Our itinerary - Need suggestions to fill the holes!

Hi all - this is a great forum!

My firends and I are arriving Sunday morning for a girls getaway! Arriving at Midway around 9am.

Planning on taking the Orange line to Hotel Allegro (exit on Washington right?).

Have some time to kill until we see Wicked at 2:00. We%26#39;re thinking Millienium park to see the sculptures. We%26#39;ll need a quick lunch in this area - any suggestions?

After Wicked we plan on zipping down to TommyGuns Garage. Not sure if it is at 6 or 6:30, we%26#39;ve read conflicting websites. Are a bit concerned this might be tight time-wise as Wicked should run until nearly 5:00. Is this do-able? Is TGuns worth the price?

Monday: Not sure where to go for Breakfast, then to Art Institute to wander for a few hours. Lunch? Then maybe to Navy Pier or Chinatown or shopping on the Mag mile. Dinner also up in the air.

Tuesday: Walking tour with Chicago Greeter until 1:00. Leave for airport around 4:00

We%26#39;re looking for low to mid priced places to eat, nothing fancy. Maybe Chicago pizza somewhere. Nothing like Chesscake factory either - we can do that at home! ;)

Thanks so much for your help!

Our itinerary - Need suggestions to fill the holes!

Sunday sounds good, and yes, you%26#39;ll get off at Washington and Wells Streets. If the weather is disagreeable, visit the Cultural Canter at Randolph and Michigan - free admission. Sunday dining is a little tricky downtown - many places are closed. Try the Park Grill in Millennium Park.

Can%26#39;t comment on Tommy Guns Garage, as I%26#39;ve never been there. My choice would be a blues or jazz club with good food.

On Monday, stop at Macy%26#39;s (formerly Marshall Field%26#39;s) on your way to the Art Institute. There are food courts in the basement and on the 7th floor, something for everyone. Corner Bakeries are also good; there%26#39;s one almost across the street from the Art Institute. For lunch, put your names on the list to eat in the Courtyard restaurant at the AI.

Just so you know, many stores on the Mag Mile close at 6 or 7 P.M. Navy Pier stays open until 9 or 10 P.M. Riva%26#39;s is the best place to eat on the pier, although Charlies Ale House or the beer garden might be more of what you want. On the way back to Michigan Avenue, you might like Boston Blackie%26#39;s for great burgers, right off the free trolley line just before Grand Avenue passes underneath Michigan Avenue.

Our itinerary - Need suggestions to fill the holes!

Additionally, keep in mind that the area around the Allegro will likely be very quiet at night. Be prepared to take taxis around if you plan on being out later at night.

Thanks so much for your suggestions!

To our dismay, Tommy Guns Garage is sold out. (We waited too long...) so now we need something to do on Sunday night.

We are aware that Sunday evenings are tough - do you have any recommendations? We%26#39;re not really jazz or sports fans, so aren%26#39;t really looking for a jazz club.

We%26#39;re staying in the theatre district...

you could stop by hottix. see what they have at a discount

http://www.hottix.org/hours.aspx

72 E. RANDOLPH, Chicago

(The Chicago Tourism Center Site of the Stitching Salon)

you might want to check out

http://www.chicagoreader.com

and see what looks interesting to you.

or search on http://metromix.chicagotribune.com/stage/

For comedy

you could check out zanies

http://www.chicago.zanies.com/mod/comcal/

$22.00 + 2 item food/bev. minimum

Second City

';Between Barack and a Hard Place';

www.secondcity.com/鈥?/a>

Sunday 7pm

Tickets are: $19 Tuesday - Thursday, $24.00 Friday %26amp; Saturday, and $19 on Sunday

-gregdove

Sunday:

Millennium Park is beautiful, but the Dalai Lama is going to be giving a speech there on Sunday, so it%26#39;s going to be very crowded. You%26#39;ll also need reservations to go to Park Grill.

Heaven On Seven is a great local cajun restaurant on Wabash - one block west of Millennium Park. Caffe Baci is a Chicago based casual Italian spot with entree salads and paninis, and it%26#39;s located at 20 N Michigan (there are other locations but that%26#39;s the closest to Millennium Park).

After Wicked you could go bowling. May sound cheesy, but there are two upscale bowling lounges with good food and drinks just north of the river. One%26#39;s at the House of Blues Hotel on State (10pin) and the other%26#39;s at 322 E Illinois in the same building as an AMC Theater. You could also do a dinner cruise. Many aren%26#39;t operating yet, but Mystic Blue has one for $88.26/person.

Monday:

Breakfast - Lou Mitchell%26#39;s. It%26#39;s a Chicago icon. It%26#39;s a little further west and south of the hotel so you%26#39;ll have to loop around to get to the Art Institute, but that%26#39;s OK because you%26#39;ll be in the loop : )

This is the day you could try Park Grill. It%26#39;s just north of the museum. Or, hop on the red line and have lunch in Chinatown. It%26#39;s best to go there during the day so you can explore the shops.

After Chinatown head back north and explore Michigan Avenue. For dinner you could try Cafe Spiaggia. It%26#39;s the sister restaurant to Chicago%26#39;s best Italian spot, Spiaggia, and lower priced. Or go to Billy Goat Tavern. It%26#39;s located on lower Michigan at Illinois and is where the ';cheezborger cheezborger'; skit from Saturday Night Live comes from. For drinks try the Signature Lounge. It%26#39;s a floor above the observatory in the Hancock Building.

For Chicago pizza try Lou Malnati%26#39;s. It%26#39;s on Wells Street a couple blocks north of the river, so it%26#39;s close to your hotel. Keep in mind it takes ~45 min to an hour for a deep dish. You could also try Gino%26#39;s East, which is a couple blocks north of that.

You can find all of this on my website, http://www.thelocaltourist.com. It%26#39;s only for downtown Chicago so it%26#39;s easier to narrow down what to do and where to go.

How about applying for a visa to enable you to live in England at the British Consulate? Now thats a fun day out for Everybody!

Ok, well that%26#39;s what took up most of the time my husband and I were in Chicago. And it%26#39;s really not that fun :-p

Navy Pier is nice to walk along, just make sure there%26#39;s actually something open on there otherwise it%26#39;s not especially exciting (although you do get some nice views of the city)!

We did eat at this awesome Italian restaurant although I%26#39;m not sure if it%26#39;s gonna be too far out of the centre for you...

http://www.dinotto.com/

If you%26#39;re using CTA its near the Sedwick stop on the brown line/purple line.

The food was very well priced, and very tasty! I%26#39;d recommend emailing and make a reservation before going if you choose to though as it%26#39;s pretty popular!

(Oh, if you have any info on where the Chinatown is, let me know cause I didnt even know there was one in Chicago! I often go to Chinatown, London so it%26#39;d be cool to check that out next time I%26#39;m in Chicago!)

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