Tidbits: Neighbors Gather for Family-Style Dinner

By by Bonnie McGrath

Some people say there is no such thing as a free lunch, but about 50 members of South Loop Neighbors found out on Februrary 11th that there IS such a thing as a free dinner.

Over family-style platters of several wonderful salads (my favorite was the formaggio salad) and an array of different pasta dishes, current members of SLN reconnected not only with neighbors and old friends, but with Trattoria Caterina, a long-time Printers Row casual-dining standard. (616 S. Dearborn St.)

The restaurant's hospitality was extraordinary, especially when our group outgrew the party room and in the midst of a full house in the main dining room, staff was able to combine several small tables for a full-size overflow group. This was after owner Jim Soteropoulos had already been more than generous in agreeing to host the dinner for a song. What a great neighbor!

The vibe of the evening was positively ebullient. Everyone seemed surprised to see everyone else and generally delighted that so many people came out for this SLN gathering. There was a full spectrum of folks - from veteran SLNers like me to new young faces and even a couple of babies. It seemed the neighborhood had spoken: We ARE a community and we DO want there to be a community association.

Besides warming our hearts and stomachs on a very cold winter night, the free-to-members dinner turned out to be an excellent membership-building event. In fact, most people who attended the dinner had expired SLN memberships that they chose to renew at the door or were new members who joined at the door. Not a single person opted to pay the $20 price for dinner rather than the $35 fee for a year's membership. I happen to know that one woman paid only for dinner when she arrived, but by the time she left she wanted to join the group so she paid the remaining $15 for membership. The SLN spirit won her over!

Not only did neighborhood souls talk and laugh and eat, they also learned the latest from SLN President Dennis McClendon, who answered questions and filled up diners with neighborhood development news while they filled themselves up with Italian fare. And wine. The wine was plentiful. Caterina is a BYOB restaurant, and our neighbors joyfully brought and shared bottles. Thanks, by the way, to Printers Row Wine Shop - just across the street from Caterina - which gave a 15% discount to SLN members for this dinner.

And the good times are just beginning. SLN Vice President and Membership Chair Helen Kaplow is already talking to other venues in the neighborhood so that in the future even more people can experience this happy fact: For SLN members, there IS such a thing as a free dinner... and a free night at Jazz Showcase... and a free cultural tour... and more. Watch for news of these events via SLN emails.