ComedySportz is the longest running short-form improv show in Chicago. Now in our 23rd year! It’s not stand-up comedy about sports…it’s improv comedy played as a sport! We’re also known for corporate training and corporate entertainment, improv classes and as a great place for any group celebrating a special occasion. If you like great comedy improvisation, visit our theater, the ComedySportz Theatre

Mention you found us on Hereschicago.com

Photo booths are extremely popular additions to Chicago weddings, corporate events, charity events, anniversary parties, school dances, Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, Sweet 16’s and private parties. Photo booths are the perfect way to capture all of the fun and excitement of your event and a great way to give your guests unique and memorable keepsakes.

Contact Photo Booth Express

Visit our directory and contact Chicago’s best Photo Booth Suppliers

Visit our directory for a list of all of Chicago’s best Corporate Holiday Party ideas for your upcoming holiday party & be sure to “tell em “Hereschicago.com sent you”!

Hereschicago.com features all of Chicago’s corporate holiday party ideas for your upcoming holiday party. Whether you are seeking Chicago restaurants with indoor and outdoor rooftops venues and spaces for your next friends gathering, bachelor/bachelorette party, birthday party, anniversary, company party, corporate event, wedding reception, rehearsal dinner, wedding, corporate holiday party and more. Great for groups, business meetings, client entertaining, private events and private dining.

View From The Top: Indoor and Outdoor Rooftop Venues

Visitors and locals to Chicago will agree about this fact: The city and surrounding communities are flat as the proverbial pancake. The prairie landscape shouldn’t hold back those who have lofty ideas for holding a party or other special event. In this sea-level, altitude-challenged metropolis, there are places that offer a view from the top.

Private clubs, like the Metropolitan Club in the Sears – make that – Willis Tower and the University Club on Monroe Street at Michigan Avenue, offer unparalleled views, facilities, cuisine and service. But these and others only allow members and guests the privilege of hosting events. Here are some venues that will give you and your guests a window to the world that is Chicago.

One private club does open its doors to non-members: The Mid-America Club on the 80th floor of the Aon Center at 200 E. Randolph St. Founded more than 40 years ago, the club boasts something others can’t match: A 360-degree view of the Chicago skyline and lakefront parks and attractions. Planners can host small receptions for 20 guests, a seated banquet for more than 600, or reception for 1,000. The club offers various private rooms and an expandable ballroom in its more than 8,000 square feet.

Perhaps the hottest new sky-high venue to come on line recently is the aptly-named ROOF, the lounge and party space taking up the 27th floor of the Wit Hotel at 201 N. State St. Lines to visit the high-rise venue stretched 30-plus deep this summer to make the scene at ROOF’s indoor and outdoor areas. Reserve this party location and have all 7,000 square feet for you and your guests. They’ll enjoy handcrafted drinks, food from an Italian-themed small plate menu and views of the Chicago River and beyond. ROOF will accommodate up to 150. Contact theWit Hotel

Long-time Chicagoans know the “grand dame” of vertical venues is the Signature Room at the 95th in the John Hancock Center, 875 N. Michigan Av. Known for fine food, romantic dinners, floor-to-ceiling windows and views that can bring in three surrounding states, the Signature Room also can be reserved for a wide range of events, from rehearsal dinners, bridal showers and weddings to themed parties, receptions and corporate dinners.

Want someplace a little more “down-to-earth?” Here are three locations that are, indeed, up on the roof, only a lot closer to the pavement than the aforementioned.

A stalwart on the Greek Town dining circuit, Pegasus at 130 S. Halsted St. opens its Veranda, a second-level outdoor space between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Guests can dine on Greek tapas-style cuisine and take in awesome views of the Chicago skyline. The space can be reserved for 20 to 80 people, depending on the day of the week.

The Rock Bottom Brewery anchors the southwest corner of Grand Avenue and State Streets. Along with various traditional style indoor party rooms, this brewery and casual restaurant offers a rooftop deck during summer months. The views include surrounding office buildings, but Rock Bottom is perhaps the only outdoor venue of its kind within the downtown area. Contact Rock Bottom Brewery

Out in west suburban Oak Park, the Avenue Ale House, 25 S. Oak Park Av., is a popular, spacious year-round restaurant and lounge for after work drinks, a great “pub” menu, live music and catching sports on huge plasma TVs. When the weather warms up, patrons often head upstairs to the only outdoor rooftop deck in the west suburbs. The views aren’t great, but the casual atmosphere, great food and drink make the Ale House a great option.

Visit our directory for a list of all of Chicago’s best indoor and outdoor rooftop venues and spaces for your next friends gathering, bachelor/bachelorette party, birthday party, anniversary, company party, corporate event, wedding reception, rehearsal dinner, wedding, holiday party and more.

