• Eugene Luzcz

I stopped by Lincoln Square's shiny new Gene's Sausage Shop yesterday at a lucky time. Patriarch Eugene Luzcz was hanging the sausage in the front window of the massive double-decker superstore that rose over the footprint of the old Meyer Delicatessen. I've been watching these developments for more than two years now, and I'm relieved that they're finally opening Saturday morning at 9 AM.

• Paulius Nasvytis

In late 1996, just when a treacly pink juice box known as the Cosmopolitan was beginning to be thought of as the apex of sophistication for Manhattan drinkers—and long before Chicago bartenders were brewing their own bitters and squeezing their own juices—a bar opened in a onetime barbershop and speakeasy on the sleepy edge of Cleveland's residential Tremont neighborhood, and set an impossibly high standard for classic cocktails.

I've certainly not drunk in all of the hallowed temples of neoclassical and interpretive mixology that have opened across the country since then, but I've been to enough to know that The Velvet Tango Room has upheld its commitment to bibulous purity like no other.

• Paul Virant

I recently had a chance to pester Vie chef Paul Virant about whether he won his battle on Iron Chef America against Masaharu Morimoto, set to air this Sunday on the Food Network. The ease with which he brushed me off indicates the nondisclosure agreement he signed is onerous enough to ensure that if he broke it he'd be pickling beets in a subbasement of hell for all eternity.

But would you have a party if you lost?

"Today there were maybe 8 geese on my side street, so I pegged it and got one.

But how in the heck do I remove his feathers? I guess I can figure out the gutting."

• Ron Kaplan
• Chris Pandel's "breakfast braciole"

In terms of attendance, Saturday's Baconfest Chicago Pro Cookoff at the Publican (the precursor to the main event in April) was a bit of a sausagefest, with dudes (quite a few of them in matching meat couture) outnumbering females by about two to one. Apart from that, it defied most stereotypes of the supposedly moribund bacon fad, with ten chefs turning out thoughtful, creative dishes accompanied by smart beer pairings, with nary a hint of gratuitous looniness (even though attendees were given bacon lip balm in their goody bags).

• Peter Engler
• Meatball-noodle sandwich, tostones with chimichurri, and cabbage-fennel kimchi at Belly Shack

First up: Belly Shack, the much-hyped Logan Square venture from Bill Kim of Urban Belly, opened Tuesday in the former Vella Cafe space, transformed by industrial-chic trappings. The concept is Asian-Latin fusion, with offerings ranging from a Korean BBQ "Kogi" sandwich to a jibarito with Chinese black beans, marinated tofu, and brown rice; sides include kimchi and tostones. Under the heading "U Kud Like Dis" is the dessert menu, which consists solely of soft-serve ice cream in flavors dreamed up by Hot Chocolates Mindy Segal—bacon-chocolate chip and Vietnamese cinnamon-salted caramel are two current options. BYO; no reservations.

• Hammond Public Library

It's been two years since the inaugural Greater Midwest Foodways Alliance symposium (on sausage), and after an interlude on dessert traditions, the annual conference returns to meatier subjects this weekend with "Beef: From Plains to Plate". This year the lineup of attendant activities on Friday and Sunday looks just as fascinating as the Saturday's panel discussions.

I swear I'm not intentionally featuring bites that are vaguely coprolitic in appearance, but I admit there's been a pattern lately. You have to wonder what sort of reaction you'd get passing out churchkhela at Halloween, but in the Caucasus no one bats an eye at these stringed, grape-enrobed walnut confections. Traditionally a byproduct of the grape harvest, they are made by threading nuts onto string, dipping them repeatedly in a paste made from boiled grape must, flour, and sugar, then hanging them up to dry.

• Juan Zaragoza

On Monday evening the heavens will split and bolts of light will rain down from the firmament, inscribing upon two massive tablets of raw milk clothbound cheddar the names of the winners of this year's LTHForum Great Neighborhoods Awards.

Now in their 5th year, these prizes honor forum favorites, or "restaurants all over the Chicagoland area which contribute to their neighborhoods' and the city's character by offering outstanding food, an authentic experience of their ethnic culture, and/or a welcoming (or in some cases, belovedly cranky) atmosphere for guests." (Here's the complete list of past winners.)

And like last year a snitch in the Food Chain's pocket has leaked a handful of winners early.

• Paciugo's uncompromising potty policy

We refuse to be broken by the grueling pace of restaurant openings. In addition to featured reviews of Chilam Balam, Rustico Grill, and Elate this week, there are nine new reviews in the listings.

I'll say, "Hey, I'll trade you a jar of that jam for one of mine!"

And she'll say, "Sure, what do you have?"

Um. What do I have? I have, like, three cabinets full of jam. But hell if I know what's in there.

Today was jam inventory day. It's becoming a bittersweet fall ritual.

The first person to eat a potato probably had no idea what he was in for. That's a bit how I felt when I came across a bowl of these misshapen clods displayed among the fancifully decorated cakes at Three Sisters Deli, a tiny Russian shop packed with cured meats, cheeses, and dry goods. The proprietress and I didn't share a language, so all could get was the name in the notebook, shokoladnie kartofel (transliterated from the Cyrillic), or "chocolate potatoes." Inside, I was told, they contained "milk."

This is how that looks:

Remember Lona Lane, the city councilman whose failed attempt to ban pet chickens within the city limits, was followed by a successful ban on ice cream trucks in the 18th Ward?

Well, she's planning to use the council's new prohibition on noisy hounds in a grudge match against the birds:

"Although barking dogs are clearly the target, the ordinance refers to “any dog or other animal” that makes excessive noise.

Ald. Lona Lane (18th) said last week she intends to use it against the hens and roosters who make a racket in her South Side ward."