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White Castle

After seeing the movie Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle, I’ve always wanted to go to White Castle for the sliders. Living on the West Coast, I’ve never seen one before since it’s mostly concentrated in the Mid West of North America.

I made it a mission to come here before I left.

White Castle

To end my Chicago experience, we ordered 6 sliders and fries. It really wasn’t as impressive as I thought it would be. The patty is very thin and you really just taste more of the bun.

White Castle

Original Slider has pickles, onions and the small patty between the soft bun. The patty seemed to stick to the bun and was inseparable.

White Castle

Cheese Slider is like the original but with the extra cheese.

White Castle

Bacon Cheese Slider is like the Cheese Slider but with the added bacon strips.

White Castle

Chicken Ring Slider is just chicken shaped into a ring. It also has a slice of cheese.

White Castle

Fish Slider also has a slice of cheese.

White Castle

Jalapeno Cheese Slider has the thin beef patty and jalapeno cheese. It wasn’t spicy at all.

White Castle

My first White Castle experience was ok, but I can now see why some people order a whole case of these little sliders. There’s really nothing special about White Castle except for the size of the sliders. A lot of other fast food joints taste much better. But, most people come here for the novelty of it all.

Have you been here? What do you think?

Website: www.whitecastle.com

Walker Bros Original Pancake House

A great thing about going on vacation and visiting relatives and friends is that they know where cool restaurants are. I’ve never heard of the Original Pancake, but they are most famous for their Dutch Baby and Apple Pancake.

Ifs located all over the states and if you recognize this place, you know they have very cool breakfast food. It was pretty busy on a Saturday morning and line ups almost out the door. We waited for a bit but got a table quickly.

Walker Bros Original Pancake House

The Apple Pancake is oven baked with fresh granny smith apples and pure Sinkiang cinnamon glaze. It was really good but it’s best to share since it’s loaded with sugar.

Walker Bros Original Pancake House

We all cut it up into slices are shared it. Pretty delicious and amazing. Highly recommended.

Walker Bros Original Pancake House

Dutch Baby is oven baked. Served with whipped butter, lemon and powdered sugar. We opted for the smaller version since we knew we wouldn’t finish the large version.

Original Pancake House

Blue Crab Meat Benedict has poached eggs, sauteed Blue Crab Meat & lightly grilled tomato slices on top of a grilled English muffin with our hollandaise sauce. Garnished with parsley & capers. It tasted alright, but not crazy amazing.

Walker Bros Original Pancake House

The benedict came with a side of fruit.

Original Pancake House

Sausage & Basted Eggs was alright, but nothing special. You get 2 eggs, 2 sausage patties and pancakes.

Original Pancake House

Pancakes that came with the sausage and basted eggs.

Original Pancake House

We also ordered side of bacon and side of hash browns. We loved the bacon because it was nice and crispy.

Original Pancake House

We had so much food that it barely fit onto our table. It was a yummy breakfast.

Overall, the specialty items were quite amazing. You must come here to order the apple pancake and the dutch baby. You won’t be disappointed.

We Rate Original Pancake House

Address:
153 Green Bay Rd
Wilmette, IL

Website:
http://www.walkerbros.net/

Walker Bros Original Pancake House on Urbanspoon

 

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Bien Trucha

We headed into the suburbs to Geneva for some yummy Mexican food at Bien Trucha. It was a long drive from the city, but this little suburb is quite nice with a river flowing right through it.

We went to Bien Trucha for dinner and came early since they don’t take reservations. The sister restaurant – A Toda Madre located next door does take reservations. The menus are slightly different.

Bien Trucha

Fresh chips and a refried bean dip (Complimentary) very fresh and really good. A nice start to the meal.

Bien Trucha

Fresona ($10) is made of strawberries, lime, sugar, orange liquor, and exotico blanco. really good and refreshing.

Bien Trucha

Mojito ($9) has fresh muddled mint, lime, brown sugar, rum, and a splash of soda.

