Eating in Chicago

Craig, Kevin Alfred and I spent five days and four nights in Chicago. We discovered Miller's Pub on Friday and it was so good, we ate there again Sunday night.

In 1950, three brothers of Greek descent, Pete, Nick and Jimmy Gallios, pooled all of their resources and purchased the flailing Miller’s Pub from the Miller brothers, who had established the bar in 1935. After the purchase, the Gallios brothers did not have the $500 it would have cost to change the sign on the pub, so the name Miller’s remained.

Over the years there have been a few changes to the decor, but the hundreds of signed celebrity photos from icons such as Frank Sinatra and Dick the Bruiser and the antique oil paintings that Jimmy acquired throughout the years still adorn almost every free inch of wall space. Some of the faces have changed and sadly only one of the brothers, Vannie, still works daily- the other three having passed away. But their children have taken the torch and work as tirelessly as their fathers to maintain the family legacy and carry on the Miller’s tradition.

How good is the food here? Well, there was a twenty minute wait on Sunday night at 8pm!

I had Haddock and Chips Friday and Corned Beef on Rye on Sunday. All the guys loved it here and as a bonus Miller's has an excellent beer menu.

I highly recommend this spot. Wish I had taken pictures of my meals and the interior!

After Saturdays game, we walked over to Goose Island Brewery in Wrigleyville just a two minute walk from the stadium.

Of course, the beer was fabulous, and we all enjoyed our meals. Alfred and I both had the Mac and Cheese, which was excellent.

It's a lively spot after a game and before it too.

A great spot for drinks, though we didn't eat here, was Dick's Last Resort, which overlooks the Chicago River. It's where the red umbrellas are.

Not a great beer selection, just an OK one but a friendly wait staff.

He actually was a fun guy who looked after us very well. Kept kidding me because I could not pronounce Lagunitas, who makes a great pale ale. I would go back!

Another fun spot was Rockit Bar and Grill on Hubbard Street. Craig found this spot and Hubbard Streer looks like a fun area to party on. Lots of bars and pubs!

Vegans might want to look away from the next picture as I had a burger called the Farmhouse. A big black angus patty, BBQ pulled pork, fried egg, applewood smoked bacon on a nice bun. I had only about three fries with it!

 

Rockit has a location in Wrigleyville which has the same filling but sandwiched between two pieces of fried Mac and Cheese. Have to do that one day!

Finally, anyone who knows me knows that I love my breakfast. I can quickly find the best breakfast spot in any city and this trip was no different. This time I did ask at the hotel desk where a good breakfast place might be and was asked back, "Do you want great, greater or greatest?"

Greatest, of course. He sent us to Yolk.

The place was jammed on Saturday morning with a twenty minute wait but much better when the picture above was taken on Monday morning.

This is weird. You can get two egg dishes or five egg omelets. I'm not usually a fan of omelets but was hungry so ordered an omelet called The Works, complete with five eggs, bacon, sausage, ham, mushrooms, onions and tomatoes, topped with jack & cheddar cheeses.

In fact, although I love breakfast, I have never had one so good that it was my favorite meal of the weekend. This meal was. I had it both times but could not finish it all on Monday.

We ate a couple of times in the stadium and a couple of other spots but these were my favorites and I would highly recommend them.

Watching the Whitesox at U.S. Cellular Field

It`s our last night in Chicago so tonight, Craig, Alfred, Kevin and I headed down to the south side of Chicago to see the White Sox take on the Detroit Tigers at U.S. Cellular Field. It was opened as New Comiskey in 1991, named after the original owner of the team back in 1900. It was renamed U.S. Cellular Field in 2003. Old Comiskey was originally across the road and built in 1910. On September 30, 1990, the last game was played there resulting in a 2-1 victory over the Seattle Mariners.

The view coming in from the Red Line (Chicago Transit talk).

The view from our seats.

In most ballparks, even with the corporate boxes, the stadiums are full of seats. I found the lack of seats in the middle section cold. A stadium should be seats almost everywhere. People complain about the Rogers Centre, where the Jays play, but it is far more intimate than here.

First pitch.

One cool feature is the out of town scoreboard. It was so easy to follow the Jays game for almost every at bat!

