I write tonight as a changed woman. A woman who, within the past three weeks, has gained a pound-a-day, that is. The waistband is bulging, and harrowing mornings on the elliptical machine have never felt quite so rough.
And I have no regrets.
The last couple of weeks have been gluttonous. Two British friends made the journey across the pond for a 10-day Midwest extravaganza, including a road trip from Chicago to the Twin Cities.
Following a 4th of July barbecue, complete with a Cubbies bags game, our ever-gracious host outdid herself with a hashbrown casserole that brought back waves of nostalgia to the taste buds, prompting me to ask myself why I ever left the Land O’Casseroles (and church basements) in the first
place. Sunday we agreed to brave The Taste of Chicago (affectionately known as, simply, ‘The
Taste’), the searing urban heat effect, and the thousands queuing at the 54 food stands in Grant Park. Fried catfish, Chicago-style hot dogs, and Eli’s cheesecake all went down well, but given the heat all we really craved were generous portions of Original Rainbow Cone ice cream. We then went to Pizzeria Uno. Yes, yes, we ate deep-dish pizza POST-Taste. We took an afternoon pause from eating, however, stopping off for a rest (if whales could beach on grass…) near Kapoor’s ‘Bean’ in Millennium Park before soldiering on to the Chicago River, catching a water taxi to Navy Pier, and, finally, cabbing it to Ohio and Wabash.
The Minneapolis/St. Paul leg of our journey included gastronomic must-dos such as fish tacos at The Tin Fish on Lake Calhoun (we were all glad to have worked up an appetite kayaking Calhoun, Isles and Cedar), a Dome Dog at the Twins game, lunch on Stella's rooftop, Mickey's Diner, the Guthrie's Endless Bridge bar, and some Tex-Mex at Bar Abilene. If only there had been time (and room in the stomach) for Barrio, Moto-i, and Saffron...
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