M&M is one of the premier providers of event services in the country.  Our full-service Environment Design department carries an essential collection of tables, chairs, linens, serviceware, event furniture and tents.  In addition, M&M offers an in-house Design Studio for customized theme elements, floral pieces and branded platforms.   Our Strategic Services team delivers the extra level of service to any planning process at any stage. Product launches, sales meetings, incentive programs, employee recognition functions, as well as Weddings, Mitzvahs, Anniversary and Sweet 16 parties, virtually any kind of live event can be managed at M&M.

Our customers primarily consist of Corporations, Country Clubs, Hotels and other event venues, Caterers and Food Service, and Charity Accounts, as well as a steady stream of social clients planning their important life celebrations.

Business History

In 1982, Michael and Marcia Berk established M&M Parties, primarily an event planning entity catering to social and corporate clients.

In April of 1992 they expanded services and purchased Naperville Rental, primarily a homeowner tool rental store with some party rental business in the western suburbs of Chicago. They operated out of a 1,500 sq ft store front with a 2,000 sq ft annex for storage and cleaning of the party rentals. They shared the upstairs bedroom as a general office with the bookkeeper and 3 person outside sales team. A 6’ Santa Claus was stored in the bath tub!

In 1994, M&M purchased Party Plus in Elmhurst, Illinois from Taylor Rental mostly for their extensive inventory of tenting and party rental equipment. The business was moved to a 10,000 sq ft warehouse for our party rentals.

In 1995, M&M added 10,000 additional sq feet of warehouse, office and showroom space in the same building.

In 2000, M&M moved to its primary location a 43,000 sq ft showroom, office and distribution center in Carol Stream. The team grew to more than 60 full time event professionals.

In 2006, Rick Luckow and Eileen Boone, the owners of The Party People, a theme décor and floral company joined M&M as our Creative Director and Senior Producer bringing their following of customers and expertise to the M&M team.

In January of 2008, Bonnie Hansen Rybicki joined our team as V.P. of Strategic Development with the intention of helping our business evolve into a fully integrated event planning, production and rental supplier to the industry.

M&M The Special Events Company Description of Business

M&M is one of the premier providers of event services in the country.  Our full-service Environment Design department carries an essential collection of tables, chairs, linens, serviceware, event furniture and tents.  In addition, M&M offers an in-house Design Studio for customized theme elements, floral pieces and branded platforms.   Our Strategic Services team delivers the extra level of service to any planning process at any stage. Product launches, sales meetings, incentive programs, employee recognition functions, as well as Weddings, Mitzvahs, Anniversary and Sweet 16 parties, virtually any kind of live event can be managed at M&M.

Our customers primarily consist of Corporations, Country Clubs, Hotels and other event venues, Caterers and Food Service, and Charity Accounts, as well as a steady stream of social clients planning their important life celebrations.

M&M The Special Events Company Unique or Innovative Approaches

Michael Berk asked himself, why would people utilize M&M when there were already a number of good companies in the market supplying equipment rentals, linens, flowers, décor, lighting, tenting…?

He decided to create a company that would provide a comprehensive approach by providing ALL of these elements from a single location, all utilizing the efforts of a experienced and well trained group of company employees who could help fashion the best end result for the client using the broad array of products and services as opposed to being fully dependent on any segment and being better equipped to satisfy the clients wishes, time frame and budget.
“With the economy slowing down, some companies with a $50,000 budget for an annual event might have to scale back their parties this year, but with us, they might still be able to get that $50,000 party for $30,000.” Berk says. “That’s because we’re a one-stop shop. Some of these companies have to contract with four or five people to get everything done, whereas we have the staff to handle it all for one price.”
G. Customer Service

The biggest piece of feedback that M&M gets from clients about their customer service is how responsive and flexible everyone is.  The M&M Team knows that events can be plagued by the little details falling through the cracks and then the mad scramble to try and remedy the problem before the guests start showing up.  M&M has decades of anticipating these types of snafu’s and jumping to help when the unexpected inevitable arises.

Naperville entrepreneur Cindy Shanholtz, who runs her own event planning business, Effortless Events, raves about the last-minute service from M&M. Shanholtz said she has called on them at least 100 times.
“The M&M people are a team effort who work together and are all about customer service,” she said. “… When I’ve called on them at the last minute, they’ve never let me down.”

