In July 2007, I am going to Chicago for 2 days to go to the Taste of Chicago. Looking to fill the rest of the time, I asked Paul what he would do if he had only one day in Chicago. This is what he suggests:
- When you wake up you've got to walk to The Original Pancake House at 22 E. Bellevue Place. Yeah, it started in Portland, but Chicago does it right. It's sooo cool nestled in there amongst all the skyscrapers. Get the Swedish Pancakes with Ligonberry. Oh yeah.
- Then I'd head along Michigan Avenue to either...Museum of Contemporary Art or the Art Institute of Chicago. I took a quick gander at the two, and the Sol LeWitt stuff at the Contemporary would be cool, but I think I'd recommend you spend the day at the Art Institute. The Tea Exhibit there looked interesting, and their permanent collection just rocks! Ask what's "not to miss" at the front desk and they'll steer you right. Get the audio tour. Of course Seurat's La Grande Jatte is there...it's just to huge and precious to move. And with our Topiary Garden here in town you just have to see it.
- Fortify yourself with Garrett's Popcorn. Get nothing by the caramel. Good Lord it's heaven. The West Jackson store is just a few blocks from the museum.
- Then you've got to head to Millennium Park. You've never seen such a thing. From the fountain to the gardens to the music facility to Anish Kapoor's Space Bean. You could spend the whole day wandering around and reading the signs... It's very cool...
- If the weather is nice, the view from the Hancock Building is very cool... Get the last tickets at 10:45 PM and you'll have a wonderful view of the City Lights.
- Now I know you are there for Taste of Chicago, but Chicago has the best restaurants in North America so here are my two top picks. Take your wallet. Tru is stunning. Moto is the most amazing dinner experience you will EVER have.
- Of course if you are slumming you've got to get either an original
Chicago HotDog with all the true trimmings at Portillos, or a double crust
pepperoni pizza at Giordanos. Why choose? Get one of each!
More on pizza:- Oooh! Of course there are Great Pizza Wars in Chicago with many taking various sides. There is a big difference between a deep dish pizza (which I really don't like that much) and a double crust (stuffed) pizza which I like a lot. A deep dish is basically a regular pizza with a lot more toppings and higher sides to hold it all together. Pizzeria Uno invented it, but I would send you to Gino's if you wanted to try it.
- A stuffed pizza ends up more like a lasagna and they are heavenly. There are some esoteric differences, but the major one is a secondary crust put on top of the whole thing. Giordano's is the undisputed low-rent king, but if you were feeling froufrou I'd send you to Edwardos. At either place go with spinach, sausage, and mozzarella "inside" and pepperoni on top and you've really got something. If you and Mike could eat more than a Medium you get my utmost respect!
