Monday, April 14, 2008

We ended up getting to Chicago last Fri
late in the afternoon. Traffic seemed to be light,
so we drove and bypassed the Toll roads.

It took us 26 minutes to get to the loop,
with nary a soul, compared to any drive
ever before for us. When we reached the Loop,
again hardly any traffic at all. It seemd like an early
morning on a Sat/Sun, rather than a Friday.

We wondered if the high cost of gasoline
is making this change????

It sure was an easy commute, both in
and out of town. Not the usual
amount of backed up traffic.

click to enlarge any image

If you look closely, you will see
many types of information.


We thought of Ched when we saw these.

Although we parked close to our favorite
coffee shop, we did not go in this time.

This VW was in front of us.

Down the street and our first stop whenever
we get to Chicago after 2 pm is
the New Tokyo.

These 2 guys make the best Sushi.......

Since Bernice never had Sushi, she tried
this Tempura Potato Prawns.
She was pleasantly surprised.

Our favorite is Dragon Spicy Eel & Tuna.

The presentation is always top notch.
And so is an empty plate.

A few views that caught our eyes.




Had a chat with Earl at Krispy Kreme Donuts.

Cup on the left was their Espresso.
Looks pretty much like coffee. Tasted pretty bad.
Automatic machines in a place like this is a disaster.
Cup on the right was their coffee.
One thing I noticed, coffee in the hotel dining
area and here was flavorful with no after taste.

No wonder SB is losing customers for regular,
"everyday" (their new slogan) coffee.

I don't know, too me, these donuts
weren't anything special either.
I don't eat them often, but if I did,
I'd have to try something much better.

We never had a Chicago Dog, and thought
we'd never try one, so having Bernice along
pushed us to it.

This is on the South Side of Chicago on
the way out of town.

A few years ago a car drove through
the front here, but as you can see
they rebuilt the store.

They have a unique way of wrapping the
fries with the dog.

It tasted better than we anticipated
and may have to try a place in town
with some sort of reputation.

Bernice was taken to a few places she had never been.
She's not really a big city person, as she mentioned a few
times. We did stop at a Half Price Books before heading
out of town. She found a Quilting book from 2001
that had some photos of her Quilts and her
name mentioned in it. No one asked for
her permission or told her about the book.

Although tired, she seemed to have enjoyed
not only the Quilt Show, but being shown
around some of our favorite places
when we go to Chicago.

Poster - 1900 - 1920

nick & dcb :

As for your question about Chicory Coffee, and
the Brand you mentioned, I have never tasted it.
In that way, I can give no info.
I do know whenever we get Vietnamese Coffee,
the Dumonde brand is what is used in the little
drip pots added with some Condensed Milk.

We usually stop at Intelligentsia,
but, as we had Bernice with us,
we tried not to go where there
was a lot of walking, for her sake.

On our way home we stopped at Peets on
North St, downtown Chicago. Normally a pleasant
stop after we purchase a few items from Whole Foods.

I asked for a Breve, which is half & half as opposed
to regular milk, with espresso.

It seems now Peets has it's own SB way
of ordering and I was educated as to what
kind of milk it was and they then asked
how much milk I wanted.....huh?

What did I get? They charged me for a Macchiato,
and I received a double espresso with a dollop
of foam on top.

So, no Breve ; (

Some photos and such will be added to the top here
tomorrow I believe........

20 comments:

Bobby D. said...

You know that wild chickory that grows along the roads everywhere? It has blue flowers ? I wonder if you can roast that root and brew it --without dying. Is it real chickory ? If it is it should be dead easy to grow anywhere.

Welcome back!

Coffee Messiah said...

dcb: I wonder too. And Thanks! ; )

Bobby D. said...

Wow--what great pics--I will be here awhile looking at each one-- I love the Japanese restaurant shot--the beautiful corner building that it's in, the lighting inside, the fact that it's on a street called Briar, the Red Eye box outside--the green sign --that is some pic.

Also the foods and Chicago in all it's GRANDness. Like NYC it really has a great feel to it. I always think of the Drieser story, Sister Carrie --that starts in Chicago and ends in NYC when I see pics of Chicago.

Now you have me wanting to go to Chicago. Must find some excuse to go...

dennis said...

Dennis will order one Chicago Dog and one Polish with hot pepper! --

robin andrea said...

I like reading about your Chicago adventure. It is particularly surprising that you did not hit traffic on a Friday. Big city Friday's are almost always a nightmare. That was lucky. Great pics of the city, coffee.

