Home, Sweet Home

Landscape photograph of Chicago, Illinois. Taken from Shedd Aquarium. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to revisit my old city of Chicago. My friend Kim was traveling there for a work event, and since she knew about my love affair with the Windy City, she invited me to come along. Since it's one of my favorite cities in the world—if not the favorite—of course I said yes!

Kim had never really spent time in Chicago, so I had some things in mind, particularly the food. Oh, you can't beat the food in Chicago! Our first night, after walking miles around the city all day, we popped over to the inventor of Chicago-style deep-dish pizza, Pizzeria Uno on East Ohio. You can't go to Chicago without experiencing the pizza, and luckily, Kim was a fan.

The next night, we were in the mood for French food. My favorite French restaurant in the city is called Kiki's Bistro located in River North. They make a bouillabaisse to die for. Unfortunately, it wasn't available! I settled for a great seafood dish as did Kim, and as it turns out, it was her favorite place we visited. You can't eat at an epically delicious French restaurant without having dessert, and I made a little pig of myself on the divine crème brûlée. (I always order it at Kiki's. There's chocolate on the bottom!)

Finally, I took my friend to my favorite Chicago steakhouse. Select Cut is a local place Will and I frequented when we needed a steak but didn't want to spend a fortune. It's in Lakeview and near the frozen custard shop called Scooter's that makes a great after-dinner dessert spot.

I guess what we really had was a food tour! But we also managed to hit the Montrose Dog Beach, tour my old neighborhood of Andersonville, and explored downtown and the Magnificent Mile. We were disappointed to miss the Chicago River being dyed green by only one day, but we managed to find a green fountain downtown. I think Kim had a good taste of the city, and I had a nice stroll down memory lane. I only hope it doesn't take another four years for me to return.