 
There is lots of craft beer here but only in a few booths that serve it. I laughed as I could easily get a yucky big brewery beer anywhere with no line-ups but this was jammed, and especially when a vendor came by calling out,  "Beer, no line-up!" and nobody budged from line. Craft beer drinkers love beer with flavour!

 

Some action shots from around the park.

 

 

 

Former Blue Jay Frank Thomas (for a season and a bit) and in the Hall of Fame ... and me!

I snuck down from our seats to the third row from the field. I have never been as close to the field and players as this!

 

 

There are some areas for people who have paid for tickets to go and be on the 'Net?

In the original Comiskey Park, there were showers in the outfield to go to cool off. They saved one and yes, they have it in the outfield.

Old Comiskey was the first stadium with an exploding scoreboard. There is one in U.S. Cellular too and here it is going off to celebrate a Sox victory!

It was a fun night but for some reason I found the ballpark lacking. It's not as a comparison to Wrigley but to most ballparks that I have visited. I would go to Wrigley again but would forget seeing the Sox ... unless the Jays are in town!

Cruising the Chicago River

Today Alfred, Craig, Kevin and I went for the Shoreline Cruise's Architectural Riverboat tour on the Chicago River.

Our expert guides will share an insider’s glimpse into the buildings, architecture, and engineering that made Chicago famous as the birthplace of the skyscraper and home of modern American architecture. Nothing is more impressive than this world-renowned architecture as seen from the Chicago River on an architecture tour! 

Discover hidden architectural gems as well the city’s most renowned landmarks along all three branches of the Chicago River while you relax with a drink from our cash bar.

It was nice warm day for a cruise on the river. Our guide (I forget his name) was an out-of-work actor who did a great job of explaining not only the architecture of Chicago but its history. Here he is explaining the history and possible future of the old Chicago Post Office which is massive!

To back up just a little, at the top of the river by the Michigan Ave Bridge, are old chairs from Wrigley Field that were removed when the stadium was refurbished. They are scattered all around.

 

Even the new buildings are very cool. These two buildings of Marina City are right by the river and because of the water table, underground parking cannot be dug. Notice how the first dozen or so floors are all parking!

I can't remember anything about this building except is was very old and cool! You may not learn a lot reading this post but you might learn a little.

This is Merchandise Mart. Construction started in 1923 and was not completed 'til 1931. It was the largest building in the world at the time, being 25 stories and taking up two city blocks. It even had its own zip code! The picture does not give the buildings size justice.

On the north branch of the river sits this building, now a condo.It was built almost a century ago as a frozen food warehouse. When the building was bought for renovation, it took a full year to defrost the inside of the building before windows could be knocked out and the inside redone. I found that amazing!

 

The river by the forks.

Left is the 110 story Willis Tower, which until 2009 was the Sears Tower, and is what most people still call it today.

This is a very busy river. I would not be in a kayak out here.

 

Designed to look like a champagne bottle, the top is plated with gold!

A nice spot to have lunch during a work day.

The view of Chicago from the mouth of the river.

The newly built Trump Tower. So new, the trump sign just says TRUM. Look at the building on the left of the second picture.

In the picture above, to the right, is my favorite building in Chicago, the Wrigley Building which was completed in 1925. I read an article that the Wrigley Building is home to the world's only chewing gum wrapper museum which is not open to the public. I could spend an hour or so just shooting the exterior of this building. Here are some more shots.

 

 

Here is the Chicago Tribune building. Right across the street from the Wrigley Building, again, I could spend an hour or more shooting this.

In June 1922, the Chicago Tribune announced its intention to construct a new headquarters that would be "the most beautiful office building in the world." To find its architect, the Tribune conceived a competition that was also a brilliant publicity campaign. With a $50,000 first prize (the equivalent today of about $690,000!), and $20,000 and $10,000 for second and third prize, the competition generated massive press coverage and attracted 263 entries from twenty-three countries.

 

 

Fragments from more than 120 structures, including the Great Wall of China, are embedded in the base. Many of the pieces were gifts to McCormick; some were brought back to Chicago by foreign correspondents.

 

It was a great cruise and the next time I'm in Chicago, yes, I will be coming back, I would do this same cruise again but maybe take notes. My final shot, Craig posing with Chicago!