LINCOLN PARK — A group of mostly food-and-drink-centric small businesses in Lincoln Park are coming together for a night to give the neighborhood a taste of their products.
The first Lincoln Park Community Open House is scheduled for Thursday at CityGrounds Coffee Bar, where seven businesses hope to ramp up a sense of community in the neighborhood.
It's been a tough winter for the small businesses that are participating, said Steve Chang, owner of CityGrounds.
"Folks are stabled up for the winter," he said. "They drive or make quick trips and forget all of these cool businesses are out there."
The participating businesses include CityGrounds, Edzo's Burger Shop, Insomnia Cookies, Swirlz Cupcakes, Armitage Pizzeria, Berco's Popcorn and local real estate agent Debra Dobbs.
"We are just trying to help everyone out a little bit," Change said. "We want to cross-pollinate all of our customers so the guy who goes to the popcorn store knows he can get some good coffee over here."
The event will give neighborhood residents a chance to meet the local business owners and sample some of their goods.
Many of the businesses, such as Edzo's, Berco's, Insomnia Cookies and Armitage Pizza, are less than two years old.
The event will be held from 4-8 p.m. in the upstairs of CityGrounds, 507 W. Dickens Street.
The organizers behind the Lincoln Park Community Open House planned the event for the same night at the already-established First Thursdays held by the Lincoln Park Merchants Association, where many local boutiques stay open late once a month.
The hope is to make the open house a monthly event where the community can come together.
