114738 Mon Jan 19 05:52:32 -0800 2004 19 7 Chicago Area 0 624805 Hi all, Boston chowhound headed to Chicago in February (13-15). My first time in your fair city so we are unintiated... Any suggestions and comments will be taken with abundant offers of thanks and reciprocity. Notes: From Boston (one trapped in Minneapolis since last year, one originally from Miami) We will be staying at the Sofitel Water Tower. No Car. Willing and able to take public transport. I do not eat meat other than sea-life. So this excludes exclusively meat establishments however authentic. Budget= Prefer modest lunch & breakfast and splurge dinners. Not too much a concern this trip. The plan: Friday- *pre dinner drink suggestion needed: Anything with a good view? *dinner @ North Pond (I like the reviews that I have read and the location sounds perfect for a winter night...my companion also attended LSE where the chef studied which has a sentimental draw) Suggestions on what to eat appreciated... I eat seafood but no other meat and am a bit worried as all comments on this board say to avoid the fish. How are desserts? Worth having? Would it be better to go for dessert and an after dinner drink at Tru or someplace else? Saturday- *breakfast? Something close to the hotel would be good or close to an art museum. I haven't found any of these chef-owned places in Boston so that might be nice but I don't need/want to wait an hour in winter... 30-40 minutes tops. *Lunch? *Dinner @ Chilpancingo. Very excited! *After-dinner fun? Blues? Second-city? Sunday- *breakfast? *Lunch @ Uno's (non-negotiable my companion has or made up his mind on this one!) For reference we are both in our mid-twenties not overly hip (in the bouncer to get past the ropes sense) but would appreciate recs for after dinner entertainment. Lounge? Are there any good whisky/whiskey bars? Second City at the moment? I'd like to visit either the Map Room or the HopLeaf but I'm confused as to geography... What's in the neighborhood? Non-chow-related: I'm thinking of scheduling an architecture tour for sunday before we head out to the airport. Any counter suggestions? I always like to visit museums in new cities...Any favorites? I have been to the best of paris, london, vienna, and boston so don't necessarily need to see the rembrandt or monet exhibits... Love bookstores (even though we have a million in Cambridge/Boston). Again, THANKS!!! NB: I have read through one full page of reviews and will probably make it back a few more before I visit. I have looked at the FAQ and have tried searches (which doesn't seem to be pulling a full list). Mon Jan 19 05:52:32 -0800 2004 0 agreeleyo 1 624810 Sounds like a good plan. I am not much of an eat-out for breakfast, aside from extravagant brunches once in awhile, type, so I cannot help there. You are more or less around the corner from the John Hancock building, so in honor of your fellow Bostonian, I suggest a pre-dinner drink ot the 95th, always nice if you can coordinate it with sunset. The nearby and inexpensive lunch places that come to mind are somewhat hardcore urban - Goose Island Shrimp for fried shrimp and seafood which is in a changing neighborhood, though it is less than a mile or so from your hotel, and one of the Indian/Pakistani cabbie places up on Orleans, say Kababish. Pretty inexpensive, and decent food, including seafood and vegetatarian offerings. Neither place is particularly dangerous, but both are fairly hardcore urban. There also is a decent place to eat at the Museum of Contemporary Art, in walking distance from your hotel. Lastly, an easy option for lunch, but one best avoided, is the food court at Water Tower Place. The food is not, for the most part, of any interest. I will leave out the nearby Italian Beef and Fried Chicken options for cheap lunches... I also added a link for Metromix, which is the Chicago Tribune's entertainment web site. You can scope through what is happening and map it from there. Others may offer suggestions, until the moderators push us back to food. Kababish 939 N Orleans 312-642-9622 Goose Island Shrimp House 1011 W. Division St. 312-642-3640 Museum of Contemporary Art 220 E. Chicago Ave. 312-280-2660 enjoy and share your experiences, please, d Link: http://metromix.chicagotribune.com/ Mon Jan 19 09:34:33 -0800 2004 624805 0 dickson d 2 624857 The Sofitel is a great DOWNTOWN location, near the Chicago Red Line train, Broadway 36 bus, and Michigan Ave. buses. An alternative, given the kind of cuisines you've discussed and "goals" in Chicago would be the rarely-mentioned City Suites Hotel at 933 W. Belmont. It's just a block from the Belmont El train stop and a few blocks from the Clark and Halsted buses. Gives you tremendous access to downtown, Wrigleyville, Andersonville, Lincoln Park, etc. etc. Especially good for younger more