Tag: chicago

A toast to friends… and revenge!

Today was yet another fun-filled day with my girls, judiang and elsaf. And, as this trip has been, it was another food-filled day. We started at the (last day of the) Taste of Chicago, moved onto Spanish Tapas, and ended with Super 8.

My takings from the Taste:

  • Vegan Samosa from Arya Bhavan

  • Pralines and Cream (ice cream) from Lagniappe-Creole Cajun Joynt

  • Slice of Gluten-Free Pizza from Connie’s Pizza

  • Italian Lemon Ice from Franco’s Ristorante

  • Bourbon Chicken (in a wrap) from Oak Street Beach Cafe

  • Peach Cobbler from BJ’s Market & Bakery

  • Crab Rangoon from the Noodle Vietnamese Cuisine

  • Churro (vanilla filled) from Churro Factory

All of the above were taste portions except the Churro. Elsa, alas, wasn’t feeling hungry, so she gave us her tickets. Judi and I ate like queens. 🙂

Once we returned to Judi’s flat, I headed off to the pool to read. It was chillier than yesterday, but the water was warm still. Once Elsa & Judi joined me, I got in and enjoyed the warm water. Alas, the pool suffered a major child infestation, but we enjoyed ourselves anyway.

For supper, Elsa drove us to Tapas Valencia. We had quite a few plates.

  • Salmon Curado – cured salmon with dill sour cream

  • Alchofas con Crema – marinated artichokes with creamy white wine vinaigrette

  • Champinones – stuffed mushroom caps

  • Empanada de Buey – puff pastry filled with beef tenderloin

  • Pato Confitado – duck confit with mushrooms and apples

  • Patatas con Alioli – robust garlic potato salad

  • Gambas al Ajillo – grilled shrimp with garlic lemon butter

  • Crepe Rellena – crepe with goat cheese, spinach, pine nuts and apples

  • Mejillones con Guindillas – fresh black mussels sauteed with guindilla peppers served with a white wine sauce

We did it in three rounds, each picking an item during the round. And then we each picked a dessert. I wound up ordering what I think I ordered the last time Judi and I came here. Crema con Chocolate, which is basically creme brulee with chocolate. All of the food that I ate today was wonderful (except the mussels, but that’s to be expected. I don’t like mussels.)

After a short stop back at the flat, we headed off to see Super 8 at the Icon theater. This place is hoity-toity with VIP films with leather seats. We went to a regular flick, however, but still had reserved seats. Reserved seats! And an air hostess telling how to escape in case of fire and where the oxygen masks drop from. We ain’t got theaters like that in Ohio.

When we got back, Judi, Patty (her Pomeranian) and I took a night time walk around the Field Museum. Patty really enjoyed herself. And so did Judi and I.

Alas, tomorrow, Elsa and I need to have to leave Chicago. I have kitties awaiting my return. But I believe we’ll have a bit more yummy food before the day is over.

Murder for Two

Today was another great day hanging out with judiang and elsaf. We started off with Dim Sum at Three Happiness in Chinatown. Yum!

After we returned from brunch, we went to Judi’s pool and spent some quality time reading & wading. Very relaxing.

But after that, we zipped off to Navy Pier to see a new musical, Murder for Two. It had a cast of thousands played by two men. Well, not thousands, but several. And lots of piano playing. It was quite entertaining, very funny, and the piano playing was brilliant.

After the excellent show, we went to Riva, a hoity-toity seafood place at Navy Pier. Great service, great food, and decadent desserts. I couldn’t make up my mind on what to have, so I had a set of 4 small plates. Grilled shrimp, crab salad, pappadew peppers (blue crab & Brie in peppers & fried in a ball), and artichoke beignet (artichoke & cheese also in a fried ball). All were tasty with the artichoke winning and pepper balls in second place. Then dessert was also a combo – Chocolate Fantasia. This was chocolate gelato, chocolate flour-less cake, and chocolate mousse. All very yummy. And the chocolate ice cream had salt in it just added to the intensity of the flavor. Oh, and I also had a mojito. We won at supper.