Bien Trucha

Ceviche ($8) has tilapia, lime, extra virgin olive oil, serrano, tomato, and onion. I wasn’t a fan of the ceviche since I felt like it needed more acidity.

Bien Trucha

Crema de Chile Poblano ($5) has creamy roasted poblano, potato cubes and queso fresco. It was pretty spicy, but the flavours were great.

Bien Trucha

Esquites ($4) has grilled corn, epazote-butter, lemon-aioli, queso cotija, and chile piquin.It was really good and addictive! Highly recommended!

Bien Trucha

Pescado taco ($11) is crispy beer battered tilapia, red cabbage, onion, tomato, lime, and a chipotle-morita aioli. Quite delicious!

Bien Trucha

Pastor taco ($10) contains ancho-guajillo marinated pork, cilantro, onion, pineapple,  and morita salsa. The pineapple was perfect to add juiciness and sweetness to the pork.

Bien Trucha

Bien Trucha ($10) has grilled skirt steak, chorizo, chihuahua, and roasted tomatillo salsa. No worries, there is not dog in this taco. Chihuahua is a type of cheese. I had to ask the server cause I thought it was funny. it was a delicious taco.

Bien Trucha

a la Diabla tacos ($11) has sauteed shrimp, butter-mojo de ajo, chipotle lime, and avocado slice. It came piping hot and with 4 pieces per order. It wasn’t too spicy and tasted great.

Bien Trucha

Flan was our dessert. It was pretty good as well. A nice ending to a great meal.

Overall, I really liked the restaurant. They have delicious taco and great drinks. A must go place for the summer. If you’re just a visitor in Chicago, it very very out of the way. Good thing I had my aunt and uncle to take me around the different suburbs.

We Rate Bien Trucha:

Address:
410 W State St
Geneva, IL

Website:
http://www.bientrucha.com/

Bien Trucha on Urbanspoon

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://www.google.ca/maps?q=410+W+State+St+Geneva,+IL&t=m&hnear=410+W+State+St,+Geneva,+Illinois+60134,+United+States&z=16 “]

Chicago Food Tour

I had a week in Chicago and it’s quite hard to eat everything. There’s only so many restaurants I can go to in one day. I contemplated for a long time if I should take a food tour or not. 7 restaurants in 3 hours is always enticing for a foodie for $50.

Chicago Food Planet Food Tours offered a tour of Gold Coast and Old Town‘s best eats. It’s a cool neighbourhood, but the only reason I went on the tour was to try a slice of deep dish pizza from Lou Malnati’s. I really didn’t want to eat a whole pizza to myself or eat alone.

We explored:

    • Lou Malnati’s
    • Delightful Pastries
    • Kamehachi Old Town
    • The Fudge Pot
    • The Spice House
    • Old Town Oil
    • Tea Gschwendner

The group was only 16 people, so it was a nice decent size. What made me feel awkward was that everyone else came to the tour as a group or a couple. It made me feel like an awkward turtle.

Lou Malnati’s

Chicago Food Tour

Our first stop was Lou Malnati’s for their famous deep dish pizza. This was the starting point of the tour. They are an iconic Chicago-Style Deep Dish pizzeria. It’s been around since 1971.

Chicago Food Tour

All 16 of us sat down and started beginning chowing down on our meal.

Chicago Food Tour

We began with a salad.

Chicago Food Tour

Then the deep dish pizza! So satisfying and the crust is so crispy. Definitely the highlight of the tour.

Lou Malnati's Pizzeria on Urbanspoon


Tea Gschwendner

Chicago Food Tour

We then walked a short distance to Tea Gschwendner. They are Europe’s leading specialty loose Green, Black, Oolong and White teas merchant and have been around since 1987.

We were given a little lesson about different types of tea and how to make tea.

Chicago Food Tour

Iced tea was given to everyone as a refresher after the yummy pizza. As it was a hot summer we definitely needed.

Chicago Food Tour

We then headed into Old Town and was told about the history of some notable buildings and history.


