The Pike Place Market

Are you guys ready?! To go...

??

I know, I'm so clever. Pretty sure that exact same joke has been made with this exact same picture at least 421534 times in Internet history. Whomp.

But seriously, Pike Place Market is one of the most famous Seattle landmarks, and one of my favorites, because every time you go there you find something new! It's a collection of buildings built into a hill with a view of Puget Sound, and there are many vendors, seasonal stands, and permanent shops and restaurants packed into the nine acres of the market. The top level or two is usually really crowded with tourists, but once you go down further it clears out and you start to find some of the really weird shops. The only way I can think of to describe the lower levels of the Pike Place Market is as a rabbit warren...cramped, slightly dark, and totally confusing. But I'm going to start up top.

The famous flying fish stand

If you've ever heard of the Pike Place Market, you've probably heard about the flying fish stand. There are many fish and seafood stands in the market, but the one right by the main entrance is the one where the employees toss the fish around. On a nice day it's impossible to walk through here because there are so many tourists standing around hoping they will throw the fish. I gave up on getting a picture of that after about two minutes and moved on to check out some of the other things on the first level.

Like the flowers! Pike Place always has GORGEOUS bouquets for cheap. Yep, those are $5 and $10 bouquets you're looking at right there. And then there are many vendors selling variously tacky or awesome Pacific Northwest art, jewelery, tshirts, stuffed animals, etc...here are some highly tacky but colorful Native American designs!

In addition to all the daily vendors, there are permanent restaurants, like the Pike Brewery and its accompanying pub (on the floor underneath all this brewing equipment).

Mmm...beer...

And my personal favorite, the amazing crepe shop.

And oh yeah, some of the restaurants have views like this:

View from Place Pigalle, an uber-French restaurant (hope you like rare food)

When you go down to the lower levels, where you find dusty old treasures that have entertained many generations of kids, myself included. The Magic Shop was always a necessary stop when I was younger, as was the store that sold caricature portraits and cardboard cutouts (seriously, there is a whole store that does just that), and the House of Jade, aka the Room Full of Every Little Glass or China Figurine Ever Made. There's also an anarchist bookstore somewhere down there (yeah folks, this is Seattle) and some cool murals by local artists.

Need indelible ink that's been sitting on the shelf for ten years? They've got it

Now I like to look at the antiques stores, the used bookstores, and the Polish Pottery Place. And, true to form, I found something this time that I'd never seen before...

I don't really know what to say about this one. Get some seasonal produce and your teeth pulled, all in one convenient location? Hmm...

Here's one of the buildings across the street from the main market building. I didn't get the chance to run over there, but it's home to the Crumpet Shop and a great used bookstore, among other things.

And right next door is a store that I think you'll recognize...

It's the first Starbucks store! Complete with original signage, two unique individuals playing an accordion/saw duet, and a bajillion tourists. Good luck getting a drink there because you cannot even get in (check out all those peeps waiting in line). Luckily there is another Starbucks just around the corner!

Goodbye, market...I'll be back soon!

Cheese + Meats + Wine

There's something uniquely alluring about an indulgent cheese and meat platter paired with a glass of wine. On many occasions, I've skipped dinner in preparation for a wonderful night of this combination. While a DIY version in the living room is always convenient, sometimes nothing beats a night at a wine bar.

Bar at The Bluebird. From bluebirdchicago.om

My favorite wine bar in Chicago (that I've been able to visit) may not be the best, but the food, wine, and ambiance are perfect for my budget. The Bluebird, located at 1749 N. Damen in Bucktown, is a cozy brick-and-rustic-wood  escape from the bustling six corner intersection at the heart of the Wicker Park/Bucktown area. Their beer and wine selection is immense...the menu is literally a book. I'm not going to pretend like I can even BEGIN to discuss the finer points of beer or wine, so I'm just going to recommend that you ask your server for some help navigating the menu. Luckily, the food is a bit easier to discuss. Their food menu is fairly small, but I prefer it that way. They offer small plates, mussels, large plates, sweets, and (of course) meat and cheese assortments. Both are priced under $20, while a combination platter is $25. I usually split it with a few friends, so it ends up being pretty doable on a lab rat's budget. The Bluebird is near and dear to my heart, so I recommend you grab a few people you love and head over for some wine and excellent conversation.

Right by the wall at Old Town Social where we sat! From oldtownsocial.com

This weekend I experienced some deja vu and ended up back at Old Town Social for dinner. I thought Bluebird's bar selection was overwhelming, until I came here on Friday night. If you like beer or whiskey, you need to check it out! To accompany our drinks, we ordered a "Ploughman's Platter" with different meats and cheeses. While the pricing is about the same, I enjoyed Bluebird's meats and cheeses much more. I'm not entirely sure why, but Old Town Social left me feeling a little jipped. The ambiance is also different, but it depends on what you're looking for at the time! Old Town Social has much more of a loud, fun bar atmosphere and I'm more of a warm and fuzzy conversation kind of girl. I still recommend it, though! Apparently their cocktails are pretty delicious (so say my friends).

