UNIVERSITY VILLAGE — An entire festival dedicated to America's favorite comfort food will return to the UIC Forum this fall.
Tickets to the third annual Mac & Cheese Fest Nov. 5 at the UIC Forum, are now on sale. For $65, Mac & Cheese fans get all-you-can-taste access to macaroni and cheese creations from about 50 participating restaurants and five drink tickets redeemable for beer, wine or spirits.
Attendees can choose to get cheesy at a lunch session (Noon-3 p.m.) or a dinner session (6-9 p.m.).
Each of the chefs will present their own versions of the classic dish, using any type of pasta and cheese as the primary ingredients. Attendees and a panel of foodies will select a winning chef, who will take home "the Golden Noodle."
And these chefs get creative. AMK Kitchen Bar won last year's lunch session with their signature AMK Mac-N-Cheese from Executive Chef Barney Smith, which features Asiago, provolone, gouda, fontina, Havarti and jalapeno with a bacon crust and Auntie Vee's won the 2015 dinner session with Chef Navena Moore’s sweet and savory Mac & Cheese Bread Pu' deesie (pudding).
A portion of the proceeds from the fest will benefit Ronald McDonald House Charities of Chicagoland & Northwest Indiana. Last year, the fest donated $15,000 to the Chicagoland chapter.
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