Congratulations, Jackie Robinson West!

Fans of Jackie Robinson West get ready for their team at 14th and Michigan.

Let the cheering begin!

Little League champs wave to the fans on their way to Millennium Park.

16th Annual Chicago SummerDance Returns to Grant Park July 19

The largest annual outdoor dancing series in the United States, Chicago SummerDance returns for its 16th year of “jumping, jiving and bringing joy to Chicago’s residents and visitors.” SummerDance will take place Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings, from 6 to 9:30 p.m. and Sunday afternoon from 4 to 7 p.m., weather permitting, from July 19 through September 16.

Chicago SummerDance will kick off at the 32nd annual Taste of Chicago, July 11 – 15, with DJs spinning a different genre of music each night in Grant Park. Chicago SummerDance then moves to the Spirit of Music Garden in Grant Park, 601 S. Michigan Ave. July 19 – September 15 for introductory one-hour dance lessons taught by professional instructors followed by two hours of live music and dancing.

The final evening of Chicago SummerDance is schedueld to take place in Millennium Park on the AT&T Plaza in front of Cloud Gate (The Bean!). Further details on the kick-off events, Jully 11-15, and grand finale September 16 event, will be announced at a late date.

Updates and announcements will be available on Facebook and on Twitter @SummerDance2012. Weather announcements will be available on the SummerDance Hotline at 312.742.4007. For more information, visit Chicago SummerDance Web site.


Thanks to Madeline Long from ExploreChicago.org for the above information.

Saturday Morning Workouts Begin June 9 in Millennium Park

Free Summer Exercise Classes

The Great Lawn at Millennium Park

Free summer classes in Tai Chi, Yoga, Pilates, and Zumba will be held on Millennium Park’s Great Lawn Saturdays from June 9 through September 1. Supported by McDonald’s and presented by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affair, and Special Events, these free workout sessions will be held from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m.

Workouts are about 45 minutes long with classes in Tai Chi at 7 a.m., Yoga at 8 a.m., Pilates at 9 a.m. and Zumba, a Latin-inspired calorie-burning dance fitness party, beginning at 10 a.m. All workouts are free and open to people of all experience levels.

For more information on workouts and all Millennium Park programs, visit millenniumpark.org, or call 312.742.1168. You can also like Millennium Park on Facebook and follow them on Twitter @Millennium_Park.

The complete Saturday morning schedule for the season is below.

Millennium Park is located in the heart of downtown Chicago. It is bordered by Michigan Ave. to the west, Columbus Dr. to the east, Randolph St. to the north and Monroe St. to the south. Convenient parking is located in the Millennium Park Garage (entrance on Columbus at Monroe or Randolph) and at the Grant Park North and East Monroe Garages, all located within a short walking distance of Millennium Park.

June 9-30
7 a.m.  Tai Chi: Stirling Tai Chi
8 a.m.  Yoga: Chicago Park District
9 a.m.  Pilates: Frog Temple
10 a.m.  Zumba: TEAMiFIT
Music during yoga and pilates by Perrin Stamatis

July 7-28
7 a.m.  Tai Chi: Calm Chicago
8 a.m.  Yoga: Lani Granum
9 a.m.  Pilates: Core Chicago Pilates
10 a.m.  Zumba: Diane Garvey and Regina Mundt
Music during yoga and pilates by Carlo Basile

August 4-September 1
7 a.m.  Tai Chi: Chicago Taoist Society
8 a.m.  Yoga: Yoga 312 with Amy Cronk and Joshua Wentz
9 a.m.  Pilates: Chicago Park District
10 a.m.  Zumba: Leslye Jones-Beatty
Music during yoga and pilates by Joshua Wentz

Click to enlarge map.

#FF Follow Friday

Jazz Night at Donna’s Café featuring the Randy Ford Trio at Donna’s Café every Friday 6 p.m. – 9 p.m. BYOB with a $5 minimum purchase. Donna’s Café is located at 1255E S. State St. Follow @donnascafe on Twitter.

Dinner at Waffles. Waffles is open till 8 p.m. on Friday nights. Dinner specials will be served along with the rest of their regular breakfast and lunch menu. Waffles is located at 1400 S. Michigan Ave. Follow @waffleschicago on Twitter.

Mixing the batter at Waffles

Friday Night Fish Fry at Weather Mark Tavern. All-you-can-eat fish fry for $9.95. Fish fry includes Cruzan rum battered fish, fries, and red cabbage coleslaw. Weather Mark Tavern is located at 1503 S. Michigan Ave. Follow @weathermarktav on Twitter.

GiGi’s Bake Shop food truck should be at 13th and S. Michigan Friday selling some great cupcakes. Follow the “purple bus” @gigisbakeshop. Be sure to contact GiGi for your holiday sweet treats. Besides cupcakes, GiGi makes tarts, cakes, puddings, and cheesecakes. For special orders, contact GiGi at 312-613-0956 or at her Web site.