AV Fest

AV Club is one of those "intelligent pop culture commentary" websites with a mission to "turn nerds into snobs." And this weekend, they're having a music festival. My friend was able to get us VIP wristbands for yesterday, which was awesome! We had access to the VIP lounge, indoor bathrooms, free drinks, and food catered by Big Star (free tacos and beer...what could be better). The weather was also beautiful.

The fest was held outside of Chicago music venue and bar, The Hideout (a favorite of mine). Yesterday's lineup included some local and nation indie pop/punk bands. It was like a beautifully melodic trip through the 90's! The bands included: Like Pioneers, Maritime, Eef Barzelay, Disappears, The Thermals, and Hum. The crowd was incredibly diverse, concert-goers ranged from middle-aged men to teenagers accompanied by mom and grandma. It was a really great experience!

Afterwards, we took a stroll down North Ave. to Wicker Park for a late dinner at Silver Cloud Bar & Grill on Damen. Their menu was loaded with some delicious-sounding comfort food options, so if you're ever in the mood for some mac'n'cheese or TATER TOTS I'd check it out.

The walk back to the El, was probably the best part of the night. My boyfriend and friend are much bigger sports fans than I am, so we ended up stopping to stare into bar windows to catch a glimpse of the Notre Dame v. Michigan game. I don't know much about football, but it seemed CRAZY. Every time we decided to keep walking, the score would suddenly change! I guess Michigan won in the end?

Gluten Free Living: Day One

Some of my new gluten free friends

Well, it's finally happened. My doctor put me on a gluten free diet to see if this helps with all the various stomach complaints I've been having over the past year or so....and I'm so not excited about it. What's better than biting into a nice, fresh piece of Italian bread or having a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios? Nothing...except a PB&J. Or maybe chocolate cake.

Yep, gluten's in pretty much all of my favorite foods: cereal, pasta, bread, crackers, baked goods, granola bars, and tortillas. It's also in many things that you wouldn't expect, like trail mix, soup, ice cream, teriyaki sauces and even vitamins and jars of peanuts! Turns out that most factories use wheat flour on their conveyor belts or process multiple items on the same equipment, so just about everything is contaminated with wheat. Even most alcohols and liquors are either made or colored with wheat products these days, since it's often cheaper than using the traditional ingredients.

What's left to eat when you can't eat wheat? Rice, corn, potato, and certain oat products, and to drink, certain wines, gluten free beer, and high-end tequila or rum that has been made from the traditional ingredients. Luckily gluten free products are becoming more widespread since it turns out that 1 in 100 Americans have a gluten intolerance or allergy! (Though most of them don't know it.) I went to Safeway and bought some gluten free bread, cereal, pasta, crackers, tortillas, and cookies to try out, and I can keep eating some of my favorite snack foods like hummus, rice cakes, and peanut butter. I was also able to find peanuts, trail mix, oatmeal, and granola bars that were processed without wheat products. Now I just need to find an amazing job to pay for the extra $2 associated with each gluten free item. And that Patrón.

In taste testing, I've determined that Corn Chex taste like cardboard, and rice crackers ain't got nothing on Triscuits, though they're okay with hummus. We'll see what the rest of this stuff tastes like, though...I have to admit that I'm a little scared of the chocolate chip cookies (can they really be good when they're made with rice flour?).

The good news? This is a trial run, and at the end of the month my doctor and I will evaluate whether I really need to go gluten free or not. After a few different diets and some blood tests, it might turn out that I'm only intolerant of or allergic to certain food preservatives or wheat products, and not gluten in general. I'm praying hard that I'm only allergic to one stupid little thing, and not the full range of baked goodness....wish me luck? And cookies that taste good.

Old Town Social Brunch

455 W. North Ave. Photo from Time Out Chicago.

After a summer of intense data collection, I'm finally settling into a routine. I'm working diligently with a collaborator to transcribe and annotate what we collected. While it's not as involved as actually running the study, it's a necessary step! However, a more settled routine has given me more time to catch up with friends.

I recently went to Old Town Social with a good friend for their Dixieland Sunday Brunch. SO DELICIOUS. During the week, Old Town Social is a southern/western inspired bar with a great menu. On Sundays, the menu gets a New Orleans kick. I ordered a french press (I splurged for that!) and the pork belly eggs benedict. My friend ordered a tea pot and the turkey pastrami hash. We also split an order of beignets. Everything was amazing, but the beignets were the stars. Fluffy delicious pillows! I'm going back just to have them again!

Not only was the food great, but the outdoor seating area was beautiful! There were plants and flowers everywhere. The weather was also pleasant, so that probably had something to do with the overall experience. If you're in the Chicago area, I highly suggest you stop here on a Sunday for a delicious brunch!