CHICAGO TRAVEL GUIDE

CHICAGO.

Last weekend, I went to Chicago for the 3rd time in my life. The first time I went was in the 6th grade with my school ( Meigs Magnet – represent ). I remember many things about this trip, but nothing that would be of interest to anyone so I’m going to gather most of my information from my more recent brain memories.

I’d like to highlight a few places that I visited so that if you happen to find yourself in the area, you can either A.) Go to these places, or B.) Not go to these places – based entirely on what you heard me say about them.

FIELD MUSEUM. // 5600 Mannheim Rd.

If you’ve been to New York’s Natural History Museum, just picture a smaller more run-down version and  you’re in Chicago’s Field Museum of Natural History! We spent the majority of our time there (when we weren’t using the free wi-fi to find somewhere better to go) wandering the maze of taxidermied animals, half because it was the most interesting part and half because it really is a maze and we couldn’t get out. We just kept going in further and further and the decrepit, dated information placards and layer of dust led me to believe that we were the only people who had been back there in the last ten years besides the occasional lost patron. They do, however, boast having the most complete and well-preserved Tyrannosaurus Rex and the taxidermied bodies of the two man-eating lions from everyone’s favorite Val Kilmer movie, The Ghost and the Darkness. No, there weren’t any lions in Willow if that’s what you were thinking.

Though I can’t whole-heartedly recommend the museum, I do recommend the walk to the Field Museum through Museum Campus. Museum Campus is an area that has the Shedd Aquarium, Field Museum, and the Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum. It’s a beautiful urban parkway on the water and you get a gorgeous view of Navy Pier and the surprisingly blue Lake Michigan water. It’s also chock-full of bunnies. I don’t know how you feel about bunnies, but I’m pro-bunny. Big giant bunnies everywhere. Go check it out!*

*No guarantee that they will still be sitting there when you go. They may have multiplied to 1000000 bunnies by then or they may be dead because they decided to live in the middle of the city.

Waj Mahal says: Walk to the Field Museum, but don’t go in unless you want to use $22 wi-fi. Maybe try the Aquarium. I haven’t been there, but I’m sure it’s better.

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XOCO. // 449 N. Clark S.

Bull Dog Corner is a sucker for going anywhere that’s been recommended by the internet or a famous person, so he was more than interested in trying Rick Bayless’ brain child, Xoco – a contemporary, urban take on Mexican street food classics. If you are wondering who Rick Bayless is – so was I. According to RickBayless.com, he’s an “award-winning chef-restaurateur, cookbook author, and television personality” that both introduced America to authentic Mexican food and began to change the way it was perceived by the everyday diner.

Bayless’ more noteworthy restaurant is Frontera which is directly next door to the quicker, more casual Xoco, but we didn’t go to it so I have no opinion. We walked into Xoco around 8:45 on Friday night and the line to the counter was about 25 deep and a solid 40 minute wait. Normally, I’m not thrilled to stand for so long for a sandwich, but I was there to eat the food so I was willing. Though it isn’t a sit-down restaurant experience per se, the service was impeccable. We were offered apologies and drinks while we stood in line on numerous occasions. And after reaching the counter, our food was quick to reach the table.

The majority of the menu and their claim to fame are the tortas – a Mexican sub sandwich. I ordered the Woodburning oven Chipotle Chicken Torta with Gunthorp chicken, chipotle-roasted tomato sauce, artisan Jack cheese, avocado, black beans, arugula and Bull Dog Corner orderd the Pepito Torta with Braised Tallgrass shortribs, caramelized onion, artisan Jack, black beans, and pickled jalapenos. We also got chips and guacamole to start with and churros to finish. They make their own frothy Mexican hot chocolate (ground from Mexican cacao beans right in their front window) and prepared-to-order caldos (meal-in-a-bowl soups) that we will try our next time around. Everything we did eat, however, was complete perfection. Tortas? Amazing. Hot-from-the-fryer churros? Delicious. Homemade Mexican Vanilla Ice Cream to dip your churros in? BEST THING EVER.

Waj Mahal says: If you are in Chicago and don’t eat at Xoco, you are a fool.

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NAVY PIER.

