Step Up Shine and Dine 2018 Recap

Shine and Dine is one of those events I look forward to every single year. Not just because of the stellar food and fun pop up events, but also because it gives me a chance to give back to an important organization like Step Up Women's Network, which works with young girls to open doors for their future. Every year, I am floored by the extraordinary stories of the girls who have been helped by this mentorship program. This year's event was as inspiring as ever.

Attendees getting touchups at Ulta's Beauty Bar

Chef Christine Cikowski of Honey Butter Fried Chicken curated the tasting portion, enlisting more then 25 different restaurants, food services, and beverage companies to bring along their best offerings. Some of my personal favorites were the smoked cauliflower with elote cream presented by the Chef Matt Jergens at The Gwen, and the corn and beef empanadas from Chef Devon Quinn at Eden. The crowd favorite (as evidenced by the perpetual line in front of their table) was definitely Wow Bao, who brought along a variety of their signature steamed buns. This year's program separated the dessert service out to after the main event, which was a nice change of pace. I especially enjoyed Chef Sandra Holl's (Floriole) take on a pavlova with lemon and blueberry, and the uniquely flavored chocolate bars from Chef Meg Galus from Boka Restaurants.

Aside from the the spectacular array of food, it was positively heartwarming to watch a community of men and women come together to celebrate and raise funds for girls of the future. Step Up alumna English Henderson was the special honoree of the night, and her speech, along with that of Chairman Jessica McLaughlin and Step Up CEO Jenni Luke, helped to gear up the crowd for the main portion of the fundraising, securing over $400,000 for another year's worth of programs.

English Henderson, this year' alumna honoree (photo courtesy of Step Up)

Step Up CEO Jenni Luke (photo courtesy of Step Up)

I am always so filled with joy and motivation after an evening with all those amazing girls and women. If you couldn't make it this year, it's never to late to contribute. Make sure to stop by Step Up's website and help another generation of girls connect with the resources to help them succeed.

Henderson

Postcards from Bunny: Step Up Shine and Dine 2017

It was time once again for the Step Up Women's Network event of the year, Shine and Dine, and Bunny was speeding her way to the party in a single engine plane flown by an ex-Blue Angel. "Can this thing go any faster?" she yelled to her pal in the pilot's seat. "No," he yelled back, "But it can do this!" And suddenly, the plane was spinning in mid air and spewing colored smoke from its rear, forming the sentence Bunny is running a tad bit late! in the blue Chicago sky. "You have to warn me before you do that again!" Bunny chided him, "I dropped one of my earrings!"


Eventually, Bunny made it to the new home of the Shine and Dine event, Revel Fulton Market. As in past years, she was greeted at the door by smiling girls in orange, the very girls Step Up Women's Network benefits. The first order of business was to scope out the vast array of offerings from the restaurants from all across town who had come to support the event. Chef Cory Morris maned the table for Ronero, serving up a delicious tuna ceviche with lime and corn in a coconut broth. At Terzo Piano table, Carolina Diaz brought a red pepper rigatoni. Christine Cikowski of Honey Butter Fried Chicken, who served as the chef/partner for the evening, came with her stellar plate of Fried Chicken Nachos (which Bunny may or may not have had seconds of). New comers to the event, like Eden, Butcher and Larder, and ASAP Poke were big hits as well, with lines moving steadily past their tables all night. Offerings from Duck Duck Goat, La Sirena Clandestina, and Found Kitchen greeted guests as they took their seats for the main presentation. Favorites like Bang Bang Pie, Floriole, and Sixteen provided sweet treats to round out the savory plates.

Step Up CEO Jenni Luke first took the stage to thank all the sponsors and walk the crowd through just some of the accomplishments of the program and the girls that the program benefits in the previous year. Several alumni of the program spoke about how much the network of mentors helped them through their education and into stable and important careers while groups of orange clad girls currently in the program looked on with stars in their eyes, dreaming of the day they too would be honored for their hard work and success.

