No particular day

That was really good work of me writing in my blog every day during Lent, wasn't it?

I feel like I complain about law school an awful lot, not necessarily out loud because I don't want to be branded a complainer, but definitely in my own head. I recently had a really diverse and different day that reminded me how lucky I am sometimes not to be living the nine-to-five.

8:40ish: Wake up. Drink my morning glass of water and check my email/read the news online.

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9:30-10:30: My favorite class at the gym- muscle work.

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Not really related to the gym, but aren't they the hottest couple?

12:00-1:00: Lunch meeting for work. Got to see the debut of a new product and get a free lunch and the best cupcakes ever.

1:00-4:00: Get some work in.

4:00-5:00: Meet with the head of the Loyola University Museum of Art for a private tour and talk about legal issues and the museum.

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5:30: Meet my boyfriend and parents for dinner at Piccolo Sogno. I pretty much want to live at this restaurant, not only to eat their fabulous authentic Northern Italian food and drink the wine, but because the exposed brick walls and glass chandelier decor are something I want to emulate in my apartment. PS Piccolo Sogno- little dream- could not be a more fitting name.

8:00-9:30: Take a trip to Home Goods where I scour for a miniature ornate, antique-looking mirror which I plan on painting with a lacquer paint to match the one in Piccolo Sogno's bathroom (for $7). Head to Target for some Easter candy. After a long day, I'm falling asleep in line, so I justify opening and eating a bag of Starburst jelly beans in the car so that it keeps me awake on the 5 minute drive home.

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10:00: In my pajamas reading in bed.

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Painted the town red

Why oh why do my weekends fly past? This weekend was spent visiting roughly 15 of Chicago's beautiful neighborhoods. Count em, 15. A combination of doing a 20 mile run all the way up to Evanston (see previous post explaining my crazy) and having my parent's car to take a spin in made us quite the little social butterflies.

The Saturday morning sun rose to a gorgeous day to run 20 miles on the lake.

What does one do after a 20 mile run you might ask? Absolutely nothing. Or, limp half a block to the Chicago Bagel Authority, order a monster sandwich, and watch college football all day.

The best part about marathon training- marathon eating. My boyfriend and I decided to reward ourselves on Saturday night with a hamburger from a great Chicago institution, Kuma's Corner. Kuma's has been rated best hamburger in Chicago by many magazines lately. Unfortunately, we were hugely disappointed with the long waits (an hour wait after we ordered our burgers), fairly tasteless hamburgers, and screaming heavy rock music.

What to do when disappointed with dinner? Go have dessert at Hot Chocolate. Absolutely the greatest dessert place on earth.

As if we hadn't already eaten our way through Saturday, we had to have brunch at Milk and Honey in Wicker Park.

Then it was on to the Farmer's Market, where I got the most beautiful and delicious heirloom tomatoes. It is definitely the time for these babies, I would recommend to anyone to buy them up!

On the way home we made a stop at one of Jewel's new concept stores- Urban Fresh. I normally wouldn't blog about a grocery store, but I fell in love. If possible, this store was like a combination of Trader Joe's off-brand foods, Whole Food's freshness, and Jewel's low prices. And it has cases of Diet Coke Plus, a staple from my college years that I can rarely find.

Because I couldn't handle any more football, the rest of my afternoon was spent at Bed Bath and Beyond. Though I usually associate this place with college freshmen and moms, filling up their carts with plastic storage bins, I have to admit they do have every staple. Plus a little tip- those 20% coupons you get in the mail never expire. Just take in any big blue advertisement and they will honor it.

I hope everyone had a food-filled weekend!

Happy happy

Wow, what a weekend! I had 8 people in town to celebrate with me and celebrate we did.

Friday night turned into a late night Michael Jackson dance party.

Saturday morning started with some much-needed breakfast and an awesome Bloody Mary bar.

Then I spent some time downtown in Millennium Park with my parents. We had lunch at Terzo Piano, the newly acclaimed restaurant at the Art Institute. It was absolutely fantastic. I had the Nichols' farm heirloom tomato salad and a Bellini.

We walked off the delicious lunch through the Lurie Garden, a gorgeous expanse of prairie and wildflowers.

Then it was on to watch the football games with my friends. Unfortunately Notre Dame gave me the same gift it has nearly every year- another loss to Michigan.

