Chicago Named Best Big City in the US!

BEST DATE NEWS

Oct. 5, 2023: Best Date News Volume #44

Good morning and welcome to another edition of Best Date News! In today’s newsletter, we dive into Chicago winning Best Big City in the U.S., the Signature Room closing, new Pickleball courts, Voodoo Doughnut, the Queen of Christmas and an Illinois home for sale that you will need to see to believe.

Oct. 5: National Holidays

• World Teacher’s Day

• National Do Something Nice Day

• National Get Funky Day

• National Apple Betty Day

Chicago News

• Best Big City: Big news for the city of Chicago this week as Chicago was just named the “Best Big City in the U.S.” for the seventh straight year (see what people are saying)! The award is given by Condé Nast Traveler each year as part of their Reader’s Choice Awards. Over half a million people voted! See the best U.S. city rankings (FYI it lists small city rankings first then big city).

• Signature Room: Last week the Signature Room at the 95th of the John Hancock Building permanently closed unexpectedly (see what people are saying). The iconic restaurant and lounge had been there for over 30 years. It sounds like the lease was up and they couldn’t agree to new terms. So what happens if you had an upcoming event planned there like this woman?

• Voodoo Doughnut: The famous Portland-based doughnut shop just announced that they are going to be opening their first Chicago location! They are best known for their Voodoo Doll doughnut and their Bacon Maple Bar. See where it’s going in!

• Pickleball: If you like to play pickleball, here is some great news: 16 new pickleball courts just opened in Grant Park thanks to Lollapalooza! These new courts are located along Columbus Drive around 9th Street. The courts are nice, free and open to the public!

• Mariah Carey: The Queen of Christmas is coming to Chicago this December for a one night Christmas extravaganza at the United Center on December 3. Tickets go on sale this Friday, Oct. 6 at 10am, so mark your calendars!

Just for Fun

• Crazy Illinois Home: This 9,000 sqft 1898 Victorian home, pictured above, sits on 55 acres and is one of the most unique properties you will ever see. It’s located in Illinois and is now on the market! It comes with a 36-horse carousel and a 36-passenger train. Guess how much it costs before checking out its Zillow listing! You can also check out this Zillow Gone Wild thread for commentary on the pictures.

• 26 Weddings: On Saturday, Oct. 7, 26 couples will get married for free under the Wrigley Building on the Mag Mile (pics) as part of the Dash to the Altar event before they run the Chicago Marathon the next day. So wild!

• Museum Free Days: As the weather cools down, it could be a great time to check out a Chicago museum for free! Here are the October free days.

• Tulum in Chicago: A new Tulum-inspired restaurant and lounge called Costera Cocina Tulum just opened yesterday in Chicago at 850 W Fulton Market. We got a sneak peek!

Poll of the Week

Last Newsletter's Poll Results

Poll Results: Last newsletter we asked if you consider Portillo’s to be one of your favorite fast food restaurants and 58% of you said yes it was.

Today's Sunset in Chicago

The sun will set in Chicago this evening at 6:25pm. Which means the sun sets today 12 minutes earlier than it did compared to last week.