The evening wore down with a live musical performance, which got everyone up and dancing. All told, the evening raised more than $350,000 for Step Up Women's Network, a truly admirable sum. Bunny made a promise to herself to once again find a way to attend this spectacular event next year (and every year after that) so that she never misses any stories of the incredible girls who are continuously given such wonderful opportunities through Step Up to grow to their full potential.

To see lots of pictures from the event, visit the Bunny and Brandy Facebook Page. You can also check recaps to previous Shine and Dine events to see how this year measured up.

The writers of this blog were invited to attend the event free of charge in order to facilitate the writing of this post.

Postcards from Bunny: Step Up Shine and Dine 2016

There's not many nights that Bunny looks forward to more than Shine and Dine for Step Up Women's Network.  For the past few years, she has been privileged to join this stellar event full of food, fun, and most importantly, inspiration, so when she saw that the evening in question was fast approaching, she hopped on the next plane to Chicago.  "There's not much that would keep me away from good food," Bunny said, "But when you add an amazing program like Step Up into the mix, there is literally nothing I wouldn't do to be there."

The Shine and Dine event brings together some of Chicago's finest restaurants to celebrate a group of extraordinary girls and the women who work to make sure they have the best opportunities in life.  Step Up Women's Network gives young girls a network of mentors and resources to help them plan for the future and achieve their true potential.  Every year, the Shine and Dine event helps raise money for these programs by delivering amazing food, pop up experiences, and even some of the girls themselves, who mingle among the guests in order to really put a face to what the night is all about.

Bunny, anxious to get started, jumped right into the food.  Meats and toasts seemed to be a theme of the evening with several restaurants serving up carnivorous and carb loaded bites.  The Radler brought forth a sweet and savory Summer Sausage with one having plum mustard, endive, candied pecans, and black lemon, while Troquet offered two different "tartines" with white peach, heirloom tomato, chili, and prosciutto, which made for a fresh, summery bite, while the other one featured smoked salmon, cucumber, asparagus, cream cheese, and pickled radish, which reminded Bunny of a tea sandwich.  Eden had a different version of a smoked salmon toast, this one with pickled beet, radish, corn, red oinon, and Fresno chili and Eno presented a Country Ham on grilled caraway bread with pickled peaches and micro greens.  Breaking the mold a little with their offerings were Micheal Jordon's Steakhouse with a grilled Mesquite New York Strip and lobster creamed corn as well as Honey Butter Fried Chicken putting up a scrumptious Fried Chicken Nacho plate with pimento cheese, lime crema, and roasted corn pico de gallo,

There were also lots of treats for sweet toothed individuals at this year's dinner.  Bang Bang Pie offered up a Peach Berry Crisp, which was perfect on the late summer evening, while Nico Osteria had a delightful Peach Financier with mascarpone cream. Found had an unbelievably rich Chocolate Stout cake with honeyed peaches and mint that Bunny could have eaten several of if there hadn't been people watching.  Bunny's favorite bite of the evening came from Acanto, which was a Foie Gras Terrine on a pistachio biscotti with currant pate de fruit, making for a perfectly balanced sweet and savory experience.

Now full and with cocktail in hand, Bunny explored the rest of the room, stopping off to take a flirty red carpet portrait, then a silly pic at the Luna Bar station, checking out all the extraordinary lots available at the silent auction, watching with delight as participants won amazing mystery prizes from the Step Up and Pull game, and finally getting a lip makeover from the Ulta Pout Bar.  Of course, she also sought out some of the orange clad young girls to hear their inspiring tales of just how important the Step Up program has been for them.

After a few inspiring speeches from Step UP CEO Jenni Luke and special honorees Jodi Caro (Ulta Beauty) and Aminata Bah (Step Up class of 2014), the food slowly disappeared from the tables, the auctions came to a close, and the crowd began to head out of the beautiful Bridgeport Skyline Loft.  "I just adore the Shine and Dine event more and more every year," Bunny sighed, "There's very few food events quite like this one where so much good is being done while having such an enjoyable time.  I certainly cannot wait to see what they have in store for next year!"

