Al's Italian Beef

I finally went to the Chicago Loop (28 E. Jackson) location of Al's
Italian Beef. Loop workers eagerly waited for the fall 2010 opening
of this franchise. I had the Italian Beef sandwich with sweet peppers
(sweet peppers, giardinera are $0.45 extra each!) and french fries.
The hand-cut fries are billed as the best in the nation. I disagree
and found them too salty. That said, I ordered them after 2pm so I
should give them another try during lunch hour. Travel Channel's "Man
vs Food" featured a segment on Al's Beef. Check out
http://www.manvsfoodfans.com/illinois/als-italian-beef/

Barneys Have a Foodie Holiday

Barneys New York decorated its Chicago and New York City
windows with the Have a Foodie Holiday theme in cooperation with
the Food Network. The Chicago window (pictured) featured a number of local
celebrity chefs including Rick Bayless of Frontera Grill, Topolobampo
and Xoco.

You can see lots of the New York City windows on Martha Stewart's blog
at http://www.themarthablog.com/2010/11/have-a-foodie-holiday-at-barneys.htmlç

Just Got MacBook Air

I just got the MacBook Air today! It came directly from Shanghai,
China through FedEx. They didn't have the 13 inch model with 4GB of
memory in Chicago area stores. You can see me taking a self-portrait
using the Photo Booth feature. I'm excited to explore all the features.

More Photos from 1-800-Baskets Blogger Event

I took so many photos at the 1-800-Baskets blogger event that it was hard narrowing down the photos to post. We used glue dots (never seen them before) to keep things in place. I got help tying the ribbons to the basket.

Disclosure: I received gift bags from 1-800-Baskets.com

1-800-Baskets Blogger Event

Here are more photos from the 1-800-Baskets blogger event that I recently attended at their Melrose Park, Illinois headquarters. We made our own 1-800-Baskets in the design center where they had storyboards and aisles full of food to go into the baskets. Would love to have hung out in the design center for a few more hours. Celebrity event planner Shawn Rabideau of Bravo's "Bethenny Getting Married" gave us tips on entertaining at home and decorating throughout the event. Brand leaders from the different 1-800-Flowers divisions - 1-800-Baskets.com, Cheryl's, Fannie May, The Popcorn Factory, and Winetasting.com gave short presentations about their brands. Reps from Celebrations.com, DesignPac, and GFGB were also in attendance. We tasted cheeses and wines from Winetasting.com and Fannie May chocolates in the kitchen. Then, went home to enjoy our treats. I asked Ann Littlefield of Winetasting.com how many cheeses to buy if I am entertaining for 6 adults. She recommended serving two to three cheeses - goat cheese, brie, and Carmody (an artisanal cow's milk cheese made from jersey cows).

Disclosure: I received gift bags from 1-800-Baskets

Ladies Who Lunch at Zodiac Room

I definitely felt underdressed compared to some of the chicly dressed
women at the Zodiac Room at Neiman Marcus. I ordered the orange
"soufflé" because it is one of their most popular items. The
"soufflé" (more of a orange gelatin and cream dessert) comes with
chicken salad, sweet bread, and a fruit cup with dresssing. The lunch
was good until I realized that Neiman Marcus (even in the Zodiac Room)
only takes American Express, Neiman Marcus charge card, or cash.

Zodiac Room Popovers

Had lunch at the famous Zodiac Room in Neiman Marcus for the first
time. The meal starts with a complimentary popover (yum), strawberry
butter and chicken consommé in a small coffee cup.