Thursday, July 26, 2012

Reed's Must-Sees

Greetings, fellow Chicago conference-goers.....

There are a few things I highly recommend you do while in Chicago.

1. Architectural Cruise on Chicago River ----- not to be missed!
2. Hancock Building Observatory ----- 95th floor, you can walk out on glass bottomed enclosure.



Now for food, there are a few places you must eat at while there too.

1. Purple Pig restaurant on Michigan Avenue ----- food is great; close to hotel; unique experience
2. Riva Restaurant at Navy Pier ----  great views of city


This, of course, is a mere sampling of all the interesting things to do/eat in the Windy City.  Can't wait till we meet up for another great AAPC conference!

Reed Pew
AAPC Chairman and CEO


Wednesday, July 18, 2012

"Dragged Through the Garden" Dog....PLEASE!

Now if you want to experience everything Chicago, well you will have to try a CHICAGO DOG!  Now a Chicago-style hot dog or Chicago dog is an all-beef frankfurter on a poppy seed bun. It has many toppings which they, Chicagoan's, call "dragged through the garden".  It starts with yellow mustard on the dog, chopped white onions, bright green sweet pickle relish, a dill pickle spear, tomato slices or wedges, and a dash of celery salt.  Now you understand why they say "dragged through the garden", they aren't kidding.

You will notice there is no ketchup in the ingredients.  Well, there is a strong widely-shared opinion among aficionados that ketchup is UNACCEPTABLE.  Apparently some Chicago hot dog vendors do not even offer ketchup as a condiment.  Who knew!

Now where can you find a fabulous Chicago hot dog..check out these places:
Chubby Wieners 4652 N. Western Ave, Lincoln Square, Chicago
Superdawg Drive-In  6363 N. Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago
Portillo's 100 W. Ontario, Chicago
Hot Doug's 3324 North California, Chicago

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Learn something new...


The Magnificent Mile, sometimes referred to as The Mag Mile, is a neighborhood in Chicago, that runs along a portion of Michigan Avenue extending from the Chicago River to Oak Street. It serves as the main thoroughfare between Chicago's Loop business district and its Gold Coast.[2]

Real estate developer Arthur Rubloff gave the nickname to one of the city's most prestigious residential and commercial thoroughfares in the 1940s.[1] Currently, Chicago's largest shopping district, various mid-range and high-end shops line this section of the street and approximately 3,100,000 square feet (290,000 m2) is currently occupied by retail stores, restaurants, museums and motels.[3] It includes fine restaurants, hotels, and stores and several of the tallest buildings in the United States. In addition, numerous prestigious buildings are located along the Magnificent Mile, such as the Wrigley Building and the John Hancock Center, places listed on the National Register of Historic Places such as The Old Chicago Water Tower District and Chicago Landmarks such as Tribune Tower and the Allerton Hotel.