Chicago

The rip-roaring days of the 20’s are back in a big way the form of a slew of speakeasy's taking the Chicago bar scene by storm. After all, what happens in the prohibition room stays in the prohibition room. Here are some of the secret haute spots to get your drink on in private.

The Squadron lineup from Fairline Boats has caught on around the world for a variety of reasons. From the flying-bridge driving and relaxation areas to the large windows spilling light into the saloons, owners appreciate the layout and styling.

For thousands of years beautiful jewelry has been enhanced with, or modeled after, animals. A feline fetish exists in the watch world, especially when it comes to haute joaillerie. Cats, big and small, timid and wild, have found a place on luxury timepieces.

Sometimes less is more. And while we have all indulged in some over-the-top jewels in recent seasons, who’s to say we can’t scale it back a notch and stick with something a little more, er, classic?

Marcus Samuelsson, the recently crowned Top Chef Masters Winner in the second installment of the Bravo culinary competition is headed home to Chicago to host a BBQ Bootcamp with fellow executive chef Nicole Pederson, and pastry chef Toni Roberts. Following in the footsteps of season 1 winner Rick Bayless, Samuelsson is the second restaurateur to rep Chicago by winning the hit show.

A message sent straight from the heavens: a brand-new 6,000-square-feet of drool-worthy shopping bliss is opening on upscale Oak and Rush. Hermes is opening a flagship Chicago store and is taking some real estate from Barney’s to do it.

Whether it’s sports, sounds or grub you’re in the mood for, there’s something for every walk of life this weekend in the Chi. Here are your best bets for a roaring good time.

Let’s face it, Americans are good at a lot of things. Football. Eating. Living in Excess. Actually, almost everything except soccer. Yet for some reason, this year’s World Cup has got the city and country in a tizzy of excitement in a way I haven’t seen before. Dreaming of goals and giddy with the thought of competition and conquest, whether Chicagoans are watching the games for pride or for pleasure, here are your Haute 5 spots to catch all the action.

There is no arguing the fact that the Dominican Republic makes some of the finest cigars money can buy. Nicknamed "Cigar Country", the Dominican Republic is producing and exporting more premium cigars than any other country on this earth. Giving credit where credit is due, La Aurora is the Dominican Republic's oldest cigar factory, founded in 1903 by Eduardo Leon Jimenes. 107 years later, under the direction of Guillermo Leon, the Leon family is still producing some of the world's finest cigars.

Sometimes it could do us all some good to sit back, relax, and breathe. Just breathe. That’s all.

American music producer and rap artist Swizz Beatz paid a visit to the Manufacture in Le Brassus in Vallée de Joux, Switzerland, to discover the workshops and the people who make the Audemars Piguet timepieces he so greatly admires.

The celebration of Jaguar’s 75th anniversary will gain momentum this weekend as the marque returns to competition in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Competing in a class that includes an Aston Martin Vantage, a Spyker C8 Laviolette, and numerous Ferrari F430, Porsche 911 and BMW M3 entrants, the Jaguar XKR GT2 wearing #81 will need every bit of the 500+ horsepower developed by its supercharged 5.0 liter V-8 engine.