We had pondered staying there to watch the Saturday fireworks, but then later decided that seeing them from Museum Campus would be almost as good (and less crowded). So we returned to Judi’s flat and watched another episode of Game of Thrones.

But soon it was time for walking to Museum Park. Judi wanted to make sure I was safe walking in her big city at night, so she came along as my protector. We stopped by the planetarium and waited. The fireworks, as usual, were impressive.

Once we returned home (with a slight detour) we watched another Game of Thrones (5 eps down, but we don’t think we’ll get ’em all watched before we leave Monday).

Yes! We have Whoosh!

It’s a sad state of (geek) affairs when you discover that your friend, who’s in the bedroom just over there, is up because she posts to Twitter… And thus our day began.

judiang, elsaf and I went to the Little Branch Cafe for “a not as expensive as supper” breakfast. I had a breakfast croissant which had egg, cheese, and bacon. It came with a few hashbrowns and some fruit, of which half was melon. I let Judi eat the melon.

After breakfast, I decided to head off on a half hour walk, whereupon I discovered that Judi lives closer to Lake Michigan than I do to the Stillwater River. (Well, I should have figured that since I can see the Lake from her balcony.) It was a pleasant walk (breezy & cloudy) and they’ve really made Museum Campus a lovely place to walk.

Elsa and I then headed off to Whole Paycheck, er, Whole Foods to pick up necessary items for our day in. See, it was supposed to get up to 98F with a heat index of 105F today. I bet the Chicago weathermen are embarrassed! But we didn’t know they’d be so far off the mark and planned lunch & dinner at Judi’s place.

Poor Elsa experienced sticker shock after she picked out 2 racks of baby back ribs for grilling for supper. First time I’d seen her do a double-take. As nice as it would be to have a Whole Foods near where I live, I doubt if I’d be able to afford to shop there much.

Once we returned, Elsa got the baby back ribs in the crock pot, then broiled the chicken boobies and I made the salads upon which to place said chicken boobies. Lunch was tasty. Then we had a relaxing afternoon of reading, computing, and more reading. I took a walk to the park where Judi walks her dog, Patty, and sat reading for awhile. Then, sure enough, Judi walked Patty and the three of us returned to the apartment.

And then we got to the title of today’s post. See, Judi hasn’t had a chance to use her grill yet this summer. So she cleaned it and tried to light it for finishing off the ribs. Only it wouldn’t light. If only we had a long match, she said. “You got any spaghetti?” I asked her. She showed me to the spaghetti, which I couldn’t keep lit long enough to light the propane, so I asked for tape and then taped a match to spaghetti.

After a few attempts (which kept getting blown out by the wind), I finally heard a whoosh! Yes, we have whoosh! But then it went out. By then, the grill’s lighter started working again, so Judi got it going again. Where the fire lasted longer… and then went out. But the fourth castle stayed up! I mean, huge tracts of land! Grrrr, I’ve been hijacked by a Monty Python movie!

Anyhoo, the grill eventually burned strongly and we got the asparagus and the baby back ribs grilled. Along with baked potatoes and pineapple upside-down cake (that Elsa had made this afternoon), we had a fabulous supper! And after supper, Elsa and I got another episode of Game of Thrones watched. (Alas, we won’t get all 10 watched before we leave on Monday.)

Tomorrow, our Saturday tradition of Dim Sum for brunch will continue. And we have tickets to a show at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater. And I’m hoping we’ll get to see fireworks at Navy Pier, too!

Taste of Chicago 2011

I’m back in the Big City again! I drove to Columbus and then flew on to Chicago, whereupon I took the Orange Line to get to judiang, who walked over to meet me. We dropped my bags off at her place then went to the Little Branch Cafe for lunch. I paid over $13 for a chicken sandwich, but the ciabatta bread it was on was almost worth the cost.

