Chicago

I spent 35 hours in Chicago last weekend and it was just enough time for me to fall in love with the windy city. Chris had meetings from Wednesday - Friday, so by the time I got there he was ready for some fun.

We had a exquisite dinner at Avec.

chorizo-stuffed medjool dates with smoked bacon and piquillo pepper tomato sauce & whipped brandade (salt cod) with garlic bread and fresh herbs.


wood-fired flatbread with spanish bonito tuna, celery root, pickled melrose peppers, egg and market apples


All of the menu items looked fantastic; it was very hard to narrow down what we wanted. In the end I was pleased with our choices.


Perfect night for a nice long walk.

Saturday we slept late, which is very easy to do at the W Hotel. They have heavenly beds that are perfect for luxuriating. Hot Doug's was next on our list of places to eat. We arrived at the little corner hot dog shop at 11:30am and finally made it in to order at 1:30. I knew the wait would be long, but it was a beautiful day outside.




Indeed!


I got two Chicago style dogs, 1 with chili. I am now a huge fan of pickles and celery salt on my hot dog. Ooo, and the poppy seed bun! Delish! Chris got a Chicago dog and Jack Daniels sausage. We couldn't take a trip to Hot Doug's without trying the famous duck fat french fries, so we split an order and stuffed ourselves. Hot Doug's was totally worth the two hour wait!

The rest of the day was spent walking around the city.


'Yankee Hotel Foxtrot', my favorite Wilco album.


Millennium Park


Puppet bike! I was cheesing from ear to ear after watching the puppet show. Great music and cute puppets. Loved it!

Chicago is a great city! I can't wait to get back there and explore. Maybe in the spring....