Friday, January 24th
Make a restaurant week plan, Champaign County, now through February 1st, prices vary
Visit Champaign County’s Restaurant Week kicks off today. There are more than 30 participating restaurants (including Pizzeria Antica, shown above) offering breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Prices range from $9 to $39. Read our preview here for a sense of what we’re looking forward to, or peruse the menus on the VCC website. (JH)
Meet the curators of the new “Divine Madness” exhibit, University of Illinois Rare Book & Manuscript Library, 3 to 5 p.m., free
Start your weekend early and brave the trip to the U of I campus for what is guaranteed to be a fascinating talk about pushing the limits of human knowledge. Curators Dr. Cait Coker, Siobhan McKissic, Ruthann E. Miller, and Ana D. Rodriguez will be on deck to discuss the ancient and modern texts included in this exhibit. (DD)
Image: A white bowl containing sliced carrots, sliced chicken breast, cut mushrooms and cucumber, and two boiled eggs slit in two with the yolk facing upwards lay on a bed of greens. Black chopsticks are resting on top of the bowl and which sits on a white marble background. Image from Facebook event page.
Treat yourself to a custom ramen bowl, Harvest Market, 5 to 7 p.m., $7 per bowl
Ramen bowls at Harvest Market’s Farmhouse Restaurant are back this Friday due to popular demand. Your custom bowl begins with noodles, your choice of protein, and a scratch-made broth. After that, the bowl is limited only by your imagination (and bowl size) as you select from the veggie and garnish bar. (SP)
Bless your ears and your stomach with Mank & Sass, Watson’s Shack & Rail, 10 p.m., the price of your food and/or drinks
This one’s a bit of a two-fer. Not only will you get to see a local duo take the stage, but you’ll get to enjoy the fine fare at Watson’s Shack & Rail. I highly recommend adding the sorghum-glazed pork belly to anything you order. It’s worth it. Mank & Sass have been making the rounds a lot lately, but just in case you haven’t had a chance to catch ‘em, I recommend this late-night show as a first go. (BH)
Saturday, January 25th
Image: Cupped hands hold a small pile of thin brown seeds with a yellow extrusion coming out of the seed body at one end. Image from Facebook event page.
Sow the seeds for spring, Lake of the Woods, 12 to 3 p.m., free
The Society of Wetland Scientists will be sowing seeds collected from their December seed cleaning and preservation workshop and is seeking volunteers to join. Assist with prairie restoration and learn about this important process that will bring extra life to Buffalo Trace Prairie this spring. A carpool from Champaign will leave from the ACES Library parking lot at 11:30 a.m. Volunteers will meet at the Lake of the Woods bike path parking lot off of County Road 250 E (Crowley Rd) at 12 p.m. (SP)
Lighten up with songs about life, McKinley Presbyterian Church, 4 p.m., $15 suggested donation
C-U’s premier lesbian-feminist chorus, Amasong, will be performing two concerts this coming weekend on January 25th and 26th. Titled “Love Light: Songs of Life,” these concerts will take place at 4 p.m. at McKinley Presbyterian Church and will feature selections by American women composers. Further, The Bow-Dacious String Band will be there as well, serving as Amasong’s special guests. The group suggests a $15 donation, but if you’re able to give more, consider it, and if you’re unable to donate that amount, less is okay too! (BH)
Image: Photo with yellow book and vintage camera atop an antique wooden table surrounded by two chairs. The walls are covered with black and white photographs in black gallery frames. A top the photo are the words “Open House, January 25th, 2020, 5 to 8 p.m.” in white text. Photo from the Urbana Museum of Photograph’s Facebook event page.
Stop by the Urbana Museum of Photography’s Open House, Downtown Urbana, 5 to 8 p.m., free
If you haven’t discovered this local gem, this open house is the perfect introduction. A mix of local historical photography and current work by local photographers, the Urbana Museum of Photography is worth a stop on your weekend art crawl. (DD)
Celebrate India Republic Day, Savoy Recreation Center, 6 to 9 p.m., free admission, $10+ for food
Sunday, January 26th
Image: A bird’s eye view of a large cup of tea and a large chocolate chip cookie on a light colored wood table. The tea is a dark reddish color and in a large white cup. The cup sits on a round white plate. The cookie is almost as large as the white plate, and wrapped in a plastic bag. Photo by Jessica Hammie.
Treat yourself to a cuppa and a giant chocolate chip cookie, Pekara, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., $6
Just the other day I had some work to get done, and to Pekara’s Downtown location I went. It was cold so I ordered an herbal tea, and I wanted a cookie, so I grabbed one of the enormous chocolate chip cookies sitting on the counter. The cookie was $2.74, and the tea about $3. Both were great. (JH)
Try a new type of dance, Channing Murray Foundation or Phillips Recreation Center, times vary, prices vary
Top image: A whole pizza with brown crumbled sausage, red seeded sliced peppers, red sauce, melted mozzerella cheese, and a few pieces of basil. The crust is about two inches wide and has charred spots. Photo by Jessica Hammie.
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All event information is accurate to the best of our abilities, but sometimes we make mistakes and sometimes event information, times, prices, etc., change after we look them up. Whenever possible, we’ve provided a link to the original event page; you should always double-check the source before you make any firm plans. Thanks for your understanding.