Over the years Deb and I have visited Chicago perhaps a dozen times, including four recent stopovers on our way from Detroit to the far west on the Amtrak train Southwest Chief. Details of those brief visits can be found on my Travels West blog (link on my homepage).
We once again traveled via Amtrak, on the Wolverine. We left Detroit (Dearborn Station) on time, arriving Monday March 13th at 4 pm, ten minutes late. We'd booked the trip amidst the mildest February on record for our area, hoping we would have good weather in mid-March. The weather was horrible. In fact, during our full day in Chicago (Tuesday), the weather was cold and snowing, possibly the worst weather day of 2017 so far.
We had planned for just such an emergency, though our hotel bar and restaurant threw our plans askew. We stayed at the comfortable Club Quarters Chicago Loop Hotel. It is on Adams St., about ten minutes walk from Union Station (walk east, toward the Lake and the Art Institute). The Elephant And Castle Pub that used to be here was a place in which I was hoping to spend two quiet afternoons, sipping craft beer, enjoying nibbles, and watching busy Chicago pass by. Alas, upon arrival the restaurant was closed, gutted, and undergoing renovations. That left me with no decent craft beer pub close by.
However, we still had a number of cafes and a vegan restaurant right at hand. We checked in, rested, then headed out to my 2nd choice pub, a bit of a hike from the hotel.
Chicago is the largest city in the Midwest, by far. It's 9.7 million people vastly outnumber Detroit's 5.7 million (that includes Windsor and Essex Co., Canada). And where Detroit has some of the world's finest skyscrapers and older buildings, Chicago has ten times the amount. Same with newer buildings. I'm not even certain that NYC has more high rise buildings than Chicago! The Loop is the central downtown business area, home of banks, etc. The transit system's elevated trains all make a loop through the area, and thus the name. Luckily our hotel was far enough away from these noisy trains. The elevated tracks block out the sky for several of the main streets downtown. There is also a rickety old subway, which we did not use on this trip.
I had never been in Chicago during a snowstorm. Suddenly signs appeared on every sidewalk: "Danger--Falling Ice." Yup. Huge piles of snow and ice would suddenly come crashing down to the street and sidewalk. Nice. Many of the larger buildings can be used as an alternative to walking outside on the sidewalk, as they have vestibules and hallways that cover entire blocks. I'm certain that more than a few wise commuters know exactly how to minimize their time outdoors on cold, windy, snowy days, and still travel quickly through the Loop.
The canyons of Chicago are extensive and deep. In the background is Willis Tower, formally Sears Tower, still one of the tallest buildings in the world. It is 1450' high, and has 108 stories. It costs $23 to get up there! We gave it a miss, having done it several years ago. The Art Institute charges $25. We gave that a miss, too (been there, done that). Cultural Chicago attractions are out of reach for most budget minded families.
Looking west up Adams, from in front of our hotel.
Calder Sculpture, Chicago, on a snowy day.
First Draft is the premiere downtown craft beer pub, just south of the loop, at 649 Clark St. We attended for Happy Hour on Monday and Tuesday. Appetizers are half price. They have just over 50 taps, and over the two days I got to sample 9 of their beer offerings. They offer paddles of four 4 oz glasses. The beer menu is well organized, and they have a lot of good bottles, too. Here is what I had on draft:
Ayinger Brau Weisse, Germany: *** stars (highest rating).
Pig Minds Vanilla Bitch Slap: **1/2 stars.
Tripel Karmeliet, Belgium: *** stars.
Victory Blackbeard: **1/2 stars.
Pollyanna Orenda: ** stars.
One Trick Pony Stallion, Illinois: **1/2 stars.
Off Color Smores: *** stars.
Bosteels Kwak, Belgium: **1/2 stars
I also had a delicious 12 oz Belgian beer, which I forgot the name of. Vegan food is limited. I don't recommend the guacamole, as the chips are deep fried in-house and very unappetizing. Another down side are the innumerable tvs, all tuned to sports, as if it mattered. The pub itself is comfortable, and was never crowded on our two visits.
Deb was able to check out espresso at four different cafes: Pete's, just above Union Station; Intelligentsia; Revival Cafe (and Bar); and Bow Truss. Her finest experience was at Revival (above).
We made a truly great discovery inside a large building kitty-corner to our hotel. A giant, all new food court had recently opened, consisting of about 20 independent cafes and restaurants (no chain food or coffee places here). We ended up spending some time here, in a pleasant atmosphere (very crowded at noon hour). Vegan food was abundant, and I enjoyed one of the best coconut curry sweet potato soups ever!!
In the same building as our hotel, but only accessible by a walk outside and around the block, was Native Foods, an all-vegan restaurant with counter service (they bring the food out to your table). We ate here twice, usually getting too much food to eat all at once. Sadly, our hotel room lacked a fridge and a micro.
Right beside our building on Adams St. was the historic Rookery Building, one of the world's finest and oldest skyscrapers. We had walked right past it a number of times on previous visits. The inside is filled with charm and detail, and there is a totally amazing Frank Lloyd Wright shop in the lobby!
Lobby of the historic Rookery Building
Lobby of the historic Rookery Building, opposite side to above.
There is only one used book shop downtown, but it is so poorly organized that we barely spent any time there. Selected Works Books does have a lovely cat, though, and views out to the Lake through some very old windows. I thank my lucky stars for John King Books in Detroit. There is a Barnes and Noble in the Loop, but so what.
Our train for Detroit was booked for a 6 pm departure. However, because the weather was so miserable, the streets were filled with slush and salty puddles, and it was COLD, and the hotel pub was CLOSED, we rebooked on an earlier train, leaving Union Station at 1 pm. With the time change and arriving one hour late into Dearborn (typical for the Wolverine Service), we were back in our vehicle (free parking in the Amtrak lot!) by 7:45 pm. We went to the Midtown Detroit Whole Foods, where I picked up 48 beer. We also ate dinner there and did a bit of shopping. It was still winter, and there was snow in our driveway as we pulled in.
Although the trip was fun, and I didn't have to drive at all (!!!), and I had some great beer, it is really disappointing how expensive museums and such are in Chicago (never mind opera or symphony tickets). I will visit anytime for the food, beer, buildings, and such, but culturally Chicago has priced itself off the Midwest map. Detroit museums cost much less, and Cleveland Museum of Art is free! (I consider the three major Midwest cities to be, in order of importance, Chicago, Detroit, and Cleveland. Other great cities include Buffalo, Cincinnati, Columbus, Indianapolis, and Kansas City, with lesser cities that include Ann Arbor, Toledo, Fort Wayne, Columbia, MO, and Dayton). If including Canada, then Toronto is a must. Upper Midwest would of course include Minneapolis/St. Paul, and Milwaukee. We are long overdue for a revisit to Cleveland, so stay tuned.
Mapman Mike
