The festivities began Friday around 1pm when my family texted to tell me they had just landed and were just a cab ride away from getting the party started (I would later find out through a series of tidbits and context clues that one of my VA patients had been their cab driver...this an awesome story that you should ask me about). What would end up being a weekend of gluttony started off appropriately at Rick Bayless' XOCO restaurant, which is just a few blocks away from our condo and even closer to the Merchandise Mart, where the fam was staying. We scarfed down some amazing tortas while getting caught up and talking about the exciting weekend to come.
We then headed over to Michigan Avenue so that I could walk them by the hospital and show them a few sites (which included Marilyn, the Tribune and Wrigley Buildings, Millenium Park/Cloud Gate/Pritzker Pavilion the Art Institute and more).
After an L ride and a quick breather at the hotel, we all headed up to Wrigleyville to one of our favorite restaurants, Andalous, for some yummy Moroccan food. As always, the food did not disappoint. Highlights included a tasty vegetarian platter (spinach, carrots, peppers, etc), several styles of stewed lamb chops, chicken and cream sauce, all with flavor explosions that i could only make you appreciate by putting a plate of it out in front of you. It's also worth noting that my mom was beside herself about how good the food had been both at dinner and lunch earlier in the day. This was a huge plus because as a wise person once said, "If Momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy."
After putting the parents to bed on Friday night, Mandy, Erin, Wendy, and I opted to keep the evening going by having a drink at The Violet Hour in Wicker Park. This is a speak-easy (owned by the same people that own Big Star) that gets crazy good reviews for their drinks. Now my palate is about as complex as 1+1, but these drinks were absolutely amazing. My drink, the Romeo and Juliet, was a gin drink with mint, cucumber and rose water all of which made up a very distinct aspect of the drink but that melded together to party it up in my mouth. The girls were super excited about their drink selections as well and we enjoyed a great hour or so of conversation in the dimly lit, classy-as-hell ambience of the speak-easy.
Not wanting the night to end, we headed across the street to Big Star to find Bruno and his friend Elodi for a night cap cap. I wish this place weren't so damn cool (they know it over there), but it really is. We worked our way into a nice spot at the bar, enjoyed some Tecates (in cans), and listened to Bruno lay out his plan to be adopted into the family.
After wrapping up at Big Star and dropping Mandy off at the hotel, we found ourselves back at the homestead deliberating over how perfect the day was. Little did we know this was just the beginning of my best weekend ever in Chicago....
Sounds like you guys had a blast. Glad your birthday weekend was a blast! Love you, Auntie T
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