Dining

At one point there were as many as a dozen Czech restaurants in the Chicago area, most of them grouped along Cermak Road (named after a Czech-born former Chicago mayor), in Cicero and Berwyn, and along Ogden Avenue in Brookfield. I used to call the area the "dumpling corridor."

I would call 3-month-old River Roast a can't-miss concept, except that concepts have missed at this address before.

Good Monday morning. Please enjoy the temperate weather, because it's going to get stupid cold this week. On with what I'm reading:

In August, restaurateurs Billy Lawless and Paul Virant separately opened casual concepts aimed at very specific audiences.

Le Pain Quotidien, Floriole, Labriola among area indulgences

Have military ID and are hungry? Veterans Day is Tuesday, and some local outposts of national chains are showing their gratitude by offering their grub gratis to military veterans. The specials are available all day, except for at Red Lobster, where you can sample appetizers Monday through...

Da Chicago: The Second City is second to none when it comes to dining and imbibing, and West Town's Mott St. restaurant, an Asian-fusion follow-up to chef Edward Kim's Ruxbin, is proud to make a delicious cocktail out of his hometown. Da Chicago, $13, is no slouch when it comes to...

The most expensive beer ever to come out of a Chicago brewery will be released in the coming weeks, and, befitting its $120 price tag, Moody Tongue's Shaved Black Truffle Pilsner will be rolled out in a complex, multi-step process.

For years, long, windy menus were the fad. The more options a restaurant offered, the less likely that diners would want to go elsewhere, the thinking went. And the thinking was widespread: Everywhere from Ruby Tuesday to the Olive Garden and McDonald's obliged, channeling their inner...

Pumpkin muffin with cinnamon glaze: At Lovely, a Noble Square bake shop and cafe, serves coffee, sandwiches, soups, quiches and an assortment of scrumptious desserts. The $1.50 pumpkin muffin with dark cinnamon glaze is a perfect example, characterizing the joy of autumn in one rich, compact...

Emmanuel Abidemi, chef and owner behind Bolat Restaurant & Lounge (3346 N. Clark St., 773-665-1100), the Lakeview restaurant specializing in food from sub-Saharan Africa, is offering a free prix fixe meal to 20 couples on Wednesdays, now through Dec. 24. Yep, you read that correctly: An...

Greg Mosko, whose innovative desserts at North Pond (2610 N. Cannon Dr., 773-477-5845) are notable for their savory elements, today was named one of the country's five best new pastry chefs by Food & Wine magazine.

Chef Tim Graham is introducing his fall menu at Travelle (330 N. Wabash Ave., 312-923-9988) by offering a 20 percent discount on the new dishes.

You walk into the modern frozen yogurt emporium, and there they are, nozzle after nozzle boasting such flavors as Mom's Cake Batter, Salted Caramel Popcorn and Maple Bacon Donut beside container after container after container filled with such toppings as Cookie Dough Bites, Frosted Animal...

The Michelin Guide announced the Chicago recipients of its 2015 Bib Gourmands, an award that sometimes comes with mixed emotions.

Apple spice pancakes: Sweet Maple Cafe in University Village houses a cornucopia of breakfast delights, such as make-your-own omelets, hot cheddar grits and classic corned beef hash and biscuits with spicy sausage gravy. But the Good-Old-Fashioned Pancakes, offered with Vermont maple syrup...

A visit to a pancake house in the U.S. sparked a South Korean college student with the dream of one day having his own lunch and breakfast café.

10:45 p.m. is not the usual time for an interview, but that is how it worked out. As I entered Acadia on South Wabash, pastry chef Ji Yoon greeted me from behind the host stand. She had been waiting for me, and was dressed in her civilians, ready to head home. I was afraid it was too late....

I'm just a biscuit baby. Don't ask me why, as a Northerner, I've been obsessed with biscuits all my life. I tasted the first one in my teens and fell in love. (I do that a lot with food.)

Sweater Weather: Autre Monde Cafe & Spirits in Berwyn is known for being a top suburban dining locale, providing outstanding beverages — from organic and artisan-produced wines to a seasonal medley of house-made cocktails — that pair exquisitely with the Mediterranean-influenced...

How many burger joints can Chicagoland stomach? Apparently, at least one more.

Pizza Rustica (3908 N. Sheridan Rd., 773-404-8955) is hosting a free Oskar Blues Brewery beer tasting from 6 to 8 p.m. on Thursday. Chicago representatives of the Colorado brewery will be present to share the samples and educate guests on the selections.

When the rest of the dining world was fawning over flavors and ingredients from far-flung locations, Alice Waters kept her focus on the bounty of local cuisine. That was well before "farm-to-table" and "whole animal" became common parlance.

In the almost frenzied fervor for all things Grandma used to make, refined desserts have taken a back seat to more rustic sweets like pie and doughnuts. Not that such treats can't also be elegant (and incredibly delicious) in their simplicity. But in a matchup between the most picture perfect...

Starbucks' early relaunch of its popular pumpkin spice latte drink failed to heat up business at its U.S. cafes, disappointing Wall Street and sending the company's shares lower.

Starbucks has released a new frightful drink just in time for Halloween. The Franken Frappuccino is available at participating stores through Friday.

The Jean Banchet Awards for Culinary Excellence, which honor culinary distinction in the Chicago area, announced its nominees Thursday.

In the not too distant past, restaurants and bars were mutually exclusive ideas. You satiate hunger at the former and drown away sadness at the latter.

Gibsons is going to Disney World. Sort of.