Chicago: The Windy City

Two weeks ago, I stepped off an aeroplane and into the coldest climate I have ever been in. With windchill, it was hitting -30 and I was in Chicago, Illinois.

I was there on training for my new job, but luckily for me and my new colleagues, we had a couple of days to ourselves to explore the city! 

Our first stop was this:

See it yet?

That's Cloud Gate, a 110-tonne lump of steel! 

I have to say, I'm quite a fan! There's room to walk beneath it, and from it's shiny underbelly, take a moment to gaze up at your own distorted reflection in it's smooth curves.

Our second destination was somewhere which I'm sure was more fun in the summer, but for us was just an eerie and very cold experience- we went for a wander down Navy Pier. The day had become dreary. Lake Michigan was nearly totally frozen over and a seemingly abandoned fairground haunted the shore. By the end of our walk, it wasn't just the cold that was giving me shivers! 

However, sooner or later we escaped the cold and decided that the only way to prepare ourselves for the weather outside would be to fuel up. So, we simply had to try a Chicago classic: deep dish pizza!

Just look at this monster slice! It was more like a cheesy, pepperoni filled pie! 

For me, it was all a little too much and before long I was in a cheese induced coma! 

Another absolutely freezing experience  but rather beautiful experience was walking through the Millennium Park, where we spotted an entire flock of these little fellas!  

And we met this rather famous man:

One thing I'd really recommend doing if you ever visit Chicago is going up the Hancock Tower. It's one of the tallest buildings in the city and the view from the top is simply amazing! Although one handy hint is not to pay to go up to the very top level, but rather to visit the bar one floor down- the view is equally stunning, you can stay as long as you like and who wouldn't rather enjoy the view with a cocktail in hand?! (Ladies, visit the loos- you can enjoy the view without there being any tables in the way.) 

One of my favourite Chicago experiences however had to be visiting Buddy Guy's Legends which is a well renowned blues bar. We went along for a lunchtime set (which was free!) and an amazing musician sang while we ate. I wish I could remember his name, but here's a very short clip of what he sounded like:

 He sounded incredible, but unfortunately for you guys, I got way too into it and didn't film any other bits which I now feel is a real shame! But hopefully you get the gist!

Chicago was a really interesting city- I wish we'd  had more time to actually explore and see more as I felt the weather held us back a little this time (to put it in perspective, 'instant frostbite to exposed skin' kicks in at temperatures around -15!), but I think I'll be very keen to come back and see it in summer!

So let me know if you've visited Chicago before! What were your favourite bits and where should I be visiting next time? I'd love to hear from you!

One Aldwych and Cucina Asllina at the ME Hotel

On Friday night, we had a little family get together. My little sister had travelled back to London from uni and so my mother and I went out to meet her and her boyfriend for dinner and cocktails.

We started in the lobby bar of One Aldwych. I'd never been here before, but it was a firm destination in Mum's stomping ground and so I was quite interested to see what all the fuss was about.

Well, I learned pretty quickly. I'd been expecting pretty traditional cocktails from such a well known establishment, but was more than pleasantly surprised when I was presented with the menu. After much um-ing and ah-ing, I opted for a whisky based cocktail called 'The Magic Gift' which contained a chocolate liquor and a mushroom infusion, and came presented in a hip flask. My sister's boyfriend had an even more interesting concoction which came served in a mini smoking cocktail shaker!

We all happily sipped away until suddenly realising that we were running a little late for our restaurant reservation so, hurriedly gathering our things, we nipped over the road to Cucina Asllina at the ME Hotel.

Cucina Asllina was pretty busy and very loud when we arrived. Every table seemed to be full, but it sounded like there were twice as many people there. I'm not entirely sure if this was due to one or two tables being particularly noisy (there was a birthday going on in one corner) or just the acoustics of the place, but we found ourselves nearly shouting over our table to hear each other, despite being in a less busy corner.

However, rather hungry after our cocktails, we happily perused the Italian menu, opting for three courses, while sipping on glasses of bubbles.

The food was lovely, but nothing particularly special taste wise. The presentation was nevertheless very pretty and I felt rather remorseful as I munched through it. Well... for about thirty seconds at least. It was also nice how the staff filled our glasses with cucumber flavoured water without being asked, something that surprisingly you often don't see in other restaurants. Yet, it was a shame that they ran out of one of the puddings and so my sister was unable to order her first choice. They did resolve this in the best way possible though, by offering her a selection from an alternate menu.

All in all I had an enjoyable meal and although Cucina Asllina won't ever be my favourite restaurant, we had a very pleasant evening once we'd adjusted to the noise level. More importantly, it was lovely having a catch up with the family before we all went our separate ways again!  

Homeslice

A couple of days ago, two good girlfriends and I met up for a Christmassy get together. We had planned the perfect Christmas themed day: a lunch trip to the Montague Ski Lodge followed by some casual shopping. However, our plans were thrown into turmoil when, upon arriving at the Montague Hotel, we found the 'Ski Lodge' to be booked out for the entire day with a private event! Feeling slightly deflated, we headed for the only cure- a carb-infested pizza fest! So, Sarah and India took me off to Neil's Yard and introduced me to Homeslice.

Now, Homeslice is one of those places I've been rather excited to visit for a while. Marcus has been a few times before and had entranced me with tales of pizzas so large, no person could possibly eat one on their own! Therefore, my mood perked up dramatically as soon as we were in sight of the front door.

Homeslice didn't disappoint. Shortly after being seated (and a few envious looks at our neighbour's plates) we were presented with a 20 inch monstrosity, half margherita, half lamb shoulder with wine soaked goat's cheese and fresh basil. The base was thin, the crust crispy and the toppings generous. Our appetites hit with full force and the entire thing vanished so quickly, we may have well inhaled it! It was delicious- I could have spent an entire day eating the goats cheese on its own, let alone with the rest of the dish. Before long we were picking at the remaining crumbs.

Completely full and feeling re-inflated, we headed out into the chilly street, feeling bolstered up enough to tackle some Christmas shopping.

I really enjoyed our little trip to Homeslice. The restaurant is small, you eat with your hands and share a table, but I really do feel this adds to the experience- there just is no need for all the little extras when the pizza is so good!