There are more than 100 food hotspots to sample at the festival, which takes place in Millennium Park and features cooking demonstrations by celebrity chefs such as Rick Bayless, Graham Elliot, and Carrie Nahabedian.
If cooking is not your thing, the festival features tasting pavilions and wine sampling for the most stove-phobic eaters.
"We take the educational piece of the programming very seriously," said Sheila O'Grady, president of the Illinois Restaurant Association. "We obviously want people to taste the 300 wines and spirits and the 300,000 pieces of food that are here this weekend, but really we want them to learn something."
The festival runs until Sunday evening in Millennium Park. It's open to the public but a ticket for Sunday starts at $150.
