My first TravBuddy Meet-up
August 14, 2009
Probably one of the most photographed spots in all of Chicago.
Thursday night I drove from my apartment in Madison, Wisconsin to my mom & dad's place in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. I got up bright and early Friday morning to catch the commuter train into the city. It got a bit crowded on the train as there was a Cubs game that afternoon.
Iconic sign of the Chicago Theatre
The Flatwater is a restaurant right on the Chicago River. Great location, great outdoor patio (though a bit tight). The weather was perfect all day long. I met the TravBuddy group, and there were a good number of us, and we sat and talked, ate, and drank for quite a few hours at Flatwater before we all got up to head to a bar called Sullivan's, where there was a nice little band playing some chill music as we pretty much continued the same activities from Flatwater's. The night ended for me at a pub called fado. At each stop our group got significantly smaller. I finally called it a night at around 2:00 and wandered back to my hotel. Another train ride back up to Wisconsin and my TravBuddy weekend was completed.
I love TravBuddy meetups, even though I only have one experience so far. Such a great group of people.
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Probably one of the most photogr…
Iconic sign of the Chicago Theatre
Chicago's feminine side. I was …
Gianina in a light moment after …
Harry Caray, the legendary broad…
Michigan Avenue Bridge looking n…
Looking East down the Chicago River
The reflective bean in Millenium…
The Chicago Tribune building on …
Various TravBuddies early in the…
Looking east at the Wrigley Buil…
The Wrigley Building
From the platform of the train s…
Wrigley Field
View of the restaurant from the …
Wrigley Field
Standing by the Chicago Fire Dep…
Great Location, Typical Big City Price
I stayed at the Hotel Burnham for my TravBuddy meetup in Chicago on August 14, 2009.
The Hotel Burham is in a convenient location on the corner of State St. and West Washington. For my purposes it was extremely nice because it was 5 blocks or so Ogilvie Station, which is where my commuter train stopped. It is also just 2 or 3 blocks from Milennium Park. This hotel is south of the Chicago River and close to places like Grant Park, Milennium Park, The Art Institute, Field Museum, Soldier Field, etc.
This hotel is not as convenient to things such as the Water Tower area including the Hancock Building. It is near to a subway stop on the red line, so a straight shot up to Wrigley Field if that's your pleasure.
The room itself was fairly small, which I've found commonplace in giant cities. The place was clean and well-presented. The traffic buzzing by on Washington and State Streets below was something I noticed initially, but got used to pretty quickly. Again, that's pretty common for downtown hotels in a city like Chicago.
I was highly amused by the stereo system they had in the room. It had a cassette tape deck in it, which is something I have not seen in a number of years.
As with any hotel in downtown Chicago the nightly rate is typically high. Deals can be found if you look, but generally in that area it's going to be a bit pricey.
The Hotel Burham is in a convenient location on the corner of State St. and West Washington. For my purposes it was extremely nice because it was 5 blocks or so Ogilvie Station, which is where my commuter train stopped. It is also just 2 or 3 blocks from Milennium Park. This hotel is south of the Chicago River and close to places like Grant Park, Milennium Park, The Art Institute, Field Museum, Soldier Field, etc.
This hotel is not as convenient to things such as the Water Tower area including the Hancock Building. It is near to a subway stop on the red line, so a straight shot up to Wrigley Field if that's your pleasure.
The room itself was fairly small, which I've found commonplace in giant cities. The place was clean and well-presented. The traffic buzzing by on Washington and State Streets below was something I noticed initially, but got used to pretty quickly. Again, that's pretty common for downtown hotels in a city like Chicago.
I was highly amused by the stereo system they had in the room. It had a cassette tape deck in it, which is something I have not seen in a number of years.
As with any hotel in downtown Chicago the nightly rate is typically high. Deals can be found if you look, but generally in that area it's going to be a bit pricey.
The entrance to the hotel on Wes…
The bed, though probably didn't …
The view out of the window. Thi…
A combo tape deck and CD player.…
I am NOT lactose intolerant
I set out looking for lunch and didn't have a type of food in mind. I thought I'd try and stick to the Michigan Avenue area because it was walkable. I ended up on Ontario as I was looking for Whole Foods to grab some fruit. Instead I found Trader Joe's and peeked in there real quick. When I left Trader Joe's I looked across the street and was nearly blinded by a Mexican restaurant across the street.