Kamehachi Old Town

Chicago Food Tour

Kamehachi Old Town is Chicago’s first Japanese-style restaurant, sake cafe and sushi bar . It has been around since 1967.

Chicago Food Tour

We had 2 types of maki rolls, but only 2 pieces. It was ok, but not great. Coming from Vancouver, this doesn’t even compare to what good sushi is like.

Kamehachi on Urbanspoon


The Fudge Pot

Chicago Food Tour

The Fudge pot is Chicago’s oldest chocolate confectioner, butter toffee and home-made fudge shop. They have been around since 1963 making delicious sweets.

Chicago Food Tour

We were taken to their kitchen to hear the history of the Fudge Pot and their production.

Chicago Food Tour

The butter toffee samples we received were pretty awesome. So addictive.

Fudge Pot on Urbanspoon


Spice Merchants

Chicago Food Tour

We then stopped by the world-famous merchant of hand-prepared spices, blends and artisan seasonings. Once you step close to the door of this place, you’ll definitely smell the amazing flavours. It’s quite strong stuff.

Chicago Food Tour

They have hundreds of spices! They have even made their own special blends. You can probably find any spice you’re looking for.

Chicago Food Tour

We looked around the shop and then taken to the back to get a lesson on different spices, best ways to store spices and how to get the most flavourful spices. Interesting stop on this tour, but we only smelled spices.

Spice House on Urbanspoon


Old Town Oil

Chicago Food Tour

Old Town Oil is America’s premiere supplier of aged balsamic vinegars and 100% extra-virgin olive oils. I’ve never seen so many tins of olive oil and balsamic vinegar before.

Chicago Food Tour

We were able to try all the flavours we wanted. Interesting flavours.

Chicago Food Tour

We continued walking around the neighbourhood and heard more about the history.


Delightful Pastries

Chicago Food Tour

Our last stop of the tour was at Delightful Pastries. It’s an authentic Polish-European bakery serving pastries, pierogies and pies.

Chicago Food Tour

Two Macaroons

Chicago Food Tour

Two different types of perogies.

Delightful Pastries on Urbanspoon

The Chicago Food Planet Tour of Old Town and Gold Coast was fun and enjoyable, but if you are a hardcore foodie, a majority of the places aren’t super amazing. The shops are unique and have a long history, but it won’t keep you coming back. Especially if you are a local.

As a tourist, it was a good use of 3 hours to visit so many shops and restaurants, plus learn a little bit of history in these 2 areas. The 2 restaurants that stood out to me was Lou Malnati’s and The Fudge Pot. Mmmm pizza and chocolate.

Our tour guide was great! He was funny and was very personable to each person on the tour.

Website: http://www.chicagofoodplanet.com/tours/near-north-food-tour/

Taco Diablo

Taco Diablo is a Mexican restaurant in Evanston, Illinois. BaguetteGirl said I have to try some Mexican food before I left Chicago. The restaurant was quite cute and it was quite funny to see all the devil paintings. We came here before heading to the city to watch the Million Dollar Quartet.

Taco Diablo

Complimentary Tortilla Chips and salsa was pretty good. It came with so many chips in that basket. Really fresh and I wish I could have kept eating this, but I had to save room for tacos.

Taco Diablo

Taqueria Guacamole ($6.89) chunky avocado, tomato, onion, lime, and corn chips. SO yummy, but it is a bit expensive.

Taco Diablo

Tortilla Soup was amazing! It was so flavourful and I have not been able to find anything like it in Vancouver. The soup was more clear and just so damn good. Highly recommended.

Taco Diablo

Spicy Shrimp Taco and Vegetable Taco.

Taco Diablo

Taco plate ($11.89) comes with your choice of 3 tacos and sides.

It’s Carne Asada Tacos and Pork Carnitas taco. All the tacos we had were pretty good and a good size. Each taco has 2 layers of corn tortillas and has a good amount of meat in the centre.

