Friday, August 26th
Photo by Alyssa Buckley.
Try Congolese pork ribs, Les Gourmets, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., $12.50
The newest restaurant to come to Broadway Food Hall is Les Gourmets Cuisine. Find lunch specials like these pork ribs or try chicken wings, beef kebabs, red snapper, tilapia, goat meat, or a Congolese legume bowl with pondu, fumbwa, musaka, ngai-ngai, and ndunda. Check out my splog from Monday to learn more about the BFH restaurant’s food. (AB)
Visit the OHOK Studio pop-up shop, 14 E Washington Street in Champaign, 1 to 7 p.m., free to browse but bring money to shop
Artist and designer Madelyn Witruk is celebrating three year of her shop OHOK Things, which recently moved into a studio space in Downtown Champaign. She is celebrating with a pop-up shop on Friday and Saturday, where you can shop items from various local makers. (JM)
Check out a concert by the most recent winners of The Voice, A Girl Named Tom, Devon Lakeshore Amphitheater, Decatur, 6:30 to 10 p.m., $13 and up
Winners of the last season of NBC’s The Voice, A Girl Named Tom, will be performing in Decatur. People really love this folk trio’s melodic sound. The band is made of siblings and there really is no harmonizing quite like that of people who are related by blood and grew up doing this thing all the time. Learn more about the show on the Facebook event page. (JH)
Saturday, August 27th
Photo from the Well Fed Caterpillar Facebook page.
Buy some native plants, 924 W Daniel St, Champaign, garden tour at 9:30 a.m., sale 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., prices vary
The Well Fed Caterpillar, a native plant nursery with ecodesign services, is having a “rummage” sale. The sale is at one of the company owner’s house, and they are offering a garden tour at 9:30 a.m. The sale begins after. Here’s the inventory. Additional information (especially about pre-ordering) is available on the Facebook event page. (JH)
Have a Puppy Happy Hour, Maize, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., $10
Buy a wristband for $10 to support Hospice Hearts, a local animal center, this Saturday for brunch at Maize at the Station in Champaign. You can bring your puppy to eat brunch with you, and the pups will get to enjoy a Puppyrita, a bowl of all natural chicken broth. All wristband proceeds will go to Hospice Hearts. Without the wristband, the Puppyritas are $2. (AB)
Photo from the Dance at Illinois Facebook page.
Explore the world of dance cinema at Flatlands Dance Film Fest, Spurlock Museum of World Cultures, 7 p.m., $5 for students/$10 general admission
The field of dance cinema “explores and innovates the intersections between filmmaking and dance making.” Featured this year is Bella, a documentary about dancer and activist Bella Lewitzky, which “demonstrates how a `uniquely Californian’ artist with vision and tenacity can change the lives of her fellow citizens.” A Q&A with former Lewitzky Dance Company member Walter Kennedy will directly follow the screening. (DD)
Hear some sweet sounds, Brass Rail, 9 p.m., free
Two bands playing tonight at Brass Rail — the first is local singer-songwriter Sweetmelk, who during their last performance debuted their full band. I have no idea if they’re having a full band tonight or performing solo, but either way, they’re always an incredible act to catch. The second and headlining band is Mutt, from Oakland, California, playing some garage/art/punk rock. Check out their Bandcamp page and you’ll hear that they kick major butt. (SW)
Sunday, August 28th
Image from the City of Urbana website.
View an exhibition of Vivian Krishnan’s illustrations, The Urbana Free Library, 3 to 4 p.m., free
Meet the author/illustrator of Kula in the Sky and view an exhibition of her incredible illustrations. Krishnan “approaches subjects regarding mixed-race identity, colonization of the Global South, sustainability in art and the environment, all while reclaiming ancestral craft through costumes, textiles, and printmaking.” A live reading of Kula in the Sky, which will start at 2 p.m., will be directly followed by a discussion with members of the Illinois Bat Conservation Program. (DD)
Image of Vaudevileins from their Facebook page.
Rock your socks off, Rose Bowl Tavern, 5 p.m., free
Four killer rock bands for you — Terminus Victor, Vaudevileins, Drab, and Sissor. If you’re looking for some hard hitting rock and roll, this is the show for you. It’ll be a wall of noise situation, in the best way possible. This is a great way to close out the weekend and start off a new week on an exciting note. (SW)
Hear some music at Middle Fork, Sugar Creek Shelter at Middle Fork Forest Preserve, 5 to 7 p.m., free
For the last of Champaign County Forest Preserve District’s Summer Concert Series, you can head over to our county’s official Dark Sky park and hear some classic rock from One Foot In. These events are free and family friendly, and you couldn’t ask for a better setting. (JM)
Top photo from OHOK Things Facebook page.
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All event information is accurate to the best of our abilities, but sometimes we make mistakes and sometimes event information, times, prices, etc., change after we look them up. Whenever possible, we’ve provided a link to the original event page; you should always double-check the source before you make any firm plans. Thanks for your understanding.