Category: Travel
Chicago Food and Sights – A weekend getaway
I almost forgot what a fun city Chicago is to visit! From Minneapolis, it’s only a 6 hour drive or 45 min flight making it a perfect little weekend getaway. As the years go by, and as my tastes and interests have grown, it’s been so fun to go back to these cities I visited when I was younger. Speaking of TASTES, Chicago food is some of the best! Travis and I have done a good amount of traveling in the last couple years and I have to say I’ve gotten good at researching and planning trips, from big to small! If you’re looking for ideas: restaurants, sights and things to do – here it is.
Since this was a short trip, we chose to fly via Southwest airlines, which offers early morning flights for cheap. We took a 6am flight on Saturday morning of labor day weekend. It was a little rough getting up so early to get to the airport, but I have to say it was so nice to have the entire day ahead to explore! And bonus, you can save the money for that extra night of a hotel stay and put it towards food or shopping!
*Side note: this post is not sponsored. I’m sharing the details of our trip just because I want you to have a fun experience and get good deals too! Enjoy!
We stayed at the Cambria Hotel in the Loop / Theater district of downtown Chicago. The location was PERFECT. Walking distance to tons of sights and restaurants, which helps you save on uber or train rides. The hotel was awesome. They let us check in super early (8am!) which was great for our early flight.
Chicago Food
Our first stop was breakfast/brunch and I had read about a cute cafe called “The Lula Cafe,” a little ways out of downtown. We took the train to Logan Park, which was super easy to do. The cafe has a trendy hipster vibe, with great coffee and creative brunch food. We had a just a few minutes to wait at the bar with a coffee before we got a table. Travis got the breakfast burrito and I got the sweet corn & grits with cherry tomatoes, parmesan and a slow-cooked egg. So good!
Another restaurant I had read about online was called Au Cheval, known for their amazing burger. I had read to expect a long wait, but we were still totally taken off guard by the wait time!! Any guesses? For a table of four our wait was….. 6 hours!!! What?! We couldn’t wait that long for dinner, so we headed across the street to get some appetizers at the tavern. Then explored the areas cocktail bars for drinks and had a great time, forgetting all about Au Cheval. As we’re walking home for the night (it’s after midnight), we get the call that our table is ready! So funny. By then, we could all eat again so back to Au Cheval we ran for the best burger I think I’ve ever had in my life. Yes, it was that good. My advice, get to the restaurant 30 minutes before they open and wait in the line outside, or be prepared for a ridiculous wait and have a plan B. Whatever you do, make it happen. This burger is BOMB. (PS – yes that is bacon!)
When you think of Chicago food, you probably think of deep dish pizza. But honestly, it’s not my favorite style of pizza (I know, how can you be in Chicago and not get that?), but we’ve been there, done that. So we decided to get a good authentic Italian, Neapolitan style pizza. I’d read great things about Spacca Napoli, a little pizza place tucked away in a neighborhood a little north of downtown. We hopped on the train and I heard a group of people talking about how great Spacca Napoli is! A great sign. This cute spot has a patio and the inside is adorable. It was super hot so we ate inside. Appetizers, salad and pizza were all delicious!
At the top of the Chicago Athletic Association Hotel is a gem of a restaurant, Cindy’s Rooftop. Right on Michigan Ave, this place has the BEST view. Large windows and garage doors that open into the view of Millenium park, the bean and downtown skyscrapers. It’s a must-see! Going into it, I thought this place was all about the view and therefore the food would be mediocre. I was so wrong! The food was AWESOME.
*Side note: there was a wait to get up to the rooftop. The line starts in the lobby of the hotel near the elevators. We stood in line for 10 minutes before they opened for lunch at 11am. A few minutes after we sat down there was not an open table in the place! They DO take reservations.
THE FOOD: Bison Burger with beet ketchup and kale + sweet potato fries was to die for. I got the goat cheese tartlet which was also amazing!
THE VIEW: speaks for itself!
I’m always in search of cute coffee shops with good quality coffee rather than going to a starbucks. We stumbled upon the coolest coffee shop as we were waiting for our table at Cindy’s. In the lobby of the same hotel is a coffee shop called Fairgrounds. This is probably the coolest coffee shop I’ve ever been to! They brew craft coffees from all over the country as well as nitro coffee and cold brews on tap. You can get a coffee flight and try multiple coffee flavors too! If you know me at all, you know I LOVE spyhouse coffee and Fairgrounds had spyhouse coffee! So cool!