Taco Diablo

The sides that came with the taco plate was – rice and black beans. We were so fully from everything else, so we barely touched this.

Taco Diablo

I like it spicy, so I had to use the Tabsco and the hot sauce.

Taco Diablo

For 2 people we definitely ate too much. I think we would have been good just splitting the soup and having the tacos.

We Rate Taco Diablo:

Address:
1029 Davis Street
Evanston, IL

Website:
http://tacodiabloevanston.com/

Taco Diablo on Urbanspoon

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GT Fish & Oyster

GT Fish & Oyster is an awesome restaurant in Chicago. I was looking hard for a good seafood restaurant and I was recommended to this restaurant. It has received a Michelin Star and several other awards.

They are an American Seafood Restaurant a few blocks away from the Magnificent Mile. It’s not a long walk and easy to get to. They have indoor or patio seating. Lots of space.

GT Fish & Oyster

We came in the early evening for some quick bites. It’s a nice cozy restaurant.

GT Fish & Oyster

GT Oyster Shooter ($5) has tuna, cucumber, and tobiko caviar. It’s super cute and comes served in a martini glass. The ingredients really go together. I really wanted more!

GT Fish & Oyster

Shrimp Bruschetta ($11) has avocado, toasted pistachio, grapefruit, and cilantro. It was really good! Seafood is fresh and quite flavourful. The ingredients really compliment the seafood.

GT Fish & Oyster

Fish Tacos ($13)  has a garlic marinade, chipotle aioli, and chicharron. It comes with 3 pieces and it mighty fresh and delicious.

GT Fish & Oyster

Oyster Po’Boy Slider ($4 each) has the fried oyster withkimchi, peanuts inside a toasted buttered bun. I love kimchi, so having it in this way was really good too.

GT Fish & Oyster

GT  “Mac & Cheese” ($17) has bits of lobster and english peas. It’s a filling dish and one of the heavier dishes on the menu. It’s creamy and cheesy, but it fell a bit flat.

Overall, BaguetteGirl and I had a great experience here. The food was delicious and I would come back. Some items are a bit pricey, but it’s still a nice venue for drinks and small bites.

We Rate GT Fish & Oyster:

Address:
531 N. Wells St.
Chicago, IL

Website:
http://www.gtoyster.com/

GT Fish & Oyster on Urbanspoon

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John Hancock Center

The best advice I got during my trip to Chicago was from my aunt who told me to grab a drink at the restaurant on top of the John Hancock Center and enjoy the summer fireworks. It’s great because you get a good view without paying the outrageous prices to be at their observation deck (which is on a lower level).

The Signature Lounge is located on the 95th floor (vs Oberservation Deck – 94th floor). To get up there, you go in through the south entrance. If you see people lining up for the observation deck, you’re in the wrong place. As it was a busy night, we waited about 20 minutes to get up to the restaurant. Other people were smart to go early to grab a seat and wait for the fireworks.

The Signature Room

The interior was the restaurant was nice and cozy. They have tons of seats, but as you can imagine, it is quite packed.

The Signature Room

Isn’t that just a stunning view?

white & dArk ChoCoLAte Mousse CAke 8.00 chocolate bark, pistachio Gianduja

As we waited for the fireworks, we had to order something. So we got drinks and shared a cake.

White & Dark Chocolate Mousse Cake ($8) also comes with chocolate bark and pistachio gianduja.

Stella Artois ($8.25) is light, crisp and declicious.

The Signature Room

We found that our seats didn’t have the best view of Navy Pier for the fireworks, so we went to the womens washroom to watch the fireworks. It sounds weird, but it has one of the best views! You get a clear view of the loop and Navy Pier.

The Signature Room

It was quite a night. Great views with great company. The items on the lounge menu were quite expensive, so just grab a drink and sip it slowly.

