More than 100 members of the Duneland community took part in the first Progressive Dinner event hosted by the Chesterton/Duneland Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday, February 29th. Guests were treated to live music, luxury transportation and specially-prepared course and drink pairings at Lucrezia, Popolano’s, Sage Restaurant and Riley’s Railhouse, which featured David Wodrich of Third Coast Spice Café and Butler Winery.
The Chamber’s Progressive Dinner offered Duneland chefs the opportunity to showcase their culinary talents to a wide audience. “I’ve received nothing but positive feedback,” says Nada Karas of Lucrezia. “I would definitely be a featured chef again,” David Wodrich of Third Coast Spice Café affirms, “It was an immensely positive experience.”
“The evening was amazing,” says Jocelyn Hibshman of Lakeside Wealth Management. “The best part about the format of a progressive dinner is that it affords unparalleled networking opportunities. For every course, I sat next to a different guest, which meant that by dessert, I’d made connections with so many people that I hadn’t really known before. That, and the food was spectacular.” Bernie Doyle, Chesterton’s Town Manager, concurs: “The food was splendid. You can put me down automatically for 2 tickets for the next event.”
The Chesterton/Duneland Chamber of Commerce will be hosting a second Progressive Dinner tour in the fall. Please visit the Chamber’s online event calendar often at www.chestertonchamber.org for the announcement regarding ticket reservations for the fall tour. “We envision this event developing into a Supper Club,” Heather Ennis, the Chamber’s Executive Director explains, “Guests can gather their parties of 8 or 16 and register as a group. We saw this happen quite a bit with this first dinner, and I think that it could become the standard for future tours. Guests could make sure that they’re in a group with their friends, but also have the opportunity to network with other groups during the course of the evening. We’re already looking forward to planning the fall event.”
Photo: David and Rona Lasser toast at Sage Restaurant during the Chamber’s Progressive Dinner.