AVONDALE — A celebration of the intrinsic Irish working class spirit known as "the craic" is coming to Chicago, and that means it's time for oysters, Guinness and Irish music.
The Craic Oyster Fest, an 18-year-old festival based in New York, will come to Chicago in September as part of a three-city tour, with other stops in New York. The fest will take place Sept. 9 in the expansive beer garden of Chief O'Neill's, 3471 N. Elston Ave., an Irish pub with a legendary namesake.
A trip to Ireland will also be given away during the afternoon event. As part of promoting the event, Chief O'Neill's is regularly hosting oyster happy hours leading up to the fall event.
Tickets to the three-hour event are $45 as part of an early bird special, which ends July 28. Afterward, tickets wil be $55. Participants must be 21 to attend.
Ryan Sheridan, an Irish-born singer and guitarist, will perform.
Chief O'Neill's will host a touring festival focusing on oysters. [DNAinfo/Ariel Cheung]
Craic is an Gaelicized version of the English word "crack," which once meant a loud conversation or news. Asking, "What's the craic?" became an expression of greeting, although there are critics who say the different spelling amounts to nothing more than "fake Irish."
In New York, the Craic Fest began in 1998 as a film festival devoted to Irish cinema and short films. Over the years, the scope of the festival changed, and organizers added children's films and an LGBT festivals.
Chief O'Neill's is named for a Chicago police superintendent who devoted himself to reviving Irish music while serving 32 years on the force.
Earlier this year, the pub was the only bar in Chicago named among the top 50 Irish bars in the United States by "Travel + Leisure."
On Yelp, reviewers lauded the "best Scotch eggs I've had" and the cheddar Guinness chowder. The restaurant also serves up corned beef, Harp-battered cod, shepherd's pie and bangers and mash, with entrees ranging from a $10 pub burger to the $26 bleu cheese and bacon-stuffed filet mignon.
On Sundays, Chief O'Neill's offers a $20 all-you-can-eat brunch, which is $14 for children. Diners can build their own Bloody Marys or enjoy smoked salmon, Irish eggs benedict and corned beef hash.