Chicago Sights
Some things to do in the city:
- Walk along the river
- Shop
- Walk and eat in Navy Pier
- Rent bikes and bike the city
- See a show
Stay tuned for a post about our recent New York City trip! For other weekend getaway ideas see my post on Denver.
Denver, Colorado in November
This quick trip to Colorado in November was just what the doctor ordered. The perfect mix of relaxation, outdoors, exercise and good food. One of the things I love about Denver is that it’s sunny 300 days of the year! So even if it’s cold, at least it’s bright and sunny out, which can’t always be said for Minnesota. The weather was a perfect 60-70 degrees and a little cooler higher up into the mountains.
The highlight of the trip was a hike in Rocky Mountain National Park. We drove into the park and started our hike from 9,000 ft elevation and hiked to about 10,000 ft. Mountain views here are just stunning.
Another cool thing we got to experience was seeing these elk close-up. As it gets cooler, they start to come down from the higher mountains. There were 30 + of them in this area of Estes Park!
Denver Restaurant Recommendations
#1 BEST restaurant we’ve eaten at in a long time was in Denver called, Mercantile Dining & Provisions. It’s located inside Union Station downtown Denver. The atmosphere is modern, but warm and comfortable. The food is mostly Italian style and Ah-mazing. We ordered a house-made spaghetti with lobster and pancetta (mouth-watering!), gnocchi with braised lamb and ricotta and smoked short rib. I can’t even choose a favorite because they were all delicious!!
Another great place in Denver area is Snooze. It’s a breakfast/brunch place with a few locations, including one in Boulder. Their menu is awesome. So many choices. Snooze supports local businesses, is environmentally conscious and uses wholesome ingredients. Menu items put a creative twist on traditional breakfast items including some boozy breakfast drinks! Bonus: there are plenty of healthy options. We’ll always make a stop there when in Denver!
Other fun weekend getaway ideas see our trip to Chicago and stay tuned for our recap of a weekend in NYC!
Ireland Trip: What to Do, See & Eat
This trip to Ireland came about as I was having coffee with a good friend from college around Christmas time. We both mentioned that it was one of our goals for the new year to travel internationally. About 5 minutes later, we decided we were going to Ireland in 2017 (I love that about us!) 🙂
Ireland is such a lovely and stress-free trip. Airfare and expenses are relatively cheap and of course the fact that they speak English helps eliminate some of the stress of international travel.
Our itinerary, which was pretty loose, was as follows:
Dublin (2 nights) –> Dingle (2 nights) –> Doolin (1 night) –> Galway (2 nights) –> Dublin –> fly back to Minneapolis.
Dublin, Ireland
We flew in and out of Dublin for this trip and rented a car to drive to our other destinations. It’s the best way to really see the country. And driving on the wrong side of the road wasn’t so bad! 🙂
Dublin was our first impression of Ireland. We stayed in an Airbnb in the city. I’ve had awesome experiences with Airbnb, I would highly recommend. The streets are charming, full of pubs, music and of course plenty of Guinness!
The Trinity college library is a must-see. It’s also the home of the Book of Kells, which you can see in a glass display on your way to the long room with all the old books and staircases. Super cool! Visiting the library takes under an hour.
Guinness Storehouse
Visiting the Guinness Storehouse is of course, very touristy. I’d recommend skipping any of the tours on the lower levels and going straight up to the 360 bar for a pint of the freshest guinness in the world and awesome views of Dublin!
Jameson Distillery
On the other hand, the Jameson Distillery tour was awesome! It’s been recently remodeled and the tour is actually really good! You’ll learn about the history of the Jameson family, see how it’s made and at the end of the tour you’ll do a tasting comparing Jameson with American whisky and scotch.
Quick Stop: Rock of Cashel
The drive from Dublin to Dingle was the longest we did (about 5 hours). A local recommended we stop at the Rock of Cashel along the way. The town, Cashel is tiny. We had lunch at one of the few restaurants and walked through the castle ruins. There are lots of castles in Ireland, but this is one of the more impressive ones where you can walk through the inside. It was an awesome stop and doesn’t take too long.