We returned to await elsaf and discovered that Judi had access to HBO on Demand and the Game of Thrones series. We only started the episode and then headed out to wait for Elsa to drive in. When Elsa joined us, we watched the episode (well, Judi disappeared halfway through). We later decided to have supper at the Taste.

The Taste of Chicago has become a shadow of its former self. But there were still quite a few things to choose from. I bought 2 strips of tickets which, for me, translated to 6 “taste” items.

  • Pulled Pork Mini Sandwich from The Smoke Daddy

  • Home Run Ball (Sweet & Spicy Nugget Bites) from Loving Hut (a vegan joint)

  • Cheese Empanada from Adobo Grill

  • Jibarito from Sabor Latino (steak sammich with corn pancakes as the bread)

  • Pad Thai from Star of Siam (yeah, I get it every time)

  • Mango Kefir from StarFruit (an ice cream substitute)

Very tasty, all. And Judi got so much mustard fried catfish that she shared with me. Oh, and we got a free sample of Sierra Mist Natural, too.

We waddled back to the apartment and just missed the first rain. Since then there’s been several thunderous storms and lots of rain. Nice being inside instead of out.

Home again, home again!

I stepped back into my house at 10 til 11pm last night. Linus was glad to see me. Lucy, I suspect, resented my leaving in the first place. Indeed, she didn’t join me in bed all know (as far as I could tell). I think she’s finally forgiven me, now.

While taking a walk through town this afternoon, I noticed just how different a walk in my town versus a walk in Chicago truly is. No tall buildings to crowd out the light or funnel the wind. No sirens going off every 5 minutes or so. Still, the walk is the same walk I’ve taken loads of times and I know practically every nuance of the walk. I can’t say the same for my walks in Chicago. (I’m sure if I lived there, I’d wind up knowing every nuance.)

I love visiting Chicago. But, as the saying goes, I wouldn’t want to live there. Sure, it takes me the same time to walk to judiang‘s grocery as it does for me in town to walk to my Aunt Becky’s house. It’s neat being able to take public transport instead of driving everywhere. But in my home town, I know a lot of the folks, and if I don’t, it doesn’t matter, we still say “hi!” and maybe even have short chats. Some smiles & waves to folks in Chicago, but not as many, percentage-wise, as here.

I’ll miss the wonderful dining. We ate at Zapatista, a Mexican joint near Judi’s place the evening that elsaf arrived. Actually, “joint” is too coarse a word. It was definitely a restaurant. But even though it was a little hoitier toitier than my usual Mexican joints, the prices were rather reasonable for Chicago. I started with a rather yummy and refreshing mohito, then I had pork carnitas with a pineapple salsa that were quite yummy. I liked the Mexican rice (thankfully a small portion) but not the refried beans (I had expected to get black beans, but got these instead – maybe I misread the menu). For dessert, I had the tres leches cake. Yummy and moist, but not quite as good as the one I had in Minnesota (that’ll take some doing to beat).

We waddled back to the apartment to enjoy the company and wait (and wait and wait) for Judi’s partitioning to finish. Thankfully, it was done by 1am and the OS wasn’t hosed. I’ve since gotten the backup going and I hope Judi’s computer is now nice to her from this point on.

Saturday was Dim Sum day. Yes, I’d been eagerly waiting this meal for over a week. No Dim Sum places around here, so I must take them when I can get them. After the delicious Dim Sum, Elsa drove us to Costco so Judi could purchase her birthday present – a new TV for her bedroom. The whole time Elsa was driving through Chicago streets, I was thinking “thank god it’s Elsa and not me!” (Another reason to love living in my dinky town!)

Before my evening flight, I talked the girls into going to Marble Slab (since we’d been cheated on Judi’s birthday) one final time. I had chocolate peanut butter ice cream in a waffle cone. And that kept me sated until I walked in the door of my house. (Whereupon I had a handful of cashews and a slice of toasted beer bread. Heh.)

