In for a surprise party, we stayed at the Marriott downtown so we could convieniently visit some of our old and new Chicago stops. Our lunch stop was F’s favorite Thai restaurant (he would order from them sometimes 2-3 times a week until his office moved out of their delivery area), Garlic and Chili Thai. Despite being gone to Portland for 3 years, the owner/chef still remembered us. We started out with the very light fried tofu served with sweet and sour sauce, topped with ground peanuts. We have not found a fried tofu that is less greasy and as lightly fried as these. Then, the other two standby plates of Massamun Curry with coconut milk, white onion, carrot and potato, and Pad Se-Ew, stir fried wide rice noodles with eggs, broccoli and carrot in sweet soy sauce. On the wall was a sign from Grubwithus celebrating their Pad Thai… which we realized we had never even tried. Next time.

We met up with some old friends at Beer Bistro, where we enjoyed their conveyer belt fans and beers (and $5 martinis) until the fact it was IPA day and the launch of Hopothesis brewery made the place so packed (although our waitress was very attentive, making sure to check on us even though the place was super slammed), we retreated from the West Loop to Randolph street and Haymarket Pub & Brewery. Our last stop for those of us with alcohol endurance was The Aviary, with their cocktail kitchen and showmanship presentations of said cocktails (as well as little bites) clearly inspired by Aliniea and El Bulli, with a stop at G Cue Billiards while we waited to get in at Aviary. If it hadn’t already been so late I might have allowed a few games of pool, and I wanted to get to Aviary.

The next day, I really needed something to calm my stomach… and as I was also craving Chicago style deep dish pizza, that meant Lou Malnati’s. Since the pizzas take 30-45 minutes to fire up, we started with an appetizer of Stuffed Spinach Bread: “A Malnati creation, this crusty handmade loaf is served fresh out of the oven, stuffed with a delicious blend of cheeses, fresh spinach, garlic, onion and chunks of tomato”. This sucker is filling, which is even though we ordered individual 6″ pizzas we only were able to finish half of it- well, more for later! We had the “Lou” with Fresh spinach, mushrooms and sliced tomatoes covered with a blend of mozzarella, romano and cheddar cheese, and also the “Malnati Chicago Classic” which uses its specialty of the house, Lou’s lean sausage, along with some extra cheese, and vine-ripened tomato sauce” with both pizzas of course on their famous Buttercrust.

Our hotel was next to the Purple Pig, so of course I had to visit. Most stomach capacity was filled up by Lou Malnati’s, so two glasses of wine and two appetizers were all I had. I started out with what I wanted so much that I was willing to brave the 1-2 hour wait (longer depending on size of your party, obviously, and it as a Fri night so this seemed fair as they take no reservations… and you could order drinks from the bar and wait outside, at least soaking in the Chicago River scented breeze) but lucked out with a place at the bar: Burrata Pugliese with Peas, Radish, Celery, Spring Micro Greens & Aceto Balsamico. Delicious! From the Smears section of the menu, Pork Neck Bone Gravy with Ricotta was complex in flavor but the fact it was a hot dish and the weather was so unbearably hot and humid made it less appreciated. I only wish I had more room at the time for more food.

Thanks Chicago!