New LSCC Board Member- Ben Munro

Ben Munro


Maria and I were both extremely excited to interview Ben Munro of The Grafton. Apart from the actual interview itself, we were both glad for any excuse to go into a pub and not be carded for once; not that Munro didn’t jokingly threaten to do so of course. However, early afternoon on a Tuesday is not exactly what you’d call a “hoppin’ time” at any pub. In fact, The Grafton was closed. So Maria and I had the bar to ourselves as we sat down to talk to Munro.


Ben Munro has been in the pub business for quite some time. Now general manager of The Grafton, he began his career with a job working the door of a bar belonging to friends of his parents and worked his way up. His mother is English while his father is a Scotsman and Munro himself is well traveled and obviously connected to his roots. When I revealed my own Scottish heritage and plans on studying in Scotland, Munro wasted no time in giving me some places to visit.



As a former music student at DePaul University, I was interested to know whom he would want most to play at The Grafton. After a long pause he says, “Mike Doughty. Or maybe Soul Coughing” Naturally I looked both of them up and true to Munro’s account they are, “very very very cool.”



So what brings him to the Chamber you’re wondering?



Munro is very excited to be on the Chamber’s board of directors. He says that he enjoys being involved in the Chamber because of its proactive programs that help all of the businesses and foster a tight knit community. In addition to that, Munro figures it is always better to be in the know than out.



I encourage everyone to stop by The Grafton and chat with Ben Munro, or to listen to the live Irish sessions every Sunday evening at 5:00 pm!



The Grafton

4530 North Lincoln Ave



Submitted by Carly

New LSCC Board Member - Christine Moir

As I walked into Old Town School of Folk Music, I was greeted with a bright splash of color from the murals that cover the foyer. I was excited and nervous for the very first interview of the Chamber’s new Member Spotlight Blogspot. However, I was quickly set at ease.

Christine Moir greeted me with a big smile as I sat in beneath a brightly colored mural at Old Town School of Folk Music. As one of the newest board members of the Chamber, I was curious to find out what interested Moir in joining the Chamber board of directors. Moir shared with me that she was eager to become a member of the board because she loves the Lincoln Square community. She considers it part of her job to give back and work collectively with the businesses in the area.

In fact, the neighborhood along with a love for music is what drew her to Old Town as a career choice. Moir loves being able to support the community arts by working at Old Town. A three block walk to work allows her the luxury of a short commute as well as a constant sense of being a part of the Lincoln Square community.

Moir thinks for a moment when I ask her what folk instrument she would most like to play, “probably the fiddle,” she says with a smile. She tells me that she loves the fiddle because its fun to dance to. As a former violin player, naturally my next inquiry is regarding the difference between the violin and the fiddle. Moir reassures me that the only difference between the two is the style in which they are played, and she encourages me to come to Old Town anytime for some lessons.

Everyone is welcome at Old Town. So whether it be dancing or playing that interests you, or if you would rather enjoy the show from the audience, I highly encourage you to check out the Old Town School of Folk Music and prepare to be entertained!

Old Town School of Folk Music
4544 North Lincoln Ave

Submitted by Carly

New LSCC Board Member- Anne Merritt

In an effort to introduce all of you to our new board members, brief interviews were taken place with each one of them. To break the ice, we came up with some questions for the new members to give you a taste of what the Lincoln Square community has in store for the New Year.

Can there really be a perfect cup of coffee, or a favorite drink? Or rather is the perfect cup the overall experience in the environment in which this coffee is served? Well, at Anne Merritt’s coffee shop, “The Perfect Cup” the experience of the environment, the quality and variety of drinks, and the attitude of its employees, in my opinion, truly makes it “The Perfect Cup.”

Anne Merritt, the owner of The Perfect Cup since 1997 has built this business from the ground up, establishing a family of customers, as well as exemplifying a prominent symbol of her life progress as she started as a thriving single woman in the city to currently a happily married wife and mother.

As we sat down with Anne we first asked her what interested her most about serving on the LSCC board of directors; when she was asked to join, Anne thought it was a great idea, that it would help her business a lot seeing as though she really supports and stands behind all the productive and effective things that the Lincoln Square Chamber of Commerce has done for the community. She felt that it was her turn to step up and give what she can contribute. While the “The Perfect Cup” isn’t located in Lincoln Square she hopes to attract more of the community over to her shop located on Damen Avenue by hosting and being a part of more events that the LSCC puts on. Anne also hopes that by joining the LSCC it will help to cross promote the other surrounding businesses as well, as they have become a strong neighborhood community.

On a less serious note, we then asked Anne,

If you had to pick a coffee drink that described your personality, what would it be?

She responded with “Anne’s special”- Coffee with an added shot of espresso, a hint of chocolate syrup and half and half as a topper. When asked why she chose that particular blend she said that it’s strong, sweet and bold like her.

Our last and final question was-

If you could spend a day in the Chicago-land area, doing and seeing anything you pleased, what would you do?

Anne replied that on a sunny day she loves to take her kids to a local park and enjoy her time outside with her family. Her favorite parks are Wells and Winnemac.