adventurous people. North Pond in the dead of winter can be kind of .... dead. On a chilly Chicago winter night there's just not much around there. I'd honestly recommend a "warmer" destination. The Lincoln Park pond area is prettiest during the summer and early fall with all the ducks out on the pond, etc. IF you want seafood, well first you have to ask why anyone would come from Boston to Chicago for seafood. I came here after 10 years in Florida and can testify that Chicago is a seafood wasteland (I know that's an exaggeration, but there's a kernel of truth to it). That said, there's a McCormick & Schmicks right by the Sofitel, Nick's downtown is very solid, there's alot of good sushi in Chicago, Chinatown goes through alot of seafood. But compared to Boston, Florida, Seattle, etc. well you get the picture. Dessert at Tru is a cool move, also consider the Ritz Cafe nearby, and walking distance to Sofitel, both tremendous dessert teams. Dinner at Chilpancingo or other "haute Mexican" (Topolobampo, Salpicon, Ixcapuzalco, etc) in Chicago makes alot of sense as that's a strong suit here. And our "pedestrian" Mexican is very strong also. If you do Ixcapuzalco you'd get out of tourist-town and see the Logan Square area, perhaps better done in the Summer or Fall, however. After dinner destinations: my fave Jazz is the Green Mill, near to Argyle where a seafood-vegan could get a great authentic Thai meal at Thai Avenue nearby (papaya salad, basil tofu, shrimp tom yom, etc.) Similar meal would be available a few minutes farther at Siam Noodle. Take Red line, exit Argyle for Thai Avenue (or a bunch of Vietnamese places), take short cab ride south to Green Mill at Lawrence, coming home just take the Lawrence stop red line back to Chicago Ave (near the Sofitel). B.L.U.E.S. on Halsted is a great Blues venue for an out-of-towner, there's several taquerias near there, note the avocado & bean tacos at La Bamba on the corner of Wrightwood. Later...you could do a veggie burger at Wiener's Circle nearby on Clark while your friends have some good Chicago hot dogs and legendary Wiener's Circle hospitality. Uno is one of my favorite Chicago deep dish, it will probably be packed, if so go to nearby Due which is same company, same product. As for great bars, the Clark St. Ale House near the Sofitel does have a very good selection of rare beers on tap and in the bottle. It's kind of a sedated atmosphere. Livelier are the Hop Leaf and Map Room. I'm from the "pro Map Room" camp that thinks it's a bit better overall than the Hop Leaf. The Map Room has a fabulous selection of Belgians, in fact that's their benchmark product line, but also great ales, stouts, porters, barleywines, on tap and in the bottle. That said, for an out-of-towner the Hop Leaf might be a tad more enjoyable overall. Here's a plan...on Saturday, eat at Argyle, take a quick cab to the Hop Leaf and get boozed up until about 12:30 AM or so then hit the Green Mill to catch the Sabertooth Quartet, an awesome ensemble of local players (alot of Coltrane, etc.). Shut the place down at about 4AM. The problem with the Velvet Lounge is it's extremely isolated on the south side, closes early, and the only thing nearby is the bbq place with bullet-proof glass next door. (the bbq is tasty). There's also plenty of yuppie meat-market type bars near the Sofitel at Rush and Division. Best sidetrip: take a 2 hour cruise on Lake Michigan, the lakefront is beautiful...also top of Hancock as mentioned. Mon Jan 19 21:47:45 -0800 2004 624810 0 Chicago Mike 3 624860 I ate Brunch at North Pond this past Sunday - truly a beautiful space and really, really good food. Reservations are needed, we made ours almost two weeks in advance and had only one option for when we could get a table. Brunch at North Pond is a fixed price, $29/person with a choice of appetizers, entrees, and desserts. I had the "farm egg", lamb, and the passion fruit cake. The "farm egg" was a perfectly poached egg on a light wonderful parmeson polenta with bacon and a lovely sauce. Really, really tasty. My girfriend had the butternut squash soup with a leek and apple bonbon, also truly excellent. North Pond's space, even in the winter, is a truly unique and beautiful space - the views of the pond with the skyline of Chicago in the background are unbeatable. The room itself is a prairie style inspired space, but light and airy as well. For extremely fine dining and food, the service and space are not stuffy at all, very friendly. At brunch there were couples but there were also whole families enjoying the meal. If you are looking for a unique to Chicago room with some of the best cooking in the city, and mostly local, organic ingrediants, North Pond is a place not to be missed. Shannon Mon Jan 19 22:19:37 -0800 2004 624857 0 Shannon Clark 4 624903 Unfortunately, our experience