I can happily admit that I fell in-love with another city.

 

For Memorial Day weekend, I got to explore Chicago in all of its beautiful, patriotic, and architectural glory.

 

Hotel

 

 

I stayed at the LondonHouse Chicago, Chicago’s luxury riverfront hotel – and let me just tell you, it has the BEST view in Chicago.

 

The rooms were spacious and the hotel was gorgeous – Hilton’s Curio Collection does not disappoint. However, I will say, it was packed for the weekend and their rooftop bar was THE happening place for locals and tourists alike – making the elevator situation quite an experience, to say the least. The hotel was bombarded with people, but the hotel’s staff was always generous and thoughtful.

 

 

Food

 

• Wildberry Pancakes and Cafe

The best breakfast I have had in while! It was truly a feast and I did not regret it at all. The Signature Berry Bliss pancakes were amazing and the Mexicana Sizzlin’ Skillet fulfilled all my cravings – also, it must be noted that their iced-coffee was pretty darn good.

 

• Giordano’s

Did you even go to Chicago if you didn’t have deep-dish pizza? It was good – but honestly, it’s not my cup of tea; I’m still partial New York style pizza. For appetizer, we had cheesy garlic bread and calamari – no complaints, both very good.

 

• Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ

I’m a total sucker for these types of things. The food was tasteful and it was a fun dining experience. For my beverage, I originally tried the Lychee-Tini and did not like it – then, my server surprised me with a White Peach Cosmo (he must know me) and that one I enjoyed. For dinner we opted for the Shogun – it comes with miso soup, salad, tuna poke, shrimp dumplings, beef sukiyaki bibimbap, kobe style kalbi short rib, new york strip steak, sweet & smoky bbq flank, premium rib eye, harami miso skirt steak, lamb chops, chicken breast, duck breast, shrimp, mushrooms, and s’mores.

 

• Miller’s Pub

This gothic, old-fashioned pub was the perfect place to stop at after walking around the Chicago Art Institute. The sautéed Sausage, Peppers & Onions and Fried Wisconsin Cheese Curds were amazing and just what we needed. Surprisingly, they did not have Guinness on draft but they did have O’Hara’s Irish Stout – I had never tried it before, but I loved it.

 

Things to Do & See

 

• Millennium Park

There are many things to see in this iconic park: Cloud Gate – the mirrored, bean-shaped sculpture was designed by Indian-born British artist, Sir Anish Kapoor, it is the centerpiece of AT&T Plaza at Millennium Park. The Jay Pritzker Pavilion, also known as Pritzker Pavilion or Pritzker Music Pavilion, is a bandshell in Millennium Park and the design of it is awe-inspiring. I actually got to see it when they were prepping it for the Chicago House Music Festival.

 

• Navy Pier

This Chicago landmark is a must, especially on a lovely, sunshine-filled day. Kick back and relax at the beer garden, check out the juxtaposed view, take a ride on the Centennial Wheel, and revel in all the beauty the pier has to offer. There is a seasonal FREE Navy Pier Trolley that you should take full advantage of – trust me, your legs will thank you.

 

• The Art Institute of Chicago

Ivan Albright, Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, Grant Wood, and Georges Seurat, oh my! The architecture of the building is a masterpiece of its own. There is a lot of art to get through – I would say, impossible to do so in a single day. The ticket prices may seem a bit high, but it is worth it (Fast Pass: $35 Adult, $29 Student | General Admission: $25 Adult, $19 Student). They offer some great deals for locals, along with combination packages for tourists (Chicago City Pass, Sky Deck Combination Ticket, and Navy Pier Combination Ticket).

 

• Adler Planetarium

Ok so, all the shows were sold out, therefor we didn’t choose to explore the planetarium. To be honest, we came for the view and it did not disappoint. I even got to touch the 50° water with my toes – they went numb instantly.

 

• Oak Street Beach

This is pretty crazy to me – I had no clue there was a beach in Chicago… I didn’t go in the water, but it was interesting to see, especially with the city buildings near by.

• The Magnificent Mile

Take advantage of all the huge stores and restaurants The Magnificent Mile has to offer. It isn’t New York’s famous 5^th Avenue, but it still impressionable. They actually have the 2^nd largest Uniqlo in the U.S. (2^nd to NYC) – I, of course, could not help myself.

 

We wanted to go up the Willis Tower, but the wait was 3 hours – yeah, no thank you. It is definitely something I would want to see next time I visit Chicago (which I’m hoping will be soon).

 

Check out my VLOG on YouTube for more on the trip:

 

 

Until next time!

 

-Caylin