Holiday spirit will again take over Wilmette’s Pit & Tap this season

(Editor’s Note: This story was republished in part at Better.net in alignment with a partnership between the two nonprofits: The Record Community News and Make it Better Media Group.)

Five crispy wings, four rustic sides, three smoked hens, two spare ribs and a restaurant cloaked in lights.

With the holiday season’s arrival, Wilmette’s Pit& Tap will again embrace the holiday spirit by transforming into a winter wonderland beginning Thursday, Nov. 17, said owner Michael Clarke.

Last year, Clarke and company joined the pop-up restaurant craze, turning into Deck the Halls at Pit & Tap through the holiday season. And it was so nice, why not do it twice?

“It’s to bring something to the community, especially for the younger ones, so that it will be a memory for them,” Clarke said. “They can say they had this place where they grew up that went bonkers for Christmas.”

Clarke said he remembers a place like that from his childhood and cherishes the opportunity to bring the joy to his neighbors in Wilmette.

From Nov. 17 through the first week of January, Pit & Tap’s facade will be blanketed in colorful holiday lights and feature wall-to-wall decorations inside, including garland, ornaments, tinsel, trees, Santa figures and plenty more.

Amid a seasonally appropriate playlist, seasonal beers will be on tap alongside themed cocktails, such as spiked hot chocolate and egg nog.

The 2021 holiday takeover of Pit & Tap was a success, Clarke said, with jolly visitors from near and far visiting the restaurant, a Texas-style barbecue spot that debuted in Wilmette in the spring of 2021.

“Let’s just celebrate the season and bring merriness and joy to the village,” he said.

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