Oh, and another advantage to small towns & cities? I was actually in the shuttle to my parking place at the time that my plane was supposed to touch down. Heh. Columbus airport – almost as small as Dayton International. 🙂

Anyhoo, a fun trip was had by treen. I hope Judi and Elsa have some excellent fun until Elsa has to drive back home on Monday. Thanks, girls, for the fun time!

Have Tech, Will Travel

So last night & today, I’ve been in full-on tech mode, helping poor judiang get her PC back to some semblance of normal after it had been Geek Squaded (not a pleasant thing to happen to any technology). It’s currently having its OS partition joined with the formerly locked & hidden “recovery” partition which is now useless since it became Geek Squaded. Here’s hoping I don’t bork the OS!

We had a lovely day yesterday. It was another sunny & chilly day in Chicago. I walked over to Jewel in the morning to get some cereal, milk, and fresh fruit for breakfast and became jealous of Judi when I noticed it only took me 5 minutes to walk there. (Takes 10 minutes to DRIVE to my nearest grocery.) Judi was off getting her hair done (to repair an earlier job that hadn’t gone to her satisfaction), so I had some time alone with Patty in the morning.

We had considered walking all the way to Whole Foods to eat at the food court & explore the food, followed by Best Buy to pick up an external drive. But Judi decided it was better to bus there and head to Manny’s for lunch instead. I was OK with that. Manny’s is a relatively famous cafeteria/deli in Chicago – even Obama ate there. You definitely don’t leave the joint hungry!

I ordered a bowl of cream of broccoli soup and half of a pastrami on a Kaiser roll sandwich (which also came with pickles and a potato pancake) and some strawberries. They put about 4 tons of pastrami on the sandwich and I highly suspect they gave me cream of chicken soup instead of the other (or else it just didn’t have much of a broccoli flavor). It was good, but I did leave some of my sandwich on the plate when we left.

Despite Best Buy being the home of the Geek Squad, we went there next so Judi could get a new external HD (her old one was a measly 320GB in size and she’s got 1TB of storage on her PC now) and a USB hub. She picked a WD 2TB external drive (me, jealous?) and the second cheapest USB hub and we were off home again. I then spent much of the afternoon fixing her music collection and beating iTunes with a hammer.

Did you know that, if you have to do a fresh install of iTunes with no iTunes backup, you have to go to the iTunes store and attempt to repurchase EVERY APP you originally bought for your devices? Thankfully, you don’t have to pay for them a second time, but you have to find & install them all individually. Thank goodness I don’t have an iPod Touch or iPhone. Judi’s gonna have so much fun!

For supper, we opted for default Thai. So we walked to Ma & I for pad thai (mine with tofu, Judi’s with shrimp) and while there, noticed that Marble Slab (ice cream joint) is open again for the season. So after supper, we headed across the street for ice cream. I got coconut, which was yummy.

Today, I had a light breakfast just like yesterday and Judi and I walked to Target for a USB flash drive. She couldn’t find the Ultimate Boot CD USB drive I’d given her a couple years ago for Xmas, so I recreated it on this new drive. It’s now doing what I said earlier. We went to A Capella for lunch, where we both got soup and BLTs. I had the tortellini soup, which was yummy. The BLT was yummy too. No one else was there in the restaurant, but that didn’t stop our waiter from being late serving Judi her tea…

We WERE going back to Marble Slab for more ice cream, but despite an opening time of 2pm (which it was), it wasn’t open when we arrived. We popped into a corner store for a bit, but 15 minutes later, the joint was still closed. We walked back, sad that there’s no ice cream.

elsaf is apparently on her way. Here’s hoping she’s having an easy drive today!

A Visit to Judi’s

Usually Spring Break and judiang‘s birthday coincide and this year is one of those years. So I have broke open my piggy bank and bought a ticket to Chicago. Today, I flew there and I’m currently sitting in her den and typing this up. She’s playing Rift and her doggie (Patty) is sleeping beside me.

The drive to Columbus was uneventful this morning, though there was some snow. I discovered hoodies aren’t and ideal apparel for flying since they needed to pat down my hood. Only they couldn’t get a female TSA person to do it, so I had to pat myself down. I didn’t find anything untoward in my hoodie.

