Which Chicago food festival first featured Eli's cheesecake in 1980?

The Chicago food festival that first featured Eli’s cheesecake in 1980 was the Taste of Chicago.

Eli Schulman developed his original plain cheesecake in the late 1970s as a signature dessert for Eli’s The Place for Steak. The restaurant brought that cheesecake to the first Taste of Chicago, held on July 4, 1980. The festival began on Michigan Avenue before moving to Grant Park the following year.

The appearance helped turn a restaurant specialty into a Chicago food brand. Eli’s cheesecake later became one of the festival’s best-known desserts, and the company became independent soon after the inaugural event. Its classic version combines cream cheese, sour cream, eggs, sugar, and vanilla in a butter shortbread-cookie crust.

The festival itself was organized as a showcase for Chicago restaurants and regional foods. Its initial turnout exceeded expectations: organizers anticipated about 100,000 visitors, but more than 250,000 attended. That early success helped establish the event as a major annual Chicago tradition. It is not the same event as Ribfest Chicago, Chicago Gourmet, or the music festival Lollapalooza.