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Category Archives: Dani
Boka
Of all the Michelin starred restaurants in Chicago, Boka must be one of the greatest bargains. For little more than the cost of a typical restaurant you can have a spectacular meal. And the cozy yet classy, relaxed yet professional … Continue reading
Pride Sushi and Thai
What a delightful surprise! This small fusion restaurant is creating some of the most beautiful—and tasty—sushi in Chicago. The menu is about half Japanese, half Thai, and many of the fusion items are spicy, such as their take on … Continue reading
Grace
Grace is certainly deserving of its two Michelin stars. Everything about the experience is near perfection, from the extremely professional yet friendly service to the plating of the food, which turns each dish into an individual work of art, combining … Continue reading
Chicago Dining – Summer 2014
L2O Having dined at nearly all the top places in Chicago, this one stands out. Just on the basis of the exceptional wine list, L2O (which stands for Lakes to Oceans) deserves its Michelin stars. Each offering is so well … Continue reading
Moto 2014
It had been a couple of years since we went to Moto, Chicago’s temple of molecular gastronomy. We had a very different experience on this visit from our past visits. It began with a table downstairs, in a space we … Continue reading
Chicago Museum of Science and Industry
Linda flew in to Chicago for a long weekend and to escape her Disney projects. Dani and I met her at Midway with Korean Barbecue tacos from the nearby Dos Ricco’s Mexican and Asian Cuisine. I like the Korean taco, … Continue reading
Bottles and Bottega
Last month Dani and her friends visited Bottles and Bottega to drink some wine and paint a picture. It looked like so much fun I suggested we go there on the evening I arrived in Evanston, and Dani eagerly agreed. … Continue reading
Posted in Art & Sculpture, Dani, Evanston, Wine
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Butter Cookie Taste-Off
We did a butter cookie taste off, buying tubs of butter cookies all over Solvang. Olsen’s Danish Village Bakery was the first of four bakeries in Solvang where we purchased a tub of five dozen butter cookies. These were among … Continue reading
Posted in Dani, Dining, Linda, Los Angeles
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Four Concerts, Seven Bands, Five Days
It’s been a busy few days in Chicago. I originally booked this trip for the Vienna Teng concert and launch of her new album, but as the timing worked out I was able to also fit in the Hart Davis … Continue reading
1990 and 2000 Bordeaux Tasting
Hart Davis organizes an annual Bordeaux retrospective, and this year’s event was particularly impressive. It was held in the private room above Spiaggia overlooking Michigan Avenue in Chicago. It’s a beautiful space, although Spiaggia itself is a fairly terrible restaurant. … Continue reading
10 Million Words
From the time Dani was a baby until she went off to college, I read to her every night. As the years passed, our reading material became a lot more sophisticated, but we never tired of the routine. Here are … Continue reading
Posted in Books and Writing, Dani, Orlando
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Michael Jordan’s Steakhouse
Dani and I went to an Adobe Road Wine Dinner here, rather than experience the normal dining room offerings. We were going to meet in the bar, but on a Wednesday night after work it was a madhouse, so we … Continue reading
Lang Lang at Ravinia
Chinese pianist Lang Lang rose to fame with his first performance at Ravinia in 1999, when he was just 17, as a last minute substitution. He returned this year for his 12th Ravinia appearance. It was a cool night for … Continue reading
Smoke House Garlic Bread
For years I’ve been trying to duplicate the amazing garlic cheese bread served at the Smoke House Restaurant in Burbank, California. Tonight I finally did it. The secret is to make up a paste and spread that on the bread. … Continue reading
Why Are Concerts So Loud?
