a complete look at the evening’s menu, click here. Reservations for classes are required and may be made by calling 312.329.9555. Double A is located at 108 W. Kinzie. For more information and a complete list of upcoming events, visit www.mercaditorestaurants.com.

Explore Summer Spirits at Potter’s Lounge

Potter’s Lounge brings back it’s Secret Spirits Society series for summer and fall kicking off the first installment Wednesday, July 6, from 6 -7 p.m. Showcasing acclaimed and rare brands of champagne, wines and spirits, attendees will enjoy elite selections in an intimate ambiance where they will learn all about the history and individual distilling process of the visiting brand. Led by Beverage Manager Patrick Coyne, Potter’s will host the series the first Wednesday of each month through October beginning with champagne featuring Moet and Hennessey brands. Each class costs $25 per person and includes a variety of bar bites created to complement each libation courtesy of Potter’s Lounge Executive Chef Greg Elliott. Reservations are recommended and can be made by calling (312) 917-3404 or online. Potter’s Lounge is located at 17 E. Monroe St. For more information, visit http://www.potterschicago.com.

Today’s post was written by contributor Dimitra Apostolopoulos.