After that game I needed a glass of wine while getting dolled up.

Then it was dinner for 16 in a private room at Adobo Grill. Many, many margaritas, tequila shots, and delicious Mexican food made for a ridiculously fun evening.

Sunday came too quickly, and the day was spent watching football and eating Chicago pizza (for the second time that weekend).

What a fantastic birthday and even more fabulous friends! Now it's time to recover with my sweet boyfriend, who got me a collection of classic old movies for my birthday. Life is good.

Meet me in St. Louie

I'm leaving tomorrow morning to spend the weekend in St. Louis, and my excitement level is a little bit excessive. Vacation in St. Louis probably doesn't conjure up images of your ideal getaway, but after living there for four years during college (and two unbearably hot summers), I have grown to absolutely adore the city. Here is a list of things that must be done while visiting.

1. Get frozen custard at Ted Drewes. The place is a legend, and with 95 degree plus weather and off-the-charts humidity, there may be several visits.

2. Run around Forest Park. Forest Park is something like the third largest urban park in the country, and in my opinion it is far superior to Central Park or even my beloved Lincoln Park. There is a six mile loop around the perimeter, and although I will probably have to get up around 7am to beat the heat, I can't wait to hit that trail.

3. Go to the St. Louis Zoo. The zoo is one of the few remaining free zoos in the country, and I think it is one of the best zoos in the country too . Must see: penguin house, polar bears, monkey house, elephants, butterfly house.

4. Go to the St. Louis Art Museum. This is another free treat in Forest Park. I used to go here all the time just to walk around and relax.

5. Visit the boat house in the park. My mom and I have a great tradition here- rent a row boat and have my dad row us around the pond. No, I'm not joking.

6. Take a trip to the Arch. I have to admit that I had never actually gone up in the Arch until literally the day I moved from St. Louis to Chicago. The tiny elevators that take you up are a trip, but the view at the top is worth it.

7. Have margaritas at Canyon Cafe, my favorite Tex-Mex place. Besides the margaritas, the restaurant has the most amazing chips and salsa- sweet potato chips, cinnamon and sugar wantons, and tortilla chips. The restaurant also happens to be located in Plaza Frontenac, which is an upscale shopping center (Saks, Neiman Marcus, JCrew, you name it), so a walk around the mall might be necessary.

8. Take a tour of the Schlafly Brewery. While the Anheuser-Busch tour is a lot of fun, Schlafly is a local beer that is actually enjoyable to drink.

9. Spend some time in the Loop. The Loop is a street of restaurants, cafes, theaters, and shops. It's sort of like the St. Louis walk-of-fame, as it honors all the famous names from St. Louis with their own Hollywood stars on the street. Rock-and-roll legend Chuck Berry created the genre there and regularly still rocks, well into his 80s, at Blueberry Hill, a must-visit bar.

10. Visit the gorgeous campus of my alma mater, Wash U. With every trip, there is a brand new building up, and the students are spoiled beyond belief (new sushi bar, new restaurant that serves alcohol aka the place to go when you're a freshman without a car and trying to impress your date, new dorms with queen size beds and dishwashers, the list goes on).

11. Eat at one of my favorite restaurants- Eleven Eleven Mississippi, Drunken Fish, Cafe Napoli, Lo Russos, Harvest, Thai Country Cafe, Mi Ranchito, the Creperie in Clayton, Pi (President Obama's favorite pizza- had it flown into DC and now the wait at the small parlor is 2-4 hours).

12. Drink at one of my favorite bars- Mandarin, Sub Zero, Bar Napoli, Jimmy's Cafe on the Park, Molly's, Morgan Street, Pepper Lounge, Kaldi's or Kayaks for coffee, and a night out drinking would not be complete without a trip to Courtesy Diner.

13. Catch a movie at the Chase Park Cinema. The theater is a cool oasis in the middle of the day, and the concession area serves local treats such as wine and Ted Drewes ice cream.

14. Go to the Missouri Botanical Gardens, especially on a Wednesday evening when the gardens host music in the park (or as my roommates and I liked to call it, wine in the park).

15. Drive out in the "country" to one of the local wineries. My favorite is Mount Pleasant, which serves fabulous Missouri wine in a sun drenched scenic hilly setting.

