Gourmet Business March 2017

“Chicago, Chicago, that toddling town...” 

I’m not sure what Fred Fisher meant when he described Chicago as a “toddling town”, unless maybe he was referring to Clark Street on a Saturday night, but I empathize with the sentiments expressed in his musical paean to this great Midwestern city. Chicago is a wonderful town. Its museums – dedicated variously to art, science and industry – are among the nest in the world. The Art Institute alone places it on equal footing with New York, Paris or anywhere else, as does its fabulous collection of public sculptures, a walking tour of which is highly recommended. The architecture is unparalleled, and unlike New York, the city is situated in a way that one can actually see it. The Chicago River (generally blue except for a few days before and after St. Patrick’s Day) wends its way through the city like a pulsing vein, echoing the life of the city that has grown up around it. If America had crown jewels, Chicago would be one of them. 

Chicago is also a great food town. From delicious little joints tucked away among the city’s many ethnic neighborhoods to an array of outstanding steak houses to bastions of haute cuisine, the Windy City does not disappoint when it comes to eating out. This is a good thing since we, like so many of our readers, will be heading to Chicago shortly to attend the International Home + Housewares Show, for which this issue is dedicated. I look forward to this trip every year, as much to eat at our favorite restaurants as to walk the aisles and see all the new products at the show. Chicago is a very special place for me. My parents introduced my siblings and me to the city as kids (we lived in Des Plaines for a few years) and I’ve loved it ever since. How lucky I am that I get to go there every year for my job. I can’t wait to go back and I look forward to seeing many of you at the show, on the streets or in the restaurants. 

Safe travels. 

James Mellgren 

Managing Editor, Gourmet Business 

jmellgren@gourmetbusiness.com