City summer festivals: Taste of Chicago, Windy City Smokeout kick off with food, entertainment

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Two of Chicago's signature summer festivals returned this week, bringing food, music and crowds to both Downtown and the Near West Side.

The Taste of Chicago opened in Grant Park while Windy City Smokeout returned outside the United Center for its 13th year, giving residents and visitors a choice between two of the city's biggest summertime events.

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At Taste of Chicago, grills sizzled as attendees sampled offerings from dozens of restaurants.

"I feel like we're gonna try everyone. Gonna work our way down and come back up," said Crystal Young, a Taste of Chicago fan.

The festival features 80 Chicago restaurants, including African Food Palace. Courage Wissink said the event gives vendors an opportunity to reach new customers.

"It's a good way to put yourself out there. This is Chicago. People like to eat to try new things," Wissink said.

Visitors can find a wide range of menu options, including specialty sausages at Chicago's Dog House.

"This side we got rattlesnake and rabbit. And on this side 80% alligator and 20% pork," a worker said while describing the offerings.

Food may be a major attraction, but attendees said the event is about more than what is on the menu.

"My favorite thing is the people, the community coming together," said Mary Curtin, a Taste attendee.

The return of Taste of Chicago to July also drew attention from Mayor Brandon Johnson, who addressed the crowd from the stage.

"The Taste of Chicago is back in July, Summertime Chi where it belongs!" Johnson said.

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The festival's variety appealed to many visitors.

"What'd you get? That salmon bites from the Grill. They're great crunchy and tasty. And I got a thing for the sauce. It's like Buffalo sauce," said Crystal Young.

Others said they appreciated the event's cultural offerings.

"We want people to experience our culture and I feel. Like it's a good place to do that," Wissink said.

Taste attendee Luis Scwicktenberg said he enjoyed trying something new.

"A lot of new food like I had never had crocodile bites or snake bites," he said.

Meanwhile, outside the United Center, Windy City Smokeout combined country music and barbecue, drawing fans in cowboy boots and hats.

Fans described the atmosphere as one of the event's biggest attractions.

"I'm so excited. It's so fun. The vibes are high," said Blake Stacker of Arlington Heights.

"I feel amazing. I love Chicago. This is the best Chicago concert I've ever been to," said Payton Monsivais of Westmont.

Ava Schroeder of La Grange said the festival offers a chance to see multiple artists in one place.

"It's a great opportunity to be here and see all these music artists at once. I just love being here," she said.

Sophia Hadley of River Grove said, "Everything about this place, the vibes are good, the music is always loud and it's just a fun place to be."

The festival also highlights barbecue from pitmasters across the country.

"The food is always so good. I'm about to get some Bub City-some barbecue, mac and cheese-it's really good," Hadley said.

Founder Ed Warm said the event has continued to grow as country music has expanded its audience.

"It's very mainstream. There's a lot of different kinds of country music. So we try to bring a little bit of everything across the country Landscape," Warm said.

"I'm so excited. We work all year on this. It's a labor of love for us," he added.

Organizers said both festivals will continue through the weekend, offering Chicagoans more opportunities to enjoy the food, music and community that have become summer traditions in the city.