Today I went to Wildberry Pancakes & Cafe,  located on 130 E Randalph St, with my friends Nadine and Iza. It's right near Millennium Park, so if you're taking the train there you can get off at Randolph/Wabash and walk about two blocks up. I love that it's near the park because it feels like you're in the heart of the city.

The food was good, I had the Florence Eggs Benedict, and a side of Berry Pancakes. The pancakes were delicious! The Benedict was fine, but I prefer my mother's hollandaise sauce more.

It was one of those typical fancy brunch spots, but it wasn't over priced and the service was good. Our server, I believe his name was Nate, was very kind and attentive. I would go there again in the future based on the service and its proximity to Millennium Park.

After breakfast we walked across the street to the park, and enjoyed the weather while watching torists use selfie sticks to take pictures with the Bean. It was entertaining; people watching is always fun.

Check out their menu! And if you ever go, make sure to try their pancakes!

Fun Fact: If you need to use the bathroom while you're Downtown, the Chicago Cultural Center is free! And after you're done peeing, you can check out the art  and exhibits. It's right across the street from Millennium Park, and it's a lovely place to visit. The architecture is exquisite, and there is even a small library for Spanish speakers. Don't miss out on this piece of history.

On Thursday I went to Sweet Maple Cafe, located on 1339 W Taylor St, in Little Italy with a favorite Professor of mine,  my friend Liza, who is also a big fan of Professor Jen R, and my friends Alex and Jacque. I loved being able to spend time with Jen, she's amazing and always encourages me to do more. I really love her :) Although I wish I didn't have to rush off to my final exam, I'm glad I got to catch up with her before my extended vacation in Italy this summer. I was so happy to be with Liza, Alex, and Jacque too, I love them all dearly.

[Background:

About a year ago I met Jen when she taught English 240 (Intro to critical theories) and it was there that I made a group of friends that, most of whom, I am still in touch with. We came together and formed, what the kids call these days, a "squad." After some mischief in the Library Basement bathroom at school, I suggested the group name "the Feminine Napkins," and we never looked back, even translating it to French just to sound fancier, and abbreviating it to "Fem Naps." Our group was great, and since we met in Jen's class, and love her, we named her "Mother Napkin," or as I like to called her, "the maxi pad." Liza, Alex, Nadine, Alicia, and I, made up the squad with Jen as our parental figure, or sort of mother, and we never wanted to disappoint her, ever. It was a great time, and the squad continues on today, with most of us still a part of it.]

The food was great! I ordered the Sweet Maple Special and that came with eggs any style, home fries, bacon, and an extremely satisfying biscuit. The coffee wasn't bad either. The service was slow, and that's my only complaint, but I suppose I wouldn't have cared as much if I didn't have an exam to run off to! It gave me some anxiety and pissed me off because I didn't want to be late... I can get pretty antsy... I have been described as uptight at times, so I recommend not going if you have some place to be at a set time. The food is worth the wait, but not if it will cause you anxiety if you need to run off.

Besides that, it was a great breakfast and a great gathering of awesome people that I love. And I'm happy to say that the exam I was stressing over went well and was pretty easy, and after it was done I felt so free! The semester is over!! So now, onto the next adventure, the next food experience. You'll hear from me again when I'm in Italy ;) Have a great summer guys!

Please enjoy this photo below of flowers from someplace Downtown.

      About two weeks ago I went to Antique Taco, located on 1360 N Milwaukee Ave, with my friend Ricky. It was AMAZING, a complete hipster's paradise for tacos  and    cervezas.  The food was great, and the vibe was very relaxed and hipster-esque. Those hipsters really know their tacos, not exactly authentic, but authentic to their own style and  multi-ethnic influences.  

        I had one order of pork carnitas and one of crispy fish tacos with Sriracha tartar sauce. Both were delicious, but I think I liked the carnitas just a bit more, probably because of the bacon strip on top! Bacon makes everything better. I also had a Horchata milkshake. HORCHATA MILKSHAKE. Hopefully the use of all caps  makes clear how delicious and simply amazing it was, I highly recommend it. 

        After our taco binge, we headed over to the Latino Film Festival to see La Gunguna,  which was an amazing film and we even got to have a q&a with the director  afterward. I was even asked to take someone's picture with the director since Ricky and I stayed behind to find out more about the film. It was great and the soundtrack was just as outstanding.  I'll attach the trailer to this blog. 
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        Make sure to check out Antique Taco's website and take a look at the amazing  menu! And don't forget to enjoy tacos often. Have a great Sunday :)

     The other day I went to a very cool, very hipster-esque breakfast place called Whisk, located on  2018 W Chicago Ave.  My friend Ricky, who I have neglected for too long, chose the place and I enjoyed it immensely. The service was super casual, and the feel of the whole place was extremely hipster/yuppie-esque. The water glasses were mason jars. MASON JARS. That was the first sign that we had walked into a hipster paradise.
   
    The walls were covered in art, lots of Lana Del Rey portraits, etc, but the best art was at the entrance. Right when you walk into the restaurant you see a number of Ron Swanson portraits. Ron Swanson , played by Nick Offerman, is the amazing breakfast loving, meat eating, wood crafting, survivalist bad-ass on the show Park and Recreation. He is well known for showing his love of bacon and eggs, basically all breakfast food, and seeing his portrait at Whisk just made me love the place more and more.
    
      Everything on the menu looked great, and I had a hard time deciding but ended up ordering the  Buffalo Chicken Hash (Buffalo chicken, bacon, avocado, tomato, lettuce served on top of house potatoes, topped with two eggs any style and ranch dressing, and choice of toast). It was amazing! I wasn't really hungry, but I finished the entire plate. That should be an indication as to how delicious it was.  I highly  recommend going and trying the place out.   I have to go back soon to try the Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Pancakes that I spotted on the menu, so if any of you wanna go, please take me along with you.