Girl and The Goat

Stephanie Izard is pretty much my idol. A successful female entrepreneur, visionary and damn. good. chef. Her restaurant, The Girl & The Goat, has only been open for one year, in which time I have only had the pleasure of eating at twice (mostly because reservations at normal eating hours are ridiculous to come by and I'm not cool enough to "know" somebody). In that one year Stephanie Izard has managed to snag raving reviews from Time Out Chicago, Saveur magazine, Food & Wine and was nominated for the 2011 James Beard Best New Restaurant Award. ONE YEAR. And before that she was the first female winner of Top Chef. Legit.

This past weekend two of my girlfriends couldn't make our rez for four, so the lucky two of us who were left got to sit right at the kitchen bar. If you want to have a romantic, boring dinner, don't sit right in front of the kitchen, but if you want to have fun and watch the artists at work and chat about the food, where it comes from, the chefs favorites and of course, other boring people eating at the restaurant, then the "best seat in the house" is just that. A bottle of red wine, Roasted Cauliflower, Chickpea fritters, Braised Beef, Pork Ribs and a ton of laughs with the staff later I decided that this is what the other side must be like.

And Taye Diggs.

Good thing I’m compiling my “it’s too cold to breathe outside” list. Here’s to #1 on my cooking projects list: Girl & The Goat Recipes

Weekend

I have to admit, I've been partying pretty hard lately and also working just as much to match. Rough life, I know. Definitely needed this weekend of "rest" so according my definition of it, that's just what I did. Stocking the fridge to make some recipes I've been oogling over, buying flowers to lighten up the apartment, stopping by Design Harvest down the street, going to Wolff's flea market in Rosemont and spending an afternoon exploring downtown Evanston, which is freaking beautiful, by the way. Monday you've got nothing on me!

[Meat and Garlic? YES.]

[Wood side table]

[New friends]

[Evanston, IL]

Instagram My Life

I really question how I ever functioned efficiently without my IPhone. My little buddy is such an intuitive tool and I am surprised everyday by the [entertainment] purposes it offers. One day I'll be sitting on my pinterest and wonder how 30 mins has passed so quickly, while multitasking to book a hotel on my hilton app, pulling up directions to the next location I'm headed to and then texting a friend to tell them that I'm running late (very rarely in this context of course =) ). On the other hand, I wonder if my brain is being killed softly.

[Target.com can suck it because through persistence and tons of yelling at the website, I got my Missoni pouf!]

[A watch that I plan to own someday (soon). In the meantime, dreamtime. I tried this on while I waited to get my battery serviced on my Michele at Division St Watch Co by the awesome owner Steve]

[Balloons lining Michigan Ave for a Chicago Ideas campaign]
[Sunday Funday with a little NFL quiz action at Mother Hubbards in River North. Not to brag, but me and my girlfriend got 100% with no googling][Never get sick of the view from our living quarters][An early morning run on the "beach", a little north of the city]

Noble Experiment

I'm starting to become a pro at these quick weekend trips home. This time it was to surprise my dearest friend Jessica for her birthday and thanks to some sly planning and a few white lies, she was truly surprised to see me last Friday night at Noble Experiment in downtown San Diego. I like the novelty in the design of Noble Experiment as you enter through a wall of what appears to be a stack of kegs that you push open to the entrance of the bar. The idea of the speak easy, prohibition era bars are starting to become a dime a dozen in cities all over the country, but nonetheless, they are all so unique that each experience is something in itself. The decor at the bar was very Haunted Mansion-like and the drinks were as strong as the number of ingredients listed for each one!

Unfortunately the girls and I got a little too silly and I, oopsie!, came home with barely any photos of my weekend trip home. Between my Iphone, Intagram and my canon, here is what I ended up scrounging up.

[View from Jessica's new apartment. Lucky!]

TopShop

The second US TopShop location opened in Chi town this past Thursday and the British retailer is bringing lots of excitement to Michigan Ave! I went the day after the grand opening to avoid grand opening and FNO traffic and was not disappointed by the aesthetics and fun fall fashions. Personally, I think paying $80 for a polyester shirt warrants a trip to the likes of H&M/F21, but nonetheless, there were plenty of pieces worth impulsively paying up for, like $12 frog pearl earrings =).

Rocky Mountain High

I spent last weekend away from Chicago to visit the oh-so-beautiful state of Colorado, which I will always consider my second home (I'm starting to acquire a few "homes" as the years go on as you can tell). I now have a new reason to call it home as I am a new auntie to the most adorable small person on the planet. You will surely be able to spot the resemblance. I am not the most kid-friendly adult, especially as I adjust to living in the city, but this little one made it quite easy to adapt. Reading his mama's blog also helped to prepare me!

[Boulder, CO]

[Baby blogger training]

[Baby Einstein]

[Happy baby]

[Future CU Buffalo]

[I die for this outfit. Must buy to keep myself warm during winter]

[Downtown Denver with the ladies]

[Newlywed and New Mama. Still got it!]