Anniversary Brunch

After our deep-dish pizza lunch at Lou Malnati's, my husband and I spent the afternoon at the Field Museum in Grant Park. I can't say that I would recommend it: it was crowded, hot & stuffy, with kids running everywhere.

That evening we went to dinner at a well-known Mexican restaurant whose chef has appeared on PBS and the Food Network. We were really looking forward to that meal, and unfortunately we were disappointed. The meal wasn't bad; but it was a long wait for food that wasn't great, far short of the fave reviews we'd heard.

Sunday (our actual anniversary) redeemed the weekend. My husband, being his usual romantic self, found a great place for us to celebrate with a scrumptious French brunch: Bistro 110. When he made the reservation, he mentioned it was our anniversary, so our waiter greeted us with complimentary glasses of sparkling rosé wine. :)

What I Ate:

• Bistro bellini: Champagne with fresh white peach puree
• Fresh bread, served with raspberry jam and a whole roasted clove of garlic - the featured ingredient of the month was garlic (yay!)
• Shrimp Gumbo: traditional Louisiana gumbo with Gulf shrimp, andouille sausage, tasso ham, okra, and rice - not too spicy, just flavorful
• Eggs Louisiana: sautéed crab cakes topped with poached eggs, Hollandaise and Creole sauce
• Gateau Breton: a traditional French cake from the Brittany region of France, made with sea salt, served with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, and caramel sauce - a good balance of sweet & slightly salty, my favorite dish of the meal!

The Scoop:

Bistro 110 (www.bistro110restaurant.com) is located at 110 East Pearson Street, Chicago, IL 60611. Their hours are M-Sat 11:30am-10pm, Sun 10:30am-4pm (brunch) and 4-9pm (dinner). Reservations are available by calling (312)266-3110.

After brunch we spent a few hours at the Chicago Institute of Art, in the Impressionist (good Matisse exhibit) and Contemporary art wings. Afterwards we walked to Buckingham Fountain in Grant Park (photo above). Obviously, the weather wasn't great - lots of clouds and fog the whole weekend - but I think I might have been disappointed if we hadn't experienced "real" Chicago weather. Overall it was a fun, relaxing getaway weekend with my wonderful hubby!