Long communal tables line the street. Café lights cast a warm glow as you chat with new friends over happy hour beverages. A four-course dinner cooked by some of the best chefs awaits, with each course expertly paired with wine.

This isn’t a description of an evening in Italy or Paris, it's something you can access in Foley, Alabama. Tickets to the 12th Chicago Street Supper Club are on sale now, and they won’t last long.

Chicago Street Supper Club is one of the lasting results of the BP Oil Spill according to Ed Bushaw, executive director of the South Baldwin Regional Workforce Development Authority and vice president of workforce development for Gateway Initiative.

“We had quite a time after the oil spill letting the world know that our Gulf of Mexico was fine and that our seafood was fine, so we did several events,” Bushaw said. “We did Supper on the Sand for 500 people down on the beach right after the oil spill, and the Festival of Flavor followed out of one of my classes.”

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill began in April 2010 when Bushaw was campus director at Faulkner State Community College (now known as Coastal Community College), and he ran the culinary and hospitality programs. He was contacted by Donna Watts, currently president and CEO of the South Baldwin Chamber of Commerce, who wanted to meet with him and an event planning class. The collaboration resulted in Festival of Flavors and Chicago Street Supper Club.

Festival of Flavors has since faded into events of Gulf Coast past, but its purpose was to feature Alabama-made food and beverages and to bring attention to new companies. In its first year, Chicago Street Supper Club was a kickoff dinner held in downtown Foley's Heritage Park. The following year, the dinner moved to Chicago Street.

The event is just one of the positive outcomes that resulted from a lifechanging time for the Gulf Coast.

“The key to it is you learn from calamity and try to become better and more prepared from it,” Bushaw said.

Chicago Street Supper Club highlights four Baldwin County chefs, each of whom prepare 300 servings of their chosen course. Each course is paired by Oregon winemaker Bobby Flournoy who has been participating in the event for the last six or seven years. He is also a distributor of small Spanish farms.

Bushaw said one of the unique aspects is the opportunity to experience wines that are not available locally.

“The wines from the event that are poured are for sale,” Bushaw said. “There is a card on the place setting when you sit down, and you can order the wines. We get an event license from the ABC Board. A lot of people buy cases. These aren’t wines you are going to find in the bottle shops in our area or the grocery store.”

If you’ve already purchased tickets and are wondering what to wear, you're not alone. Bushaw said it's the most frequently asked question. While many see this as an opportunity to dress up, you will also see men in jeans and a sports coat. Whatever feel right is best. Casual cocktail is recommended.

The evening starts with a cocktail hour where guests have an opportunity to mingle before making their way to their table. Some groups sponsor a table, but those who do not are sat communally and become fast friends with their tablemates.

“Thomas Jefferson said, ‘Wine makes people much more interesting,’ and I love that quote,” Bushaw said.

Chicago Street Supper Club only happens once a year, and there are only 300 tickets available. While Bushaw said he would love to figure out a way to make it a larger event, he knows how hard that would be for the chefs. Cooking outside for 300 is a big enough challenge.

The 12th Chicago Street Supper Club will take place Friday, Oct. 20. Cocktail hour begins at 6 p.m. with dinner service at 7 p.m. Tickets are $125 per person and on sale now. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.southbaldwinchamber.com.