The flight was also uneventful. I skipped lunch since the food choices were high in points, and I wanted to save my WeightWatchers points for supper. (Besides, I wasn’t hungry at the time). The only eventful part of the trip was the long wait for my bag to appear. Southwest is free for checked bags, but they take a long time with ’em at Midway.

Judi met me at the train station (though I came out the wrong entrance and was across the street from her – whoops!) and we walked back to the apartment. The day was sunny and chilly – a forecast for the rest of my stay, I believe.

We vegged for a bit and chatted and Patty got all excited cuz hey, another person! Eventually, we went across the way to The Little Branch Cafe for supper. Well, lunch & supper for me. Lentil soup with goat cheese to start, followed by a Monte Cristo sandwich (basically a ham & turkey club on French toast – ish.) Judi furthered the evil by showing me the gelato choices. I picked pistaccio (with an ugly green dye-job) and chocolate. Very yummy.

On the way back, we stopped at the game room at her complex and played 3 games of pool. Judi won the first two and I lost the last game twice, followed by Judi losing it once, and then me scratching on the 8 ball to lose it for sure. If’n you don’t know how it’s possible to lose the same pool game 3 times, you’ve never played pool with me. 🙂

Glad to be visiting Judi again. Should be a fun time. Alas, only a small overlap with elsaf this trip, but at least there will be some overlap!

Last full day, Chicago 2009

Alas, today was my last full day in Chicago. But judiang and I have been making the most of it. We started yesterday after our vegging/YouTubing time.

Judi needed a iPhone 3Gs case for her new iPhone since her case for version 1.0 interfered with the sensor. I said either BestBuy or the Apple Store would be the place to go and asked which she wanted. She decided on BestBuy. Bad idea… Remember, elsaf and her car are heading back to Michigan at this time.

In addition to a case, she ponders BlueTooth headsets. She finds one and a case. And then we mistakingly go by the game consoles. And the Wii tells Judi she has to buy it. I tell her she shouldn’t. I mean, she’d need to buy the WiiFit as well to make it worthwhile. And then she talks to a salesman. And he suggests getting WiiPlay with the added Wiimote. I tell her not to, but she does it all the same…

So now we’ve got a ton of stuff to carry back, in the rain, to the condo. Thank goodness for the #12 bus. We dump the stuff in her pad and then take off, in the rain, to a tapas place Judi’s not been to before, Tapas Valencia. It was my first time for proper Spanish tapas.

When we saw the prices, we realized we were just going to have to go all out. So we started with drinks. Judi got a white Sangria and I got a Passion Martini. Not a big fan of martinis, but this one was tasty.

Our first two tapas were duck confit and crab stuffed puff pastries. Judi wanted to eat the rest of the duck and I wanted to marry the puff pastries. (It wouldn’t have worked out – turns out they were a tad salty upon further investigation.) We followed with patatas bravas (or as I called ’em, brave potatoes) which were spicy and yummy. Thankfully they brought out bread as well to help cool our palates.

We agreed early on to get paella, and chose the Paella Mariscos (mussels, clams, scallops, calamari, and shrimp). It, too, was tasty (though I still just don’t have a palate for mussels. I did eat one and left the other two for Judi).

We finished the meal with dessert. I picked the crema de chocolate, which wound up being creme brulee with little pieces of bittersweet chocolate in it. Way yum and even Judi agreed it beat out her choice of rice pudding (or Spanish kheer as she called it). The bill wound up being somewhat reasonable (just under $40 each including tax & tip, which is less than we originally estimated).

Once back at the condo (after our waddle home) we fiddled until we heard fireworks. They started the Navy Pier fireworks 10 minutes early. We got up in time to watch the last half of the boom boom, but it was over by 9pm (the time it was supposed to start). Still, at least I finally remembered the glow bracelets/necklaces that I brought with me. So Judi and I played with them some (until one broke on me).

