It's about that time of year again! Every year, Chicagoans and tourists alike flock to Grant Park to sample the diverse tastes of Chicago area restaurants and celebrate the arrival of summer. The Taste is less than a week away, and everyone at GH can't help but get excited about strolling the park during lunch hour and enjoying all the delicious food our city has to offer.

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If you're a fan of Thai food then I would recommend a visit to the annual Thai Chicago Festival at Daley Plaza this week. Being Thai and coming from a family of notable Thai cooks (one aunt was the personal chef to the King and Queen of Thailand and another invented Siracha sauce)

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I invite you to dine at Carnivale – a new Nuevo Latino restaurant in Chicago. The playful décor and live salsa funk music on Sunday and Wednesday are enough to make a stop. The menu offers authentic cuisines of the Americas that include Esparragos, Chicken with Jalapeno Parsley Mojo and a great Ceviche tasting. Chef, Mark Mendez, calls it a “Latin House Party.”

Now for the surprise, Carnivale is going green. The restaurant’s “Farm to Table Celebration” event from June thru September features sustainable local produce from farms in Michigan, Illinois and Indiana. And, they have just installed a water filtration system to reduce bottled water use in the restaurant.

Enjoy this fun and environmentally responsible new player on the Chicago restaurant scene!

Carnivale
702 W. Fulton
Chicago

¡Diviértase!

Posted by Mary Ellen Hanrahan

This is NOT your run-of-the-mill potato salad recipe. It's one handed down from my grandmother that, as it turns out, had a "secret ingredient" not found in any potato salads you've ever tasted.  I've never seen it elsewhere and it comes with her great descriptive term "potato salad with gwackiness."  I'd love to share it with you.  

Unfortunately it doesn't come with her stories of simpler days, of friendships and hardships or those great smells that only exist in a grandma's kitchen.  You'll have to add those when making this with your family.  

For that special taste of "gwackiness" you are sure to love:

5 lbs. red potatoes (boiled, cooled, peeled and chopped).
1 dozen eggs (hard-boiled and chopped). Set 2 aside for garnish.
3/4 - 1 stalk of celery (finely chopped).
1 bunch of radishes (using cut off red skin only, chopped) *the secret ingredient*.
1/2 jar green olives with pimento (chopped).
1/2 - 3/4 of large jar of Hellmann's Mayonnaise.
Salt & Pepper (to taste)

Mix all ingredients, adding mayonnaise a little bit at a time (until perfect "gwackiness" is achieved). Salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with sliced hard-boiled eggs. Enjoy!

Posted by Dawn Johnson