I’ve never been to a concert that wasn’t too loud. But last night’s One Republic concert set records. Even though we always wear earplugs, our front row edge seats were right in front of the sub woofer, and we were … Continue reading
Goo Goo Dolls and Matchbox Twenty at Ravinia
For the Fourth of July Dani and I took the Metra up to Ravinia Park for dinner and a concert, rather than watch the Evanston fireworks from her balcony. The timing on the train worked out pretty well, because we … Continue reading
Jackson Browne at Ravinia
We have a full summer of concerts planned, mostly at Ravinia, the wonderful outdoor venue north of Evanston. We usually sit in the pavilion, but for this concert we could only get lawn tickets, which turned out to be lots … Continue reading
Northwestern University Graduation
Dani graduated from Northwestern University on June 21st, 2013, with a BS degree and double majors in Communications and Psychology. Linda, Nicole and I travelled to Evanston for the festivities. It was an activity-packed few days. We began at the honors ceremony … Continue reading
Harold’s House of Omelets
When we used to live in Westlake Village, Harold’s House of Omelets was our favorite spot for breakfast. Sometimes we close the Alcorn McBride office and head over there for a late breakfast, because Harold’s wasn’t open for lunch! Wednesday … Continue reading
Posted in Dani, Dining, Los Angeles
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1985 & 1985 Bordeaux
Every year Hart Davis Hart hosts a comprehensive Bordeaux retrospective, and this year’s event focused on 1985 and 1986 Bordeaux. HDH pulled out all the stops, with two bottles of almost every notable wine, including the first growths. There was … Continue reading
Tru
Five years ago Dani and I visited Tru while on her college tour, and we had one of the greatest meals of my life. But then a year later Linda and I returned, and had seven courses of glop in … Continue reading
Masala Chickpea Burger Recipe
Dani made these vegetarian hamburger patties that were actually better than regular hamburgers. Ingredients 2 cans chickpeas 2 cups cooked brown rice I carrot, grated 1/2 large zucchini, grated 1 cup grated uncooked sweet potato 1/2 white cabbage, chopped/grated 1/4 … Continue reading
NU
I took a walk with Dani around the Northern Evanston area and the North part of the Northwestern University campus so she could put up flyers about her thesis project. I hadn’t been on that part of the campus before, … Continue reading
Dani’s Salmon Wraps
This was a great lunch wrap sandwich Dani made. Ingredients 1 package cooked shredded salmon 3 or 4 tablespoons of olive oil 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 1 teaspoon white sugar a pinch of brown sugar garlic powder 3 or 4 … Continue reading
Dani’s Spinach and Zucchini Lasagna
This was the best lasagna ever: Ingredients About 9 Pasta sheets (make your own or use fresh pasta from Whole Foods) 1 15oz package of part skim ricotta cheese 3/4 cup mozzarella 1/4 cup parmesan 1 egg Approximately 4 cups … Continue reading
Wynton Marsalis
We decided to check out the downtown venue used by the Chicago Symphony, but since they are playing opera at Ravinia, we went to a jazz concert by the Wynton Marsalis Quintet. Before the concert we had lunch at one … Continue reading
Posted in Dani, Dining, Evanston, Music, Photography
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Roller Derby
Last night Dani took me to her highly anticipated roller derby game. She explained the rules before we went, which helped me to understand what was going on. It was a little hard to understand the announcer, so things were … Continue reading
Gotye and Missy Higgins
Last night we went to Chicago’s other outstanding outdoor performance space, The Charter One Pavilion near the Field Museum, to see Missy Higgins and Gotye. Charter One Pavilion offers a great view of the city, and you can walk along … Continue reading
Donald Fagen (Steely Dan), Michael McDonald (Doobie Brothers) and Boz Scaggs at Ravinia
For our final Ravinia concert of the year, Dani and I went to see The Dukes of September, a twelve piece band headed by Donald Fagen (half of Steely Dan), Michael McDonald (lead singer of the Doobie Brothers), and Boz … Continue reading
Road Trip: Iowa
There is a lot of corn in Iowa. Seriously. I think we might have crossed back into Wisconsin when this photo was taken, but you get the idea. Actually most of the day we were driving through southern Minnesota, and … Continue reading