Holiday Happenings

Christmas lights, holiday markets, new restaurants, and multi-million dollar home sales

Author

Joe Arendt
December 05, 2024

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and is ready to officially kick off the holiday season! We usually hold off on putting up holiday decorations and listening to Christmas tunes until after Thanksgiving, but I’ll admit we started a bit early this year. This week, we’re sharing our favorite holiday festivities and places to see lights across the suburbs, along with a bunch of new restaurant updates and great upcoming events.

Heads up, we are working on several new guides. Please reply to this email and send us your favorite Italian, Indian, and breakfast/lunch spots across the suburbs!

Weekend Routine

Weekly highlights from the Burbs Explored team and community on where they eat, drink, shop, and play across the Chicago suburbs.

  • Before the cold weather settled in, we took advantage of the warmer temps and took the kids to Brookfield Zoo’s Holiday Magic light festival. We try to make it to Brookfield or Lincoln Park Zoo every year for the lights. Both get quite busy on the weekends, so try to go on an off day if you can swing it.

  • Post zoo, enjoyed some dinner and beers at Alter Brewing in Oak Brook (about 15 min from the zoo). Their Alto Porto Porter was especially tasty after walking around the zoo for a few hours.

  • A delicious dinner at Mockingbird, a hidden gem in downtown East Dundee. We love sitting at the bar for dinner but they do have a heated tented patio that is looking very festive right now. Our order included the smoked whitefish pate, an Apple a Day salad, the hot honey pepperoni and pig & fig pizzas, paired with a couple of well crafted old fashioneds.

  • Black Friday lunch at Johnnie’s Beef (Arlington Heights and Elmwood Park), our favorite Italian beef in the Chicagoland area.

  • Picked up some tasty bread, croissants, and cinnamon brioche from Hewn (Evanston, Libertyville, Winnetka).

- Joe A.

Weekly Updates

  • Hometown Coffee & Juice announced they are opening two new locations in Glenview and Northbrook (link)

  • Ballyhoo Hospitality (Restaurant group behind popular spots like Pomeroy, Gemini, Sophia Steak) opened Denucci’s in Highand Park (link).

  • Popular Evanston restaurants Mensch’s Deli and Picnic, will open locations in Glencoe, replacing the recently closed Honey Butter Fried Chicken (link)

  • Ravinia Brewing Company to re-launch as Steep Ravine Brewing Company after a trademark dispute with Ravinia Festival (link)

  • Tangled Roots Brewery & Kitchen will be opening their fifth location in The Arboretum of South Barrington soon (link)

  • Popular East Coast coffee chain, Gregorys Coffee, opened their first Illinois location at Woodfield Mall (link)

  • Eater Chicago profiled Paul Virant’s Petit Vie in Western Springs (link)

  • Illinois’ first ever indoor, waterless slide park opened in Aurora last month (link)

  • A 70-acre estate has hit the market in Barrington Hills for $22 million, a listing that would set a record for the northwest Chicago suburbs if the home sells close to that price (link)

  • Meanwhile the North Shore has an unusual number of homes for sale over $10 Million right now (link)

Burbs Explored guides highlight our favorite places to eat, drink, shop, and play across the suburbs. The guides are meant to be highly curated lists that help you discover new spots in your town, hidden gems you might not find with a Google search, and places worth making a drive to check out. We do not allow businesses to pay for inclusion; the only way to make the list is by offering a high quality experience, service, or product.

This week we are highlighting our favorite holiday festivities and places to see lights across the Chicago suburbs. For additional holiday events, tree lightings, and pop-up markets, check out our upcoming events list below.

NORTH SHORE

NORTHWEST SUBURBS

WESTERN SUBURBS

What are we missing? Let us know your favorite holiday festivities by replying to this email or sending us a message here.

Upcoming Events

NORTH SHORE

NORTHWEST SUBURBS

WESTERN SUBURBS

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