at North Pond, which was reported in some detail a few months ago was not good. It was, as Chicago Mike said, "dead" on a Saturday night. It also was extremely expensive for what was ordered - almost $175 a person with 2 courses and 1 cheese plate. Two of the appetizers were cold (hopefully not on purpose) and my "Langoustine" was mushy, which means it either wasn't fresh or had been frozen. The waiter was condescending and would repeat words to "correct" your pronunciation which actually became hilarious because he would say them exactly the same but with the inflection of correction. Shows you the importance of the wait staff to the dining experience. Finally, it is a bit of a hike from where the cab can let you off, if it is as cold as it has been here lately. I think there are better choices if you are going to spend that kind of money. Tue Jan 20 14:07:55 -0800 2004 624860 0 Cad 5 624904 Sorry to hear that - it probably helps that North Pond is in walking distance (well long for me, very close for my girlfriend) so issues of cab drop off etc isn't a problem. Though I'm surprised, cabs should be able to drop off not far away at all on Stockton Dr. I haven't been there recently for dinner, though we plan on going later this year. Shannon Tue Jan 20 14:11:40 -0800 2004 624903 0 Shannon Clark 5 624926 Some of your comments on North Pond don't seem accurate. First, you state that NP costs $175/person for 2 courses and one cheese plate. I don't see how this could possibly be true. The most expensive entree at NP is about 30 bucks while appetizers, salads, and cheese plate top out at 15 bucks. Desserts are a little less. So how could one person run up a $175 bill on a few dishes? Check the facts yourself at the NP website (link below). I think $65-75 per person is a more accurate figure for what you state you ordered. Second, the NP entrance is only "a bit of a hike from where the cab can let you off" if you consider a two-minute walk physically challenging. While NP doesn't offer valet parking or a heated garage, the restaurant is only 150 yard or so off the street. Just trying to set the record straight. I have taken out of town visitors to NP, and have had great meals. But I have also had disappointing experiences there, too. Such inconsistency is not limited to North Pond, though--board favorites like mk, Merlo, and several others are in the same boat, in my opinion. Link: http://www.northpondrestaurant.com/text/display_menus.cfm Tue Jan 20 18:31:33 -0800 2004 624903 0 Kenny from Rogers Park 6 624961 Should have been a "couple". Sorry, sorry, sorry. Wed Jan 21 14:08:07 -0800 2004 624926 0 Cad 1 624814 The Hopleaf is a far better bar than the Map Room. They both have great beer selections. The Hopleaf has a superior selection of Belgians, while the Map Room has more variety of microbrews and non-Belgian imports. The vibe at the Hopleaf a lot more comfortable and laid back. The Map Room has a bit of a yuppie meat market vibe. Both get crowded. Hopleaf serves food (I haven't tried it though), the Map Room doesn't. All things being equal, I would hands down recommend the Hopleaf. Unfortunately, the Hopleaf is quite a bit farther from your hotel than the Map Room. It's way up on the far North Side in Andersonville which is either a $20/30-minute cab ride or a 30 minute El ride (Red Line to Argyle or Berwyn) and 10 minute walk. Andersonville is a nice neighborhood though with some good bars, restaurants, and shops and the Argyle stop is in the middle of a Vietnamese shopping and restaurant district. It would make a nice excursion. The Map Room is in Bucktown on the Northwest side which is a $12/15-minute cab ride or 15 minute El ride (Blue line to Damen or Western) and 10 minute walk. Bucktown and Wicker Park are interesting neighborhoods too if you're into the trendier side of urban life. There are a ton of nightlife options. I don't know the Water Tower area well, but one place I liked near there was the Underground Wonder Bar (www.undergroundwonderbar.com). An old school, small music club with a nice Chicago vibe. It's open late (till 4/5AM) so you could hit it for a nightcap. Another good music club is the Velvet Lounge (www.velvetlounge.net) on the near South Side. Great jazz club. My favorite in the city. Probably a 5-miunte cab ride from your hotel. Another place is the Green Mill, a famous jazz club in Uptown (far north, Red Line to Lawrence). Also open late. Actually it's not far from the Hopleaf. If you wanted to make an evening out of it, you could get dinner in Andersonville/Argyle, get drinks at the Hopleaf, and then hit the Green Mill for late night jazz. A good whiskey bar is Delilah's in Lincoln Park (near the Fullerton red line stop). Cool rock n' roll bar with lots of good booze with an emphasis on whiskey. Another great bar where you can get