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- Marché starts off a day early with a Bastille Day Garden Party on its patio from 6-8 PM on Friday. Champagne, martinis, and an appetizer buffet (plus the special ambiance created by servers dressed as can-can dancers and French maids) will run you $45 per person; reservations are required.
- Pops for Champagne celebrates on Saturday from 3-6 PM with a French sparkling wine and champagne festival in the courtyard of Tree Studios (behind the Pops space), featuring live music. A selection of French cheeses and bistro-style small plates will accompany a tasting of dozens of French sparklers. Entrance is $40 at the door.
- From 2-4 PM on Saturday, Bistro 110 hosts an Alliance Francaise reception featuring an open bar, hors d’oeuvres, and French songs by cabaret singer Claudia Hommel. The cost is $15, and the bistro is also offering a dinner special: all entrees will be $17.89 (the year the Bastille was stormed).
- Saturday evening, Cyrano’s Bistrot will have live music by Chicago violinist Jovan Mihailovic to accompany a $40 four-course prix fixe dinner.
Monday at 6:30, world-renowned pianist Lang Lang performs at a Republic Pan Asian Restaurant & Lounge benefit dinner for Children’s Memorial Hospital. At 25, the acclaimed musician has a solid 22 years of experience under his belt, not to mention a Golden Globe for his solos in the score of The Painted Veil and his name on a line of Steinway pianos designed for children. A $200 ticket gets you access to the second floor, where Lang Lang will perform and a 5-course dinner will be served; for $80 you can attend the cocktail and hors d’oeuvre reception on the first floor while watching a live telecast of the events upstairs.
