Cinco de Mayo Early

My girlfriends and I had an early Cinco de Mayo celebration. The girl in charge of dessert blew it out of the water with this cake, so I had to share. The entire thing was almost all frosting, which was good for a frosting lover like me!

Wedding Season Dresses

Part of what makes summer fun is the invites to friends' weddings. Although I love all the Save the Dates, check out Lindsey & Ben's made by Nico and Lala and Michelle & Joseph's made by Studio 255.

Wedding season is also a great excuse to buy new dresses. I went a little dress crazy at Ann Taylor and Loft. Can't wait for it to warm up a bit so I can start wearing these!

LOFT Corded Dobby Stripe Flare Dress

LOFT Colorblocked Seamed Sheath Dress

LOFT Grosgrain Trim Bustier Dress

Ann Taylor Doubleweave Cap Sleeve Dress

Des Moines Weekend, Part 2

This past weekend I went to Des Moines again to visit the boyfriend. Before heading there though, I got this manicure. Couldn't decide what purple to get...so went with five different colors!

We ate our way through the weekend. There are surprisingly so many restaurants in Des Moines - we spent almost an hour just choosing where to go to on Saturday night. The nice thing about a smaller city though is that you have a better chance of getting a reservation than in a city like Chicago.

I started my Saturday out with a twist on my regular latte. My girlfriend over at A Sequin Dress At Breakfast had posted about peep lattes at Jeff's favorite coffee shop, Java Joe's. This little treat definitely put a smile on my face.

After taking our doggy girl to the park, we grabbed an early lunch at Exile Brewing Co. This restaurant and brewery was recently opened by the same family who owns the established Latin King restaurant. The space is in a renovated former soap building in the Western Gateway neighborhood and the decor is contemporary and sleek with touches of rustic wood. We sat in the brew house, which has a view of the fermentation room. They also have an outdoor patio just off the brew house. The craft beers were so good, but the best thing was the fried pickles. They were entire pickle spears and the breading was still doughy...drooling just thinking about them.

To burn some calories before another big meal with our friends for dinner, we went on a walk along the Riverwalk. This was so much fun exploring and little Travi couldn't have been cuter mimicking my every move.

Before meeting up with friends for dinner, we grabbed drinks at a favorite spot of mine The Continental, which is in the East Village neighborhood. This restaurant has a great bar with a phenomenal cocktail menu. I was getting beyond tipsy trying all of the yummy cocktails. And the bartender is a great mixologist and so friendly that you want to be best buddies.

For dinner we went to Alba in the East Village neighborhood. This restaurant was a nominee for a 2010 James Beard Restaurant Award and was voted "Best Restaurant" by the Des Moines Register in 2010 and 2011. The food is contemporary American and was so good, but the portions were small and some people in our party were left feeling a little hungry. The decor was unique with doors hanging from the ceiling. There is also a chef's table in which you get front row seats to the cooking action. The menu changes frequently so this would be a place to check out again. 

And soon the weekend wrapped up and it was time to go home. Always hard to say good bye to this little nugget (and her dad, of course).

Baume & Brix

Earlier this week I went to Baume & Brix with a girlfriend. This restaurant opened about six months ago in River North by the chef who used to run the kitchen at Moto. The place is decorated to be cozy and modern with a gas fire place almost the entire length of the room and backlit walls. The chairs and light fixtures were also to die for.

Don't get me wrong, the food was good but my potato chip gnooci tasted like a glorified version of hash browns. My friend ordered the octopus that came with three dipping sauces and she said it was great. We were shockingly surprised at how empty the restaurant was. I think that this is because of the prices. They don't have many entrees under twenty bucks and there aren't any appetizers priced under ten dollars. This eliminates a lot of the young after work crowd who would be more likely to go to Siena Tavern or Central Standard just down the street for a similar atmosphere and better prices. That being said, the service was phenomenal and I would recommend this place for an after work cocktail or a date night on the weekend. There is also a bar downstairs called The Grid that I want to try.

And if you have an extra several hundred dollars to spend there is a private room that can seat six people. You can get as many courses as you want with wine pairings and the chef serves you.

Longman & Eagle

This past Sunday I went to Longman & Eagle in the Logan Square neighborhood for brunch. I had never been to Logan Square and after getting off the bus I was a little suspect because the neighborhood looked deserted. They don't take reservations and we soon discovered the wait was an hour and a half, but it ended up being well worth it. We passed the time with cocktails in their recently opened bar out back. There wasn't a disappointed person at my table, and I think we'd all be willing to come back and order anything on the menu. This restaurant won two awards as one of the 'Best New Restaurants in America' and Chef Jared Wentworth also received a Michelin 'star'. So well deserved.

After reading about the chef on the Longman & Eagle website, I like this place even more. From the website: "Despite his love for the luxury products that are featured on his menus, Wentworth believes dining should be affordable and have price points that draw a large and varied clientele. Seasonality and sustainability should be first and foremost in the menu making process, with a profound sense of respect and care put into attaining the best farm and pasture products to the table."

The brunch menu is mostly savory with only one sweet entree. I absolutely stuffed myself splitting the donut appetizer, eating my entree, trying all of my girlfriends dishes and finishing off by demolishing my friends fries. Let's just say my afternoon called for a long walk and some exercise.

Gethsemane Garden Center

Yesterday my sister and I went to the Gethsemane Garden Center in the Edgewater neighborhood. This place spans over a couple of blocks and is the place to go if you want quality plants and a fun shopping experience. I have been dying for a fiddle leaf fig, which is an indoor tree. These are relatively hard to find and Gethsemane has them. Now if only I didn't live in a studio and had room for said tree.

Central Standard

This past weekend my sister and I made a last minute reservation at Central Standard. This place just opened in River North and sources all of their food from places that are in the Central Standard timezone.

Central Standard is a good place to go if you love a house made cocktail and like trying new places in the city that have great ambiance. The menu has a wide variety of options and I wanted to order almost everything. For someone like me who isn't the most educated food critic, I thought it was good. That being said, I wouldn't recommend this place to a total foodie. The shrimp and grits left me unimpressed, however the burnt end tostadas, fried goat cheese and smoked short ribs were absolutely delicious. They also have a fabulous elevated party room that would be phenomenal for after work cocktails with a big group.

Museum of Contemporary Art

The Museum of Contemporary Art is one of my favorites in the city. The space isn't overwhelmingly big so you can actually get through it in a reasonable amount of time. The fact that I like modern art also helps. And I've recently discovered the outdoor sculpture garden, where they serve Wolfgang Puck catering. Pretty neat space for a summer afternoon of culture and lunch.

This past Tuesday I went with some girlfriends for a visit to MCA. The inspiration for this visit was that Tuesdays are free year round for Illinois residents. This is also the only night that they are regularly open late until 8pm. Good for us working folk.

The wall of the cafeteria. So fun and playful.

The most confusing piece of art. I literally thought this was a bulletin board.

And some of our favorite pieces.