On Tuesday, March 5, hundreds of top event industry professionals gathered in Chicago to celebrate with PartySlate at a party that took its theme from the city itself. The soirée was perfectly placed at Cafe Brauer at Lincoln Park Zoo — as the historic space was built in the city in 1908. Its Prairie School-style design — a movement which emerged in Chicago — made this the ideal spot to produce the city-centric theme.
Beth Bernstein and her in-demand planning team at Beth Bernstein Events produced the event, which served not only as a PartySlate gathering, but also featured a pre-event cocktail hour in honor of her company’s anniversary. Bernstein shares, “I think it was perfect because I was able to keep it small, but also private, because of the way Cafe Brauer is set up. The venue is such a Chicago icon — along with the fact that I was going to be doing a celebration for my 15th anniversary — I felt that I really wanted to highlight the city, because that’s where I built my business. It was a love letter to Chicago.” The city is where PartySlate was founded, so the pairing was perfect. The planner also notes that she focused on partnering with local vendors as a continuation of the event’s Windy City focus.
One of those vendors just happened to be Kehoe Designs, a Chicago mainstay and first call for the city’s biggest events. The team provided creative direction to fulfill Bernstein’s vision, which wowed with big moments and small, thoughtful details.
A Glimpse of the Evening to Come
Guests were invited to PartySlate’s celebration via a luxe digital invitation, custom-designed for the gathering by Ashley Frye Studio. Its design reflected the theming in a stylish way — with letterpress drawings of Chicago monuments and inventions. Icons like the Marshall Fields clock and the Hancock Tower joined Chicago ingenuities like the Ferris Wheel and Hostess snack cakes, setting the scene for a city-themed event.
The invitation’s design carried over into the signage and installations at the evening soirée, creating a chic and cohesive celebration. Planner Bernstein says of the design, “We went with the window pane design versus the stained glass look, which I thought was so great of Ashley Frye. I wanted lots of different illustrations in some sort of pattern, and she completely knocked it out of the park and highlighted things that are unique to or invented in Chicago.” She notes that the iconography that was used is all super recognizable, and that every single thing had a meaning behind it.
Design: In Our Chicago Era
Upon entering the party, guests were greeted with a towering Ferris Wheel replica festooned with PartySlate branding. It gave them a sense of the delights waiting inside.
Bernstein shares of the party’s modern design in the historic space, “I didn’t want Cafe Brauer to look like every other picture of the space. It’s a beautiful venue for weddings — I planned one of my absolute favorite weddings from there — but I specifically said no hanging greenery. I didn’t want a garden feel. Instead, I really wanted it to speak to Chicago and play off of the history.”
She says, “The event’s overall color palette was not the typical ‘let’s pull from the stained glass windows’.” The planner adds that she was going for a vintage vibe and wanted to embody the World’s Fair era up through the 1920s. The palette, appropriately, included a green the color of patina, a brick hue in a nod to the city’s industrial history, and a blue that evoked Lake Michigan.
“Matt Lahey of Kehoe Designs did such an amazing job with the geometric shapes throughout the event, which played off of the window panes. He took the design and ran with it,” says Bernstein. Kehoe also created an installation of landmark skyscrapers that towered behind the band, setting the event firmly in The Windy City.
Planner Bernstein says of another custom feature that BlackOak Technical Productions produced for the stage, “One of my favorite things was what Will Barnett from BlackOak came up — a digital screen behind the stage. So you don’t just have this backdrop or drape, but instead this interactive element that elevated things to another level. It was dynamic, with constant movement, and yet also a piece of décor.”
Barnett from BlackOak shares, “A/V played a large role for this event. We were able to supply a high-quality LED Wall that was showing various vintage clips of Chicago. We also tied in modern clips of Chicago that helped cover a huge timeline.” The film not only honored the city, but also PartySlate’s esteemed vendor partners, with logos worked into the footage. All of this played out on a luxe stage provided by the team at Hall’s Rental Service, Inc. ****
In addition to the LED wall, BlackOak created a party-perfect lighting scheme. Barnett says, “Cafe Brauer has a historic feel with unique colors. Brick tones, natural wood finishes, and blue/green hues surround the entire space. Our lighting choices truly elevated the space and complemented the existing architecture.”
