A Fun Weekend of Cocktails and Dinner in Chicago

by Tony · May 11, 2016

We arrive

This past weekend Kathy and I drove to Chicago for a long weekend to visit her daughters. Chicago is one of our favorite places to visit. There seems to always be something new and fun to see or do, and if you like to eat this is the place. Having dinner in Chicago is always a quandary, as there are so many possibilities. I don’t think you could visit all the great little restaurants in a life time of visits or even living there.

First Cocktails

Friday night started off with cocktails at a swanky little place called Tiny Lounge . The staff was very attentive and friendly. While they do serve a limited menu of food that wasn’t our reason for visiting. The menu of wines, beers, and artisan cocktails was pretty amazing. Our booth allowed us to watch the very skilled mixologists work their magic. Kathy and the girls were a little more adventuresome in their drink selections while I stuck with a nice single malt on the rocks for my choice. Our visit was for a little over an hour with each of us having one drink. We never felt rushed by the staff to move along. I would definitely recommend the place. It is located at 4352 N Leavitt St. Chicago IL. 60618

Dinner in Chicago

From here it was a short walk (5 or 6 blocks) to our next stop a place called Gather for dinner. Located in Lincoln Square it’s a very popular slightly upscale dining spot ran by David Breo and award winning chef Ken Carter. We started off with an appetizer for the table of steamed mussels. These were by far some of the largest and best tasting mussels I’d ever had. Seasoned with white wine broth with garlic, butter, lemon + chili flake, shaved fennel, roasted celery root, ginger, according to the menu and served with garlic oil, rosemary focaccia for dipping. The taste was heavenly. Next up I had the English Pea Soup. Made with a coconut broth, curried shrimp sausage, English pea and mint, it’s a dish not to miss if you love pea soup. I rounded out my meal with the grilled sirloin for the entree. Mine was prepared medium rare and served with tempura beech mushroom, gremolata, sprouted green lentil, scallion kraut, green cauliflower purée. Kathy and Kelsea each chose the Half Chicken for their entrees, while Lindsey had the Roasted Sturgeon. A fun evening of dining! Located at 4539 N Lincoln Ave. Chicago IL. I would recommend making reservations as it is extremely popular.