a few weeks ago a bunch of college friends and i headed to chicago to visit our friend dan at northwestern. despite having been to 49 states, chicago has always eluded me so i was super excited for this trip. :) and the windy city did not disappoint! i loved every minute of it, from the ornate skyscrapers to the tree-lined avenues to the midwestern hospitality. and the food. THE FOOD! four days was entirely too short, and i’m looking forward to another visit. thank you dan :)

chicago deep dish! yes, please. although to tell the truth… it’s just as good, if not better, at tony’s little italy around the corner from my house. :)

the incredible view from our 53rd floor mag mile apartment. absolutely. beautiful.

bleeding heart bakery

it rained for most of our weekend in the city, but i feel like it made chicago all the more beautiful. there’s something about the way the street looks when it’s just rained…

frontera grill! home of top chef master rick bayless.

hot doug’s foie gras hot dog + duck fat fries. decadent and heavenly. at the same time. and worth the 45 minute wait.

i loved the art institute. could have stayed there the whole day if it weren’t for my aching feet by the end of our trip…

and of course, the millennium bean!

(i’m saving photos of the publican for the next post because it’s just that good.)

crab cakes with cucumber salad, lemon-pepper pappardelle with sausage, red pepper, and peas in a pesto cream sauce, tj’s $2.99 riesling (corkscrew fail…)

and i call this one: why the heck am i still single?!

p.s. thank you maggie. :) you know how to cure the ailments of the heart.

going to try to post a photo a day from seattle :)

one of my favorite things about spontaneous road trips is all the little hidden gems you find when you’re not looking.  cypress grill was one of those places that makes you say, this is what it’s all about.

we were on a particularly long stretch of lonely road in north carolina when i happened upon this place in my trusty guidebook.  my moon handbook says: “the cypress grill is an unprepossessing wooden shack right-smack on the river, a survivor of the days when jamesville made its living in the herring industry, dragging the fish out of the water with horse-drawn seine nets … the cypress grill is open for the three and a half months of the year (from the second thurs in jan through the end of apr), when the herrings run, and you could hardly have a more intensely authentic, small-town dining experience anywhere else.”

i was intrigued but cautious, so i asked my dad to turn into the tiny street off the empty highway in search of this shack on the river.  “if there are less than three cars there,” i said, “we’re leaving.” it kinda freaks me out when we’re the only people in a restaurant.  (sorry, make that the only asian people in a restaurant in the middle of sparsely populated southern territory.)

so we drove down this tiny residential street and i was growing increasingly skeptical.  we drove down a good three miles of quiet gravel road without seeing a soul.  i was about to say we should turn back when the road ended at this spectacular scene:

to my utter surprise there was a makeshift dirt parking lot to my left PACKED with cars.  very good sign.  i tell my dad to park, and he nearly drives us into the river trying to fit the car into the crevice between the shack and the river.  not a real parking space, mind you.

it was exactly what i would expect it to be inside.  kitschy and sweet.  a ton of locals. someone’s grandma yelled across the room for us to grab a seat anywhere.  the menu was a flimsy worn piece of white paper with hastily typed items in times new roman. i smiled because this was the kind of place you’d try to replicate in california but just can’t.

of course you have to order the herring.  twice deep fried, and you eat them whole, with a side of southern staples like hush puppies (we literally had this for 50% of our meals on our trip), cole slaw, boiled potatoes.

oyster plate. for under $7. what?! i never get to enjoy these at home because of they are so expensive..

and my personal favorite, deviled crab. it’s a spicy crabcake in a shell. oh, i ate a ton of crab on this trip. maryland crabcakes, btw, to die for. but that’s for another post should i ever get to it. :)

i think my dad’s happy.

(see john mayer’s blog for his holiday baking contest)

dear john,

here’s our holiday interpretation of “slow dancing in a burning room,” complete with orange icing flames and sad-faced gingerbread people in a winter wonder-globe.  the cake is double layered devil’s food with cream cheese frosting.  we had lots of fun making it and we really really hope we make it on your blog!  this might be the beginning of our baking career. we’ll remember you when we make it big. :)

hope you enjoy & happy holidays!

love,
crystal & jane

(okay, due to a technical mishap we’re not sure if the cake ever made it to him :( because we’re SURE we would have WON if it had!!! but here it is in all its glory anyway…)

jane spreading yummy cream cheese frosting. i thought this looked very professional. :)

m&m doors

all our little gingerbread pieces!

look at the details! sad faces! blonde ringlets! orange flames on red shingles!

gumdrop lane. the globe is an inverted fishbowl with sugar sprinkled inside.

i’m pretty sure we’re awesome.