Restaurateur Jerry Kleiner is always coming up with new ideas. First it was the vision to transform his South Loop restaurant Room 21 into Via Ventuno, a modern take on an authentic Italian trattoria. Next, he decided to change the notion of a fundraiser into something people do naturally, such as eating dinner. Enter "Dinner Checks for Charity," a Kleiner-conceived benefit for Chicago schoolkids at Via Ventuno on Friday, April 17.
No admission fee. No black-tie dress code. Nope, just show up for dinner between 5-11PM, and a portion of your bill will go toward Chicago's Right Angle Educational Foundation, which supports low-income high school students from Noble Street Charter School campuses by providing experiences at college summer enrichment programs.
Throughout the festive evening, the Golder College Prep Gu-Zheng and Rauner College Prep Jazz Band will perform, and a silent auction for a private dinner with Via Ventuno executive chef Jim Kilberg and a raffle will raise even more funds for a good cause.
Via Ventuno, 2110 S. Wabash Ave., 312-328-1198