MoMo, The Loop, Chicago
One bad thing about the new condo development called MoMo, besides their redic name, is that they’re going to be building in the spot where this painted revolving door is. I always wondered what it was.. or what it used to be.. .and who painted the door.. and why.
Tags:Chicago
Meat in the Window :: Fogo de Chao, River North, Chicago
Bring the Meat On! :: Fogo de Chao, River North, Chicago
Sides :: Fogo de Chao, River North, Chicago
Salad Bar :: Fogo de Chao, River North, Chicago
Yesterday we went to Fogo de Chao, the Brazillian meat mecca. The way this place works is that everyone pays a flat rate and it’s all you can eat. The main attraction is the Brazillian meat. Each person gets a round disk with one side red and one side green. Flip it to green and these guys will come to your table and offer you meat – unlimited amounts of 15 different kinds of fire-roasted meat – sirloin, filet mignon, leg of lamb, pork tenderloin, etc. The meat is carved from the skewers right at your table. Flip the disk to red and they chefs will passs you by as they circulate through the dining room. Flip it back to green and they’ll come back to offer you more. Awesome.. but how much MEAT can you actually eat!? It’s a little overwhelming, even though the meat is of the highest-quality and tastes really good.
Each person also gets unlimited trips to the salad bar, which had a really great vegetable and cheese selection along with other things, and each table also gets unlimited sides of garlic mashed potatoes, crispy, fried polenta, and fried bananas. So you can just imagine how stuffed we all were last night! The service was great, very attentive. At the end they actually tried to pursuade us with dessert. Not happening.
Fogo de Chao was a cool experience but I don’t think I could handle it more than maybe once per year – because of the vast quantities of meat consumed and because of the price.
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Riley, Ikea, Schaumburg, IL
Yesterday Nancy, Josh & Riley came down and we went to Ikea. The first thing we did when we got to there was eat at the restaurant. Riley likes french fries.
This month I resigned my lease for a year so there were a few things I wanted to get for the apartment. I got this chair and ottoman… it’s one that just about everyone with access to an Ikea has. It’s comfortable and cheap. I also got a new desk (major frustration on assembly), a chest/extra seating, sheets, hangers, a pillow, and a couple of baskets. Everything there is so cheap, many things even less than they’re listed online, but it sure adds up fast when you’re checking out!
See also:
ยป IKEA by Nancy
Tags:Shopping
Recently Aaron got a job right near my office so now he and I and Andrew can go out to lunch regularly. Last time we went to Fox & Obel Cafe. This time we decided to jump on the other end of the spectrum and visit the Billy Goat.
The Billy Goat, specifically the one located under Michigan Avenue, is a true Chicago landmark. I don’t know how the tourists even find this place since it’s just a staircase on Michigan going underground. When I first moved to Chicago I thought it was the subway or something.
The Billy Goat is the place that was famously spoofed on SNL in the 70′s with the “Cheezborger! Cheezborger! No fries, cheeps! No Pepsi, Coke!” bit. Except it’s not a bit. It’s still going on every day down there.
I’d been to the Billy Goat one other time when Jake was in town, but it was Andrew and Aaron’s first visit. When we walked in we stood the top of the steps trying to take it all in and the guys immediately started yelling at us to step down. They also told us not to look at the menu and just to order the double. I tried to order a single cheeseburger, but of course I was reprimended and told to get the double so I did.
The dining room of the Billy Goat is old and dingy, filled with old memorabilia – newspapers and photos and things – all authentic. I have no idea how they’re going to expand to other cities and successfully reproduce the atmosphere in there. On one wall there was a goat mural with a rainbow mural leading us to believe we were seating not in the smoking section, but the gay section. .. which is cool. Billy Goat is gay friendly!
The crowd inside is a mix between obvious tourists and locals grabbing a bite on their lunch break. There’s a full bar but I’ve never heard of anyone grabbing an after-work drink there. No idea who goes to the bar, though I did see they have a specialty drink called The Horny Goat that seemed interesting. The food is adequate.. nothing spectactular, but then the food isn’t really the reason people come to the restaurant. Btw, if you get your order to stay you don’t even get a plate. You just have to carry your burger to the condiment station and then to your table on one of those flimsy sheets of deli paper. Would it kill them to buy a stack of paper plates?
The story is that William Sianis, a Greek immigrant, bought the Lincoln Tavern in 1934. It was located near what’s now the United Center and mostly catered to sports fans. Sianis became known as the “Billy Goat” and named his bar the Billy Goat Tavern when a goat fell off a truck driving by the bar and wandered inside. Sianis then adopted the goat. In 1945 Sianis was forbidden by the Chicago Cubs to bring his goat into Wrigley Field during a 1945 World Series game. Sianis then cursed the field and said that the Cubs would never again win a championship.. a curse that’s held true!
Tags:aaron·andrew·billy goat·Chicago·cubs·magnificent mile·michigan avenue·saturday night live·wrigley field
Flowering Trees, East Ukrainian Village, Chicago
There are a couple of these trees on my street that flower in the spring. They’re so beautiful. I have no idea what kind they are. Also, if I’m passing by and not looking their way I still know I’m passing them because they have a nice, light, spring fragrance.
Tags:Sundry