Eats Chicago !!!

My first time in Chicago - September 23 to 28, 2013 – and I thought it was a relatively long stay. I was half-excited and half-just-feeling-okay knowing fully well that I was sent to Chicago primarily to attend a conference on governance, a non-negotiable and obviously a must-do professionally.

That said, I secretly drew up my own list of personal non-negotiables. I identified three: (1) Deep-dish pizza (I know of some deep-dish pizza in Sbarro along Ayala Avenue, Makati City but I never succumbed to buying a slice anticipating that Chicago’s deep-dish should be my first bite; my governance friends were also telling me not to miss it);  (2) Garrett popcorn (although there are Garretts galore in Singapore, I wanted a grab of it in the very place where it all started); and (3) Morton’s (although Morton’s either in Hongkong or Singapore seems within easy reach, I’ve always been able to muster enough EQ and wait out for Morton’s right in Chicago itself).

Glad I’ve checked out all on my list.

Here are some pics of what I call classic Chicago eats. 

Deep-dish Pizza. Our Chicago-based governance colleague (an American) recommended Pizzeria Uno, Gino's East and Giordano's. We tried Pizzeria Uno (along East Ohio Street) and Gino's East (off Michigan Avenue and Superior Street). Both claim to be original but in-house brochures reveal that Pizzeria Uno pre-dated Gino's East (1940s vs. 1960s). Wondering why it's called deep-dish? It's simply because of the fact that the pizza is baked on a deep dish.

 Pizzeria Uno

Pizzeria Uno's crust is unique in the sense that it is pastry-ish;

a bit sweet compared to the usual crusts we know . . .

Gino's East

Ambiance-wise, Gino's East is more hip as compared 

to Pizzeria Uno which feels more formal albeit subdued.

Unlike Pizzeria Uno, the crust of Gino's East pizza is not sweet; 

the crust tastes like the usual thing. 

Deep-dish pizzas take 45 minutes to bake; they usually recommend

some salad or starters while waiting out for the pizza;

in the case of Gino's East, I decided to read the writings on the wall

(right) while waiting for our pizza to be served . . . 

Garrett Popcorn. Garrett's a favorite. Needless to say, we didn't pass it up, the long line notwithstanding. If I remember it right, this is off North Michigan Avenue.

The line was quite long but who cares, this is Garrett in Chicago;

it was bearable though as it moved relatively fast . . .

L - end of the line; R - getting closer to the entrance 

success !!! got our stash of Chicago mix and double cheese

Finally, Morton's of Chicago !!! I've tried the steak in Ruth's Chris when I was in Anaheim years ago. Knowing that gourmet steaks in the US are very pricey, we made sure that we've set aside some cash for Morton's. We ended up saving our dollars though, because one of our governance bosses gave us a surprise treat. Many thanks !!!

Surprise treat made for a perfect night - at Morton's

enjoying our piece de resistance.

Photo courtesy (this photo): Atty. Gerry Ramiro