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Arizona: Part One

Last week we took a family vacation with my parents to Arizona Here is part one of our trip.

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Our first night in Arizona, we stayed in Flagstaff and had an incredible breakfast at La Bellavia Restaurant just off of Route 66. With more than 10 types of Eggs Benny, well, it had my vote from the beginning (the 147 4 star reviews from Yelp didn’t hurt either). We sprung for a larger SUV and the drive up to the Grand Canyon was spectacular. It was sunny and as we climbed up higher the vistas began to be more and more beautiful.

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It was my mom’s first experience at the Grand Canyon. Although, I had seen it before, I was awestruck again. It is breath taking. Literally.

I can only imagine what it was like for Garcia Lopez de Cardenas when he discovered the Grand Canyon in 1540. Did he stumble upon it? Did he see it during the day or make a frightening discovery at night? Did he stand and look at it with the same awestruck wonder. I bet he did.

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However, I will say it is harder to enjoy the experience with a 2-year-old. Especially one that is off on her sleep schedule and views this “wonder of the world” as a hole in the ground. I did get a chance to take a few photos, see my mom sing “How Great Thou Art” and take a minute to realize how amazing this world is. So even though this was a very different experience from my first visit, it was one full of memories, laughter and awestruck wonder.

Chicago Skyline

Chicago: Top Chef Guide

So I am a big fan of Top Chef. I have watched it from the original episode and have found that the talent on the show delivers when you visit their restaurants. I put together this guide for some friends about a year ago and was reminded of it when I had the chance to visit a Rick Bayless restaurant on a recent layover in O’Hare. This is a city that loves it’s food and has seen a number of chef-testants over the years on Bravo’s hit show Top Chef and Top Chef Masters. Here are a few of my favorite characters from the show and their restaurants:

Chicago Top Chef Restaurant GuideGirl and the Goat 
season 4 winner: Stephanie Izard
809 W. Randolph

Hours: Sunday – Thursday 4:30pm – 11:00pm . Friday – Saturday 4:30pm – 12:00am

Girl & the Goat has been serving fun foods, craft beers, and making wine in a rustic and bad ass environment since summer 2010. The restaurant opens at 4:30 every day, and stays open until 11pm on weeknights and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays (until those last late night eaters scrape their fork across the plate for the last time, or finish licking their plates until they’re shiny and clean). The Goat’s menu is divided into three categories: Vegetable, Fish, and of course Meat–while vegetable, fish, or meat are respectively the main stars of their categories, there are crossovers in each area so you’ll get a little bit of everything. Bread is baked daily, and there are always new creations on the menu.

Doug and I loved this place. We sat outside with Maggie and enjoyed our community table style experience. Mag’s was a fan of the goat (we got an incredible pasta dish that was a special that night). The bread was a “I will remember this for years” flavor experience, so make sure to make room for carbs when you visit! 

 

Frontera - Rick Bayless Top Chef Frontera2XOcO
season 1 winner  Top Chef Masters: Rick Bayless
449 North Clark Street (enter on Illinois St.) 

Hours: Tuesday – Thursday: 8am–9pm, Friday & Saturday: 8am–10pm, Sunday & Monday: Closed

Part of Mexican street food’s allure is it’s rustic immediacy—experiencing the aromas, sights and sounds of each dish being crafted, interacting with the cooks, customizing your choices. That’s why your first step into XOCO is a step into our kitchen, where each torta is built, each baked good is fashioned, each hot chocolate is whipped to a froth as you watch. Just as street food stalls attract passersby with the rustic allure of wood fires and boldly aromatic offerings, the centerpiece of XOCO’s kitchen is its wood-burning oven where tortas get crisped and suckling pigs for cochinita pibil and lamb for barbacoa are braised overnight in banana leaves.

Tortas Frontera
O’Hare International Airport:
Terminal 1 / B11 – 5:30am-9:30pm **
Terminal 3 / K4 – 5:30am-9:30pm **
Terminal 5 / M12 – 6:00am-9:30pm **
** Depending on flight schedules. Restaurants will remain open until the last scheduled flight.

