Saw these tree tags downtown last month. Each had a QR code with brought up more info on the program:
Read more about Every Tree Counts and the Chicago Tree Initiative.
Entries Tagged as 'the loop'
More Fun With QR Codes – Every Tree Counts
June 6th, 2011 · No Comments
Tags:Chicago·chicago tree initiative·every tree counts·morton arboretum·qr code·the loop
April Showers Bring May Flowers
May 21st, 2011 · 1 Comment
Actually, May showers too. And winter-like temp. It hasn’t been much of a spring here in Chicago, but at least the flowers are pretty! The city does such a good job with all the planters filled with beautiful flowers!
See also: It’s Like a Tulip Bomb Exploded Downtown
Mista
May 17th, 2011 · 2 Comments
Mista is a somewhat new restaurant on LaSalle Street, not too far from my office, where Berry Chill used to be. There are locations in Andersonville and Lakeview and this is their first restaurant in The Loop. On the menu is cracker crust pizza, gourmet salads, pasta and wraps. Mista is proud to use organic and all-natural ingredients, when possible. Sounds like a winner right?
I thought I’d stop in for lunch one day. I ordered the Mista Salad – organic field greens, organic granny smith apples, organic dried cherries, toasted macadamia nuts, lowfat feta and the signature dressing. I placed my order at the counter and sat down to wait for my number to be called. I waited. And waited. The guy who took my order kept looking right at me, so I just tried to be patient. He knew I was there. He could see I’d been waiting a while. He hadn’t forgotten about me. .. I thought. Before long I realized I’d been waiting 25 minutes. For a salad! I went up to the counter to see what was what and the guy who took my order, who I thought had his eye on me, apologized and checked on the order. Within minutes I had my salad and he threw in a bag of homemade chips to make up for it.
I was running late for a meeting at this point, so I just went right to a conference room and ate while we talked. I remember really liking the salad, but honestly, it’s kind of a blur. .. I was working, and by then so hungry, I just ate it.
I was at a crossroads after my first visit. Liked the salad, had to wait almost a half hour to get it. I decided to give them one more try a few weeks after my first visit. I ordered the same salad and this time I got my order within a few minutes. When I got back to my office and opened the salad I noticed it was like 95% greens and hardly any toppings. I like it when you get a bit of the extras in every bite and that for sure was not happening with this salad. I felt like I could go to the store and buy a bag of mixed greens and have the same lunch. Bah! I don’t know if this is how the first salad was, honestly, because I was working through that one.. but I don’t think I’ll be giving Mista a third chance.
Tags:berry chill·Chicago·mista·the loop
Pret a Manger
May 16th, 2011 · 4 Comments
I never really knew much about Pret a Manger until very recently. I’d never really heard of it until Dallas told me there was one by his office that he’d sometimes go to. It was the only Pret a Manger in Chicago. Then…. then I saw that they were opening a second location on the street where I work. And one day I happened to walk past it at lunch time, so I gave it a try.
I was a little iffy because when you walk in, on one side there are just shelves of food. Premade food. Just sitting there. And on the other side was seating.
Usually if I can I will always ask a deli or restaurant to make something fresh for me, because I don’t like food that is just sitting there. You can’t do this at Pret a Manger. No custom orders. You just take what you want off the shelf.
Then you take it over to the registers to check out.
I took my order to go and went back to the office. I got the Chicken & Avocado Salad (Murray’s grilled chicken, avocado, cranberries, walnuts, tomato, baby leaf, Pret’s seasoning). Pret a Manger says “Our salads are freshly made using Earthbound Farm organic romaine lettuce and baby leaf blends (like a luxury cruise nothing ruins a salad more than running into a bunch of icebergs). The salad was tasty. I’d go back. I thought all of the ingredients were fresh tasting.. they must turn the product on those shelves over really fast.
Pret a Manger is based out of London and it’s name comes from the French “pret a manger,” meaning “ready to eat.” They use all natural ingredients and their food is made fresh the day of purchase in the location where it is sold. Food that is left unsold is given to charity. The company was founded in 1986 and 85% of their business is in London. They have been expanding rapidly in the past several years, though. They now have 10 stores in Hong Kong, 24 in New York, 3 in Washington, D.C., and 2 in Chicago.
