WAGS Dinner: Bazaar Meat by José Andrés

Christine, Johanna and I arrived first and tried the Salt Air Margaritas (Milagro blanco tequila, orange liqueur, lime | topped with salt air)

The dining room was really pretty.

And featured many display cases of expensive meats!

The meat bar behind us had a lot of jamon – Spanish ham!

This is Cotton Candy Foie Gras

Croquetas de Pollo (chicken-béchamel fritters)

Something pretty that I forgot to note! Crab? Shrimp?

Jamon Iberico de Bellota (Hand-cut from the famous acorn-fed, black-footed Spanish pig.)

The jamon was served with Pà Amb Tomàquet, Catalan-style toasted pan de cristal, fresh tomato

The Classic Tartare (beef sirloin, Savora mustard, hp sauce, anchovy, tempura shiso). This was prepared tableside!

Their Airbread selections change often. This one was a puff with meat on the top and filled with a liquid cheese.

Lobster!

The snacks portion of the menu was my favorite. From this section we also had

* Bagel & Lox Cone (dill cream cheese, salmon roe)
* Jose’s Taco (jamón ibérico de bellota, Osetra caviar, gold leaf, nori)
* Patatas Bravas (fried potatoes, spicy tomato sauce, alioli)
* Kelly had some sort of sloppy joe!

The snacks were the most playful and interesting to me. Christine, Johanna and I ordered a few each. The only issue was that they were expensive. Each thing was $6-15 and was only a couple bites.

One other thing we shared was the Organized Caesar (parmesan, quail egg, anchovy, airbread crouton).

Overall, I thought everything was high quality and delicious, but definitely a splurge.


The meat bazaar is upstairs. On the ground floor, where you enter, is the seafood restaurant called Bar Mar. Would love to give it a try. The octopus over the bar was so cool!

A few days in Plano, TX

My new team is split between Chicago and Plano. We wanted to get everyone together at the start of the project so we could really start to gel as a team and knock around ideas. I flew down to Plano with Sampath, Kishore and Naga.

After landing, we checked into our hotel and then went to get dinner. I’d heard about Legacy Food Hall. Actually, when I was in Plano with my last team, we flew in late and they all went, but I stayed back. It was cool to check out. I feel these food halls are a big new trend. We have several in Chicago now too. I had a cup of clam chowder and a lobster roll from Sea Breeze.

One night we went to Truck Yard in Plano. It was a cool space. Lots of old cars and trucks. They also have a rotating selection of food trucks.

I accidentally took a group photo when Sampath was getting a beer or going to the bathroom or something. We had to draw him in! From the bottom clockwise is: Kishore, Sampath, Willie, Jessie, Naga, LaShunda, Jen, Robyn, Stefanie, Evan.

For lunch one day I had my favorite salad, which has fresh grilled chicken and lots of toasted pepperoni! I also tried this twisty stick, which was amazing.

I like to stay at aLoft in plano. When my coworker Jerry stayed there he noticed that the pillows have faces on them, something that none of us had ever noticed, even though several of us had stayed there a bunch of times! Now I find them so creepy!

Flying into Chicago.

Birthday Brunch at The Whale


Lobster +Waffles


Frosé


Beautiful interior.


Dallas loved the smoked salmon toast.


Crab cake benny. Dallas said this was good but not excellent. He liked the smoked salmon more.


Gorgeous chandelier.


Muffin donuts for the table. Makai had a plain waffle with syrup.

Drinking frosé and eating lobster (and waffles) as one should always do on their birthday. Happy to try this new Logan Square addition. Dallas and I were both pleasantly surprised by the food, service, and decor.

Isobar Holiday Party at Public House

(null)Megan, Rachelle, Katie (9 months pregnant!), Becky

(null)Becky, Jeff, Rachelle, Romi, Chris

(null)Piles of shrimp, oysters, lobster and crab!

IMG_1562Becky, Scott, Rachelle

FullSizeRender-2Public House

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Fun with Jeff and George

This year the Isobar holiday party was at Public House, an upscale bar near our old office and right next to my old Google office, on Kinzie. Amanda had planned to came down from Milwaukee to babysit, but Dallas was not feeling well and he ended up staying home with Makai.The party was fun, but it would take a real lot to top last year’s party! Also, I was trying not to drink or eat too much, so probably a few more glasses of wine would have helped! The seafood bar this year was incredible! Congrats to Romi, who took home a value award for the second year in a row! The big news of the night was that it was Becky’s last day, as she decided not to come back from maternity leave.

2016isobarholidayparty
2015: Prime and Provisions
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2014: Pump Room
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2013: Siena Tavern
2012isobarholidayparty
2012: W City Center
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2011: ZED 451
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2010: Epic
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2009: Griffin Lounge
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2008: Blue Water Grill