Head over to The Perfect Cup! Take my word for it, this quaint coffee shop won’t do you wrong with its many choices and friendly service. She is a positive addition to the LSCC board of directors and we are all anxious to see the positive contributions she will have on its success in the upcoming year.

The Perfect Cup
4700 N Damen Ave Chicago, IL 60625

Submitted by Maria

Fröhliche Weihnachten! Merry Christmas!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...a German Christmas, that is!

Today marks the first day of the third annual Lincoln Square Christkindl Market and it takes place all weekend. December 3rd, 4th, and 5th will be filled with ice sculptures, shopping, 30 hours of live music, and tons of kids activities! St Nicholas will also be stopping by!

Enjoy all of this in the comfort of heated tents on the corner of Leland and Western Avenue. Visit the market during these hours:

Friday, Dec 3rd--Noon - 10 PM

Saturday, Dec 4th--9 AM - 10 PM

Sunday, Dec 5th--10 AM - 7 PM

Hosted by St. Matthias Catholic Church, sponsored by several local businesses, and featured in the November/December issue of Midwest Living magazine, this event is bound to be a success! Visit the website for even more exciting details: http://www.lincolnsquareck.com/

Make sure you do some Christmas shopping while getting in the holiday spirit this weekend at the Lincoln Square Christkindl Market. Can't wait to see you there!

Holiday Gala 2010

Join your Lincoln Square neighbors to celebrate the holidays at the 2010 Lincoln Square Chamber of Commerce Holiday Gala! Attend the annual fundraiser and dinner next Friday on November 19th.

Start the night off right with a pre-party in the DANK Haus Skyline Lounge, presented by Bridgeview Bank, from 5-6 PM. Then enjoy Cocktail Hour with hors d'oeuvres provided by Lincoln Square Chamber businesses from 6-7 PM. Move the party downstairs to the Grand Ballroom for dinner, catered by LM Restaurant, at 7 PM. Choose from three delcious meals: beef brisket with potato gratin and parmesan gnocchi, roasted chicken breast with green lentils and baby vegetables, or a vegetarian option of herbed goat cheese whole wheat crepes with eggplant. You can also order bottles of wine for your table, donated by Provenance Food & Wine.

The night continues with live music and dancing with the Flat Cats at 8:00 PM. Play a round of Wine Roulette (with wine donated by The Book Cellar), honor your neighboring business owners at our Awards Ceremony, try your luck at our raffle buckets, or bid on items at the silent auction throughout the night!

Tickets are $75 per person or $650 for a table of 10. Please visit our website, http://www.lincolnsquare.org/, for more details and a copy of our RSVP form. This event would not be possible without our participating businesses who are donating hors d'oeuvres, gift certificates, and silent auction items, so thank you!

We can't wait to see you dressed in your holiday best next Friday!

Shiraz, Chardonnay, and Merlot, oh my!

Our 5th annual fall Wine Stroll occurred last Thursday on November 4th, from 7:00 until 9:30! It was our biggest one yet, with over 165 attendees, completely selling out the event. For the first time ever, we divided the destinations into three routes, so "strollers" could choose which businesses they preferred to visit.

The routes were playfully named after winter wines: Shiraz, Chardonnay, and Merlot, or attendees could pay a higher fee to visit The Vineyard (or all of the participating businesses). Guests checked in at the DANK Haus and then proceeded to retail stores, restaurants, and bars in the Lincoln Square area. Wine and appetizer tastings were provided at each destination and attendees left with a specially engraved Provenance Food & Wine (the event's gracious sponsor) and Lincoln Square Chamber of Commerce wine glass. We will have another Wine Stroll this spring, so stay tuned for tickets!

FALL in the Square

Forgive us for not posting recently! Fall has been busy at the Chamber AND in Lincoln Square.

We hope that you were able to attend Apple Fest on September 25, but if not, please visit our Facebook page to view all of the pictures! We shut down the 4700 block of Lincoln Avenue for the first time and it was a huge success. We had the usual apple pies, apple cider, apple crepes, apples by the bushel, you name it! And this year, the Chamber sold caramel apple treats which were a delicious blend of Honeycrisp Apples with caramel, oreo crumbles, M&Ms and peanuts. We'll definitely have those again next year! Scooby Doo and the Mystery Machine also came to visit and neighborhood kids were able to enjoy that, a haystack maze, and foursquare. A Country Affair performed in the afternoon and transformed the block into a fall dance party. We had countless Lincoln Square businesses selling their products and local farmers selling fall-focused produce. If you missed it this year, don't worry, there's always next year, and we're already counting down the days!

Moving further into fall, we have some great events coming up, so mark your calendars! Halloween Happenings will occur on October 30th this year, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Come out to participating businesses for some traditional trick or treating! We are also having our biannual Wine Stroll on November 4th from 7 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. We're switching things up a bit, and offering two different routes for guests to pick from. Each route will feature seven Lincoln Square businesses that will provide both white and red wine tastings with light appetizers. Visit our website for further details and to purchase tickets for the Chardonnay or Shiraz route, or to visit all fourteen businesses with the Vineyard ticket!

We're getting ready for winter at the Chamber, so stay tuned for those winter events. There will be some great ones!