As the pictures shows it's a very colorful building. It's not everywhere that you see bright yellow buildings. I admit my curiosity caused by the paint drew me in.
I sat at a table outdoors to enjoy the postcard afternoon in Chicago. Unfortunately the food wasn't quite as good as I had hoped it would be. I ordered a side dish of queso dip for my tortilla chips, and it seemed to be fairly cheap. I don't know if it was Velveeta or what it was, but it didn't meet the standards I had come to expect while living in Austin. Granted, Austin is a bit closer to the real thing than Chicago is.
I ordered a combo plate that had a taco, chimichanga, enchilada, and a tamale. I don't ever care much for a tamale, so I wasn't surprised to not like this one. The taco was poor, with a tough shell that might've been on the verge of being stale. The enchilada and chimichanga were pretty good, but nothing to write home about.
There was plenty of dairy to be had on the plate. Cheese was in or on every thing that was on the plate, and there was ample sour cream globbed onto the plate as well. Add that to the queso dip I had from my tortillas and I received further proof that I am not lactose intolerant.
As far as Mexican restaurants go this one wasn't all that great. I was seduced by the appearance of the building and its unusual paint job.
As the pictures shows it's a very colorful building. It's not everywhere that you see bright yellow buildings. I admit my curiosity caused by the paint drew me in.
I sat at a table outdoors to enjoy the postcard afternoon in Chicago. Unfortunately the food wasn't quite as good as I had hoped it would be. I ordered a side dish of queso dip for my tortilla chips, and it seemed to be fairly cheap. I don't know if it was Velveeta or what it was, but it didn't meet the standards I had come to expect while living in Austin. Granted, Austin is a bit closer to the real thing than Chicago is.
I ordered a combo plate that had a taco, chimichanga, enchilada, and a tamale. I don't ever care much for a tamale, so I wasn't surprised to not like this one. The taco was poor, with a tough shell that might've been on the verge of being stale. The enchilada and chimichanga were pretty good, but nothing to write home about.
There was plenty of dairy to be had on the plate. Cheese was in or on every thing that was on the plate, and there was ample sour cream globbed onto the plate as well. Add that to the queso dip I had from my tortillas and I received further proof that I am not lactose intolerant.
As far as Mexican restaurants go this one wasn't all that great. I was seduced by the appearance of the building and its unusual paint job.
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Great Location.
The night at Flatwater for me started about a half-hour before the TravBuddy meetup was to start. I stood on the Clark Street Bridge watching boats, but mainly listening to the fine jazz band across the river play.
There was a large group of us for the meet-up, so we had a long table that was pushed off into the far to one side. It was at times a tight squeeze, and probably not conducive to the number of people we had there.
I ordered a spinach salad. You pay for the location here a bit. As is the case with everything else I've reviewed in Chicago, a big city premium applies to this restaurant. My spinach salad was pretty good. It had some tomatoes, which I do not like and had to pick off one-by-one, and some bacon. It was topped with a poached egg. Very well done, very tasty, nice combination of tastes and textures.
As it was a Friday night things got pretty crowded. Some people were just there to be at the bar and drink, and some were there to eat. Boaters came up and tied their boats up nearby and climbed up into the area to eat or drink. A great atmosphere and a great time, especially if the weather cooperates. It can also be a good starting point if you want to go to another nearby establishment.
There was a large group of us for the meet-up, so we had a long table that was pushed off into the far to one side. It was at times a tight squeeze, and probably not conducive to the number of people we had there.
I ordered a spinach salad. You pay for the location here a bit. As is the case with everything else I've reviewed in Chicago, a big city premium applies to this restaurant. My spinach salad was pretty good. It had some tomatoes, which I do not like and had to pick off one-by-one, and some bacon. It was topped with a poached egg. Very well done, very tasty, nice combination of tastes and textures.
As it was a Friday night things got pretty crowded. Some people were just there to be at the bar and drink, and some were there to eat. Boaters came up and tied their boats up nearby and climbed up into the area to eat or drink. A great atmosphere and a great time, especially if the weather cooperates. It can also be a good starting point if you want to go to another nearby establishment.
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