The writers of this blog were invited to attend this event free of charge in order to fascilitate the writing of this post.

Postcards from Bunny: Shine & Dine and Cuisine for Cancer

Photo credit: Kelly Allison       Shine & Dine Mentees

There's a few things that will pull Bunny away from her adventures abroad to come back home to Chicago, and second on that list (after a good plate of Eggs Benedict) is getting to champion a worthy cause with an amazing evening of food, drink, and fun.  Recently, Bunny had the privilege of attending two such events: the inaugural Cuisine for Cancer night, hosted by foodie extraordinaire Steven Lee and Imerman Angels, and for the second year in a row, the Shine & Dine night hosted by Step Up Woman's Network.

First up was the first ever Cuisine for Cancer event, a night of food and frivolity in which chefs from over 20 restaurants in partnership with 10 cancer charities prepared Latin fusion themed dishes and competed for prizes from the crowd and also from a panel of distinguished judges.  The event was held at the absolutely stunning Morgan Manufacturing industrial space, which featured a sunken dance floor, a fiesta inspired main floor, and awe inspiring views from the rooftop, where Liquor Lab was hosting an exclusive experience, complete with specialty cocktails.

Bunny noted quite a few of her and Brandy's favorite spots among the crowds that night, like Public House, Bull & Bear, and Carnivale.  Making her way around the floor and trying the various tacos, gazpachos, and such on offer, Bunny quickly zeroed in on a few stand out dishes.  Carriage House brought a green gazpacho with pickled pink shrimp, watermelon, and charred corn which was vibrant and refreshing, while The Bedford had a zingy and heat packed chicken thigh tostada with pineapple and marinated summer vegetables and Warm Belly Bakery served up spicey and rich Mexican chocolate cookies.  The winner of the crowd favorite came from Dinner Lab with their over stuffed shrimp tacos containing beer battered shrimps, jicama slaw, and ancho chili aioli, while the judges' favorite was a smokey short rib taco from Q Barbecue, and Bunny quite approved of both choices.  The winning restaurants won a large portion of the profits from the event's ticket sales to donate to their associated charities, while the other charities evenly split the rest of the profits.  "Oh, I do hope they do this again next year!" Bunny sighed as she sipped her cocktail and munched on a black rice fritter from Jellyfish, "If there's one thing I love more than good food, its a good deed."

A few days later, Bunny was once again whisked into another vibrant evening of food, this time for Step Up Women's Network 5th annual Shine & Dine.  Held at the gorgeous Bridgeport Arts Center Skyline Loft, this year's event honored Allstate Insurance Company’s Vice President and Assistant Treasurer Stephanie Neely and Step Up alumna Paris Scales. Step Up propels girls from under-resourced communities to fulfill their potential by empowering them to become confident, college-bound, career-focused and ready to join the next generation of professional women, and events throughout the year like Shine and Dine help to bring supportive funds to the organization not only through ticket sales, but also through a rather extravagant silent auction.  All in all, this year's evening raised over $250,000 for Step Up's after school programs.

The food at this year's event was just as good, if not better, than last year.  Bunny delighted in dishes like the smoked prime striploin with corn, cilantro, and pickled onion from Michael Jordan's Steakhouse, hamachi and tuna tartar from Signature Room, and the heirloom melon salad with sheep's milk feta and pecans from Found.  Troquet caused quite a stir with people lining up to try their Angus beef sliders with camenbert, bacon, and truffle aioli, but Bunny's eye was drawn to a variety of delectable desserts, like a passion fruit creme brulee tart from Vanille, some key lime bites from Bang Bang Pie Shop, and a succulent berry gelato from Spiaggia.  

"With such amazing food around, its hard to imagine anything more perfect," Bunny sighed, "But the fact that all of this was done in the name of such a noble organization makes everything taste that much sweeter."

Make sure to check out Bunny and Brandy's Facebook page for loads more photos from both events!

The writers of this blog were admitted to these events free of charge as members of the media in order to facilitate the writing o this post.

