Lilly Q’s opens chicken concern, Trotter Project dinner Thursday

By Anthony Todd/For Sun-Times Media

The Trotter Project, which I wrote about a few months ago, is now starting to get moving. The brand-new foundation, meant to honor the legacy and memory of Chef Charlie Trotter, is making its big debut on September 4 (this Thursday!) with Savour, a celebration at Buckingham Fountain that kicks off the Windy City Wine Festival.

Related:

The Trotter Project will educate, inspire and rate restaurants

The festival, now in its 10th year, is run by the Grant Park Conservancy and operates as a fundraiser. This year, they’re partnering with the superstar chefs behind the Trotter Project – and it’s a food event not to be missed. Chefs like Giuseppe Tentori (GT Fish & Oyster), Michael Kornick (MK), Homaro Cantu (Moto), Paul Kahan (The Publican), Bill Kim (Urban Belly) and Matthias Merges (Yusho) are serving bites.

Even more exciting, the chefs will use the most local of ingredients: from right inside Millennium Park. The Permaculture Display Beds inside the park will be open to the chefs, who will pick ingredients like sage, thyme, garlic chives, edible flowers and basil to use in their offerings.

Tickets are still available. The cost is $150 per person.

– Chicago’s fried chicken boom shows no sign of stopping anytime soon. Now, in addition to Honey Butter Fried Chicken, Leghorn, Parson’s and all the rest, Lillie’s Q is tossing their hat into the ring with LQ Chicken Shack.

It’s not a new location, but a walk-up chicken window attached to Lillie’s Q’s North Avenue location. They’ll be serving buckets of fried chicken, paired with Tupelo honey and Lillie’s Q BBQ sauce. In addition, look for grits, corn salad, roasted potato salad, sweet tea, limeade and more down-home favorites. A five-piece bucket goes for $19.

They opened for business last week.