We decided then to set up Judi’s new Wii. And wound up playing until about 1am. Ooops. And man, I now have to get one too. Evil Judi is Evil for buying a Wii.

Today we got up at a decent hour because we wanted to catch the first showing of Up at the 600 (AMC). So we had breakfast at the cafe across from her condoplex. I had mascarpone-filled French toast with blueberries and creme anglaise. Very yummy.

We arrived at the theater perfectly. Just a couple of minutes before the trailers started. I’d seen Up earlier this summer, but I didn’t mind spending $6 to see it again in the theater. Judi enjoyed it as well (her first time seeing it).

We took the bus to the Taste then and I bought 3 more strips of tickets. This time I spent all but 1 ticket (as did Judi). We gave our last two tickets to a family of four on our way out.

My food this time was as follows:

  • Macaroni & cheese from Manny’s Cafeteria & Delicatessen (only because Judi was in line for the turkey leg)
  • Small strawberry pecan salad from Home Run Inn Pizza (very yummy and pretty big for Taste portion)
  • Shrimp rolls from The Noodle Vietnamese Cuisine (basically shrimp in egg roll wrap, fried. Tasty.)
  • Pad Thai from Star of Siam (of course I had to get a Taste of pad Thai)
  • Crispy noodle shrimp from Polo Cafe & Catering (basically shrimp covered in noodles & fried – not too shabby)
  • Lemon Italian ice from Mazzone’s Italian Ice (and I tried some of Judi’s mango Italian ice – tasty and refreshing)
  • Taiwan shining noodles from Tamarind (yummy)
  • Frozen chocolate dipped cheesecake bar from JR Dessert Bakery (the only thing I bought that wasn’t a Taste portion. Very yummy, an excellent end to Taste of Chicago 2009)

We were happy that it was warm today and realized we tcould go swimming when we returned. So after a short break at the condo, we went swimming. I got to be in the pool for just over 45 minutes. Woohoo! It was very refreshing.

We vegged a bit more, played some Wii, then grilled hot dogs. (I’d eaten the rest of my pint of ice cream while Wii-ing.) Then more intense Wii-ing where I whupped Judi’s ass at baseball, tennis, and bowling. Go me! We also did some WiiPlay where I was whupping Judi’s ass again, but she hasn’t had any practice at WiiPlay yet (I played it earlier today). Fun stuff. Evil game console!

Tomorrow I fly home. I’m sad to be going, but am glad I get to see my kitties again!


Playing around with glow sticks
Playing around with glow sticks

Amazing what designs you can get with glow sticks (the necklace kind) and cell phone cameras.
More glowing
More glowing

This is 3 colors of thin glow sticks (blue, purple, yellow) in motion.
Ooops... Glowing hand.
Ooops… Glowing hand.

One of the glow sticks broke when formed into a bracelet. Glow on my hands and everywhere.
Taste of Chicago Entrance
Taste of Chicago Entrance

Finally we go through the official entrance of the Taste (instead of via the “back door” of the festival).
Wii
Wii

Mii & Judi (I’m ahead so far!)


Fireworks et al

Alas, elsaf is driving home as I type this. It was lovely seeing her again and I hope her drive back is smooth & uneventful.

After our fun time at Taste on Thursday, we spent most of the day relaxing. Toward supper time, Elsa cooked up Rogan Josh (a lamb curry) and Jasmine rice. Very yummy. Since we were nearly out of Bailey’s ice cream, I went to the market in judiang‘s building and got us each a pint of something. We finally got Judi to watch The Princess Bride. I think she liked it, but she did miss several jokes cuz the sound set up wasn’t quite right.

Friday was the day of the Grant Park Fireworks, so our focus of the day was making sure we’d be ready at 8pm to get to the penthouse to watch. I took a short walk in the morning to Dunkin Donuts to get us breakfast. I also walked with Judi to take the poochies for their morning walk. More relaxing, then lunch at a nearby diner/delicatessen Eleven City Diner. I had an open-faced Reuben and fries and cream soda. Very tasty.

