Downtown Chicago in 48 hours

I just got back from an inspiring National Flute Association convention, where I joined a new music commissioning consortium, played some tunes, and got up close and personal with one of the craziest ensembles I've had the privilege of seeing perform.  This all happened in the swanky (and uber-expensive) Hilton Chicago, so of course, I didn't get out of the building much, but I managed to spy a few deals and steal a quick, satisfying moment here and there to enjoy the lake breeze.  If you're headed there in the future, there are a few spots I can recommend:





It's pricey staying downtown, no matter what you do.  But for a much lower price you can get a private room in Hostelling International's downtown location that comes with a free breakfast, too!  The facility is very conveniently located, clean, friendly, and well-secured at night.

Next door, stuff your face with beautiful pressed sandwiches, homemade soups, and Cuban-style coffee for prices you usually only find in the outer 'burbs at Cafecito. I went twice: once for the traditional Cubano (roast pork, ham, Swiss cheese, mustard, and pickles), and again for the Chimichurri (steak, tomato, and super-garlicky chimichurri sauce).  The grilled cheese with guava was awfully tempting, though...








Want to pig out on delicious eggs?  Go to Yolk (which I reviewed a couple of years ago.)

Booze is expensive in fancy hotels. Gino's East South Loop has deep dish pizza, if you eat that crap, but they also have a great list of local beers, something I never thought I'd see catch on when I was growing up in Chicagoland in the 80s.  So, go here, because you know someone you're with is going to want to eat that ridiculous pizza-casserole. Then you can walk a few blocks towards the lake and hear some great bands at Buddy Guy's Legends.  It's a little touristy, but the music is legit.

If you are in no hurry (really, the service is terrible), stop by the old crusty Artist's Cafe across the street from the Art Institute museum and school.  The cappuccino is the best, and the decor is old-school Chicago:

Touristy stuff to do along Lake Michigan, in no particular order: visit Millenium Park and gawk at the weird interactive art, stare at the giant metal bean, and run through the fountains; go to the Art Institute, for goodness' sake!; rent city bikes and ride along Lake Michigan; visit the museum campus, which includes the Shedd Acquarium, Adler Planitarium, and The Field Museum; go to a Chicago Symphony Orchestra concert; visit the amazingly beautiful public library at State Street and Congress; shop for stuff on State Street; people watch in Grant Park (and on summer mornings, hear the Grant Park Symphony rehearse for free); visit the Museum of Contemporary Photography at Michigan and Harrison; take advantage of public transportation as often as you can, because it will take you anywhere you need to go!

This is all within walking distance, basically up and down Michigan Avenue and thereabouts, but you can see it all on a map here. 

Restaurant Review: Two for Evanston

While performing at a conference at the Hilton in downtown Evanston, IL, I of course decided to spend as much of my free time eating as possible. Evanston is just north of Chicago and right on Lake Michigan's shore (and yes, that made for a rather nippy November weekend), but the downtown area is culturally a world apartfrom the historically blue-collar northern neighborhoods of the city.  With Ivy League-ish Northwestern University within walking distance and crisply ironed chinos all 'round, you can bet there are some overpriced restaurants on every corner. Here's what I found:

Farmhouse.  Housed in the Hilton Orrington at the corner of Church and Orrington Streets, this farm-to-table, locally sourced bit of adorableness sports rough-hewn wood tables and a milky, white-washed interior.  This is the place to go for local beers: there are 36 beers total on tap, and over a dozen come from within 25 miles of the restaurant.  I loved my glass of Virtue Cider from Roscoe Village, which was crisp and dry enough to be champagne. We decided not to get too carried away with healthiness at this place, so our lunch consisted of a shockingly generous bowl of fluffy fried cheese curds (amazingly grease-free on the fingers) with homemade garlic aioli and homemade ketchup for dipping, the pork schnitzel sandwich (fine, but a bit dry) with delicious homemade potato chips, and the roasted root vegetable salad, featuring roasted local mixed beets, spring onions, and radishes, on top of baby arugula and dressed with an incredibly soft, tangy goat cheese and a heavenly mustard seed vinaigrette. Fantastic, and so was the extremely warm service.

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The Cellar.  Run by the very upscale folks at The Stained Glass, The Cellar is their hipper and more casual younger sibling.  Well-crafted cocktails and long, long wine and beer lists compliment smaller portions meant to be shared, a sort of tapas menu with Midwestern roots. From the cocktail menu, we tried All That Jasmine (Effen Cucumber Vodka, Koval Jasmine liquor, Chamomile infusion) and Pure Cucumber (Hendrick’s Gin, crushed mint, shaved cucumber), which were both delicious.  Pure Cucumber was quite dry, so All That Jasmine might be more suitable for frou-frou fans.  The Spanish ALBARIÑO had a complex, almost nutty finish, and Metropolitan Flywheel was a crisp lager with a bready finish.  

To share, we had haricots verts with mint pesto and almonds, tomato and mozzarella salad with huge chunks of homemade mozzarella, the savory-sweet acorn squash ravioli made with homemade pasta, juicy Black Angus micro burgers with delicate, crispy shoestring potatoes, and one of our party ordered the full-sized lamb burger on a dark, glossy pretzel bun. The table fell silent as we devoured everything in sight, and the lively atmosphere in the restaurant added to our sense of celebration as we said good bye to our formerly clean, clear arteries.