Labor Day in Chicago

Alison and I woke up this morning and we went for a walk along Lake Michigan. It was a very pleasant morning. 

The Hilton Chicago

Bret picked us up and we loaded our bags in his car. We then parked his car at a nearby lot and walked to brunch. We had reservations at the Blue Door Kitchen & Garden. This restaurant concept comes from Chef Art Smith. We love his Homecomin’ restaurant at Disney Springs and we were excited to try this one. The experience was a little uneven. We got seated and enjoyed chatting. However the food took forever to come. Our waiter profoundly apologized for the delay. We weren’t too annoyed because Covid has really impacted restaurants. Once the food arrived it was great. Alison had chicken and waffles, I had fried chicken Benedict and Bret tried the biscuits and gravy. It was worth the wait. Our waiter ended up comping our whole meal. We were floored and left a really big tip. 

Fried Chicken Benedict

After brunch we went kayaking in the Chicago river. It was a fun experience. The river is such a big part of Chicago. Kayaking around surrounded by the giant skyscrapers is surreal. 

Our last stop of the day was the Art Institute of Chicago. By the time we got there we only had about an hour until we had to head to the airport. Fortunately, on the guide they have a list of what to see if you have one hour. It took us exactly one hour to see all of the pieces they had listed (plus a few bonus pieces that caught our eye). There is so much to see in this museum Alison could easily spend an entire day here. We made the most of the time we had. 

This is one of my favorite pieces at the Art Institute

Then Bret drove us to the airport and we headed home. We are glad we were finally able to visit Bret in Chicago. It only took us a year and a half of trying. Who knows this may be the only time we get to visit Bret while he lives here.