Dingle, Ireland
Dingle is a town on the Dingle Peninsula, which is almost the most western point of Ireland, jetting out into the Atlantic Ocean. I wouldn’t quite call them mountains, but the hilly landscape along the coast is stunning. Looking out in the not-too-far distance, you can see the Blasket islands.
From the town of Dingle, we took the Slea Head drive one morning, a 1/2 hour long loop drive with beautiful views. We stopped along the way to hike and just sit by the water. Part of this drive, along the coast is called the “Wild Atlantic Way” which you see signs for all along the coast. It goes along the entire west coast of Ireland and has the most amazing views.
The town of Dingle is charming and one of our favorites! It’s a relatively small town, but has a good amount of Bed & Breakfasts (the way to go!), pubs with traditional Irish music and great seafood! Don’t skip Dingle!
Doolin & The Cliffs of Moher
It’s so hard to convey the depth and size of the cliffs in photos. They never do it justice. But to give you an idea, see that “little” rock at the bottom of the cliffs in the photo above? Here’s how big it actually is, below!
Taking a cruise along the cliffs was absolutely amazing and inexpensive. Besides seeing the cliffs from a new perspective, you can see some of the 40 different species of birds that live on the cliffs!
Doolin is a small town only a few miles from the Cliffs of Moher, making it a convenient place to stay if you want to spend a little more time than just a couple hours at the cliffs. Stay in a B&B and don’t worry about where you’ll go for dinner and drinks – there are only 3 choices! 🙂 In the morning, we took the 12 mile coastal hike from our bed & breakfast in Doolin up to the cliffs and back. This hike was amazing! A couple tips: wear good shoes or hiking boots (it can be rainy and wet) and it’s very windy! Just like everywhere else in Ireland, wear layers!
Galway, Ireland
The town of Galway stole my heart! This adorable town along the coast has more trendy restaurants and pubs in comparison to the smaller towns, but plenty of Irish charm. We had, oddly enough, some of my favorite pizza in Galway. Above, was probably my favorite meal at an adorable little European restaurant called Kai in Galway (you’ll need a reservation on a Friday or Saturday).
From Galway, you can take a drive to Kylemore Abbey, in the Connemara region, which is absolutely beautiful! The drive takes about an hour and is so worth it! I highly recommend this!
Kylemore Abbey is like a fairytale. This castle sits in the mountainous region of Connemara, surrounded by water and greenery. The grounds are gorgeous – make sure to take a walk through the gardens!
After another fun night in Galway, we headed back to Dublin to fly back home.
Food in Ireland
I have to say that I had very low expectations of food in Ireland and I was pleasantly surprised! Of course Dublin and Galway have more options and diversity in their restaurants, but even in the smaller towns, we had some great food! Definitely try an Irish classic like shepherds pie, stew or a classic Irish breakfast.
Have plenty of that fresh Guinness while you can and Irish whisky that you can’t get in the U.S. Ask the locals what they recommend; they are super friendly and offer great recommendations.
What to Pack for Ireland
Layers, layers layers! Ireland is not known for amazing weather. The temperature is typically around the 50s year-round with rain and mist often. I found myself comfortable in a T-shirt sometimes and at other times I needed a scarf, hat and coat. You’ll want a pair of boots to wear, year-round. I brought a puffy vest to layer over shirts and sweatshirts and it was the best thing I brought.
If you get motion sickness at all, bring dramamine. Those winding narrow roads will get you, especially after a night of guinness and whisky!
Tip: Ireland has different outlets than the rest of Europe so make sure your adapter is specific to Ireland.
I’d love to hear about your experience! Comment below!
Travelogue: Cinque Terre, Italy 2016
This little stretch along the Italian Riviera is stunning. Cinque terre means “five villages.” Which is exactly what it is. Mountains and ocean come together for amazing scenery. It’s dramatic cliff-side villages, ocean views, hiking, swimming, charming little streets, and awesome seafood and pesto. We had just 2 nights here and it left us wanting more. We’d definitely come back here some day! The 5 villages are: Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore. No cars are allowed in the villages and they are connected by a train that comes every 30 minutes. Just past Monterosso is a less touristy town called Levanto, but the best views are on the 5 villages. We visited 4 of the 5 during our stay.
