I love food and I love eating food in a nice, relaxing environment. One of the perks of doing what I do is I get to visit a lot of restaurants and try a lot of dishes that I may not have eaten or even thought of if not for this whole writing thing. There have definitely been some duds, which you would never hear of because I would never mislead anyone by sending you to a horrible restaurant. On the flip side, there are some gems, like unbelievably exceptional places I have tried. One of which is attached to the popular and historically rich Blackstone Hotel, Mercat a la Planxa (638 South Michigan). I have already droned on about how great the cuisine is in past posts, and if you read the posts you know that the food is so good that I even tried dishes I wouldn’t normally eat, like a rabbit pasta with brown sugar foam, and loved it. The food is undeniably great and I imagine will continue to be, now the decision makers felt that the food needed a brand new playroom for those who want to enjoy it in private.
Mercat a la Planxa, the modern tapas restaurant inspired by Spain’s Catalan region, will reveal its brand new private dining space, The Barcelona Room, for the first time to the public with an exclusive dinner event. Executive Chef Jose Garces will be on hand to offer several active culinary stations (a Montadito Station with crab and avocado and Serrano ham and goat cheese; a Planxa Station with diver scallops and chorizo bilboa among others), along with Spanish wine and cocktails. On Saturday, February 22 at 7:00PM, the room will transform into Barcelona’s signature market, La Boqueria, where guests will be able to sample their way through vibrant stalls of hand-picked seafood, selections of locally-sourced produce, and luxurious Spanish wines. Chef Garces will be visiting Chicago’s local markets the morning of the event to deliver the authentic market experience. And you can experience it all for just $45 and by making reservations (required), which may be made by calling 312-765-0524.
Via Mercat a la Planxa/Wagstaff
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