Green City Chef BBQ Tix Now on Sale
Also, learn about great job opportunities at The Land Connection
Tickets for Green City’s Sept. 8 Chef BBQ on Sale
Green City Market’s annual Chef BBQ is back on the evening of Thursday, September 8 — and limited early-bird tickets are now on sale!
The Chef BBQ is both the nonprofit organization’s major annual fundraising event — which helps finance programs such as the Market’s matching funds for SNAP/LINK beneficiaries and for its educational projects — and is probably the most anticipated food and beverage tasting event in Chicago each year.
I’ll leave it to the Market’s press release copied below to fill in the details, just adding that this event, which I’ve attended several times, is a blast, almost overwhelming in the choices of delicious food and satisfying beverages. And compliments to the Green City staff for sticking with the early September date first established last year, a switch from the traditional mid-July date that almost invariably had the hottest weather of the year.
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Tickets On Sale Now for Chef BBQ, Chicago’s Premier Local Food Festival
Featuring 100+ of Chicago’s top restaurants
June 29, 2022 (Chicago) — Chicago's premier local food festival, Chef BBQ, is back on Thursday, September 8 from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. for its twenty-first year. Located in the heart of Lincoln Park, Chef BBQ attracts 100+ of Chicago’s top restaurants, brewers, winemakers, and mixologists. Featured restaurants at the event this year include the Girl & the Goat, Rose Mary, Frontera Grill, Jaleo, Bang Bang Pie & Biscuits, Pretty Cool Ice Cream, and many, many more. Chef BBQ 2022 is generously sponsored by Tock.
VIP tickets include access to a bespoke VIP section, including premium seating, trays for carrying small plates and beverages back to guests’ tables, and a private VIP bar. VIPs also gain access to the event one hour early (4:30 p.m.) for exclusive face time with Chicago's top chefs and an opportunity to begin the tasting experience before General Admission guests arrive. Ideal for groups, VIP Cabanas are available and include luxurious lounge seating under a shaded tent. Learn more and purchase tickets at www.greencitymarket.org/chefbbqvip.
General Admission tickets include access to all 100+ tasting portions of seasonally inspired dishes and craft beverages highlighting ingredients from Green City Market’s local, sustainable farmers. Plus, Chef BBQ's not just about barbecue — featuring fresh, peak season flavors and vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free options, there's something for everyone.
“Chef BBQ is the can’t-miss experience of the year for food-lovers. It’s the only fest in the city where guests can enjoy a seemingly unending array of incredible bites and beverages sourced directly from Green City Market’s local farmers,” said executive director of Green City Market, Mandy Moody, “The event also serves as a showcase for Chicago’s culinary scene and an opportunity to meet, face-to-face, top chefs who support sustainable farmers.”
Sponsorship packages are available and feature opportunities for brands to connect with tens of thousands of Chicagoans, participate in media and marketing opportunities, and more. Interested parties can request a customized sponsorship package at www.greencitymarket.org/sponsorbbq.
Proceeds from the event benefit Green City Market’s 501(c)(3) nonprofit mission to secure the future of food by deepening support for sustainable farmers, educating our community about where food comes from and why it matters, and expanding access to locally-grown food. Learn more and get tickets now at www.chicagochefbbq.com.
Three Great Job Openings at The Land Connection
I am happy to share the following information about The Land Connection, a Champaign-based nonprofit that does amazing work to improve our local food systems in Illinois and help small farms succeed. I have admired this organization since I first became involved in local food, and I have the pleasure of working with Executive Director Jacquelyn Evers as we both participate on ReGenerate Illinois’ Leadership Council.
The Land Connection is currently seeking to fill three new job positions: Finance and Operations Director, Farmer Training Coordinator and Farmland Access Program Manager. Please read the following essay by Jacquelyn about The Land Connection and its purposes, and consider whether you are a fit for one of these excellent positions.
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The Land Connection is working to build a more resilient and equitable local food system, from soil to supper plate. Founded in 2011 by author and Good Food advocate Terra Brockman, The Land Connection’s work over the past 20 years has largely focused on training and supporting farmers to realize their goals in establishing successful, environmentally responsible enterprises.
We have discovered that building a more equitable food system extends beyond training and supporting farmers, so our work in recent years has expanded to include education and resources for food businesses and eaters. You can find us throughout Illinois running field days, hosting workshops, posting videos on food and farm systems topics, offering cooking classes, operating farmers markets, and more.
Our commitment to reaching communities within our region’s food and farm system where they need it most is central to the development and growth of our programming, and also why our work is always evolving. At present, we offer a suite of farmer training resources and services, operate year-round farmers markets in Champaign-Urbana, serve as a SNAP-match hub for central Illinois farms and farmers markets, and provide consumers with easy entry points to become more involved in their local food system. We are also working to develop a statewide farmland access program to ensure that Illinois’ agricultural legacy sustains.
We are currently looking for three new people to join our growing team of passionate local food and farm advocates! Our office is a welcoming, relaxed space where everyone is encouraged to bring their true selves to work each day. We provide a multitude of benefits, which continue to expand each year, and we offer a flexible work environment to account for many of the challenges we face in our modern world.
Check out our openings on our website and email info@thelandconnection.org if you would like more information.