Taste of Chicago 2026 returns to Grant Park | What to know

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The Taste of Chicago got underway Wednesday in Grant Park.

It runs through Sunday with many of the city's top restaurants offering samples.

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Admission to the festival in Grant Park is free and only credit cards are accepted by all food vendors. The festival runs from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. each day.

The 46th year of the food extravaganza returned to its original mid-summer slot with more than 100 vendors including including the Billy Goat Tavern, Connie's Pizza, Eli's Cheesecake, Lou Malnati's serving everything from the traditional to acclaimed. For the past several years, the event had been moved to September to accommodate the NASCAR race.

The Chef's Stage will make its debut at this year's Taste of Chicago.

The Chef Stage will feature:
:
Friday, July 10 (In partnership with Let's Talk Womxn)
-Maya-Camille Broussard (Justice of the Pies)
-Carrie Nahabedian (Brindille)

Saturday, July 11
-Diana Dávila (Mi Tocaya Antojería)

Sunday, July 12 (In partnership with The Banchet Awards)
-John Manion (Brasero and El Che)
-Javauneeka Jacobs (Frontera Grill)

Eli's Cheesecake celebrates on Saturday as the only vendor to have been at every taste with a giant cheesecake. It takes 10 days to make and assemble the 1,000 pound dessert.

"It was on July 4, 1980 the very first Tasha Chicago that my father and founder Eli Schulman took his cheesecake outside of Eli's Place For Steak to Michigan Avenue for the first taste and we are the only vendors who's been at Taste of Chicago every year since," Marc Schulman of Eli's Cheesecake.

The Taste of Chicago will feature musical performances by Beach Bunny, Original Koffee, Common, Babyface and Julieta Venegas as well as live music and free SummerDance programming.

The festival will also have karaoke and Chicago trivia, expanded family programming and a Ferris wheel.

For more information, visit the Taste of Chicago's website.

SEE ALSO: Taste of Chicago 2026: Street closures begin in Grant Park

Street closures began Monday.

-Monday, June 29 at 6:00 a.m. (curb lanes only) Columbus from Monroe to Balbo (both sides of street)

- Thursday, July 2 at 6:00 a.m. (Full Closure) Columbus from Monroe to Balbo Ida B. Wells from Columbus to Semi Circle

- Sunday, July 5 at 6:00 a.m. (Full Closure) Jackson from Michigan Avenue to Lake Shore Drive Columbus from Balbo to Roosevelt The Taste of Chicago is set for July 8 through the 12 in Grant Park.

All streets are scheduled to reopen to traffic on Monday, July 13, at 11:59 p.m.