Because this was one of the few places I vividly remember visiting and loving during my 6th grade trip, I really wanted to go back. I had bought my mom a lovely peace sign necklace on faux-leather with clay beads in 1996 as a souvenir and I know how much she loved it so I’ve been dying to return and buy some for my whole family. So, I anxiously made the trek along the beach with the giant ferris wheel beckoning in the distance. Nothing really screams fun like a ferris wheel on a pier. When we finally reached our destination, I was quick to realize that 11 year olds and 26 year olds don’t exactly have the same taste in attractions. I’m not going to say that Navy Pier isn’t what it used to be. I think it’s probably exactly the same. I’m just not what I used to be. Sure, there’s a Bubba Gump Restaurant and a Garrett’s Popcorn, but I require more with my old age.

Two places that we didn’t venture inside, however, may have been the two reasons one should make the trip out. There’s the Chicago Children’s Museum and the Amazing Chicago’s Funhouse Maze. That name alone should make you go.

Waj Mahal says: Look elsewhere for your peace sign necklaces. They ran out somewhere between 1996 and 2012.

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THE BONGO ROOM.  // Wicker Park; 1470 N Milwaukee Ave.

While walking around Wicker Park ( a great place to shop, eat, and explore on a beautiful day ) in search of coffee and a snack,  we noticed a group of people sitting outside a restaurant waiting to get in. “That place must be good,” I said to Bull Dog Corner. I assumed because so many people wanted to eat there that the food was probably good. After thinking that, it made me realize how easy it would be to make people want to eat at your restaurant by hiring people to stand outside of it. That plan might fall through when no one is inside…I’m just the idea man so someone else can flesh that gem out.

We kept walking, got coffee at the Worm Hole ( see below. ) and then noticed more and more people gathering at the Bongo Room. I even overheard people talking about how good it was. Then, we went back to our hotel and never ate there, but read online later that evening that it had won Best Brunch. So maybe I’ll try it someday.

Waj Mahal says: Tell me how it is if you go there.

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WORM HOLE. // Wicker Park; 1462 N Milwaukee Ave. 

This is a coffee shop for the 30-something nerd in your life. It is a video game / 80’s movie shrine complete with a full-size Delorean looming above you while you drink your coffee and play with Gizmo stuffed animals. They also have couches in the back with an original Nintendo set up with 25 + games for people to play while they enjoy a beverage and typical coffee shop eats. Some hipsters were playing Duck Hunt while we were there and I almost waited in line to do some skeet shooting, but I’d done enough waiting the night before at Xoco. They also have a latte called the “BedRock” that is made with leftover Fruity Pebbles milk and a Fruity Pebbles simple syrup. Though iced BedRocks were cluttering the tables in there, I couldn’t get myself to drink one. It sounded fun, but gross.

Waj Mahal says: I wouldn’t go out of my way to get there, but, if you are walking past, stop in play a game of Spy vs Spy. The coffee’s not bad either.

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HOTEL FELIX. // 111 West Huron St.

In the heart of downtown, you can find Hotel Felix. Just a hop, skip, and a jump away from the giant McDonald’s of the future and everyone’s favorite – Rainforest Cafe. With good prices and extremely comfortable beds, I would definitely stay here again. Bull Dog Corner had a problem with the intensity of the lobby’s orange sandalwood aroma, but, though I do like to spend most of my hotel stay in the lobby hanging out, we were mostly just passing through so it wasn’t a huge problem. The most appealing part of this hotel is it’s proximity to the weirdest yoga class of all time. Around 9 AM on Sunday, you can catch a group of about 20 people in everyday clothes standing with their backs against a brick building in a line in the middle of the city. They stood there for a good 20 minutes in what we assumed was some sort of protest before they started kind of moving their bodies around. I guess I’m not positive it was a yoga class- they kind of looked like the were being prepared to be taken out by firing squad as well. Either way, free entertainment.

Waj Mahal says: Stay here unless you have the option to stay with my cousin Emily in Lincoln Park. The apartment she owns is nothing short of amazing and she’s not so bad either. Pool table, guest bedroom and bath, tasteful decor, Root liquor, and good company. Her dog also pees on intruders.

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We went to some other places:

Jam n’ Honey – good brunch

Maude’s Liquor Bar – great atmosphere

Yolk – okay

A bar I can’t remember the name of in Lincoln Park – awesome

Intelligentsia – a better version of Starbucks

Millennium Park – that bean thing is there and it’s a nice place to sit

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Waj Mahal says: Go to Chicago. It’s fun.