June 26: Twenty-Three Skiddoo

Also in this weekend's WSJ is a recap of the Chicago foie gras ban set to take effect June 26. In the very spirit of Feed Me/Drink Me, they give us a great recap of places to pig out (can I say "pig out" when it refers to duck?) on foie gras including the incredible torchon at Rick Tramonte's Tru, the foie gras "creme brulee" at Nomi (at the Park Hyatt Hotel), and my favorite, Chef Kahan's foie gras terrine at Blackbird. While I plan to do my part to support foie gras until it's gone, Raymond Sokolov ends with this speculation. Hey, maybe making Gary a foie gras refuge is just the Indiana economic development we need!

Unless the council reconsiders, its prohibition risks brining on an upmarket version of the bootlegging era that convulsed Chicago in the days of Al Capone. What prevents a scofflaw entrepreneur from filling an abandoned warehouse in Gary, Ind., with ducks and smuggling their livers into the foie-gras speakeasies in Chicago?

This doesn't require a scofflaw entrepreneur, starting a duck farm in Indiana would be perfectly legitimate. And what with production gone in California and New York in the next few years, it could be profitable, too! I think I just found my next business idea. Anyone want to go in with me? Just say the password at the door.