16. Attend mass at the Cathedral Basilica, a church covered with the most mosaic stone tiles in the world and one that rivals its European counterparts in beauty. Then, head over to the tree-lined Central West End for some al fresco brunch and antique shopping.

yummmm

The Taste of Chicago begins next week, and though I think that the event can be a hellishly crowded and overrated mistake if you go at the wrong time (aka any day around the 4th of July), I am still excited to browse the booths.  I have checked out the vendors, which can be found here, and though I'm slightly disappointed with the seemingly smaller restaurant selection, decided on several restaurants that are a must.

Adobo Grill- I have yet to visit this Old Town favorite, but I hear the guacamole is to die for, so I will definitely check out their booth.

Blue Bayou- I have no idea what this restaurant is all about, but after months of searching for a place that has Bananas Foster on the menu (one of my boy's favorites) and not finding a single place around, we will definitely need some of their Bananas Foster bites.

Original Rainbow Cone- Chocolate, strawberry, palmer and pistachio ice cream with orange sherbet in a waffle cone.  Can't go wrong, especially on a hot day.

Lou Malnatis- By far the best pizza in the world.

Any place that offers sweet potato anything.

Hashbrowns- Good ole southern food?  Check.  This booth is offering sweet potato fries and sweet potato hashbrowns.

C'est Si Bon!- Sweet potato cheesecake.  What more can I say.

Aunt Diana's Candy Makers- A chocolate covered banana always does the trick.

My stomach is growling already!

(almost) summer in Chicago

Last night I had the kind of night that made me really love living in Chicago (even though I had to rearrange my cute new outfit to include black leggings because it is still 55 degrees outside on JUNE 13).  The night started out at one of the best BYOB restaurants in the city- the slightly yuppie but always fantastic Coast.  Though I love sushi and will try almost any kind of food or drink, until last night I was a sake virgin.  Having absolutely no knowledge of sake etiquette whatsoever, my best friend in the world Natalie and I had to be stopped by our amused boyfriends before almost pouring soy sauce in the adorable little bowls they give you to drink sake from.  Despite having what I was told is very good sake, and attempting to appreciate the hints of apple and a little bit of almond and cinnamon, I have to say that I prefer wine made from grapes.  After stuffing ourselves with sushi- you MUST order the white dragon roll, found here, which has been called "sushi crack"- talk turned to dessert.

White dragon roll at Coast

After hearing that we were just down the street from Hot Chocolate, which has been voted Chicago's best dessert spot for years, and on my list of places I must visit asap (I am the person who believes that chocolate is one of God's greatest gifts and actually think I became slightly depressed for 40 days when I gave it up for Lent one year, never to happen again) we hightailed it to the adorable little restaurant.  Slightly buzzed from the sake I'm sure, the four of us decided that we each needed our own $11 treat, plus drinks and hot chocolate of course.  After pouring over the tantalizing menu, we picked out our sweets (except for Natalie's boyfriend, whose sanity I questioned at first when he ordered a cheese platter, which ended up looking absolutely delish- three large hunks of cheese, salad, nuts, and an assortment of homemade breads).  My boy, whose main weakness in life is cookies, ordered the cookie platter of course, which ended up being tiny bites of heaven.  Natalie ordered the warm homemade sugar doughnuts with a hot fudge dip and sweetly salty caramel corn.  And since I love all desserts with a passion and could never discriminate between them, my boy ordered me the s'more treat, an obvious choice considering my current obsession with anything s'more related (everyone must try the Limited Edition Edy's S'More ice cream).  This beauty was composed of a homemade graham cracker, a frozen block of chocolate ice cream, another graham cracker, and was topped with a perfectly burned homemade marshmallow.  Alongside the s'more was a perfectly adorable tiny glass of chocolate and cream soda phosphate topped with unsweetened whipped cream.  If I didn't care about the shape of my body I would drop out of law school in a second and become a food critic, I swear.  If you don't have room for dessert while here (shame on you) you MUST order a mug of hot chocolate.  There are no words- it is liquid, creamy heaven.

  

As if the night was not already beyond expectation, a large commotion on the street caught our attention, and we were lucky enough to witness Chicago's annual Naked Bike Ride!!  The trip only happens once a year, and the route is not disclosed until that night, so we were just fortunate enough to have a window seat on the right Chicago street.  Our favorite was definitely the naked rollerblader.

Note: This is not actually the naked rollerblader we laughed at.

What a night.  Until the next one...