some fine cocktails is the Matchbox (Blue Line to Chicago). This is a very tiny place and gets crowded, but it's worth the trouble if you can get a seat at the bar. The Silver Palm next door is owned by the same people and has OK food and good drinks. If the Matchbox is too crowded, it's a good alternative. The Hopleaf 5148 N. Clark St Map Room 1949 N. Hoyne Underground Wonder Bar 10 E. Walton Velvet Lounge 2128½ S. Indiana Green Mill 4802 N. Broadway Delilah's 2771 N. Lincoln Matchbox/Silver Palm 770 N. Milwaukee Ave Mon Jan 19 10:06:14 -0800 2004 624805 0 Giallo 1 624825 couple notes... I think North Pond and Chilpacingo are great choices for dinner. As far as the Map Room/Hop Leaf - Map Room is in Bucktown, Hop Leaf is in Andersonville/Uptown. Both are fairly far. Since you obviously love beer, a third option in this ilk of great beers is Sheffields. An excellent selection of Belgians and interesting domestic micro's on tap. That is just north of Belmont on Sheffield- perhaps a 5/10 minute cab ride, also an easy trip on the Red Line, about 5 stops north of you. For breakfast, I'd recommend Flo (1434 W. Chicago Ave., Chicago, (312) 243-0477) or closer to your downtown location, perhaps Ashkenaz Deli ( 12 E. Cedar, Chicago Tel: (312) 944-5006) who makes a great breakfast sandwich and for lunch, they make a pretty good pastrami or corned beef sammy. Nothing beats the view from the Signature Room (95th floor, Hancock Tower, just north of your hotel)- drinks are steep, but it's well worth the visit. Mon Jan 19 11:35:16 -0800 2004 624805 0 ab 2 624831 Another good beer bar quite a bit closer to you is Clark Street Ale House, on Clark just south of Chicago. Pretty good selection of American microbrews. Mon Jan 19 13:43:18 -0800 2004 624825 0 Aaron D 1 624833 I definately think you should start off one of your evenings at the Top of the John Hancock for a drink. A great Thai place is the Star of Siam which is pretty close to the Hancock. Another great breakfast place is Kitsch'n On Roscoe in Roscoe Village. (Northwest Side). This place is a retro diner and a lot of fun. I would recommend the chilequiles! In terms of Pizza, Unos is great but you also might want to consider Lou Malnotti's - go for the stuffed! For music the Abbey Pub on the Northside is a great bar with some great local entertainment. You might want to check out the site for Check Please, which is a T.V. show that reviews restaurants in Chicago. Here is site: http://wttw.com/checkplease/reviewsbycuisine.html In terms of Architecture, you might want to stop in Oak Park and check out the Frank Loyd Wright Unitarian Church and House. It's great! Good Luck. Mon Jan 19 13:54:28 -0800 2004 624805 0 cooking Juanita 1 624834 I definately think you should start off one of your evenings at the Top of the John Hancock for a drink. A great Thai place is the Star of Siam which is pretty close to the Hancock. Another great breakfast place is Kitsch'n On Roscoe in Roscoe Village. (Northwest Side). This place is a retro diner and a lot of fun. I would recommend the chilequiles! In terms of Pizza, Unos is great but you also might want to consider Lou Malnotti's - go for the stuffed! For music the Abbey Pub on the Northside is a great bar with some great local entertainment. You might want to check out the site for Check Please, which is a T.V. show that reviews restaurants in Chicago. Here is site: http://wttw.com/checkplease/reviewsbycuisine.html In terms of Architecture, you might want to stop in Oak Park and check out the Frank Loyd Wright Unitarian Church and House. It's great! Good Luck. Mon Jan 19 13:54:30 -0800 2004 624805 0 cooking Juanita 2 624838 Just a couple of comments and a clarification. I am not sure exactly how one might benefit from the Check Please web site, as opposed to Chowhound.com. Sometimes it has some interesting ideas, but the reviewers change from week to week, and you cannot really rely on either their suggestions or reviews, as far as I can tell, without somehow getting more information. I cannot say I know much about Star of Siam, but I have not ever seen it mentioned as an excellent place, much less among the first tier of Chicago Thai places. I also do not recall it being reviewed on Chowhound, at least in the last year or so. Juanita, if you want to post something on it, that would be great. Or maybe I missed a post? Any of the Pizza places mentioned are good. Different folks have different preferences, including many who hate all Chicago pizza because it is not the same as the pizza they grew up with. (Personally, I do lean towards a thinner, lighter pizza more like the New York style or even a thinner crust, but I also am not a big pizza fan). Somewhere on the Board there is probably a comparison between different spots with information on how they differ. Uno's, however, is