City: Chicago, IL

Category: Annual Events & Festivals

Telephone: (773) 880-1266

Description: When you see some of the best chefs in the city purchasing their produce for the day here, you know it’s gotta be good. And it is. Since its tiny beginnings in 1998, it now draws more than 175,000 people each season. You can pick up fresh, local, and sustainably grown and produced fruits and veggies, flowers and plants, cheeses, baked goods, and meats. Or just come for lunch—homemade bread and artisanal cheese will do the trick nicely, or order up a divine crepe, made while you wait. Top chef demonstrations take place throughout the season, and there’s usually a live musical act or two each day. Its Lincoln Park setting makes it all sublime. It runs every Wed and Sat from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. During off-season months, from Jan through Apr (typically two Saturdays each month), the Green City Market takes cover in the lobby and South Gallery of the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum (2430 N. Cannon Dr.). Free.