Chicago Whiskyfest

[Nebraska]

I know this is a little early, but I'm trying to get my ducks in a row. I looked on line, Malt Advocate states 2007 whiskeyfest as being on April 13th. Checked the Hyatt Regency on line, "Not Available". Hummm. Not a problem, I'm a big Palmer House fan, booked the room. But did I book the right dates? When is a good time to show up? Leave?

Any help here...

[TNbourbon]

Chicago's a great city. Give yourself a full day before and after the event.

[Joeluka]

On a side note----

Any one going the NY Whiskyfest?? I guess this would be a good time for roll call on both festival's.

[cowdery]

April 13th is right. It seems to move around a lot, maybe an availability thing. It was March 30 this year, a Thursday. April 13, 2007 is a Friday.

I suspect the exhibitors hit the Hyatt pretty hard for rooms, but there is no shortage of hotel rooms in downtown Chicago.

Every year, there are more peripheral events scheduled to coincide with Whiskeyfest. Typically, they are a day or two before, but not after. However, a good plan if you can swing it would be to come a day before for Whiskeyfest-stuff, then stay the weekend for Chicago-stuff.

[DrinkyBanjo]

I plan on going to NYC Whiskey fest.

[chasking]

I'll echo Chuck C.'s recommendation: come early. Actually I think the activities the day before Whiskeyfest are as much if not more fun that Whiskeyfest itself.

[doubleblank]

Chicago Whiskeyfest is on my schedule primarily for the unofficial activities. Mitch at the Twisted Spoke has two nights of activities planned if the Master Distillers can make it. Be sure and check Binny's, Sam's. Twisted Spoke's and Delilah's websites for WhiskeyFest related activities....but they probably haven't posted anything yet.

Myself and a couple of other SB'ers are planning to attend.

Randy

[ratcheer]

I agree with what several others have said - Chicago is my favorite very large city. I usually stay in "The Loop" area around the Quaker Oats building and Harry Cary's restaurant (if it is still there).

Tim

[jeff]

Leslie and I have never been to Chicago, but we're planning on attending the next whiskeyfest. Any tips for hotels and dining are appreciated.

[Nebraska]

It's nice to have a hotel close to the loop, close to the "L" if you are not driving. I've only stayed at the Hilton Palmer House and can say that the reason I keep going back is that I really enjoy it. The Hyatt Regency may have been the hot set up for this event, but last I checked they were booked. Not sure where everybody else stays, but there may be some advantage to all of us getting into the same hotel if possible.

Chicago is full of good food. Greek Islands at 200 South Halsted is one of our favorite Greek places. The Bongo Room is interesting for breakfast on the weekends. The basement at Marshall Field's (the one at Wabash, close to Grant Park) makes for a quick, good, really inexpensive lunch. Oops, I guess it's probably Macy's now?

[Nebraska]

There's a place that's North West called Bombadilla (I think) that has killer Tapas and Mango sangria that's not to shabby either. Haven't been there in a couple of years, but I would think it's still around.

[Nebraska]

My wife just told me I full of crap. Bombadilla is a place here in Omaha. Ba-Ba-Reeba is a place at 2024 N. Halsted St in Chicago (I think the neighborhood is Lincoln Park, but don't quote me on that).

Bombadilla/Ba-Ba-Reeba how am I supposed to remember that, especially after all of the sangria.

[cowdery]

Harry Caray's is still in business. So is the Field's Food Court, albeit now as Macy's. So is Cafe Ba-Ba-Re-Ba.

The thing about making recommendations for Chicago is that it depends on what you like, what else you want to do, and how much you want to spend.

There are several hotels within a block of the Hyatt, many more within two. You get the picture. Restaurants are the same way. Unless you want to be within sight of the Hyatt, proximity to the Hyatt isn't very important. That part of town is filthy with hotels and restaurants.

Here is some info on my web site about where to drink and buy whiskey, i.e., the important stuff.

Feel free to ask me specific questions, either here or by PM.

I'm told the best value in a place to stay is Day's Inn. There is one on Diversey Parkway and one on Clark Street, but the Day's Inn website only seems to know about the Diversey Parkway one. Neither is downtown, but both are in nice neighborhoods with things to do there, as well as easy public transportation to downtown.

[dgonano]

I will be at the NYC WhiskeyFest in November. Staying at the Marriott...will arrive on Friday , 3 days before the event. Hope to see all.

