Girl & the Goat
If you still haven’t checked out Girl & the Goat, New Year’s Eve is your chance. The popular West Loop restaurant is hosting a party with passed apps, open bar and a midnight champagne toast. Tickets costs $!95, but with celebrated chef Stephanie Izard running the show, I suspect the passed apps will be many, many notches above the average frozen puff pastry fare you’ll find at most NYE parties. Purchase tickets at girlandthegoat2013.eventbrite.com/#.
For you fancier types, enjoy Girl & the Goat’s full menu by booking the private dining room for a feast with 20 of your closest pals. You can bet it comes with a steep price, and I’d wager it would be a meal to remember. Contact events@girlandthegoat.com for more information.
D.S. Tequila Co.
If you want to ring in 2013 pressed up against hundreds of hot broads, D.S. Tequila might just be the place for you. Back Lot Bash and The L Stop are teaming up to throw a “Black and White” party. For $35, you get a welcome cocktail, champagne toast, hors d’oeuvres and live entertainment. No word on whether the hors d’ouerves include body shots. Purchase tickets at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/298207.
City Winery
I was a little skeptical and confused when I first heard about City Winery, a new West Loop spot that is at once a working winery, full-service restaurant and 300-person concert venue. But let me tell you: This place is fabulous. The food is exquisite (more on that in an upcoming column!), the wine selection is amazing and the concert venue is beautiful and intimate. It turns out that sipping a nice zinfandel and nibbling on charcuterie, while comfortably seated at a table and listening to a live musical performance beats the pants off of drinking cheap beer out of a plastic cup and craning your neck to see the stage like you do at most concerts. Los Lobos is playing at City Winery on New Year’s Eve. Regular tickets start at $85 and include a champagne toast. VIP tickets cost $175 and that buys you a five-course dinner with wine pairings—a bargain for the quality you get at City Winery. I can’t think of a more lovely way to spend the last night of 2012. Purchase tickets at www.citywinery.com/chicago/tickets/new-year-s-eve-with-los-lobos-7-30pm-show-12-31.html.
Nellcote
Nellcote just might be my favorite new restaurant of 2012. The whitewashed space is stunning and the European-inspired small plates are divine. Nellcote is usually bumping with live DJs and lots of pretty people on a normal night, so I expect NYE to be quite the party. There will be a special New Year’s Eve menu featuring new pizzas (they have an on-site flour mill that turns out some pretty fantastic crust), pastas and shared plates. I think New Year’s Eve at Nellcote will give partygoers the best of both worlds—an upbeat party atmosphere with really, really good food. Purchase tickets at www.eventstand.com/event/nellcotenye.
Jerry’s Sandwiches Andersonville
If champagne isn’t your bag, head to Andersonville for a laid-back New Year’s Eve Party at Jerry’s. They’ve got enough beer and whiskey selections to make your head spin (before you even drink them), and the sandwiches are kind of out of this world. According to Jerry’s website, they’re planning “an elegant and different prix fixe menu.” Details are forthcoming, but that menu is sure to include some of the restaurant’s killer sammies and scrumptious sides. For more information, visit jerryssandwiches.com/?p=1801.