Postcards from Bunny: Step Up Women's Network Shine and Dine

If there's one thing Bunny and Brandy do better than eating, it's eating for a cause.  Recently, Our Ladies were invited to attend a rather extraordinary event held at the stunningly beautiful Bridgeport Arts Center's Skyline Loft, which not only boasts the most impressive elevator ride in Chicago next to the Willis Tower, but also showcases extraordinary views of the downtown skyline.  Step Up Women's Network hosted their 4th annual Shine & Dine dinner in order to both honor the girls they help, but also to raise some money for their programs by offering Chicago foodies a spectacular array of tastes from some of the top restaurants in town.  "For once I can gorge myself silly and feel good about it!" Brandy said upon hearing about the event from Bunny (who was back in Chicago for a brief moment while on her way explore a new lead on the lost continent of Atlantis).

Step Up Women's Network is a non profit organization founded on the principal of helping women and girls to achieve their true potential through community service, mentoring, after school programs, and networking events.  They have branches not only in Chicago, but also in New York and Los Angeles, all of which continuously host events throughout the year that help connect professional women with each other and with girls looking to find their place in the world.

The Shine & Dine gala this year honored both Catherine De Orio of Check Please! as well as one of their alumnna, Kenia Rodriguez, who stood as living proof of the power that Step Up has to propel young girls towards achieving their dreams.  There was also a massive silent auction with amazing prizes like an MVP experience at a White Sox game, a wine tasting retreat, and a litany of spa treatments.  "Where do I sign up to win all of these things?" Brandy kept asking the attendants, "No dear, I don't want just the one thing, I'd like all of them.  Isn't there some kind of massive list I can join?"

Of course, the food was a huge part of the evening.  The bars served a trio of specially crafted Ciroc cocktails, including one made with pineapple juice and lime that Brandy simply could not put down.  Passed bites circulated the room courtesy of Paramount Events, such as gorgeous little watermelon cups with feta cheese, mini grilled cheese sandwiches, and bacon wrapped dates.  Stations around the room hosted the various participating restaurants, who had certainly brought their finest out for the night.  Farmhouse Evanston served Mini Corn Cakes with a Jalapeno Relish, which actually went perfectly with their neighbor station, Chicago Q, which were serving Pulled Pork Sliders with a choice of some of their signature sauces.  Comfort food seemed to be the name of the game for a lot of the stations, as Honey Butter Fried Chicken served a Buffalo Chicken with Creamy Grits and RL Restaurant (RL stands for Ralph Lauren, as the restaurant stands directly next store the the designer's flagship location on Michigan Ave.) served up a Beer Braised Short Rib Sandwich.  Opart Thai House was one of the crowd favorites of the evening, serving a spicy and sweet dish called Tiger Cry Beef as well as their signature Pad Thai with a customizable variety of toppings, while Fillini Bar and Restaurant showed their Italian pride with a Rigatoni in Creamy Tomato Sauce topped with Yellow Fin Tuna and ZED451 brought their signature Fire Roasted Borsin Stuffed Peppadews and S'mores Pie Skewers, which Brandy recognized from seeing them at Chicago Gourmet last year.  On the sweet side, Vanille Patisserie presented Salted Caramel Macaroons as well as mini Chocolate Cup Cakes, Table Fifty-Two had a Blueberry and Peach Shortcake, and nUM yUMMIES passed around little bites like Chocolate Covered Raspberry Infused Pretzel Sticks and Chocolate Popcorn.

Though the food was beautiful and tasty to boot and the atmosphere was buzzing and alive, the real stars of the evening were the school aged girls who circled the room, taking pictures with attendees and proving to be the best kind of advertisement for the true meaning of the evening.  Bunny and Brandy were certainly honored to learn about this awesome organization and will most certainly be reserving tickets for next year's event!  Keep your eyes peeled on the Step Up Women's Network to be among the first to know when tickets go on sale, or make a donation in the mean time to this brilliant, positive organization.

Access to this event was granted to the writers of this blog at no charge in order to facilitate the writing of this post.