Category Archives: Culinary Historians of Chicago

The Legacy and Impact of the Farm-to-Table Movement in Chicago

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Join us on Wednesday, April 16. 2025 @ 7 pm: Via Zoom

Chef Jason Hammel

Come join us as one of Chicago’s most iconic chefs, Jason Hammel, takes us back to the 1990s, tracing his journey from East Coast outsider to one of the Midwest’s most passionate advocates for hyper-local sourcing. He’ll recount the early days of the farm-to-table movement, the founding of Green City Market, and the rise of restaurants dedicated to local ingredients. Lula Café, his restaurant of 25 years, has grown in parallel step to this movement, and through stories from its early days, he’ll highlight the challenges and resistance that once stood in its way. Continue reading →

Two Great Chefs: Chicago’s Evolution as a Food Mecca

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Kris Hogan, Tony Mantuano, John Hogan, Cathy Mantuano 

Come join us as two of Chicago’s most acclaimed chefs, John Hogan and Tony Mantuano, look back on their 40+ year careers in Europe and Chicago, and reveal how our city has evolved as a world class food destination since the 1980’s, the significant changes in the restaurant industry, the farm-to-table movement, and their vision of restaurants in the future. Continue reading →

Unpacking NYC’s Historic Meatpacking District 

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Come join us as Jacquelyn Ottman, a fifth generation member of New York’s “meat royalty” as she serves up a beefy history of Ottman & Company; her family’s storied meat purveying company supplied some of NYC’s top restaurants, and was considered the “Tiffany’s of the meat business.” Ottman’s also pioneered many of the packaging and prep innovations still used in our kitchens today.  Continue reading →

The Glory of Chicago-Style BBQ

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Chef Dominique Leach

Podcast

We’ve all heard of the classic BBQ styles from regions like Kansas City, Memphis or Texas. But what about Chicago-style BBQ?

From rib tips to hot links to mild sauce and more, Chicago chef and pitmaster Dominique Leach of the black-women-queer-owned and award-winning restaurant Lexington Betty’s Smokehouse (plus the 2023 winner of the Food Network’s hit show BBQ Brawl), is making it her mission to further define this unique style and put it on the map in 2024. 

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