We Rate Signature Lounge

Address:
875 N Michigan Ave
Chicago, IL

Website:
http://www.signatureroom.com/

Signature Room at the 95th on Urbanspoon

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ilab

iCream is a unique dessert experience in Wicker Park / Bucktown. While my aunt took me around this area, she insisted we come here for a cold snack. It looked pretty unique and you can create your own frozen dessert concoction within seconds using liquid nitrogen.

Stores likes these have actually been popping up all over the country. I even saw it in the night market in Richmond.

icream

They outline 3 steps in creating your dessert.

1. Choose ice cream, yogurt, sorbet, a shake, or hot pudding (with or without rice)

2. Select your dessert base: regular, light, organic, soy, regular or non-fat yogurt

3. Pick one or two flavors and fruit or candy mix-ins from our toppings section

And check out the favorites section for our most popular dessert combinations.

icream

Once you tell them your creation, they will begin creating in the back counter. It’s quite weird seeing them mix liquid and powders together as you know what goes into it.

icream

The pour the liquid mixture into the mixer and the show begins. Its pretty darn cool.

icream

I got frozen yogurt and my aunt got ice cream.

icream

Mango Ice cream was ordered from my aunt and thought it was ok too.

icream

Green Tea frozen yogurt has a very icy texture and not as smooth as the usual frozen yogurt. It did have the tart taste but not the same.

Overall, the presentation of the ice cream and how it’s made is quite fun and exciting, but the taste was just ok.

We rate iCream:

Address:
1537 N Milwaukee Ave
Chicago, IL

Website:
http://www.icreamcafe.com/

iCream on Urbanspoon

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Hot Doug's

Hot Doug’s Sausage Superstore and is only open during the day. If you plan on coming here at 4pm, you’ll be out of luck. What makes Hot Doug’s highly desirable is their specialty hot dogs. Fois Gras Hot Dog, Crocodile Hot Dog, Elk Hot Dog, and an endless combination of toppings.

They’ve been covered on the Food Network and even have their own book. They have gotten worldwide popularity and most tourists make a visit here when visiting Chicago.

Sadly, I have to admit, I was one of those tourists. Seriously, you can’t come to Chicago and not try the best hot dogs. (or at least what people of the internet claim to be the best).

Hot Doug's line up

When we arrived around 1pm, the line up was huge. It wrapped around the corner and the wait was about an hour. We thought we could avoid the lunch rush, but we got caught up in the lunch rush.

Pig statue

We at least had a good view of these little piggies. I got educated on the different pork parts.

HotDoug-collection

Hot Doug's interior

HotDoug-wall

Once you somehow make your way through the long line, this colorful interior awaits you.

Anna Kendrick

There’s so many choices to choose from. Even some hot dogs are named after celebrities. When you are ordering, you’ll be greeted by Doug of Hot Doug’s that will take your order at the counter. He was quite nice to all the customers.

Escargot Hot Dog

Escargot & Guanciale sausage ($9) with parsley-garlic goat butter and double creme brie cheese. This was a strange sausage but I adored the creamy brie cheese on top. The sausage was charred on the outside and lacked a distinct flavour.

Foie Gras and Sauternes Duck Sausage with Truffle Aioli, Foie Gras Mousse and Fleur de Sel

Foie Gras and Sauternes Duck Sausage ($10) with Truffle Aioli, Foie Gras Mousse and Fleur de Sel. One of the most popular items on the menu, might as well order the best. It’s pretty good.

Chicago Style Hot Dog

The Dog ($2) is a Chicago-Style Hot Dog with all the trimmings – pickle, peppers, caramelized onions, tomatoes, and mustard on a poppy seed bun. This was a cheap hot dog compared to the other specialty hot dogs. The hot dog is much smaller compared to the others.

Specialty Hot Dogs

Overall, I was impressed by the toppings but the quality of the sausage wasn’t as good as I anticipated. They were a bit on the small side and the not juicy at all. It just felt like the sausages were just sitting around for a while.

