Chicago Dîner en Blanc Announcement

If you’re looking for how to attend the Chicago Dîner en Blanc in 2012 or later, please refer to this article on Untapped Cities instead.

UPDATE: There appears to be a trademark dispute proceeding regarding the name  Dîner en Blanc, as the Chicago dinner is not being organized by the same group as in France, Montreal, New York City and Quebec. Aymeric Pasquier, son of the founder of Diner en Blanc and organizer for the New York, Montreal and Quebec dinners, applied for a trademark for the name “Le Dîner en Blanc” and it was published for opposition on June 7, 2011. Pasquier tells Untapped that as far as he knows, there has been no legal challenges and that there will be an official  Dîner en Blanc in Chicago next year.  According to James Borkman of the Chicago dinner, a cancer society in the United States that has been using the name  Dîner en Blanc for fundraisers challenged the trademark on July 1st, 2011, with other groups potentially joining in. Borkman says that his group plans to go forward, potentially with a different name if necessary. We’re waiting for this to get ugly. Which dinner will you attend?

FROM ORIGINAL UNTAPPED ARTICLE:  Chicago is going to get its own  flash mob dinner on August 27th thanks to a few motivated folks. For those just joining us, the original Dîner en Blanc is a flash mob dinner that began in Paris, available by invitation and word of mouth only which Untapped has attended for the past few years. In just a few moments, 10,000+ people dressed in white with full dinner, drinks, tables and chairs descend on a public monument each year. The location is kept secret to even the attendees until they are en route.

Why am I looking forward to Chicago, after attending Paris for the last few years and soon NYC? One reason is that I think it may be the first to add an American flair to it. The Facebook page has been not only  posting images from past  Dîner en Blanc but also  helpful hints! Like, table setting ideas, food suggestions, where to get tables and chairs for cheap. Finally, according to organizer James Borkman, “The nice thing for Chicago is that we have all the grand open public spaces you could wish for!” It’s also going to be as green as possible, with guests encouraged to arrive by public transport and encouraged to recycle. New York is getting the hype but the Windy City may be the one to adapt it to Americans.

The Chicago dinner webpage will go live tomorrow. In the meantime, follow on Facebook  or Twitter to get the latest updates. Stay tuned for some behind-the-scenes looks at the organization behind the Chicago dinner and as always, Untapped will be there to capture the event in photographs.

See photographs from the Paris 2011 and 2010 dinners, and a look back the incredible locations the dinner has been in Paris.