Celebrity cocktail
We like to think that the Matchbox, a tiny bar down the street from Newcity's offices, is still something of an obscure treasure, certainly known by many, but not too many. But it's enjoying an odd bit of fame in New York right now, where the trendy restaurant Prune has added the "Chicago Matchbox Bloody Mary" to its brunch menu. Huh? "I'd come to Chicago," says Prune's chef-owner Gabrielle Hamilton, "to do a Meals on Wheels Celebrity Chef brunch--it's hard to say that with a straight face--and afterward, Paul [Kahan] and Donnie [Madia] from Blackbird took me to Matchbox for Bloody Marys. Now it's become an annual tradition, to do events in Chicago, and go to Matchbox, along with chefs from all over the country." She added an homage to her favorite Chicago drink on her brunch menu, and next thing you know, Prune's "Chicago Matchbox Bloody Mary" graced the pages of Time Out New York and New York magazines. "It's our hit," Hamilton effuses. "We sell more of those than any other [her brunch offers nine different Bloodys]." Funny, we've always been partial to the gimlets.

Boys will be boys
Best line overheard at last weekend's Northalsted MarketDays: "Honey, I'll fuck anything."

New club in the district
The District, a new live entertainment venue founded by veterans of the Chicago entertainment scene, opens Thursday, August 15, at 858 West Lake Street, in the heart of what has become "the district." "We'll be catering to all music genres," says partner Lorraine Merriman, "except hip-hop and rap." Merriman, who runs an unnamed indie record label owned by a local athlete, cites jazz, neo-soul, reggae and blues as the primary offerings. Merriman's partners, Stan Hawkins and John McClendon, are veteran club operators. Their Rituals and Crosswinds venues, both now closed, were known as intimate, jazz-oriented rooms. After The District opens Thursday, the club will be open Wednesdays through Saturdays, from 6pm till 2am. Cover charge will vary from $10 for local acts, on up. For more information, call (312)421-6487. (2002-08-14)

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