The McCormick-Tribune Ice Rink in Millennium Park opens this Friday at noon. Skating is free if you have your own skates, skate rentals are $10. The rink is open Monday – Thursday from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m., Fridays 12 p.m. to 10 p.m., Saturdays 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sundays 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Located on Michigan Ave. between Washington and Monroe Streets, the rink will be open for the winter season until March 11, 2012.

March of the Segways

A familiar sight around Chicago is the Segway tours. It's almost impossible to walk downtown without seeing a dozen of these vehicles zipping along Michigan Ave. or around Millennium Park. I caught a glimpse of these Segway tourists motoring through Northerly Island on a beautiful fall day this week.

Part of the South Loop skyline from Northerly Island.

Around Chicago

The sunshine made Millennium Park an afternoon destination on Tuesday.

It was warm enough to eat lunch or read a book in the park.

Movie trailers on Randolph St. across from the Blue Cross Blue Shield building

You can see the Museum Park towers between the trees and movie trailers.

Not sure what they're shooting, but according to the Chicago Film Office Web site, Fox is currently filming Ride Along, a new Television series starring Jennifer Beals. Beals starred in Flashdance, one of the biggest box office hits during the 1980s.

2010 Chicago Gourmet

Food and Wine Heaven
The third-annual Chicago Gourmet, "a celebration of food and wine" was held this weekend in Millennium Park. The three-day event was sold out. Those lucky enough to get tickets (this writer got two complimentary tickets from a neighbor) were treated to an incredible selection of food, wine, beer, and spirits. Participants included restaurants, specialty stores, wineries, and liquor distributors.

Check out the videos below to get a flavor for this popular and growing food and wine event.







Let Us Know What You Thought
The food samples were for the most part good, but the wine, beer, and spirits selections and samples were pretty extraordinary. If you attended this event, let us know your impressions. Let us know if this was your first Chicago Gourmet event or are a returning participant.

The crowds were plentiful and so was the food and wine.

Chicago's Urban Beach

Crown Fountain at Millennium Park is fun place for kids...and grown-ups too. The twin tower fountains (called the singular "Crown Fountain") offer relief from the summer heat for hundreds of kids and their parents. On any given summer's day, you'll see kids splashing in the water and waiting for the moment when the fountain "spits." 

Projected onto the towers are the changing faces of Chicagoans. The images are not static, but moving. Eyes blink,  mouths open. And then, the lips form an oval and water comes tumbling out making it look as if the image is spitting at us. The kids love this of course, as does everyone else who has waited to see it happen.

Lakeshore Athletic Club on the bubble

According to ChicagoRealEstateDaily.com, Lakeshore Athletic Clubs is in danger of losing it's Stetson St. location near Millennium Park. The Web site article points to competitors like LA Fitness as part of Lakeshore's troubles.

LA Fitness's monthly fees ($55) are half what Lakeshore charges ($110). But LA Fitness offers similar facilities and ammenities. For consumers, the choice is pretty simple: join the cheaper club. For Lakeshore, it's much more complicated. Lakeshore has already closed two Chicago clubs and is behind on a $33.5 million loan, making their situation much more dire.

Joining a health club often seems like a crapshoot. You always wonder, once you've joined, if the club will stay in business.

Are you a member of a South Loop health club or another one in the city or suburbs? How confident that your club will be in business a year or five years from now?

Chicago Restaurant Week follow-up

The (prix) fixe is in
I took advantage of the prix fixe menu at Tavern at the Park, 130 E. Randolph St. on Friday evening. An old high school friend was in town for a convention and I thought it would be a great place to eat after taking in some of the sights including Millennium Park.

The prix fixe menu had four excellent entree choices: filet trio, roasted "brick" chicken, vegetable lasagna, and pan roasted red snapper. I opted for the roasted chicken, which was both plentiful (it seemed like half a chicken) and delicious. It was served over roasted potatoes. My friend and her husband had the filet trio and the red snapper respectively. They were very happy with their choices.

That's one spicy meatball!
Backing up just a bit, the choices for appetizer were grilled polenta and crispy meatballs. All of us chose the crispy meatballs, which were slightly crispy on the outside, but moist and tender on the inside. The appetizer included two medium-sized meatballs (one more and it could have been an entree) served with red and sweet peppers.

Sweet endings
For dessert our choices were chocolate creme brulee (the largest creme brulee I've ever seen, I might add) and profiteroles (cream puffs with gelato). I (and my friends husband) decided on the profiteroles and was glad I did; the cream puffs were light, not too heavy and the gelato made for the perfect topping. I had to take my friends word that the creme brulee was wonderful, and judging by the empty ramekin, it was.

A three-course meal for $32 per person at a restaurant like Tavern at the Park turned out to be the perfect meal for my out-of-town guests. I'd go there again in a heartbeat. If you're interested in checking out the prix fixe menu at Tavern at the Park, click here.

Let's hear from you
Did you take advantage of Chicago Restaurant Week? Where did you go? How was your experience?