We Rate Hot Doug’s

Address:
3324 N California Ave
Chicago, IL

Website:
http://www.hotdougs.com/

Hot Doug's on Urbanspoon

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Urban Belly

When I was vacationing in Chicago, I went to visit Urbanbelly near Logan Square. They are also recipients of a Michelin Bib Gourmands Chicago award in 2010. It basically means they are a quality restaurant with affordable price.

They don’t take reservations, but on a weekday lunch hour, there was no wait.

Urban Belly

The counter is at the back, so you just line up and order. They have daily specials written on the wall.

Urban Belly

You can find the rest of the regular items on their menu. The prices are quite decent with nothing over $13.

Urban Belly

The interior is one large room with 4 communal tables. Better get cozy and meet some new friends.

Urban Belly

Asian Squash and Bacon Dumplings ($7) comes with 4 pieces of the steamed dumplings. It has a predominantly squash filling. It is topped with bacon bits, orange slices and other things. It was pretty good and has a nice balance between the sweet oranges and the savoury dumpling.

Urban Belly

Urbanbelly Ramen ($13) is made with a pho broth and has pork belly and shitake mushrooms. Its deep rich broth with layers of savoury flavours is quite delicious.

Urban Belly

Phat Rice ($9) is a fried rice dish that combined all the other rice dishes into one. There was short rib, pork belly, pineapple, scallions, pea shoots, and Thai basil. I chose this dish because I was pretty indecisive of what to order….so this was the best option. It was pretty good.

Urban Belly

Chinese Eggplant with Thai Basil came complimentary because we waited a long time for the Phat Rice. I loved the sauce that came with it.

Urban Belly

At the end of the meal, they give you some Ginger Candy to round out the experience.

Overall, the food was pretty good and I would come again. The food is a bit only and rich, but that means its extra delicious.

We Rate Urban Belly: 

Address:
3053 N California Ave
Chicago, IL

Website:
http://www.urbanbellychicago.com/

Urban Belly on Urbanspoon

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The Purple Pig

The Purple Pig is one of Chicago’s most talked about restaurants. It’s located right on the Magnificent Mile and has won 3 consecutive Michelin Bib Gourmands Chicago awards. It basically means they are quality restaurants at an affordable price.

The Purple Pig

Even at 5:30pm, the place was packed. They don’t take reservations, so you gotta get there early if you have a big party. They do have indoor and outdoor seating.

The Purple Pig

There weren’t any tables left so we sat at the bar, which looks into their little kitchen behind the bar. Fun to see them put our dishes together.

The Purple Pig

Pig’s Ear with Crispy Kale, Pickled Cherry Peppers & Fried Egg. This item is very popular and its’ really good. It’s quite greasy, so its nice to have a drink to go with this. Highly recommended.

The Purple Pig

Milk Braised Pork Shoulder with Mashed Potatoes. The shoulder was very tender and lots of flavours It was slightly on the salty side, but still yummy.

The Purple Pig

Roasted Bone Marrow with Herbs has some rustic toasted bread on the side. If you’ve never had bone marrow before, it just tastes like fat and oil. Some people like it, but it’s more of

Overall, it was pretty tasty food and a nice meal before heading to Second City to watch a comedy show. Our bellies were full of pork. We didn’t have a full meal here since we weren’t that hungry, but some of their other dishes looked amazing.

We Rate The Purple Pig

Address:
500 N Michigan Ave
Chicago, IL

Website:
http://www.thepurplepigchicago.com/

The Purple Pig on Urbanspoon

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Argo Tea

Walking in the hot summer Chicago weather, BaguetteGirl and I were getting a bit thirsty and decided to head into Argo Tea for a drink. Argo Tea originated from Chicago and they serve a variety of teas and focuses on being sustainable and giving back to the community. They also sell coffee and baked goods.

Argo Tea

Walking inside, it kinda reminded me of David’s Tea with their large variety of teas. But, Argo has a larger focus on being a cafe rather than just selling tea. The location we were at, there was lots of seats to just chill and enjoy the air conditioning. They have some pretty strange drinks like Chocolate Mint, Red Velvet, Tea Sangria, Teappuccino, and many others. Weirdly enough, they also have bubble tea.