These are some of our photos from our hike from Corniglia to Vernazza, sunset in Riomaggiore, seafood and pasta meals, charming streets in Vernazza and cliff-side buildings in Manarola. I don’t have much to say because the photos speak for themselves! Until next time Cinque Terre <3
Next stop: London
Travelogue: Florence, Italy 2016
TRIP ITINERARY (15 days total)
Prague, Czech Republic – 3 nights
Rome, Italy – 3 nights
Florence, Italy – 3 nights
Cinque Terre, Italy – 2 nights
London, England – 3 nights
We arrived in Firenze (as the Italians call Florence) by train. The train station isn’t too far from where we stayed in San Lorenzo. Our airbnb was an adorable little apartment with a rooftop terrace overlooking the Duomo. The photo just above this is our view from the terrace! There are quite a bit of tourists in Florence but the vibe is already different than in Rome. Much less crazy, even though we’re right in the heart of the city.
It’s lunch time and we’re getting hungry so our first stop is the Mercato Centrale. Hands down the coolest, most colorful and interesting market we’ve ever been in. I always like looking through the seafood since we don’t have much of that in Minnesota. I’m looking at the underside of a fish trying to figure out what it is and the Italian man behind the counter sees me. He flips that huge fish over and it’s staring me down!
Florence’s Duomo is the center of the city. Once again the detail of the architecture is beautiful. Inside the actual dome part is painted all the up to the point and I have to say I thought it was maybe even more impressive than the sistine chapel. We climbed the 465 tiny, steep, spirally stairs to the top of the Duomo for an amazing view of Firenze.
Lovin’ the food scene in Florence. It was much easier for us to find good, non-touristy restaurants than in Rome. Cute little wine bars, lunch cafes, bakeries, and trattorias are everywhere. Most have adorable outdoor patios with fresh flower baskets and even if they don’t, the people drink their wine outside lining the cobblestone streets in front of the bar.
Florence is known for their Tuscan cattle which produces awesome steaks and leather goods. We popped into a little family owned restaurant called Pandemonio for a bistecca Florentina. We have a 9pm reservation and good thing, because the place is packed! We can tell a lot of locals like this spot, a good sign! The owner is a little 73 yr old Italian woman. I called her signora and she instantly corrected me saying “No no no, I am Mama.” Love it!! I hear other guests calling her Mama. The food here was the best we had in Italy. We ordered a tortellacci filled with fresh ricotta and pesto and covered in a red meat sauce…to die for! When you order your steak, they bring it out raw to show you the cut and tell you the weight (ours was 1.3 kg)! It’s always cooked medium rare and it would be a sin to ask for it medium-well. We almost finished the entire thing!
The few hours we got to spend in Tuscany were HEAVENLY. Like, literally. Take a look at that rainbow! It was a rainy day and while we were inside doing our wine tasting, it down poured. We came outside to see the most amazing rainbow we have EVER seen. The rain and wet landscape in the hills and vineyards was beautiful. The photos don’t do it justice. Within the first few minutes we decided we’d definitely be spending more time here on our next trip to Italy.
Next stop: Cinque Terre
Travelogue: Rome, Italy 2016
TRIP ITINERARY (15 days total)
Prague, Czech Republic – 3 nights
Rome, Italy – 3 nights
Florence, Italy – 3 nights
Cinque Terre, Italy – 2 nights
London, England – 3 nights
Italia! At first sight, it’s even more magical than we imagined. The huge building columns, statues and fountains left us awe-struck. It’s just mind-blowing to imagine the ancient Romans building all of it thousands of years ago. Right away there’s definitely a different vibe than in Prague. A steady hustle and bustle, passionate people, plenty of pasta and wine, and all surrounded by a backdrop of scenes we’d only seen in school books before a few weeks ago!
The streets of Rome are so charming I can’t even stand it! Every corner we turned, cafe we passed and adorable doorway we walked through I was whipping out my phone to snap photo after photo. Outdoor cafes, fresh flowers, cobblestone streets, old rustic doors, pasta, cheese, wine…it’s pretty obvious why I was instantly in love with the city.
A food tour in Rome was a necessity. We definitely did a lot of exploring on our own but the help of an expert was nice, especially when there are so many touristy restaurants to get caught in. This tour was in the neighborhood Trastevere, which literally means “across the river.” It’s much less touristy and full of Trattorias (family-run restaurants). We visited something like 8 different restaurants for a little taste of something in each. From left to right and down:
1. Burrata is a super fresh creamy mozzarella cheese that is usually paired with fresh tomatoes, basil and olive oil on bread. Delightful!
