Restaurant Card: Cafe des Architectes

Search Words: Cafe des Architectes, 20 E Chestnut St, Chicago, in the Sofiten Chicago Water Tower, Chef Gilles Arzur, French, Mediterranean and Latin American Cuisine, Best Brunch under $24, 2007 Best Conversational Bar, Best Restaurant for Business

Restaurant Card: MK

Search Words: MK The Restaurant, 868 N Franklin St, Chicago, Chef Eric Simmons, Chef-Partner: Michael Kormick, Best Chef Midwest Nomination, Best Special occasion Dining 2007

Restaurant Card Intro

Did you have birthday traditions when you were growing up? Maybe your dad took you fishing or mom made your favorite waffles on the morning of your big day. Not totally out of the norm, my family went out to dinner at the restaurant of the older-and-wiser one's choosing. Until approximately age 10, Chuck E. Cheese was my personal dining preference. The puppets were admittedly a little ominous and freaky, but I killed at skee ball. As my taste buds became more refined, I advanced to Beni Hana. This was my b-day destination spot for probably a few more years than I'd like to admit; the "Beni Hana bersday" song still resonates in my mind, and I maintain a bizarre penchant for little Buddha statues.

Eventually, my grasp of the fine dining experience did evolve. I started to select restaurants in the city instead of those in local strip malls; the menus no longer contained the word hibachi; the ambiance was not defined by the shrill cries of Ritalin-deprived adolescents; and my expectation for the service within went beyond the chef being able to flip a shrimp tail into his hat on command (I love you, Beni Hana). With a family of five, five birthdays a year allowed us to sample a myriad of chic San Fran hot spots and famous eateries riddled with Bay Area history. Here, my affinity for fine fare began.

So when my mother recently moved to Chicago, it was no wonder that she wanted to immediately familiarize herself with the local gastronomy. She searched through magazines and web sites but found she was unable to keep track of all the restaurants she liked, disliked, or had yet to visit. Fear not - a solution I did create! See, I regurgitated all the information, research, and reviews I could find about a particular restaurant onto a 4x6 index card and compiled a vast number of cards into a cheap Walgreen’s photo album. In essence, I created an assignment book of restaurant cards for my mother on which she could directly document her dish, experience, and thoughts about the eatery! The effort put toward this on-going gift to her did indeed prove to work in my favor, too; every time she wanted to sample a new spot, guess who she called on as her dinner date!

I discredited my mother’s suggestion to make these cards public because, well, she’s my mother - - she used to frame my pre-school finger paintings - - of course she’d be proud of my latest creative output. But when some friends started asking for copies of the restaurant cards as well, I figured this might be a nice offering to the extensive food-loving population in Chicago. So here you go... look for all my posts with the blog label "Restaurant Card" and keep checking back for new additions!

**PRINTING INSTRUCTIONS: Click on the Restaurant Card. Feed a 4x6 index card into your printer then go into your Print Properties and switch the Orientation to “Landscape” and the Paper Size to “Photo”. Please let me know if you experience any difficulties printing!**

Referrals Around Town

Ever wish you had a stellar list of professionals around the city for your every need? A hardwood floor company? A masseuse? A porch builder, periodontist, or pooch sitter? A colorist, contractor, or cabinet guru? Golly, I was recently looking for a pedicure place that still uses that razor tool on your calluses (don't judge me; it's glorious)... through a referral, though, I found one!

Being in a business that is based on referrals and word of mouth, nothing gives me greater pleasure (save for a pint of Häagen-Dazs perhaps) than returning the favor! What is the point of networking if you can't make connections?

So if you have the name of a note-worthy professional in or around Chicago, please add to the list of connections! Go ahead - rave about that dentist or optometrist or decorator. They deserve your kudos!


Colorist: Olga @ Charles Ifergan Salon on Oak Street 312.642.4484
She gets it right every time! Mention my name when you make an appointment!

Tattoo Artist: Tim Hanan @ Atmosphere Tattoo on Fullerton 773.276.8282
Creative, imaginative, beautiful artistry, very professional... then he went out to buy jumper cables to jump my car battery afterward!

Home Inspector: Jeff Roth @ Chicago Metropolitan Inspection 312.613.6723

Mortgage Banker, Web/Graphic Designer, Executive Recruiter, Personal Trainer, Financial Planner, Event Planner, IT Professional, Organizational Consultant, Real Estate Attorney, Office Supplies, Tax Accountant, and more! The Chicago Business Exchange is more than a networking group - it's a professional referral group. Find what you're looking for at www.ChicagoBusinessExchange.org

Listen up!

My accountant, Chris Wesolowski of West Tax Service, will be coming through your air waves tomorrow (Saturday 4/18/09) from 11am - 12pm on 890WLS. He will be speaking about tax and accounting issues relavant to today's economy!