You love to go out. We love to go out. You love to eat. We love to eat. You love to drink. Well, you get the idea. So when you're itching for the lastest Chicago nightlife has to offer, check out The Extrovert for up-to-the minute details on the scene.
ALL BOTTLED UP: Bonsoiree Cafe
<<--The spot: It's easy to zip right by little Bonsoiree Cafe & Delicacies, a charming-yet-modern BYOB with an awning obscured by trees. Maybe that's why co-owners, chefs, (and sometimes servers) Kurt Chenier and Shin Thompson offer perhaps the most eye-popping pre-fixe prix-fixe dinner in town Tuesdays through Fridays. "A lot of people think we're insane for doing prix-fixe on Friday," says Chenier. "We're just trying to get people in and try our food."
For as little as $20, you get three courses from a stellar contemporary American menu. For starters, go for the corn cake topped with a salad of spicy red lentils and fresh lime. An asparagus and oyster mushroom salad is another temptation. Entrees include braised beef short rib in a cabernet reduction and a smoky pork 
tenderloin wrapped with thick slab of applewood bacon (a $3 upcharge is well worth it.) For dessert, you can't beat warm banana bread pudding drenched with a decadent white chocolate creme anglaise. Think it can't get better? Eat it all under the stars on the secluded back patio-oh, and they do a weekend a la carte brunch too. Pinch us, we're in BYOB heaven.
-->>The bottle: There's a liquor store on the corner near Bonsoiree, but skip it--they don't have anything you want (we hope). Instead, just head about two blocks west to Food Smart (2901 W Armitage Ave. 773-772-3200), a 24-hour convenience store with about every mid-priced, popular wine you need, from Santa Margherita to the Coppola Diamond series-plus a few surprises. We couldn't resist this too-cute bottle of Lulu B. syrah, a $6.49 screwcap number from the daughter of famed French winemaker Louis Bernard. But turns out Lulu was more than just a pretty label, with luscious berrys and soft tannins, making it a wonderful summer sipper. -- Chris LaMorte, Metromix dining producer.
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