Additional décor elements included vintage street lamp replicas, a color-blocked stage base, custom dance floor decal, and an epic bar that included the Chicago graphics created by Ashley Frye. Natalie Kay from Cafe Brauer shares, “I thought Kehoe and BlackOak did such a nice job of incorporating design elements into the space without taking away from the existing beauty of the venue. My favorite detail was the street lamp duplicates flanking the bar!”
BBJ La Tavola and Tablescapes Event Rentals provided the cocktail tables and luxe gold velvet linen that filled the space and made it feel as glamorous as vintage Chicago should.
Entertainment: Blues & Sing-Alongs
Danny Chaimson of Gold Coast Events — with bands on their roster like in-demand Gold Coast All Stars and Rush Street Rhythm — shares his team’s approach to entertainment that married the theme and needs of a corporate event.
“Since the event was Chicago-themed, I wanted to start with some really authentic blues stuff, but didn’t want to overwhelm people who were trying to socialize. I loved bringing in blues harmonica (an instrument not often used at these kind of events) to help lend to the authenticity. I followed that with an acoustic based six-piece band that was focusing on deeper cuts; again, I meant to not overwhelm people trying to socialize, but also to provide a super cool feel-good atmosphere.
“To incorporate the Chicago theme, we opened up with some Chicago-based artists, playing “1979” by Smashing Pumpkins and “Jesus Etc.” by Wilco. I thought it was a really nice way to transition into the rest of the night, which was very much music and artist based, but also increasingly fun as the night went on.”
Mid-evening, the networking gave way to dancing and singing as guests crowded the dance floor to link arms and sing along to the band. Bernstein shares, “The last hour, we were all singing along to the music, like nineties and pop tunes, and people got into it. It was a community moment, where people that had never met before, were all singing the Backstreet Boys together. I also love that it ended on Taylor Swift.”
Other memorable entertainment moments came courtesy of a collaboration between Tigerlily Events, who provide catering and event management for the Lincoln Park Zoo — including Cafe Brauer, and NewMoon Chicago, who specialize in creating “wow” experiential moments at events.
Bernstein says, “For the interactive entertainment, it was very important to me that it wasn’t people hanging from the ceiling and doing these things that we see all the time now. I also did not want to do anything unless it was a direct tie-in to the event theming and made sense and was purposeful.”
To that end, NewMoon provided servers offered appetizers to guests from trays suspended on giant “hot air” balloons. The servers, clad in Chicago flag dresses, would pull down the cord to lower a balloon that was hovering over everyone’s heads to serve savory bites.
The team also created a moment with dessert service. A woman wearing a hoop skirt that doubled as a table offered mini brownies bites and another mainstay, Garrett’s Popcorn and their “Chicago Mix” of cheese and caramel. The table lady’s outfit and tablecloth was themed for the Chicago Fire. She slowly glided through the event to the delight of guests who had their cameras out to capture it.
Another totally unique interactive moment came courtesy of Roni Golan Collaborative Painting. At the beginning of the event, guests were presented with a blank black canvas. Throughout the evening, each took up a brush and added something to it — from waves and trees to hearts and names. After the event, Golan turned the canvas into a work of art, weaving the disparate elements into one amazing keepsake from the event.
Fresh Fare: Chicago Mainstays & Elegant Bites
Bernstein says of curating a fitting menu, “Natalie Kay and Cafe Brauer were so great to work with, they were great partners. Lots of time, menus will lock you in, but even if we had over-the-top ideas, Natalie would check to see if we could make it work.”
