(WBBM NEWSRADIO) – Are you looking to get a new dining experience out of Chicago Restaurant Week?
This year, Big Star West Town is holding a Mexican Night Market, which is designed to get you out of your seat and up close to the people preparing your food.
Instead of the traditional sit-down, four-course experience of restaurant week, Big Star West Town is offering an interactive dining arrangement that takes people around the restaurant to different booths serving up various menu items.
“The idea is if we were in Mexico and you were going into a market, you would have vendors selling different things: clothing, hats, things related to Mexico. And, of course, the food would be there,” Big Star West Town General Manager Damien Johnson said.
When you opt in for the $42 night market experience, you receive a “passport” book that takes you to the different stands around the restaurant: tacos, tamales, oysters or ceviche, elotes and churros.
At each of these stops, you can watch as the items are prepared. There’s a taqueria where tortillas are made fresh, and at the cevicheria, the ceviche is mixed before your eyes.
“It really begins just to give people a bird’s eye view of what we're doing here on a regular basis. The difference is that it’s on the floor instead of being in the kitchen, so it’s hands-on in that way,” Johnson said.
When staff members were brainstorming ways to participate in Restaurant Week, Culinary Director Chris Miller focused on the fact that more people are looking for an experience when they go out.
To complete the night market vibe, a rotating lineup of local vendors will be featured each night selling everything from hot sauce to furnishings.
The night market menu is available Wednesday through Sundays for the duration of Restaurant Week. During these nights, diners can also eat off a condensed version of the normal menu.
“So, the idea is to have everyone engaging with us in any form they want to engage with us, whether that be at a table or walking around,” Jonson said.
Big Star West Town is the only Big Star location participating in Restaurant Week this year. West Town is also the latest Big Star location in Chicago.
For more coverage about restaurant week, check out this list of deals developed by a local Reddit user.
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