SAVORY news: Wood’s big change, Philz’s Pride U-turn, a brunch/sound bath and the Chicago Rum Festival nears

—GIVEAWAY!: I’m having another giveaway—this time, for a Bedsure GentleSoft White Throw Blanket!

All you have to do to qualify to win it is to be a paying subscriber (for less than $5/month) to either SAVOR for Andrew (future3733.substack.com) or Pop-Eds (Andrew449.substack.com). The deadline is Friday, May 1, at 5 p.m. Good luck!

 

—Reunited: Please read my FREE reviews of Taureaux Tavern and Tortoise Supper Club (both of which I revisited) at SAVOR with Andrew. You won’t regret it!

—To market we go: The 17^th annual Andersonville Farmers Market (AFM) will return on Wednesdays at 3-7 p.m. on May 13-Oct. 21 on the 1500 block of West Winona (from Clark Street to Ashland Avenue) and the adjacent AT&T parking lot. The market continues its Link matching program, featuring a one-to-one match for card holders with vouchers good for fresh fruits and vegetables.

Featuring more than 50 vendors, everything sold at the Andersonville Farmers Market is grown or produced within a 200-mile radius. Seasonal and pop-up vendor applications are being accepted through March 10.

—✨✨SPOTLIGHT: Schneider Deli has opened a new location, in Lincoln Park.

 

Located at 1733 N. Halsted St., the new 1,750-square-foot deli seats 41 and welcomes more corned beef and matzo ball soup lovers than ever before, doubling the capacity of the original location in River North (on LaSalle Street in the Ohio Street Motel).

In all honesty, after my visit to the original location, I was hesitant about stopping by the new one. Thankfully, this latest stop was much more pleasant—and the corned-beef hash (which chef/owner Jake Schneider recommended) is second to none. Also, this location has a full coffee program while the original spot only offers drip coffee.

—Pride restored: After dealing with backlash, Philz Coffee reversed a controversial plan to remove Pride flags from its cafés, which included locations in Chicago, The Advocate noted.

 

“Every Pride flag that is up stays up, and any Pride flag that was previously removed can be put back up,” the company stated. Also, CEO Mahesh Sadarangani publicly apologized. The national LGBTQ+ organization Human Rights Campaign celebrated the reversal, with President Kelley Robinson saying, “Philz Coffee tried to take down our flags and tamp down our pride—but we served a hot cup of reality.”

—Wood cut: The Northalsted spot Wood has undergone a big change—namely, that it’s now the Japanese restaurant Izakaya Tokyo.