Shanholtz said that once she was an event planner for a funeral. The meal service afterward was her responsibility, but a family member of the diseased “dropped the ball on ordering the furniture rental.”
“It was 10 o’clock at night, and I sent an e-mail to M&M so at least they would see it first thing in the morning since we needed the stuff that day,” Shanholtz said. “The next morning, I called M&M at 9 a.m., and they told me not only did they get the order, it had just left three minutes ago on the truck.”
H. Community Involvement

In the past M&M has worked with such organizations as the National MS Society, The United Jewish Defense League, the Gateway to Cancer Research, Naperville Garden Walk, Naperville Ribfest, The Edward Foundation , The Chicagoland Aids Foundation, and the Illinois Catholic Women’s Association, among many many others. Each group is given a very generous discounting of all of M&M’s equipment and services to support their cause and keep their event costs to a minimum. 

M&M routinely donates to community groups and houses of worship.

In 2008 M&M implemented an internal program for recycling paper and plastic to do our part to reduce waste.

M&M The Special Events Company Unique or Innovative Approaches

Michael Berk asked himself, why would people utilize M&M when there were already a number of good companies in the market supplying equipment rentals, linens, flowers, décor, lighting, tenting…?

He decided to create a company that would provide a comprehensive approach by providing ALL of these elements from a single location, all utilizing the efforts of a experienced and well trained group of company employees who could help fashion the best end result for the client using the broad array of products and services as opposed to being fully dependent on any segment and being better equipped to satisfy the clients wishes, time frame and budget.

“With the economy slowing down, some companies with a $50,000 budget for an annual event might have to scale back their parties this year, but with us, they might still be able to get that $50,000 party for $30,000.” Berk says. “That’s because we’re a one-stop shop. Some of these companies have to contract with four or five people to get everything done, whereas we have the staff to handle it all for one price.”

M&M The Special Events Company Customer Service

The biggest piece of feedback that M&M gets from clients about their customer service is how responsive and flexible everyone is.  The M&M Team knows that events can be plagued by the little details falling through the cracks and then the mad scramble to try and remedy the problem before the guests start showing up.  M&M has decades of anticipating these types of snafu’s and jumping to help when the unexpected inevitable arises.
Naperville entrepreneur Cindy Shanholtz, who runs her own event planning business, Effortless Events, raves about the last-minute service from M&M. Shanholtz said she has called on them at least 100 times.
“The M&M people are a team effort who work together and are all about customer service,” she said. “… When I’ve called on them at the last minute, they’ve never let me down.”

Shanholtz said that once she was an event planner for a funeral. The meal service afterward was her responsibility, but a family member of the diseased “dropped the ball on ordering the furniture rental.”
“It was 10 o’clock at night, and I sent an e-mail to M&M so at least they would see it first thing in the morning since we needed the stuff that day,” Shanholtz said. “The next morning, I called M&M at 9 a.m., and they told me not only did they get the order, it had just left three minutes ago on the truck.”
H. Community Involvement

In the past M&M has worked with such organizations as the National MS Society, The United Jewish Defense League, the Gateway to Cancer Research, Naperville Garden Walk, Naperville Ribfest, The Edward Foundation , The Chicagoland Aids Foundation, and the Illinois Catholic Women’s Association, among many many others. Each group is given a very generous discounting of all of M&M’s equipment and services to support their cause and keep their event costs to a minimum. 

M&M routinely donates to community groups and houses of worship.

In 2008 M&M implemented an internal program for recycling paper and plastic to do our part to reduce waste.

Contact M&M The Special Events Company for your next meeting, wedding or event.

Chicago Event Production Services

To round out your event, Chicago Event Production Suppliers offers complete production services to keep your audience engaged and to make your event memorable. As part of Chicago’s Planner Preferred production services, they offer the following production services in Chicago:

Develop concepts and ideas
Write scripts and speeches
Handle staging and room decor
Coordinate lighting, sound, video projection, and technical support
Design and execute speaker support slides, multi-image productions, film, and videotape
Coordinate live business theater incorporating performers, music, original lyrics, choreography, and special staging and effects
Speech coaching, media training, and progressive learning programs
Provide access to effective and economical teleconferencing and distribution systems

Visit Hereschicago.com, Chicago’s Directory of all Chicago Event Production Companies

Chicago Watercraft small boat custom cruises for northerly island concerts, bachelorette parties, corporate events, unique client outings, and more.  10 - 12 people on your own boat on Lake Michigan!

Enjoy a Northerly Island concert and hear a great show surrounded by all your conveniences of your CW party boat! It’s like Ravinia on the water. Why spend $100+ on tickets, parking, drinks? Listen to Your favorite music on the lake with spectacular views. Charter a CW party boat/yacht; use our caterer or BYO food and beverage. Spilt costs!

Visit Chicago Watercraft and ask for Captain Vernon Patrick.  Tell em Hereschicago.com sent you!

