After a quick weekend trip to Nashville, we are soaking up the last bits of summer at home in Chicago. I have been catching up with friends over food, working out, and writing lots of blog posts. Plus, I have just finished a couple freelance projects and I am excited to tell you all about them later.
I caught up with some girl friends over dinner at 90 Miles Cuban Cafe. My friend Jill was in town from Salt Lake City and it was so wonderful to see her before she has her baby!
90 Miles is fun because it is a BYOB, and they have a mix to turn your wine, or rosé, into sangria.
The Windy City Blogger Collective hosted an event with Cheeses of Europe which involved tasting cheese and sipping wine. The best part was that they sent me home with cheese which I have been incorporating into some recipes. The Mimolette (the orange cheese pictured here) is my new favorite.
I joined some fellow food bloggers for dinner at Fireside in Ravenswood, and I haven't stopped talking about how great the food was or how charming the Ravenswood neighborhood is. I had the blackened chicken and pasta and loved the cajun flavored chicken and creamy pasta sauce. The restaurant has half-priced bottles of wine on Tuesdays and the most amazing patio space - so check it out before summer ends.
My friend Libb (she was with us in Iceland) and I took a cocktails and cupcakes class at Give Me Some Sugar. The class has been featured on Gilt City Chicago (umm heads up on this amazing deal for The Fat Shallot), and we had such a blast! You can BYOB drinks and then you get to practice your frosting skills on half a dozen cupcakes. By the end of the night, my rosettes were looking pretty good!
And I made a fun cupcake for Charles too.
I hosted the most glamorous picnic with help from my friends at West Elm and Snap Kitchen. And I got to meet Kelly and Mitch's new baby, Emma and hang out with our friends Emily and Doug and their sweet one-year-old Gracie.
Charles and I stopped by Brooklyn Brewery's Beer Mansion event. The pop-up event was filled with beer tastings and music. Basically the ideal way to spend a weekend.
We escaped Chicago's annual Air and Water Show with a weekend getaway to Nashville - I am working on those posts and they are heading your way soon.
Jocelyn and I had dinner at Saved by the Max, a pop-up restaurant in Wicker Park inspired by The Max, the fictional restaurant from Saved by the Bell. It was everything we dreamed of and more. I am working on a post all about it.
I dined at Imperial Lamian, a new Chinese restaurant in River North, with my friend Jenny and Jocelyn. As many reviews have mentioned, the menu was a bit hit or miss. The lamians and salads were the standout items.
Charles and I attended Shedd BLU, one of our favorite events of the summer at the Shedd Aquarium.
I learned how to be the chef at Benihana in Lombard. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I had the BEST time. If you love Benihana (who doesn't?), you need to do the Be the Chef experience.
And I have been going to physical therapy after injuring my knee glacier climbing in Iceland. I have worked my way up to being able to spin at Flywheel again. The only problem (maybe it isn't a problem?) is the physical therapy location's proximity to Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream... I have developed an addiction to their Salty Caramel flavor and their homemade waffle cones.
This weekend we are hosting a little party! We try to host a party every summer and we are just finally getting around to it. Hope you have an awesome weekend (I can't believe Labor Day is sneaking up on us!).
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