Michigan/Chicago Vacation
We left for Michigan early Saturday morning. The drive was easy until we hit Indiana Highway 80. Later in the trip, we heard on the news that there was a highway sniper in Indiana which did nothing to improve our attitude about Indiana. At any rate, once we were in Michigan, things got easy again. Our friends, Celeste and Stephanie welcomed us and our dogs, Mika and Nitro. We did some preliminary introductions with their dogs, Jenny, Ruby, Daphne, and Rafiki as well as the cats, Bob and Abbey.
They had planned a wonderful dinner that we were more than happy to relax and enjoy. We left with the recipe from that meal. We spent most of the weekend just visiting, enjoying their gorgeous backyard and firepit. Sunday evening, we had another fabulous dinner done in the crockpot. Two of their friends came over and visited with us as well. We did find a few moments to take a walk to the beach which is only about two blocks from their house. We were also introduced to a basic drink that is great on a warm summer evening. Celeste makes the best vodka, water and lime drink and the secret is in the lime. She taught us how to shop for just the right limes.
On Monday, we went shopping in Grand Haven after a great home cooked breakfast. We enjoyed the Mackinaw Kite Shop a lot and ate an appetizer lunch at Bill Mar's just for the lake view. That day was cool and windy while we walked out on the pier toward the lighthouse and watched the surfers as they nearly crashed into the concrete of the pier. For dinner that night, we made a run for the border at Butch's Burritos. It is a local place that only opens for the summer crowds and the food is fantastic. I had a burrito supreme that was far superior to any fast food Mexican. On the walls inside are photographs of people all over the world wearing Butch's Burrito T-shirts.
Tuesday, we headed out for a short drive to Saugatuck and Douglas for more shopping. Saugatuck has become very mainstream touristy as the the gay shopping mecca has moved over to Douglas. As I was wearing my HRC baseball hat, I found lots of shopkeepers came right over to speak. One in particular was telling us about some of the struggles in Douglas as not everyone was happy that it had been featured in the NY Times as the new gay hotspot. We ate in Saugatuck on the waterfront harbor where you can see all the boats and yachts that are docked.
There is no beach here like in Grand Haven. Carol and I split a perch sandwich and then later stopped for another snack on the waterfront right outside Douglas. Tuesday was my 45th birthday so our friends took us to a wonderful dinner at Snug Harbor. I had tuna and a spinach salad that included carrots, dried cherries, and macadamia nuts. It was a wonderful evening topped off by a stop at the musical fountain show for a few minutes and a few laughs. We completely enjoyed this relaxing time and the hospitality of our friends. We love ya!
We left Michigan on Wednesday morning and drove down Lake Shore Drive, stopping at the Buchanan Street beach access point for a photo op with the dogs. During the summer, dogs are not officially allowed on the beaches but away from the more touristy area of Grand Haven, we felt safe that no one would complain. They each had a good time, Mika, who does not much care for water, didn’t hate it though she did a soft growl at the waves a couple times. Nitro ran along the beach with her coat blowing in the wind making for a photo that looked exactly like one that we took of Sasha, our Pomeranian of past years when she visited this exact same beach.
Once we arrived at the Hotel Monaco in Chicago, we had to take a quick walk to a small nearby park. We went back to that small park one more time during our stay and each time found it an odd mix of dog walkers, the homeless, and workers from the above building taking a quick smoke break. We ate a late lunch at the South Water Kitchen, right next to the hotel. I had an intriguing drink of tequila, blueberry, Cointreau, and sweet/sour mix. We had a few appetizers as that was all that was available including an order of sliders which were really just miniature cheeseburgers.
On Thursday morning, we decided to walk the dogs to Grant Park and make that our regular morning destination while we were in Chicago. As it was about a mile round trip from our hotel, we had plenty of exercise. We had to bypass Millennium Park as dogs are not allowed though the first day there; we managed a quick picture at the huge reflection ball before finding out the park rules. We stopped on the way back and ate breakfast at Brian’s Juice Bar and became regulars there during our stay. I loved the blueberry smoothie which was a mix of blueberries, apple juice and banana.
Baby Nitro, our 6 pound long haired chihuahua held up very well to the busy city streets. We noticed many times that the frowns on the faces of walking commuters would fade when they noticed either dog. Mika particularly charmed people when eating at Brian’s as she sat so nice and politely while we ate. As the frowns turned into smiles, we hoped it would be a case of pay it forward.
Later that morning, we went on the Architectural Cruise that travels on the Chicago River. We learned so much great history that enhanced everything I had been learning in the book I am reading about the 1893 Worlds Fair which was held in Chicago, particularly about the architects Root and Burnham. One of the most spectacular buildings is the Gothic architecture on the Chicago Tribune offices. We saw art deco architecture and learned that it was a great engineering feat that re-routed the Chicago River from dumping into Lake Michigan in an effort to prevent the contamination of the lake drinking water.
After the cruise, we had lunch at McCormick and Schmidt’s seafood restaurant. We both had excellent steelhead trout and enjoyed a glass of Sterling Cabernet, one of our favorite wines. Later that evening, we took a taxi up to the John Hancock Tower. It was not the clearest of evenings but still a beautiful view.
We walked back to our hotel via the Magnificent Mile which is along Michigan Avenue and ended our day with dinner at Bella Bacino’s Italian Bistro and Pizzeria on Michigan and Wacker. We had the house Chianti and a non-Chicago style thin crust pizza of mascarpone cheese, goat cheese, artichoke, and spinach with a pear gorgonzola salad that was excellent. I couldn’t help noticing that the construction across the street, more towers by Donald Trump, were obnoxiously blocking the view of a neighboring high rise.
Friday morning, we had breakfast at the Corner Baker, right next door to Bella Bacino’s. Bakeries like this in big cities always make me think of the television show, "Friends." I have fond memories of a similar place in Boston where we first read that Canada was to become a place of marriage equality. Soon after, we left the tired doggies in the Hotel and caught the train to Wrigley Field. It was great to finally see the ivy walls in person. We had great seats and totally enjoyed the experience even though the Cardinals lost 6-5.
Since we had been gone all day, we wanted to spend time with the dogs. So we had dinner at Brasserie Jo’s billed as “everyday" French food where they could sit with us on the patio. I had sautéed walleye pike with warm mustard vinaigrette and frisee salad. The restaurant was listed on the dog friendly web site and was close to our hotel. Carol had duck and fingerling potatoes. The wine was a 2001 Grey sac Bordeaux and dessert was several flavors of sorbet, chocolate, passion fruit, and strawberry. The chocolate was so rich and creamy; it was hard to believe it wasn’t ice cream.
Saturday morning, we had breakfast at our hotel restaurant and the service was horrible but the food was good. I had smoked salmon, cream cheese, capers, and tomato on a bagel sprinkled with dill after an earlier raspberry smoothie at Brian’s (finally switched off the blueberry for one day). All the walking finally did us in and we decided to spend the afternoon with the dogs in our air conditioned room and watch the Cardinals lose yet again on TV. We snacked and saved up lots of room for a big dinner at Morton’s Steak House.
What a meal! We had a tempranillo wine blend called Solaz to go with our filets and mashed potatoes. We decided to splurge and diet next week so we had a Grand Marnier soufflé for dessert with the most excellent cup of coffee. I concluded our eating fest on Sunday morning with a lemon poppy seed muffin , berries and granola for breakfast.
Hotel Monaco is part of the Klimpton chain which is not only dog friendly but also very gay friendly.
Another, less expensive hotel option in Chicago is the Essex Inn.
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