Chicago's Ultimate Foodie Picnic

I've lived in Chicago for 5+ years now (and have recently moved back from the suburbs after a short stay) and Chicago will forever be home. There's so many reasons why I love this city. One example is a specific foodie community I'm active in, LTH Forum. I've been a part of this foodie community since 2005 and over the years, I've made some great friends who expanded my horizons when it came to food. For the past five years, the group has hosted an annual picnic and this year it was nothing short of deliciously amazing. Seriously, if you're a true, die hard foodie in Chicago, perhaps you attended this year's ultimate foodie picnic...

Today was a gorgeous day here in Chicago and the only way it could be better is to have an abundant spread of food with some foodie friends. Well we were in luck because it was LTH's 5th annual picnic. There were so many foods of various cultures, colors, textures, flavors,... the spread was insane! But it's really no surprise because the group itself has such a strong appreciation for food and a willingness to share their food finds. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves...

I think it would be safe to say that we covered a majority of world cuisines from Vietnamese, African, Persian, Jewish American, Korean, Lebanese, Hungarian, Japanese, Portugese, Greek, etc. We all were so eager to share our dishes and some even did the honors of carving up and serving what they prepared...

Josephine's Portuguese Turkey

Steve's Tender Brisket

Gary's MaPo Tofu

There were some really interesting eats that were highlighted at the picnic including...

Cured Pig's Leg (?)

Cavalo Nero
(black kale stuffed with grapes, ricotta cheese, farro & pancetta)

CLT's (Camel, Lettuce & Tomato)

Homemade Spaetzle
cooked in duck fat

And what's a picnic without some grills?! These foodies definitely weren't playing around and did some serious grilling...

Here are some other food porn shots... although it's kinda hard to think of the names of all the dishes, especially if you're in a state of food coma like I am now. But trust me, everything was incredibly delicious...

A chocolate cake like no other...

Focaccia
with fennel, agrodolce & cured pig

Watermelon Salad

A keg of beer...root beer that is!

For the picnic, we contributed a few dishes as well. Since Filipino cuisine is so underrepresented, we offered up some Filipino inspired eats such as...

Chicken Adobo Sliders
(soy sauce chicken with pineapple & cilantro)

Pork Mechado Sliders
(braised pork with sweet bell peppers & carrots)

Jackfruit (Langka) Cupcakes

It was definitely quite a fun day and it's evident we all enjoyed ourselves, even if we left with a food coma....lol

A special thanks to all those that coordinated such a fabulous event (as they do every year) and to all those that participated, contributing such an outstanding spread of food. I can't wait until next year!