Cooking is an Art. We Make It a Party.

A unique culinary combination of a hands-on cooking experience and a pampered dinner party, Bespoke Cuisine’s Cooking Parties are a big hit with epicureans and beginners alike.

Chefs from the Bespoke team lead groups through preparing a four-course meal. After the lesson, participants retreat to the loft-like dining room and enjoy being served the meal they created.

All through the lesson and meal, the team imparts tips, facts, and guidance about the food, methods and preparations used. It’s a fantastic opportunity to ask the experts and to learn the tricks of the trade.

Parties are held at Bespoke Cuisine’s location on Restaurant Row where clients have the opportunity to learn in a working commercial kitchen and then retire to the gracious dining room. In warm weather, our doors open onto Randolph Street for a wonderful city dining experience.
 
PRIVATE COOKING PARTIES in Chicago with Bespoke Cuisine - Our signature cooking parties are private social or corporate events, and are popular for for:

Chicago corporate team-building events
Chicago birthday parties & anniversaries
Chicago girls’ night out
Chicago showers and bachelorette parties
Chicago rehearsal dinners
Chicago group dinner parties

Cooking Party Menus: Click here for our Cooking Party Information & Menus. To have this information emailed or faxed to you, or to discuss a customized menu, please contact us.

Minimum/Maximum # of Guests: Minimum: 15 persons (20pp in December); Maximum: 35-40 persons depending on menu.

Pricing: $100 per person - includes professional hands-on instruction, 4-course meal, recipe packet, mini spice box, and soft drinks. Pricing for customized menus, including those with a competition component, will be slightly higher. Does not include food tax or gratuities.

Alcoholic Beverages: Bespoke Cuisine is BYOB. We would be happy to suggest wines, beers or other drinks to accompany your menu. Binnys and Kafka Wine Co. are two vendors who will deliver your order to Bespoke for a $10 fee so we can pre-chill your selections and have your beverages set up when you and your guests arrive. Kafka offers 15% off your entire order when you mention Bespoke!

Take aways: Each person leaves with a menu/recipe packet and a customized tin spice box.

Attire: We suggest wearing comfortable clothing and shoes. Aprons are provided to wear during the event.

Dates/Times: Cooking Parties are about 3-1/2 hours long and are held anytime in the afternoon or evening. Most parties start at 6:30pm and end at 10:00pm.

Other Services/Options:

“iron chef”-style competition
wine pairings or an accompanying professional wine tasting
take-home apron (can include personalization with notice)
customized menus

For more information and to contact Bespoke Cuisine for your next Chicago corporate team-building events, Chicago birthday parties & anniversaries, Chicago girls’ night out, Chicago showers and bachelorette parties, Chicago rehearsal dinners, Chicago group dinner parties

Visit our Bespoke Cuisine details page on Hereschicago.com, Chicago’s group event planners resoure directory.

HSMAI’s Affordable Meetings® 2009 Event Series Announced
Mid-America and West Shows Add Event Technology Expo™

The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) announces the dates of its 2009 Affordable Meetings® Conference & Expositions, a trio of highly-acclaimed events that attracts more than 3,500 motivated planners from all sectors who attend looking for quality resources and education to enhance their meetings and events.

Due to the overwhelming response from attendees and exhibitors at the debut Event Technology Expo™ (ETE) at the 2008 Affordable Meetings National, ETE will return in 2009, and will be expanded to include an ETE component on the show floor and educational sessions at all three shows. HSMAI’s Event Technology Expo addresses all aspects of technology as it relates to tradeshows, meetings, and special events. Also, HSMAI’s Hotel Sales Strategy conference is being held March 31, 2009, in conjunction with Affordable Meetings Mid-America.

The 2009 HSMAI Affordable Meetings series schedule is as follows:

Affordable Meetings® Mid-America
April 1 — 2, 2009
Navy Pier
Chicago, Ill.

Affordable Meetings® West
June 10 — 11, 2009
San Jose McEnery Convention Center
San Jose, Calif.

Affordable Meetings® National and Event Technology Expo (ETE)
September 9 — 10, 2009
Walter E. Washington Convention Center
Washington, D.C.

“In today’s economic climate, planners are seeking affordable options that still offer great value for their meetings,” said Robert A. Gilbert, CHME, CHA, president and CEO of HSMAI. “The 2009 series will offer a diverse selection of vendors and a strong educational component to help planners stay in tune with the changes in the industry while meeting their goals and staying within tightened budget guidelines.”

For exhibitors, HSMAI’s Affordable Meetings offers the opportunity to connect with an exclusive group of planners. More than 56% of Affordable Meetings planners do not attend any other trade show.