Bernstein notes that she wanted to avoid too much “kitsch” in the theming, even when it came to the menu. She says, “It is hard to pull off a Chicago theme without it going so over the top and, you know, Frank Sinatra, ‘My Kind of Town,’ and all that. Even though we were serving some deep dish and hot dogs, I wanted the passed appetizers to be super elevated, and that’s why we did truffled deviled eggs and sushi-grade hamachi tuna on wonton crisps.”
The wide-ranging fare offered a fitting contrast between the city’s elegant and more spirited sides, and the menu planning was very intentional. Kay with Tigerlily shares of their menu development process, “We wanted guests to feel right at home with nostalgic, classic Chicago fare. The menu also created fun talking points, such as how the brownie was invented in Chicago!
“We loved partnering with NewMoon Chicago to serve the food in creative ways that the guests could interact with. In addition to providing a unique visual element, the hot air balloon servers helped us circulate food throughout a busy room!”
Guests enjoyed a wide range of fare that included Punjab vegetable samosas, buttermilk fried chicken pops, deep dish pizza, mini Italian beefs, and build-your own Chicago hot dog. MENU. As Bernstein says,”Everybody loves pizza and hot dogs.”
Even the cocktail menu upheld the theme by taking it way back with the specialty cocktail The Bee’s Knees, a Prohibition-era cocktail of gin, fresh lemon juice, and honey. The bar also served up sips from Aphrodise (a luxury Greek sparkling Rosé), PRESS Seltzer (a Midwest-founded hard seltzer), and Consentio Spirits (who specialize in small-batch Tequila production).
The Original Rainbow Cone, who has been serving up creative scoops for 95 years in Chicago, was also on hand. They offered guests perfectly delectable — and Instagram-worthy — mini-towers of brightly hued ice cream in varied flavors.
All of the Memories Made (& Captured)
It was definitely an evening worth remembering, and we are grateful that Collin Pierson Photography was on hand to beautifully capture the dramatic soirée. The team shot gorgeous candid pictures of guests having fun as well as photos of every colorful design detail and delicious dish. Meanwhile, Old North Film Co. captured moving images that told the story of the celebration with an engaging video that takes us right back to the night. Both will remind the hundreds of guests of their good time (and will make those who weren’t there, wish they were).
Another memory-maker, ShutterBox Photo Booth, allowed partygoers to capture themselves having fun together against a custom, themed backdrop. Plus, guests could utilize props and apply filters for fun pics that they could take home or share on social media.
And More Thanks
Producing a beautiful celebration — like PartySlate’s Chicago-themed gathering — requires a talented team of partners. In addition to the vendors listed above, we also want to thank P.V.M. LLC for their top-notch valet services.
We also appreciate Bianca Sansosti Artistry for our party-ready hair and picture-perfect makeup. They made sure that our PartySlate team looked (and felt) our absolute best.
We can’t have a great time without a good night’s sleep. As such, our gratitude goes out to LM Media Worldwide/ Kleinfeld Hotel Blocks — a must-have, complimentary service that will search, negotiate, and book your hotel block for your out-of-town wedding and event guests.
The team that produced this epic event:
host: PartySlate
photographer: Collin Pierson Photography
planning & creative design: Beth Bernstein Events
décor: KEHOE DESIGNS
venue: Cafe Brauer at Lincoln Park Zoo
venue & cater: Tigerlily Events
graphic design & signage: Ashley Frye Studio
entertainment: The Gold Coast All Stars
rentals: Hall’s Rental Service, Inc
rentals: Tablescapes Event Rentals
linens: BBJ La Tavola
interactive entertainment: NewMoon Chicago
photo booth: ShutterBox Photo Entertainment
videographer: Old North Film Company, LLC
audio/visual: BlackOak Technical Productions
team hair & makeup: Bianca Sansosti Artistry
interactive painting: Roni Golan Collaborative painting
hotel room blocks: LM Media Worldwide/Kleinfeld Hotel Blocks
specialty dessert: The Original Rainbow Cone
sparkling rosé: Aphrodise Sparkling Rosé
spirits & wine: Consentio Spirits
seltzer: Press Seltzers