Before hitting the airport, I made sure I had time to fit in breakfast and lunch.  Since I spent yesterday walking mile after mile, today was spent near the hotel area and Michigan Avenue.  Have you seen the water fountain inside the entrance of Water Tower Place?  It’s pretty spectacular.  I was craving something filling, warm, and sweet.  I rarely crave for sweets, but I had decided to give in to the temptation.  Today’s breakfast was at the Original Pancake House.

I arrived around 10:15AM and there was a line.  If there was a line on a Thursday morning, imagine what craziness the weekend brings.  Don’t be fooled by the name of the establishment as it serves omelets, crepes, waffles, and other breakfast items.  The omelets are oven-baked and these things are ginormous.  Just picture three regular moleskin notebooks stacked together, or maybe a baby manatee.  In any case, it’s a meal in itself.  As tempting as it was to order the omelet, I was there for the pancakes.

I ordered the buttermilk bacon pancakes and the southern-style hash browns.  The hash browns weren’t anything special, so let’s just move on to the pancakes.  I was expecting a big, fluffy stack of pancakes, but it wasn’t so.

Don’t let the picture fool you, these pancakes were small, thin, flat, and lifeless.  Did the cook sit on the pancakes?  And do you know what happens to thin pancakes?  They get cold really fast!  And nobody likes cold pancakes.  The savory-ness of the bacon and the sweetness of the syrup went together very well, but I think I would’ve enjoyed them much more if I wasn’t in a race against time.  The last bite of pancake was on the cool side, and the whipped butter no longer melted into the porous surface.

After battling the wind and rain on Michigan Ave, I knew I had enough because my shoes and socks were starting to get a bit moist (from the rain).  Walking around N. State St. and Rush Street, I decided to have lunch at Tavern on Rush.

I was led to a table by a very pretty hostess where I was glad to be finally taking off my heavy  and overstuffed backpack.  The lunch menu contained so much deliciousness that it was hard to decide on a choice, but I settled on the Rib Eye Steak Sandwich.  8 ounces of meat sandwiched between fancy bread?  It’s a good start.  I’ve had good rib-eye sandwiches in my day, was I going to be in for a treat or disappointment?

The sandwich came with chipotle mayonnaise, sautéed onions, lettuce, cremini mushrooms and was served in a toasted onion ciabatta roll, which gave the occasional crunch.  I held out on the tomatoes and the fontina cheese.  My cooking preference for the meat was medium, and do you know what I got?  Medium.  That’s right, the people in the kitchen got it right.  Extra points are rewarded just for that.  The meat was tender, well-marbled and full-flavored.  It got a little messy with the sauce dripping, onions and mushrooms creeping out, but that’s how a good sandwich should be.  The meat and bread ratio was also right on.  As far as rib-eye sandwiches go, Tavern on Rush’s version is my new favorite.  Man, the things you discover when you step out of the NJ/NYC area.

Today was my third and final day of getting to know Chicago.  The city didn’t leave me with a great impression with the rain, cold and strong wind gusts.  Despite the gloomy weather, I had a really great time there.  I thought I was going to be bored out of my mind, but the people I met really made it worthwhile.  Having lived, studied, and worked in New Jersey pretty much all of my life, I wonder if I’m really ready to leave it all behind and start fresh in a big and unfamiliar city.  I guess there’s no better way to get acquainted but to dive in head first.

Thanks to Bruno and Jennifer from Apartment People for being so accommodating.  Thanks to Gene from the Talbott Hotel for being so helpful.  Thanks to Ardena for the conversation at Lao Shanghai, that place was way too quiet and boring after the lunch crowd left.  Thanks to Vanessa for showing me that apartment with the amazing view of the lake.

The Original Pancake House
22 E Bellevue Pl
(between Rush St & State St)
Chicago, IL 60611

Tavern on Rush
1031 Rush Street
Chicago, IL 60611