Margarita G. Muselli of InterContinental Hotels Group, Latin America, a new division created exclusively for Latin America, attended Affordable Meetings Mid-America with a blank database in 2008. “My mission was to find new clients with potential for Latin America. At the show, we were able to zero in on prospective clients, leaving with a solid list of contacts for immediate follow-up after the show.”

Planners note that in addition to finding quality resources to enhance their meetings and events, value comes out of the broad range of educational sessions offered at each conference. 2008 sessions focused on green options and new techniques to incorporate technology into meetings.

Attendees represent meeting and event planners from a variety of organizations, with a majority representing corporate, association and independent sectors, and the balance from government, non-profit, education, religious and medical/healthcare organizations, trade show management and the military. Attendance at HSMAI’s Affordable Meetings is free-of-charge for qualified meeting planners.

Attendee information for HSMAI’s Affordable Meetings is available by calling 1-866-470-6605, emailing affordablemeetings@jspargo.com, or visiting www.affordablemeetings.com.

For exhibitors interested in booth space, please contact Craig Baker, account manager, exhibition sales, J. Spargo & Associates, (703)679-3942 e-mail: amexhibits@jspargo.com, or visit www.affordablemeetings.com.

For more information on the HSMAI Hotel Sales Strategy Conference, visit www.hdosm.org.

About HSMAI’s Affordable Meetings® |
HSMAI’s Affordable Meetings offers attendees the opportunity to meet and do business with exhibiting companies during a unique exposition that showcases venues, products and services to help produce various types of meetings and events. Year-after-year, the highly-acclaimed trade exposition is a main attraction for attendees looking to meet and network with knowledgeable suppliers who are determined to help produce valuable meetings and assist with purchasing decisions. Exhibitors represent hotels and resorts, university conference centers, unique meeting sites, convention and visitor bureaus, transportation companies, trade publications, software and audio/visual businesses, and other meeting and convention suppliers. HSMAI’s Affordable Meetings is owned and presented by the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International Americas region and managed by J. Spargo & Associates. Visit www.affordablemeetings.com or email affordablemeetings@jspargo.com for more information.

About HSMAI |
HSMAI is the hospitality industry source for knowledge, community, and recognition for leaders committed to professional development, sales growth, revenue optimization, marketing, and branding. With a strong focus on education, HSMAI has become the industry champion in identifying and communicating trends in the hospitality industry, and bringing together customers and members at annual events, including HSMAI’s Affordable Meetings®. Founded in 1927, HSMAI is an individual membership organization comprising more than 7,000 members worldwide, with 40 chapters in the Americas Region. For more information on HSMAI, contact the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International, 1760 Old Meadow Road, Suite 500, McLean, Va. 22102; (703)506-3280; fax (703) 506-3266, or visit the website at www.hsmai.org.

Hereschicago.com, Chicago’s meetings and events resource directory for meeting and event planners is a marketing partner of HSMAI Affordable Meetings Chicago.

Contact Chicago Indoor Racing if you are seeking great suburban meeting space, fun Chicago Corporate Activities, Buffalo Grove Meeting Venues, North West suburban conference space or a West suburban meeting venue for your next conference or Chicago suburban sales meeting, fun things to do in Chicagoland, or Chicago team building.

Each event at Chicago Indoor Racing is customized by one of their group coordinators. They will assist you in all the finer details of your event and can help you achieve all of your goals, no matter how simple or complicated. Chicago Indoor Racing Buffalo Grove or Chicago Indoor Racing Addison can work with groups of six to groups of 600 or more. Chicago Indoor Racing’s group event space features the latest in Audio Visual capabilities, including complimentary LCD projectors with pull down screens, as well as flip charts.

Chicago Indoor Racing in Addison | NOW OPENED!

Our new 105,000 square foot location in Addison features two new tracks and a variety of state of the art meeting spaces & entertainment concepts, including CyberSport. Groups events can be booked by calling Alisa Peters at Chicago Indoor Racing; individual walk-ins and same day reservations are happily accepted. Corporate and Group Events.

Five Meeting Rooms featuring the latest in Audio Visual Technology and wireless Internet access.

(The entire facility is a “hot-spot”)

Stewart’s Bar and Grille, a full service Restaurant and Bar, features a large array of cuisine sure to delight any palate! After the Race each location features a full service restaurant with a variety of dining options for individuals and groups of all sizes. They also feature a multitude of alternative entertainment that can be enjoyed before and after racing or dining.

Click here to email or call Alisa Peters at Chicago Indoor Racing for either location (Buffalo Grove or Addison) and tell her Hereschicago.com sent you!