arguably, maybe even unquestionably, the original Chicago-style deep dish pizza. It should definitely be tried, and then next trip you can try Ginos and Malnatis and compare. Always a lively debate on the Board. Lastly, just to be clear, while it does list restaurants and include both posted reviews and the Tribune's reviews, I am suggesting Metromix only as a tool to check out what is going on that weekend (what's at Second City, as asked, for instance) and where certain bars and museums are. IMO, this Board is a much better source for restaurant info and recs than any other place I can think of. d Mon Jan 19 15:10:03 -0800 2004 624834 0 dickson d 1 624844 The Chicago hounds maintain a pretty up to date Chicago chow FAQ. It has links to many past posts. Great b'fast summary and lunch resource, no matter which part of the city you find yourself in. Here is the link: Link: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/113596#617685 Mon Jan 19 17:23:04 -0800 2004 624805 0 Steve Drucker 1 624846 1) Thai food: It's been many years since I was at Star of Siam. Another near you which I've enjoyed is Amarit at Delaware and State Streets. Good food, modest prices. Another Thai restaurant about a mile north is Tiparos. The Chowhound site has had extensive discussion of Thai places. Just do a search of the site. 2) Architecture. The Chicago Architecture Foundation has a bevy of walking tours, though I don't know how much is going on in February. Their website is the best starting point for Chicago architecture. Among areas of interest: Oak Park -- many Wright-designed homes within a short walk; the IIT campus designed by Mies van der Rohe; Prairie Avenue south of the Loop has a number of old mansions. Finally, get a map which shows Chicago architecture and start walking. There is plenty to see in the Loop and near north. Have a wonderful visit. Amarit Thai 1 East Delaware Place 312-649-0500 Tiparos 1540 N. Clark 312-712-9900 Chicago Architecture Foundation 224 S. Michigan Avenue 312-922-3432 http://www.architecture.org/ Mon Jan 19 17:57:10 -0800 2004 624805 0 George R 1 624862 BTB, you won't get authentic Thai food at Star of Siam or Amarit, and usually not at Tiparos...they are too busy preparing loads of Ameri-Thai. The closest authentic Thai to the Sofitel is really Spoon or Roseded at the Western Ave. Brown line train stop, or Siam Noodle at Sheridan and Leland. A bit farther north of Siam Noodle is the new, and quite authentic Thai Avenue on Broadway, just south of Argyle.... ate there today at my ex's insistance and was very pleasantly impressed...a welcome authentic Thai place to add to the Argyle millieu. I'll post a report on Thai Avenue shortly. I confirmed with the owner that you can BYOB at Thai Ave. and you can to all the other places mentioned here, also. BTW, there's a GREAT wine shop very near the Sofitel: the Binny's at Rush and Delaware. Compact but powerful with a great selection of wines and very serviceable cheese/sausage/etc. counter. You can pick up a bottle or two there and take it with you to any of these Thai destinations. Mon Jan 19 22:40:04 -0800 2004 624805 0 Chicago Mike 2 624880 I believe the Binny's at Delaware and Rush is still called The Chalet, so if looking for signage, watch out for both. It is a nice shop. Tue Jan 20 10:12:16 -0800 2004 624862 0 Aaron D 1 624978 Thanks! I will post an update in February! Wed Jan 21 17:30:35 -0800 2004 624805 0 agreeleyo 1 625553 I'm a fellow Bostonian, so hopefully I can lend a different angle. Chicago may be famous for Pizza (stuffed/deep dish), but I'd recommend you stay away from the original Uno's. They use an orange colored (Cheddar?) cheese on the pizza and it tastes pretty bad. Due's is close by, a bit better. Many debates exist about the best, and it really depends on your tastes, but Bacinos and Edwardos are quite consistent and fantastic when it comes to Stuffed Spinach (the best kind of stuffed pizza, regardless of your appetite for meat). For breakfast go to the Original Pancake house one morning (22 E. Bellevue, short walk from your hotel) and order the Apple Pancake -- great breakfast, rather sinful, but will fulfill your best memories of a cold winter day's meal. I'll stay out of the Thai Food discussion -- good choices here, good choices in Boston. North Pond Cafe is really nice, excellent food, beautiful setting, although on the pricier side so prepare for a budgetary hit. You'll also need reservations. Depending on music interests at the time, Rosa's is great for Blues (west Armitage) and Pops for Champagne is a sweet piano jazz bar (sheffield) while the Green Mill is more classic jazz, an old 20's hangout of Al Capone and gang (strongly recommended). This is a bit further north around 4800 Broadway. Enjoy the visit, go Patriots! Thu Jan 29 16:38:05 -0800 2004 624805 0 geoff