Discovering Chicago One Brunch at a Time

Within the first few days of moving to Chicago, the three of us decided that in an effort to explore the city, we will try a new place for brunch every Saturday. Now, every Saturday turned out to be sporadic Saturdays when we're all actually in town, but we do our best to venture out and try new places as often as possible.

Check out some of the places we've been:

Chicago Diner

Kitsch'n

Rockit

This past Saturday, we went through a recent "Brunch on a Budget" post from the RedEyeChicago. We had to eenie-meenie-miney-mo to decide, but we settled on Bagel on Damen for this weekend's outing.

Normally, we try to go to a place where we can enjoy a bloody mary or mimosa with our brunch. This was not that type of place. It was more of a sandwich shop than a breakfast nook, but that's all I can really complain about. Forgive me, I was so excited to eat my sandwich that I forgot to take pictures! I got the Lox an Courtney got the Garden. Both were quite tasty. I wouldn't mind going back again someday, but from now on, we are focusing our brunches on places were we can get a drink as well!

As we wandered around the area, we discussed how we have yet to discover many bakeries/pastry shops. We've been toying with the idea of creating our own sweet tour of Chicago, so we decided that there is no time like the present - let's find one in the area! Courtney had been wanting to try a Julius Meinl, so we found one close by and started walking.

I almost forgot to take pictures here, but halfway through, I remembered to snap a few!

 

This WAS a lavender lemon cake.
I was a tad late with the photo!



Our very European coffee spread.



We can't remember what this was called...
Mousse with a blood orange glaze.

 

Lemon tart. Delicious!

 

Walter also had a busy weekend with a visit from his friend, Mabel. As you can see from these photos, they are quite good friends. We think their relationship is more "annoying little sister" rather than "doggie girlfriend," but they always wear each other out when they play.

 

What a good looking pair of pups!

 

Tug-of-war is a favorite around our house.



Until next time! Have a great week everyone!

Love,

H & W

Public Transportation 1, Hannah 0

When I moved to Chicago, I knew that committing to public transportation would put me at the mercy of, well, public transportation. And up until this point, it has been a fairly smooth transition. I've had to figure out routes and I'm sure I've gone out of the way a time or two, but overall, not too bad. This morning I had my first unfortunate experience with the good ol' CTA.

This morning was somewhat dreary - cloudy and rainy. I made my way to the train station in my wellies and raincoat to discover that the southbound trains weren't running. I knew something was amiss when I saw the hoards of people standing on the street under the tracks. I was just really hoping that it wasn't my train. Of course, it was.

Now I take the train to work everyday, so I'm pretty unfamiliar with other routes to get to work. I know, however, that there are a few express trains out on Lake Shore that will drop me off pretty close to the CBOT. I begin the trek BACK to Lake Shore with the intention of hopping on a bus. Still raining... As I approach the bus stop, I see two buses just leaving. I'm not too worried though, because at this point, I'm not even sure what bus I need to get on. I still have to check Google Maps on my phone to see what route I need. Another bus comes as I get to the stop, I think I can take that number, but still unsure. Better to wait and make sure, right? I mean, another bus will be here shortly, I'm sure of it. Twenty-five minutes later, I'm kicking myself because, in fact, I could have taken that bus, but here I am, boarding the same route to head downtown. We packed that bus like a can of sardines. The bus lumbers down Lake Shore and I finally get to my stop. It's raining and windy, so much that everyone sort of hunkers down with their umbrellas in front of their faces. I can see about two feet in front of me (my umbrella obscures the rest of my view of the sidewalk). The rain and wind is whipping my hair around; I'm sure I look like a drowned rat. Finally, I arrive at work. The CTA may have won this time, but it won't best me again! Or rather, next time, I'll be more prepared and know better alternate routes!

On a lighter note, in case you are interested in what Walter looks like when it rains, here is a little preview. I wish I could somehow attach the his wet-dog aroma for you all to experience as well =) His cuteness makes up for it!

Wet Walt

Here's hoping for sunny skies! Love, H & W

Puerto Vallarta: Our Mexican Adventure

Hola!

As promised, here is a brief recap of our recent trip to Mexico. For those of you on the edge of your seats to see pictures of the bride and groom - sorry... Don't want to spoil the surprise for everyone else at the reception this weekend! However, for your viewing pleasure, I've included some other photos from the trip.



I wanted to showcase this ridiculous picture because each of our hair is all over the place.
That boat ride was WINDY!



This game was intense. As you can see, Courtney and I both are going for the ball. And yes, we missed.

 

I think this game is where the bulk of my sunburn came from.
We picked teams based on our marital status - Go team single!



Finally - a roommate pic! Waiting for the bride to make her grand appearance.


The trip was an absolute success. The weather was beautiful, the atmosphere relaxed, and most importantly, Trevor and Krista finally got married! If anyone is contemplating a destination wedding - do it! I'm sure I speak for everyone who came when I say that it was a blast!

For a quick update on my job situation, word of my handiness with a scanner continues to spread. The milk traders next door have requested my services with their loose documents in the office. Opportunity abounds for this girl! Ha! As sarcastic as that last comment is, I'm actually glad that I'm still keeping busy and making some cash. I'll scan every last document in this office while I search for a real job!

And as for Walter, he missed out on the Mexico adventure, but he did get to spend some quality time with his labradoodle friend, Mabel. It was still a vacation for him!

Love, H & W

We enjoy being friends with chefs...

Last night, several people who work with Courtney at The Southern came over to cook and enjoy some good food. I love that she works there for three reasons - A. she brings home delicious food on occasion. B. we go there to eat delicious food and get the royal treatment and C. sometimes the cooks come over and make delicious food for us. It really is a win-win-win situation.

The menu for last night was homemade spring rolls, carrot and ginger soup, and curried chicken and rice. Courtney also made some brownies and almond cookies. While most of the attendees were servers or cooks, we did have a few try their hand at being a mixologist. Cocktails ranged from beer and wine to gin and tonics and martinis. Pretty fancy for a Monday night.

One thing that I love about getting together with her friends from The Southern, is the presentation. They spend a lot of time thinking about garnishes and layout of the plate. Much more time than I ever do!

Since I didn't have much of a hand in helping create theses dishes, I can't go into great detail as to what's in them, but I'll do my best. The spring rolls were a mixture of shredded carrot, cabbage and sauce, rolled in a won ton wrapper and fried in peanut oil. We dipped them in Thai peanut sauce and a sweet and sour sauce. Absolutely delicious! Our second course was a ginger carrot soup with a garnish of fried carrot and cilantro. It had a bit of a kick to it and was probably my favorite course of the entire meal. What made me love this even more is that I would probably never have ordered this at a restaurant! What a delicious surprise! The final course was a curried chicken served on basmati rice with chilled asparagus and a lemongrass sauce. I could have eaten the rice plain it was so tasty, but the entire presentation was delicious and beautiful.

All in all, the evening was a success - good food, good people, good times. I'm looking forward to the next time they all come over!

We are heading to Puerto Vallarta on Thursday to celebrate my brother's wedding, so look for a post soon with photos and a re-cap of that big event!