Wanderlust Wednesday

I've been reading a ton of articles about new hotels opening up in Chicago and I am excited to continue to welcome guests to our awesome city.

The first is the Langham, which is slated to open today, and is located inside a Ludwig Mies van der Rohe building in the heart of the city. Sure we have the Four Seasons, Peninsula Hotels alike, but considering the Langham group only comprises of 19 properties in countries around the world, I think this particular property is pretty unique. The rooms start at a pretty generous 516 sq. ft, have impeccable design throughout, and of course the property has your standard spa and swimming pool. It even has a casual Mediterranean-inspired restaurant, Travelle, located downstairs and I have a feeling this won't be your typical "hotel" restaurant as we have a Lettuce Entertain you veteran running the show.

The other news that I am pretty excited about are the hotels that are speculated to be built in the West Loop neighborhood. The only one actually in the process of being built is the Soho House, located on Green St, in between Randolph and Washington St., and will have a rooftop pool and bar, 40 rooms and three restaurants. Swanky swanks. Robert De Niro's Nobu and Blue Ribbon Brooklyn Bowl openings are chatter at this point as developers are making their pitches and working around city restrictions. All in all, pretty exciting stuff considering there are no hotels worth mentioning that are located in the West Loop; now foodies can stay AND eat in the West Loop and never leave!

via Architectural Digest

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via Crain's

Spring Restaurant Roundup

This installment of my restaurant roundup is a compilation of quick eats. Pretty much shows how little time I have had lately to enjoy my favorite city! Nonetheless, they are all new to me and just because they're quick/cheap, doesn't make them any less lovable. I do not discriminate. 

Publican Quality Meats
I mean, I was NOT expecting anything less than amazing from the brain children of the Publican. The Fulton Market district is just getting a little ridiculous with the selection of places to choose from and Publican Quality Meats fits right in. It's RIDIC I tell you. I channeled the European in me and fantasized about waking up daily to go to the market to select local meats, breads and all sorts of canned jars of deliciousness, for a dinner that I plan to prepare that night. Then I snapped back into reality and ordered a pork belly sandwich. It was a beautiful day in the city, and I had a friend in town, so after we ordered our food, we took it to the park and people watched for quite some time. We could have also sat in one of the 30+ seats in house, and I will for sure come back and do so sometime soon. And get some MEAT for dinner. Lots. of . meat.

Noodles by Takashi
I feel as if the Macy's food court on State St. is quite the underdog in terms of quick eats in the city. With a Xoco ish Rick Bayless restaurant, Marc Burger, and my personal favorite Noodles by Takashi, why haven't I been eating here more? And the best part? NOT. BUSY. AT. ALL. Chef Takashi Yagihashi is a world renowned chef and his restaurant in Chicago Takashi, has recently been awarded a Michelin Star. The James Beard Foundation also named him Best Chef in the Midwest 2003. And what did I get from this superstars' State St. restaurant? A $12 bowl of Ramen. Talk about bargain shopping.
 

Lillie's Q
This isn't necessarily a restaurant post, but a catering post. My girlfriend threw a welcome to summer BBQ and got it catered by Wicker Parks' Lillie's Q. I've been wanting to stop in to get a taste of some MEAT, but crowds always divert me from going certain places and this is one of them. The catering situation was a perfect opportunity to give it a whirl and I was very pleased. With a variety of sauces and meats to taste, I can definitely say that I felt very welcomed to summer!

Soulwich
On our way back from one of the north shore beaches, Sean and I were craving Asian sandwiches. We stumbled upon Evanston's Soulwich via yelp and the 4.5 stars was what mainly drew us in. Soulwich doesn't necessarily offer your tradition Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwich, but their their signature Soulwich is served with pickled carrots, cilantro and chili aioli and toasted on locally baked bread with a choice of sides.....and not bad at all. Fresh ginger drink was a little peculiar, but the food definitely made up for that.