Celebrate the 130th Birthday of the 1893 World’s Fair With These Lavish Cocktails | Eater Chicago

"In Logan Square, the Meadowlark has unveiled a new “Magic City” drink menu that transports patrons through the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition for the fair’s 130th anniversary: debuting in September as the final component of the team behind all-day salumeria Lardon and beer-focused Union, and following nine months of a birds-of-the-Midwest menu, bartender Abe Vucekovich (a Violet Hour alum) created 16 cocktails inspired by archival research. The menu is presented as a gorgeously illustrated, bound book that guides drinkers through the fairgrounds; examples include the Streets of Cairo cocktail (Vusa African vodka, Uruapan Charanda Blanco, watermelon, and hibiscus), a snow cone–esque Ferris Wheel (Singani 63, Dolin Genepy, Melon L’Apéritif de L’Artisan, Carpano Botanic, Herbsaint), and the Hööden Palace tribute (Mancino Sakura Vermouth, Takamine 8-year Koji‑Fermented Whiskey, Kiyomi Japanese Rum). Drinks are balanced by small plates from executive chef and partner Chris Thompson—hickory-smoked mussels, chicken liver mousse with sour cherries and pistachio—and a Cracker Jack–laden chocolate brownie from pastry chef Olivia Sweets (both Cracker Jack and brownies were first introduced at the fair). The team also includes a rare afterword acknowledging the fair’s troubling, often racist representation of BIPOC and other marginalized groups and highlighting figures like Potawatomi leader Simon Pokagon who spoke out, an intentional choice by Vucekovich to foster conversation and reflection about how the city has—and hasn’t—changed over more than a century." - Naomi Waxman