[chasking]

An important question to ask about where to stay in Chicago is what you want to do while you're here. Whiskeyfest itself is downtown, but that does not necessarily mean you want to stay downtown, because all the El lines go there anyway; it's the easiest place to get to from other parts of town. If you want to spend most of your time doing stuff downtown, then by all means look into downtown hotels, but if not you can probably save a few bucks and find a place more convenient somewhere else.

For Whiskeyfest attendees, a hotel in the Lincoln Park-Lakeview-Wrigleyville neighborhood might be a good idea because that will be closer to the Twisted Spoke, Binny's on Clark, and Delilah's. Since your nights are likely to end up at one of those establishments, a hotel in that neighborhood will result in a shorter stumble (or cab ride) back to your room. The Days Inn already referenced on Diversey is pretty close, especially to Delilah's; there are a few other motels in that neighborhood too. The Twisted Spoke is at 3365 N. Clark; try a Yahoo Yellowpages search based on that address. It is very easy to get from that neighborhood to Whiskeyfest via the Red Line El train.

And, that part of town is very vibrant and active with lots of restaurants and shops; downtown is pretty dead after the workers leave. A downtown hotel would be closer to Magnificent Mile shopping if that's a factor.

[Nebraska]

Wow thanks Chuck, very good suggestion. You are right, most of the time we end up heading out of the downtown area to dine and it would be nice to be close to where the evening will come to an end.

[ratcheer]

I just remembered a very good little restaurant with reasonable prices. I found it by asking a bell hop at the hotel I was staying in. It is called Bijan and it was a couple of blocks away from all the fancy stuff on the Loop. I have no idea whether it is still there.

For a long time my favorite in Chicago was Maggiano's Little Italy, but now I wonder if it is just part of the nationwide chain that has built up from it?

Tim

[CrispyCritter]

Also, if you're looking for lunch, try out Hot Doug's, truly the ne plus ultra of hot dog joints, at 3324 N. California. At this place, you can get not just the classic Chicago hot dog, but also a surprising variety of homemade sausage-on-a-bun treats. Last weekend, I had one there, cranberry/shiraz wild boar sausage with blackberry cream sauce and Port Salut cheese. :yum: :yum:

On Fridays and Saturdays, you can get pommes frites en gras de canard, or in English, French fries fried in duck fat. Naughty, naughty! - but oh, so good.

To give you an idea, I got there at 10:45 AM, with a line that almost reached the door. By 11:30 AM, the line went out the door and down the block.

[Nebraska]

I love Chicago dogs. We went to Chicago on Labor day and man oh man my favorite hot dog stand in Grant Park had shut down.:hot: Man, did I miss those wieners. I'm not a fan of hot dogs normally, but they had just the right combination of goods on the dog. One time I ate 5 in one day.:bigeyes:

[cowdery]

If you want more tips about where to eat in Chicago than you will ever need, go to LTH Forum, which is a bulletin board like this one, except the people there care about eating out in Chicago -- and other food subjects -- almost as much as people here care about whiskey.

[chasking]

Within its genre (burgers, rib tips, etc.) I think the Twisted Spoke actually has some of the best food around.

[brewcrew]

Also, if you're looking for lunch, try out Hot Doug's, truly the ne plus ultra of hot dog joints, at 3324 N. California.

A little late but I have to second the Hot Doug's recommendation. The food is awesome. You have to like a place that has the slogan "There are no 2 finer words in the English language than encased meats." Make sure to check the websire before you go as they have weirdhours and I have never been there without a line out the dorr and down the block.

[jbutler]

You have to like a place that has the slogan "There are no 2 finer words in the English language than encased meats."

Man what a disgusting visual! Only in America could something like that fly.

Now I'm trying to imagine the translation if they were to open a location in Japan. :slappin:

[bluesbassdad]

At first glance I supposed the words in question were to be a slogan in Trojan's new TV campaign.

Yours truly,

Dave Morefield

[CrispyCritter]

Now I'm trying to imagine the translation if they were to open a location in Japan. :slappin:

I took "There are no two finer words in the English language than 'encased meats,' my friend." and fed it into Google's English-Japanese translator, and then cut and pasted the Japanese and translated it back into English. Here's what I got:

“It is not, 'it can be wrapped than the meat which two is better to English the word whose', my friend”.

Machine translation has a long way to go. :slappin:

At first glance I supposed the words in question were to be a slogan in Trojan's new TV campaign.

*LOL*

Then again, I thought that "What's in your wallet?" would also be a good slogan...

As for the restaurant, I paid a visit there yesterday - and they had smoked alligator sausage with remoulade and bleu cheese on the menu... mmmmm, good stuff! It was well worth the twenty-minute wait in line!