Weekend Recap - Beating the Heat

This past weekend I had a sorority sister blow into the Windy city, and with her came the heat... :) (SCORCHER ;) ).

We met up on Wednesday for some pedicures and dinner. We went to a local place where she convinced me to be a little adventurous (more to come later).

Afterward, we tried this local restaurant I had found online right down the street from my apartment.

Season52 is an AMAZING addition to my local foodie repertoire!

S.J.P. got the AMAZING Shrimp Salad that came in the most unique serving I've ever seen!

The waiter then lifted the glass bowl up and swirl it so the salad gracefully fell around the plate... lovely.

I got the Fillet Mignon with mashed potatoes and asparagus (YUMMERS!)

Then for desert they brought out this little handy endeavour:

Miniture deserts in SHOT GLASSES! Of course they were all ready to serve...

But it gets better! (I know, crazy!)

ALL ITEMS ON THE MENU ARE UNDER 475 CALORIES! The restaurant prides itself on locally grown seasonal sourcing and providing healthy foods in proper portions. I have to add, we left stuffed, almost finishing our plates...

AMAZINGNESS!

Skip ahead to Friday.

I am lucky enough to get Summer Hours which entails the ability to leave work on Fridays around noon (or whenever in the afternoon we can sneak away). It's awesome. I left to meet up with some friends around 3pm for a happy hour at Bandito's down the street.

Mmmmm John Daley's!

Saturday I made my way into the city to meet up with a reader! It is so neat to connect with people from this little adventure of mine (and I extend the invitation that if you're ever in the area and would like to meet up, let me know!). Well K.B. (not to be confused with my sorority sister K.B.) and I met just down the street from BF's apartment at this little french restaurant, Bistrot Margot. It was lovely!

I'm somewhat sad I don't have my old french skills (although I'm sure Marce and Madame Weisendanger can attest they were never Stellar to begin with).

I greatly enjoyed the Croque Madame (basically a ham and cheese sandwich with and egg on top, and breakfast potatoes on the side). K.B was having a craving for the pancakes which they topped with the most amazing looking berries. Overall, it was a quaint restaurant, with great service, and limited crowd.

After brunch and some fun chatting about the south and Chicago, I made my way to Oak St. Beach to meet up with some sorority sisters who recently moved to the city. After some catching up, one of them caught a glimpse of my toes...

"Wait... You PAID for that???" ~E.S.

Yes, I got sea green nail-polish with a white french tip... while S.P. got purple with a silver glitter tip. I am officially crazy.

I ended up meeting S.P. again that evening while her hubby and sister-in-law went to a Goo Goo Dolls concert (yes, they still perform, apparently make new music as seen in the new Transformers movie, and S.P.'s hubby is OBSESSED!). 

We went just down the street from BF's apartment to Adobe grill, an old standby favorite.

LOVE LOVE LOVE the FRESH GUAC!

Multiple Margs were a MUST!

 After some fun convo and delish food, we headed back to BF's apt where he insisted upon viewing his acting debut in POINT BREAK: LIVE. Long story short, this was a live version of the heinous 90's movie that appeared on stage in Chicago last summer. BF got pulled up to play the part of Keanu Reeve's character, Johnny Utah. And confusion/hilarity ensues.

 After a long day/night with friends, we crashed.

 Sunday we got up late and went to Brunch at our (My) favorite breakfast place, Nookies. We road our bikes (which BF could not be more thrilled about, but my butt was less thrilled about). I'm still getting used to this, especially in the increasing heat and humidity (I did NOT move to Chicago for 114 humidity!).

After brunch, we road our bikes to Oak Street beach to get cool in the lake and wait on BF's volleyball game. The sand was so hot, I staid on my towel or in the water the whole time (ps... Lake Michigan is gross, the that so does NOT count as a Beach). But what a view:

Hancock tower

View from the bike path.

After all that beach time, we made our way to the movies to meet up with G.M. to see Harry Potter! It was very sad to see that whole story line come to a close.

Phew... quite the weekend I know.... I'm just trying to survive this massive heat wave taking hold of the Midwest. I feel like Madame Summer just didn't think we knew it was summer and was like 'oh, you haven't turned your fans on yet... let me heat things up a bit so you have that honor'. I CAN NOT WAIT to go to the Beach!

What are y'all doing to stay cool?

Week Recap: The Summer Has Arrived

Another beautiful weekend in Chicago. We get so few, that I try my best to enjoy the few that we have. It has been so beautiful, I was really looking forward to enjoying the outdoors (being as how work has kept me indoors so much of late). Saturday I got up a bit early in order to run some reports. But I was able to make it into the city by lunch. BF and I walked through the market to find lunch but ended up at Adobo Grill. I enjoyed my personal preference of the Margarita, but BF got this drink that was basically tomato juice, lime juice, and beer... it was weird... I love their fish tacos!

We met with a friend of BF's for bike riding along the lake front. You know that saying, 'it's just like riding a bike' as in, it's so easy you pick it up almost immediately. Yea, I guess I haven't ridden in awhile. I was able to make it fairly well, and we caught some beautiful views:

I had to rest a bit... a couple of times... but BF was very understanding:

We're preparing for our 25 mile ride in 2 weeks for his Birthday!

We stopped to watch the dogs playing on the north shore lake dog park. They were so fun! They were rolling around in the sand and going after balls in the water!

Saturday evening we just enjoyed sitting on the patio with some friends with some cocktails.

Sunday I was super excited for brunch as Nookie's Summer menu is available complete with their crabcakes and poached eggs! This is by far my favorite breakfast; I don't know if it's the crabcakes or the dressing they serve with the greens:

It's MY FAVORITE!

BF got the Vegetables with Poached eggs. It was very tasty and I swear the sauteed zucchini and squash made the plate!

I'm so looking forward to next weekend! My good friend is coming into town and the girls are taking the city! Adventures to ensue! I'll keep you posted! 

PS I'm on the lookout for a cut pink beach cruiser for the big bike ride coming up in two weeks (I'm hoping it won't be as painful as the mountain bike). Suggestions are greatly appreciated!