Growing from a traveling two-stage national tour to a full-on three-day Chicago invasion that draws sweaty concert-goers by the thousands, Lollapalooza has long been one of the most anticipated music festivals of the summer. The headliners are no longer limited to rock bands since hiring local chefleb Graham Elliot (Graham Elliot, Grahamwich) to curate the 30+ gourmet line-up at Chow Town. Breaking the longtime tradition of sourcing no-name outside vendors, the impressive showcase has paved the way for new offerings at festivals like Bonnaroo and Coachella. Below, Graham Elliot Executive chef Merlin Verrier tells us what to expect when the festival kicks off this Friday.
Last year you and the team at Graham Elliot were tapped as the Chow Town curators. You brought in Kuma's Corner, Franks 'N' Dawgs, etc. Who 's coming this weekend?
This year, we've extended that—The Gage and Carol Wallack from Sola are coming. We do have our booth where we sell our lobster corn dog and our truffle popcorn, and we will be cooking backstage for some of the headliners.
What are you going to be cooking for them?
Their tour managers tell us what they like and what they don't like. For Coldplay, we'll try to do something fun on English pub food; for the Foo Fighters we'll want to try something from the Great Northwest.
What worked last year and what didn't?
The first year we attempted to do chicken wings. We had a beer foam and blue cheese sauce, but that was just way over the head of the customer. We realized we have to dumb things down to the point that every person can relate to what we're serving. So, we're serving lobster and corn dog combined—essentially lobster bratwurst. Last year we didn't take the casing off and that was kind of a downfall. This year, we're taking the casing off entirely. We'll also have the truffle popcorn again.
How many lobster-corn dogs did you sell last year?
The first year, we prepped 8,500 and sold out of them mid-day through Sunday. Last year, we sold about 11,000 of them, so this year we're planning on 12,000. We ran it in the restaurant afterward because people were freaking out about how they didn't get one on Sunday [Ed. note: This year, it's exclusive to the festival]. And now it's become a staple dish at Lollapalooza. [The Feast]
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