2. Gnocchi with mussels and a Roman classic: carbonara. Some of the best pasta we had.
3 & 4. Porchetta Sandwich. Porchetta is a savory pork roast paired with fresh gorgonzola on bread. This was one of my favorites!
5. It was hard to get a good photo of this dark wine cellar, but definitely one of the coolest things on the tour. This cellar is below a restaurant and was discovered to have been built in 80 AD! We had an appetizer inside with a local red wine.
6. Veal with bacon on top (!) and potatoes in a delicious sauce.
7. Roman style pizza has a very thin crispy crust. This is a Pizza Rosso with sausage and mushrooms.
8. Can’t forget about the gelato! Stracciatella was my go-to flavor. A creamy white with specs of chocolate.
9. The funny (and awesome) thing about Italians, is that they structure everything around eating and figure out how to maximize how much they can eat! Aperitivo is a pre-dinner cocktail the Italians have to “open the stomach” and get the juices flowing so that you can really enjoy the upcoming meal. That cocktail is typically an Aperol Spritz, which is this orange drink pictured. It has prosecco, aperol and a spritz of soda water, although the Italians make it pretty strong!
10. After dinner, the Italians have a cocktail like Limoncello or Grappa in order to help digest the meal you’ve just eaten. It really works!
I’d definitely recommend a food tour while traveling. Finding the non-touristy places off the beaten path is a must for a great food experience. Eating Europe does a great job!
Next stop: Florence!
Travelogue: Prague, Czech Republic 2016
Ahh Europe!!!
This has been one of our dream vacation destinations for a while. Neither of us had ever been, making it all the more exciting to experience together. There is so much history to see, new cultures to immerse ourselves in and of course, AMAZING food! This post is all about Prague, our first stop.
TRIP ITINERARY (15 days total)
Prague, Czech Republic – 3 nights
Rome, Italy – 3 nights
Florence, Italy – 3 nights
Cinque Terre, Italy – 2 nights
London, England – 3 nights
Italy was top of our list so we decided to spend an entire week of the two there. We’d heard so many people say that Prague is one of their favorite European cities so we made that a priority as well. Lastly, London was appealing because of the diversity, English-speakers and ease of location for flying out of Europe back home.
Planning started in February when we decided to take the trip. Fall is a great time to go because the weather is more comfortable than summer, but still very nice. It’s also a bit less touristy than during the Summer, when a lot of Europeans are taking their holidays, as they call it.
Take a look at these photos, which highlight our favorite experiences in each location with descriptions and useful tidbits in case you are planning a trip of your own. We hope you enjoy these little snippets of our travel adventure together!
The Prague skyline along the Vltava river is stunning. We enjoyed its views walking along the river and across the Charles bridge and by taking a night boat-ride along the Vltava.
The St. Vitus Cathedral is our favorite architectural piece of Prague. This gothic church is located within the Prague Castle. The detail is absolutely amazing!
The Kampa island on the Vltava river has these charming little canals that they nickname, “Prague’s Venice.” There are some restaurants along the canal so we popped in for a “take away” beer to enjoy outdoors 🙂
In order to really experience the food of the Czechs, we booked a food tour through “Eating Europe Tours.” Traditional Czech food is very heavy and they don’t use a lot of fresh vegetables, making it not the most appealing to me. The food tour was a great way to learn about and try their traditional Czech foods, but also get into some of their modern, fresher takes on meals.
1. Maso (meats) from a local butcher shop were awesome! Some of the best sausages and hams.
2. Chlebicky (open-faced sandwiches) with a gourmet twist. Trav’s favorite.
3. Classic bohemian/Eastern European soup made with fermented sauerkraut, potato and mushrooms in a venison sausage broth. This was my favorite!
4. Svickova (beef sirloin in a cream sauce with dumplings). This is a very typical Czech meal. And yes that is whipped cream on top!
Of course Czechs are famous for their beer, so we had a local beer with every meal, which were super fresh!
We stayed in the Vinorhady neighborhood near a metro station. It was perfect location. Lots of cute pubs and cafes in the neighborhood and easy access to transportation for getting around. We would stay there again.
Next stop is Rome!