First Evanston ‘Wedding Walk’ Showcases Local Designer

Wedding dress designer Rachel Alvia, of Avail and Company, is creating 33 handmade wedding dresses for a fashion show as part of this Sunday’s first annual Evanston Wedding Walk.

Evanston wedding dress designer Rachel Alvia is busy whipping up 33 custom dresses for a fashion show as part of this weekend’s first ever Evanston Wedding Walk, organized by the Downtown Evanston business group. The wedding walk takes place from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 24, and culminates with a fashion show of Alvia’s designs at the new restaurant and music venue 27 Live, 1012 Church St.   Alvia and her husband, Ted, opened their wedding dress shop Avail & Co. at 1106 Davis St. last October. The pair had been selling custom wedding dresses online since 2005, and decided they wanted a storefront location for their growing business.  Over the years, Alvia has designed a range of gowns, including steampunk wedding dresses, medieval …

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Farmhouse Brings Farm-to-Tavern Eats to Evanston

The Michelin-rated restaurant is opening a second location at 703 Church Street this spring, offering 36 craft beers on tap and Midwestern cuisine sourced from local farms.

Grass-fed beef, farm-to-table cooking and local brews are coming to the restaurant space at 703 Church Street this spring, when downtown Chicago-based Farmhouse opens a second location. Farmhouse co-owners Ferdia Doherty and TJ Callahan say they’re hoping for an early May opening at the 5,500-square-foot space in the Hilton Orrington building that formerly housed the sushi restaurant Futami. With a focus on ingredients sourced from local farms, Doherty says Farmhouse will offer something unusual within the diverse Evanston restaurant scene. Want to stay up to date on the latest restaurant news in Evanston? Sign up for our free newsletter.  “Everything we do is as locally sourced as possible,” Doherty says. “So what we bring to the table—no…

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About Town

Fighting Back Against Sloppy Cab Service

Local cab drivers take notice: Don't try to cheat us.

Every job has its ups and downs and, as most of us know, you’ve got to take the good with the bad. Recently, though, I’ve heard reports of people taking advantage of others when the going gets tough: cab drivers. About a month ago, two women spent a weekend in my home setting up equipment for an interview. The women stayed at a local Hilton in town, less than one mile away from my house. While the walk between the destinations would have been lovely — about 15-20 minutes — their equipment required a four-minute cab ride. Several taxis line up every day in front of this hotel, no doubt waiting for a fare to either O’Hare Airport (approximately $35) or Midway (about $55); the fare from the hotel to my house runs approximately $5. Cabbies …

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Emily Stone

8:45 am on Wednesday, February 29, 2012

The city responded to this column by providing information about what to do if you have a bad cab experience. They also explained why drivers sometimes leave their meters off. http://patch.com/A-rmcd   more ›