Day 3: strangers with candy
Wednesday
Checking out of Chicago
One thing I forgot to mention yesterday was the wonderful deli where we breakfasted. It was so good we did it today too, instead of seeking out a new one. In a downtown crowded with chains - Dunkin Donuts, Einstein Brothers, Corner Bakery - it was a relief to find the Shalom Deli just a couple blocks down from the hotel. As the name implies, the deli has excellent bagels with all the classic fixin's. It's also run by a lovely old Japanese couple who, according to the regulars who've reviewed the place online, possess an uncanny memory for customers' favorite orders. (This was one of the times we regretted not having K with us, in light of her love of both bagels and East Asian culture.)
After breakfast, we had two goals for our last half-day in Chicago. The first was to investigate the source of the rich, fresh brownie smell we'd caught every time we neared the West Side. The source was the Blommer Chocolate factory, which processes the chocolate from which other companies fashion their sweets. We weren't too interested in the factory, and they don't offer tours anyway. What interested us was the outlet store. It was surprisingly small, but the two matronly women who worked there spoke Polish to each other and sucked on honey candies (which they gave us with our purchase). Another Wish-K-Were-Here moment came when I looked up to see chocolate toy kits on the wall, including OMG A CHOCOLATE DOCTOR SET:
Our haul, however, consisted of two 1-lb Ziploc bags full of big chunks of chocolate. Happy!
(my cheek looks funny because there is a honey candy inside of it)
The second goal was... MORE CHOCOLATE! This time, we went to the top floor of the Marshall Fields department store (now a Macy's) for the Frango Chocolate café and store that
M's mom had recommended so highly. We treated ourselves to an incredibly decadent lunchtime dessert of Frango mint chocolate ice cream pie and Frango mint chocolate cheesecake:
And yes, I was in fact jumping up and down with a chocolate buzz when it came time to wait for the elevator.
Across State Street from the exit was a construction site. And in another tiny Berlin-like flourish, the graffiti above the plywood walkway actually said something more creative than stupid tags. It was a mural of signs that read "You Are Beautiful" in various languages.
Then, the train. Man, the Empire Builder is the way to go. We had tasty, tender lamb shank and catfish for dinner. They gave us free mini-bottles of champagne. (Another Wish-K-Were-Here moment, since champagne is her favorite wine. I guess because it's fizzy like soda, I remember being the same way at her age.)
M (opening the Amtrak party-favor box to discover Celestial Seasonings Madagascar Vanilla Red Rooibos Tea): Oh look, honey: lion tea! This is that tea I wanted to buy when I got that monkey tea that tasted like butt!
Seriously ppls. Amtrak brings the luv.
What else? Wisconsin Dells is a strange little town with miniature golf and a torture museum. Minnesota is indeed full of lakes. We saw the mist rise from the Mississippi at sunset.
Checking out of Chicago
One thing I forgot to mention yesterday was the wonderful deli where we breakfasted. It was so good we did it today too, instead of seeking out a new one. In a downtown crowded with chains - Dunkin Donuts, Einstein Brothers, Corner Bakery - it was a relief to find the Shalom Deli just a couple blocks down from the hotel. As the name implies, the deli has excellent bagels with all the classic fixin's. It's also run by a lovely old Japanese couple who, according to the regulars who've reviewed the place online, possess an uncanny memory for customers' favorite orders. (This was one of the times we regretted not having K with us, in light of her love of both bagels and East Asian culture.)
After breakfast, we had two goals for our last half-day in Chicago. The first was to investigate the source of the rich, fresh brownie smell we'd caught every time we neared the West Side. The source was the Blommer Chocolate factory, which processes the chocolate from which other companies fashion their sweets. We weren't too interested in the factory, and they don't offer tours anyway. What interested us was the outlet store. It was surprisingly small, but the two matronly women who worked there spoke Polish to each other and sucked on honey candies (which they gave us with our purchase). Another Wish-K-Were-Here moment came when I looked up to see chocolate toy kits on the wall, including OMG A CHOCOLATE DOCTOR SET:
Our haul, however, consisted of two 1-lb Ziploc bags full of big chunks of chocolate. Happy!
(my cheek looks funny because there is a honey candy inside of it)
The second goal was... MORE CHOCOLATE! This time, we went to the top floor of the Marshall Fields department store (now a Macy's) for the Frango Chocolate café and store that
M's mom had recommended so highly. We treated ourselves to an incredibly decadent lunchtime dessert of Frango mint chocolate ice cream pie and Frango mint chocolate cheesecake:
And yes, I was in fact jumping up and down with a chocolate buzz when it came time to wait for the elevator.
Across State Street from the exit was a construction site. And in another tiny Berlin-like flourish, the graffiti above the plywood walkway actually said something more creative than stupid tags. It was a mural of signs that read "You Are Beautiful" in various languages.
Then, the train. Man, the Empire Builder is the way to go. We had tasty, tender lamb shank and catfish for dinner. They gave us free mini-bottles of champagne. (Another Wish-K-Were-Here moment, since champagne is her favorite wine. I guess because it's fizzy like soda, I remember being the same way at her age.)
M (opening the Amtrak party-favor box to discover Celestial Seasonings Madagascar Vanilla Red Rooibos Tea): Oh look, honey: lion tea! This is that tea I wanted to buy when I got that monkey tea that tasted like butt!
Seriously ppls. Amtrak brings the luv.
What else? Wisconsin Dells is a strange little town with miniature golf and a torture museum. Minnesota is indeed full of lakes. We saw the mist rise from the Mississippi at sunset.