Argo Tea

I grabbed a latte and my friend grabbed a cold specialty tea drink. The drinks are pretty good, but for myself, I like plain teas like straight up green tea or black tea. I don’t like them with sweet smells or anything like that. They do have a nice variety of different tea, sweet teas, and other types.

We Rate Argo Tea:

Address:
140 S Dearborn St
Chicago, IL

Website: http://www.argotea.com/

Argo Tea Cafe on Urbanspoon

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Hersheys

In a lot of the tourist book, they highlighted the Hershey’s store on the Magnificent Mile. For some reason, I imagined it as exciting as the M&M store in New York, but sadly, I was a bit disappointed when I arrived. Also the Hershey’s Store in Niagara Falls was larger.

This is not to say this is a horrible store to go to. If you’re in the area, stop by. If not, don’t go out of your way to come here.

Hersheys

There’s lots of see and buy at this store. It’s only one level, so it’s not very large inside. There are high ceilings with lots of natural light that make the interior seem larger.

What I found quite cool large candy bars and large syrup bottles.

Hersheys

There’s also a little cafe area where you can buy cupcakes, cookies and other confections. There’s hot chocolate and other drinks too.

Hersheys

Overall, it was nice to stop by to see all the cool candy products. Some items were a bit pricey, but in the end I didn’t purchase anything since nothing really appealed to me.

Address:
822 North Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL

Website:
http://www.thehersheycompany.com/about-hershey/visit-hershey/retail-stores/chicago.aspx

Hershey's on Urbanspoon

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McDonalds

While visiting the Rock n Roll McDonalds, I just had to have a burger that’s not available in Canada. Bacon Habanero Ranch Quarter Pounder was just the burger that I wanted to consume with fries and a coke. I really wanted to see if it would be spicy or not.

McDonalds

The Bacon Habanero Ranch Quarter Pounder has a quarter pound patty of beef with white cheddar,  Applewood smoked bacon, tomato , leaf lettuce, and a spicy-cool habanero ranch sauce, on a toasted bun.

To my disappointment, the habanero flavour wasn’t very strong at all. I wanted to see a noticeably amount of spice, but it didn’t really sting. The bacon was delicious and crispy. It was a decent burger with a nice habanero ranch sauce, but needs more spice.

Website: www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/home.html

Original Rock 'n' Roll McDonald's on Urbanspoon

McDonalds

Rock n Roll McDonalds is their Flagship store in Chicago, Illinois. It’s quite famous and attracts lots of tourist every year. It’s a few blocks away from the Magnificent Mile. What makes this location unique is that its 3 times the size of a normal McDonalds, has a Rock n Roll Exhibit and a mini McDonalds Museum.

McDonalds

Near the entrance, there are a few statues there that you can pose and take pictures with.

McDonalds

Peek-a-boo! It’s Ronald McDonald and I. Of course I had to take some fun pictures with those statues.

McDonalds

The bottom floor has lots of seating and the counter to order food. Stairs and escalators are located in the middle of the floor that leads to the 2nd floor.

McDonalds

Upstairs is the McCafe serving lattes, gelato, and baked goods. It’s very relaxing, so you could spend a lot of time just chilling here because there is so much natural light. I saw a few people just on their laptops working here.

McDonalds

On the second floor, there is a little Museum area where you can view old memorabilia. I remember collecting all those Inspector Gadget toys too.

McDonalds

McDonalds

McDonalds

McDonalds

On the walls are stories about the McDonalds Franchise.

Overall, it was a pretty cool location with awesome memorabilia to look at. If you’re a tourist, it’s a fun place to just stop by and have a snack. It’ll probably be one of the best looking McDonalds you’ve been to.