Tortas Frontera features hand-crafted tortas, fresh-made guacamole and hand-shaken margaritas. Now, the type of quick-service gourmet you expect to find in a downtown hotspot is available (to go!) at the nation’s busiest airport.

I will now gladly stop over in O’Hare (which used to be one of my least favorite airports in the country). This has got to be the only time I have ever seen a chef tasting on the line at an airport restaurant. They have a dedication to quality flavors here that makes it clear that this is not just a celebrity chef endorsement (like the wolfgang puck stands). The housemade chips and guac was some of the best I have ever had. Can’t wait for my next trip! 

 

GE Bistro
season 1 Top Chef Masters: Graham Elliot
841 W. Randolph St.

Hours: Sunday: 11am-4pm, Tuesday – Thursday: 5pm-10pm, Friday -Saturday: 5pm-11pm, Monday: Closed.

A host stand made from a Marshall amplifier. Devotional candles dedicated to “saints” Johnny Cash, Lou Reed, Anthony Bourdain, Charlie Trotter and many more. A cocktail named for Wu-Tang Clan’s Ghostface Killah. Background tunes recognizable by their bass lines — which is good, because when the restaurant is full, subwoofer sound is all one can discern. It’s fair to say that G.E.B. revels in its rockin’ inclinations. The monogram stands for Graham Elliot Bistro, and by all appearances it’s the casual counterpart to Graham Elliot’s eponymous two-Michelin-star restaurant in River North. In reality, G.E.B. is the restaurant the chef had in mind in 2008, when he opened Graham Elliot after leaving Avenues, at the time one of Chicago’s most experimental restaurants.

Haven’t been here yet, but it is on the top of my list for our next trip to Chicago. If you make it here – let me know!  

What are some of your favorite foodie places in Chicago?

Des Moines

A happy post-apocalyptic experience: Zombie Burger

Des Moines - Zombie BurgerDesMoines_zombie Des Moines - Zombie Burger Des Moines - Zombie BurgerDes Moines - Zombie BurgerI have heard rumors of a city in the middle of no where with an insane food culture, winos, beer lovers and super creative people. When we flew into Des Moines for a new business opportunity, the flight only helped to reinforce that this was the most well kept secret in the midwest. The plane in was perhaps the smallest prop plane I have ever flown on commercially and the airport didn’t even have a stoplight at the intersection. But maybe the fact that there isn’t alot of traffic from the outside world is the “special sauce” to why this city is so amazing. There is no traffic. The downtown is walk-able and there is an appreciation for the art of agriculture that brings about the very best food experiences you can imagine. We ate at Alba – perhaps one the best farm-to-table food experiences I have had in a long time. The sauces and innovative approach to ingredients were truly innovative. And the people, well they are genuine, kind and hard-working. I met some pretty special Iowans in our new business pitch and heard inspiring stories. And the zombies, well they were pretty cool too. 

After our presentation, we wanted to celebrate our hard work with a comfort food meal – so we had some pretty remarkable burgers. The theme was hilarious and the food was well executed. I got the Shaun of the Dead – and it was a cheese experience I will not soon forget. They had a decent craft beer menu as well. I hope we are back soon – because I gotta get me a t-shirt that let’s the world know what I think of Iowa –  “Des Moines: Hell Yes!”.

 

Photos, Tourists and 2 ad girls

How often have you looked at your photos in retrospect and felt like the angle was just a little off. Have you ever wished the Golden Gate bridge was just a little more centered and if only you would have stepped just a few feet to the right you would have gotten your perfect shot. Well, it appears two ad students are gonna help a tourist out. I came across this video while researching for a client and thought, “what a clever-cool idea”. Now, I can’t say how well their concept helps you hold a camera and get that perfect pic, but hey at least it points you in the right direction. So props to some fellow ad girls, Utsavi Jhaveri & Mimi Chan.