The Taste of Chicago

The Taste of Chicago is the world's largest food festival held each year in mid-July in Grant Park (which is also home to the huge concert, Lollapalooza). This year, 36 restaurants participated, along with specialty pop-ups and different celebrity chefs each day.  There's music, entertainment, activities for kids. I timed my drive to Colorado to coincide with this event, and today was our day to attend.

Admission to The Taste is free.  To sample the food, however, you buy groups of tickets and then use the tickets to pay for food and drinks.  (12 tix for $8) You can buy large plates of food (a meal) for 8 or 9 tickets, or a "taste" for 3-6 tickets.  Generally, the vendors offered different samplings for the large and "taste" portions.  We decided to go with the small plates, and in the three hours we walked around (interrupted by a 30 minute downpour), we sampled a fair amount of delicious food.  

Sabor Latino- Steak Mini Jibarito (steak between fried plantain cakes)

Star of Siam- Potstickers (We did not have the pad thai, even though it looked great.)

Austrian Bakery- Mini Schnitzel Sandwich; Altwiener Appelstrudel (both amazing)

Carbon Live Fire Mexican Grill- Tequila-lime Marinated Grilled Chicken Breast Taco (like being in Mexico)

Dominick's Finer Foods- Watermelon slice to refresh our palates

Iyanze- Hibiscus Sorbet

Pazzo's- Chopped Salad on Romaine Hearts

The Smoke Daddy- Pulled Chicken Mini

Music Tent- soul/swing music.  I needed a West Coast Swing partner!

Then, we had to decide how to spend our remaining tickets.  Jen wanted another taco and a sweet.  I wanted a sample of Eli's cheesecake.  We were able to sample all three.

Carbon- see above

Eli's Cheesecake Company- a small sample of plain

Churro Factory- 4 mini churros

Though some natives of Chi-town groaned when we said we were going to The Taste, it was a great day.  Definitely on the "Let's do this again" list.

http://www.explorechicago.org/city/en/supporting_narrative/events___special_events/special_events/mose/taste_of_chicago.html/

The Great American Road Trip

For years, I fantasized about driving cross country, NJ to California.  The southern route, the northern route.  I followed the blogs of the NY Times writer, Matt Gross, as he drove east to west, often to lesser known spots.  It seemed like such a grand adventure.  I had never gone cross-country in my 20's, but I could do it now that my kids were grown.   Then, the negative thoughts would surface:  sitting for endless hours; the cost; safety issues; the wear and tear on my car; maybe too much time alone. 

In April, I traveled to Colorado with a friend.  We went to Denver, Colorado Springs, and Boulder.  I fell in love with Boulder, which is no surprise to anyone who knows me.  I knew I wanted to return for an extended time.  When I got home, I did some research, weighed out the cost and convenience of flying vs. driving.  I talked with family and friends.  I checked with my mechanic.  Finally, I would take the drive, though ending in Colorado, not California.  Good enough!

Stop #1- Chicago to spend the weekend with my daughter.  Taste of Chicago and the beach (Lake Michigan).  The drive took a bit longer than I thought it would, but overall smooth going.  NJ- Pennsylvania- Ohio- Indiana- Illinois.  Route 80 W. all the Chicago, then route 90 W. into the city.  It's great to be here, for endless reasons.