Website: www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/home.html

Original Rock 'n' Roll McDonald's on Urbanspoon

Slurping Turtle

The Slurping Turtle is located in the River North area and is a few blocks away from Michigan Avenue. Their logo is pretty cute and I was craving some Japanese food. Even though I was on vacation, I have a crazy addiction for Japanese food.

Slurping Turtle was created to show guests Chef Takashi’s childhood culinary experiences in Japan, as it is reflected in their menu.

Slurping Turtle

The interior has a long communal table through the centre of the restaurant, with some booth seating on the side. Lots of seating.

Slurping Turtle

Duck Fat Fried Chicken ($9) is soy-sesame marinated chicken deep-fried in duck fat. The fried chicken was very very moist inside and sinfully delicious. The is even a slaw on the side to balance out the greasiness.

Slurping Turtle

Tonkotsu ($14) has homemade thin ramen noodles, silky pork broth, braised pork shoulder, pickled mustard greens, and other veggies. It’s a huge bowl and very popular among customers.

Slurping Turtle

Roasted Garlic Ramen ($14) has homemade wheat ramen noodles, clams, mussels, garlic oil, and veggies. There are a lot of clams and mussels, which is pretty great. After eating this, I was really really full.

Overall, it’s a pretty cute place to come get a bowl of noodles for lunch. The ramen was good, but it wasn’t as authentic as you would find in Japan. The interior is very nice but for a $14 ramen, it was a bit expensive.

We Rate Slurping Turtle

Address:
116 W Hubbard St
Chicago, IL

Website:
http://www.slurpingturtle.com/

Slurping Turtle on Urbanspoon

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Lou Mitchell's

Lou Mitchell’s is one of Chicago’s oldest restaurants specializing in diner food. They only sell breakfast and lunch till 3pm everyday. It’s located in the loop and serves up American food.

Lou Mitchell's

There was a lot of seating inside but during the weekday, it wasn’t too busy at all.

Lou Mitchell's

What makes them different is that everyone gets a donut hole and a box of milk duds. As the owner is Greek, he offered a nice sweet treat to welcome his customers as a symbol of his generous hospitality.

Lou Mitchell's

The reason they chose Milk Duds to give away is because they were originally manufactured in Chicago and the owners was a customer and a friend to Lou.

Lou Mitchell's

Corned Beef Hash comes with eggs cracked on top and a side of toast. It’s only supposed to be 2 eggs, but looked like 4 eggs. I got a choice of different bread but I chose rye bread. The dish was good but a bit greasy, which isn’t strange cause it’s a diner and breakfast food should be sinfully delicious.

Lou Mitchell's

One egg comes in a pan with roasted potatoes. Jenn also added $0.50 for raisin toast. She wasn’t too hungry, so she settled on this.

Overall, it’s a great place to go to if you want American diner food. It’s not fancy food. You may not remember the meal, but you’ll remember the donuts and Milk Duds.

We Rate Lou Mitchell’s

Address:
565 W Jackson Blvd
Chicago, IL

Website:
http://www.loumitchellsrestaurant.com/

Lou Mitchell's on Urbanspoon

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Brothers K Coffee House

Brothers K Coffee House is a cafe in the university town of Evanston in Chicago. It’s where Northwestern University is located. When I was in the area visiting my friend, we decided to come grab a coffee before we explore the rest of Chicago.

The cafe was opened by Brian and John Kim. They take pride in using Fair Trade Organic and Direct Trade coffee in their shop.

They have another coffee house in the area called “Other Brother Coffee House”. Both these cafe’s are popular among students and freelancers.

Brothers K Coffee House

Latte tasted really good and had some cute latte art on top.

Brothers K Coffee House

Soy Latte was good as well.

Overall, it’s a really cute little cafe and it’s a great place to just hang out and get some work done. The coffee gave us a nice little buzz to get our day started. It’s cheaper and better than Starbucks.

We Rate Brothers K Coffeehouse

Address:
500 Main St
Evanston, IL

Website:
http://www.brotherskcoffee.com/

Brothers K Coffeehouse on Urbanspoon
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