Chicago, a culinary destination

When it came time to decide where to go on our summer holiday, the husband and I were torn between two American cities. Fortunately the decision was made for us when our favourite band announced two shows in Chicago.

When we choose a vacation destination, it is usually based on the city itself. Once chosen, I then spend a good amount of time researching restaurants in that city -- best of, trendy, etc. -- and then making reservations.

Our first stop in Chicago was Rick Bayless' Frontera Grill. We were very lucky that we made reservations because we showed up on the Saturday following Chef Bayless' win on Top Chef Masters. The wait time for a table for lunch was two hours. I was expecting a great experience and I was not disappointed -- Chef Bayless is a James Beard award winner (the awards are hung in the restaurant) known for authentic Mexican cuisine. Frontera Grill is the more casual of his two restaurants. We started with the house-made guacamole. It was the two dipping sauces that accompanied the nachos that really made an impact. For my main course, I had cazuela de pollo -- a creamy chicken stew with potatoes, which was the special of the day. The husband had sapito -- a trio of Xalapa-style gorditas in chipotle-black bean sauce, each with its own topping: scrambled eggs, grilled chicken. Ignore everything the talking chihuahua has taught you because this is modern, fine-dining cuisine. The serving staff was efficient and knowledgeable.

Dinner on our first night was at Alinea. The most expensive restaurant that I have ever visited. Regardless of whether you are a foodie, a cook or simply like eating, this is one place that I recommend that everyone visits once in their life. Read my detailed review here.

Following one of the best meals of our lives, we had brunch at The Publican. I would like to live in this restaurant. The decor is a modern take what I imagine to be a Roaring Twenties bar. There is a large harvest table in the middle and booths lining the wall, which have swing doors to get in and out. The male servers wear beige jackets from a simpler time. The best part for ladies is that the cocktail tables have hooks on the underside for you to hang your purse and each chair has a shelf below the seat to store items. My breakfast consisted of red wine poached eggs with prosciutto, sourdough and bernaise. The combination of the egg, bread and sauce was to die for. The husband had the frittata -- lobster mushrooms, artichokes, gouda and ham. One the side, I ate the best hash brown ever, probably the best because it contained Parmesan. For dessert, we split a plate of fresh ricotta with figs and hazelnuts. Great coffee and to be honest, as other people's food went by, we contemplated the fried chicken and weiswurst.

If you are looking for Chicago-style pizza, we went to Lou Malnati's. Now let me tell you, when you order sausage on a pizza here, it means whole sausages sliced in half, grilled and put on your pizza -- not little bits of meat that the big chains call sausage. If you go to Chicago, the other pizza restaurant that was recommended to me was Giordano's.

For dinner on the night before we went to our second concert, we went to Spiaggia Cafe -- the more casual version of Spiaggia. The husband had the arugula salad. For my appetizer, I celebrated tomatoes with two pieces of bruscetta made with tomatoes from Nichols Farm. For entrees, the husband had the potato gnocchi with wild boar ragu and I had pappardelle with Nichols Farm peas and a lemon sauce. Hands down, we both agreed that this was the best pasta that we have ever had.

Unfortunately I was on my own for my last meal in Chicago. I went to Avec, owned by the same people as The Publican. This wine bar was recommended to me by a friend and the restaurant focuses on local offerings. To start I had one of the specials of the day -- crispy pig ear and trotter salad with salsa verde, frisee and creme fraiche, which was paired nicely with a 2006 Verdus (Cotes de Thongue). As my entree, I had the Nichols Farm 'BLT', which consisted of bacon-cured foie gras, heirloom tomatoes and arugula. To finish, I had the house-made chocolate bars (all desserts are made by Blackbird next door). One piece was a simple dark chocolate, the other milk chocolate with feuilletine.

Two other places to mention as you are wandering the streets. Corner Bakery has several locations in the downtown area. They make really neat treats -- I bought a vanilla whoopie pie on the way back to the hotel one day. I was grateful for the recommendation to find an Argo Tea location. Imagine a Starbucks devoted to tea, and at the end of August, I enjoyed my Mojiteas.