Judi and I played pool in the afternoon. This time we were even on wins. She won solids/stripes and one of our 9-ball games. I won the other two 9-ball games. Alas, that’s the only kind of pool I’ll be enjoying this trip. Although the temperatures have been ideal, they haven’t been swimming-pool comfortable.

On our way home from the diner earlier, we’d picked up fixings for grilling steaks and making more ice cream. So for supper, we had grilled rib eye, baked taters, and the rest of the pineapple from Tuesday night (when Elsa grilled us burgers w/ grilled pineapple & onions and mozzarella). Then at 5 till 8, we headed up to the penthouse.

The place wasn’t at all crowded and we quickly found great seats on the balcony with a view to the Lake where the fireworks would be shot. Then we remembered the radio, so I went down to get it. Unfortunately, it didn’t pick up the station like it did down in her condo. Bummer, no synchronized music for us! Still, the fireworks were brilliant.

hergrace called us back (we’d left a Happy Birthday greeting on her answering machine earlier in the day) and we all got to chat with her while watching the Boom Boom Boom. It was almost like having her there as well (though she couldn’t see them). Glad you had a nice birthday, Steph!

This morning we got Elsa all packed up for her trip back. Then she drove us to Chinatown for Dim Sum at Three Happiness. Yummy as ever. We popped into Freida’s bakery for some (more) sesame buns and then hugged Elsa before she headed off. Judi and I took the El back.

Now we’re fiddling with YouTube and posting videos of fireworks. Behind the cut I have (I hope) the video that I just posted as well as a few photos. I’m impressed with what my phone can do!



Fireworks coming from the barge
Fireworks coming from the barge

The barge where the fireworks were launched was visible to us up on the penthouse balcony. That was pretty nifty to see.
Oooooh! Colorful!
Oooooh! Colorful!

I was pleased my phone was able to pick up the colors of the fireworks in this shot.
Booooom!
Booooom!

This was a big boom I managed to capture. Ooooh! Ahhhh!


Taste of Chicago 2009

Today we got to the Taste of Chicago! Yum! But before we did that, judiang and I went to her workplace in order for her to turn in cases she flexed on and pick up some new cases to flex. We got to the office block at quarter till 8am, so I wasn’t let allowed in her offices. So I popped into the Starbucks in her building and had a caramel steamer and read a book on my mobile. It was kind of fun sitting and looking out at the city view. So of course I took a picture.

Starbucks View
Starbucks View

The view from Starbucks when I had a caramel steamer this morning.

She came down to get me once visitors were allowed in. I read some more and enjoyed looking out her window. (I also fixed a certificate which had fallen from her wall. Yes, I’m anal.) Her office is on the 9th floor and you can see over the El (elevated train). I, of course, took a photo.

De Trains! De Trains!
De Trains! De Trains!

View of the El from Judi’s office at her workplace.



When Judi was done with her work, it was after 10am so we decided to walk to Taste of Chicago. elsaf e-mailed her requests, so once we’d grazed for a bit, we picked up her requests. Here are things that I tried:

  • Potato Pancake w/ apple sauce from Manny’s Cafeteria & Deli – alas, reheated rather than fresh.
  • Irish Egg Roll from Abbey Pub – my favorite 2009 Taste item so far. Basically a Reuben in a filo dough that’s been fried.
  • Grilled Anjou Pear Salad from The Grill on the Alley – tasty, but a little too tart.
  • Jambalaya from Blue Bayou – alas, they were already sold out of the Bananas Foster Bites.
  • Potato Pierogi and Cheese Pierogi from Polka Sausage and Deli – very yummy and the cheese one was sweet rather than savory.
  • Mustard-fried Catfish and Peach Cobbler – had a bite of these two items from Judi’s purchases.
  • Baklava from Costa’s – wanted to end on a sweet note, so I did.

We started at 11am on the dot and were leaving the Taste at 12:05. 🙂