You reminded me that my father always had his coffee with condensed milk. I haven't thought of that in years. When I was young I didn't know people put anything else in their coffee!

DivaJood said...

Ah, Coffee, you've made me homesick with your photos! But a few hot dog stands to try: Fluky's; Hot Dog Island in Skokie; Wolfie's. It isn't a dog without celery salt.

I am going to Chicago on Friday - maybe my daughter will take me to New Tokyo.

Kurt said...

That would be wonderful if people were driving less.

The hot dog looks good.

Re: Bernice. My friend Doug once got interviewed by a woman who was writing a book about peppers, as he grows a lot of peppers. During the interview, it was clear that she didn't know any of the things he was saying about peppers. Her beautiful coffee table book all about peppers was published, and she credited Doug, but misspelled his name.

enigma4ever said...

okay now I am just drooling.....hotdogs...hmmm,, and wrapped with fries.....and SUSHI.....hmmmmm and COFFEEEEEEe........( the Chicory kind is amazing.....)

( and with condensed milk....I may as well go to heaven right now ;-)

Coffee Messiah said...

dcb: I'm not sure how Chicago compares to NY. Although, one can easily get around Chicago, but it too is stretched out and no matter how many times you visit, you simply have to pick one area to visit aty a time, so you don't just drive around all day. At least, that's what we've found.

dennis: Yep, we were going to go with the polish ourselves, next time.

robin: If my camera were out, we would have taken a photo. It was unbelievable.

diva: Be sure you go, it's near Intelligentsia in Lincoln Park.

And Thanks for the two places. Next time.

Have to remember to contact you next time we are up there. It would be fun to meet up.

kurt: What a story. Seems the photographer must have given this person the photos and they simply used them, without letting her know! ; (

e4e: ; )

Larry said...

I hate driving in Chicago but it sounds like you must have hit the right time.

Chicago has a chain of Hot Dog restaurants (forget the name) that have excellent hot dogs.

s. douglas said...

Regardless of what Kurt Cobain said, Fish do have feelings.

Mary said...

Great license plate!
The sushi and tempura looked delicious. My mouth is watering.

Your photos are beautiful. It's a place I will visit someday.

Merle Sneed said...

With no offense to my friends in NYC, Chicago is my favorite big city. My mother was from the Southside. The lovely Mrs. sneed and I have spent many fine times in Chicago. Thanks for the visual reminder.

tony said...

Brilliant Photos! Thanks For Sharing Them With Us.
Hey!Dragon Spicy Eel & Tuna.I,ve never had that!Yummy!
Those Fries look big&Fat like English CHIPS!
Happy Trails!

Coffee Messiah said...

larry: I don't know, once you get in town and drive against traffic, it's not so bad!

fairlane: Not once they're dead. ; (

mary: We caught the plate before we were leaving. Was quite funny. Let us know if you ever go.

merle: Yes, the southside was a happening place at one time. Looks a little ragged now though.

tony: I'm still waiting to try those Fish & Chips! ; ) I'm sure they're much better than what we get here.

Unknown said...

My mother, who isn’t human until after her second cup of morning coffee, told me that during World War II chicory was added to coffee to make it “last” because coffee was rationed and one couldn’t get enough to last a month. She said that she hated the taste of the chicory and was overjoyed when coffee was no longer rationed.

On the other had, my friend Kathleen, who is from New Orleans, loves coffee mixed with chicory and says that’s the only way to drink it.

I suppose I’ll have to risk experimenting with the coffee laced with chicory and make up my own mind.

Kat said...

What fun photos. Thanks for taking us all along with you.

I'm leaning toward having that hot dog!

Coffee Messiah said...

nick: I'm so sorry I couldn't help! ; ( Please let me know what you think though, I'm curious! ; )

kat: Hi ya and Thanks for popping by! I need to come your way again soon!

Unknown said...

CM, I can give you my first evaluation of chicory coffee now. It’s too bitter for my taste and leaves an after taste that I don’t like. I tried it both with and without sugar and cream. The bitterness and after taste were there either way.

I suppose one could learn to enjoy it, but I really don’t know why. I’d much rather have a cup of Morning Blend or French roast or even that Turkish stuff that grows hair on one’s chest!

Coffee Messiah said...

nick: Too bad! ; ( Turkish coffee has a bad rap for some reason, but is quite good. Similar to Greek coffee too.....Thanks for sharing your experience, but sorry it didn't turn out better!