Frank Brichetto Chicago is always full of adventure and things to explore, and I hope to share these great experiences with the wonderful readers of this magazine.
D
o you believe it's already February? Did you know that for 2020 the half-way point of Winter is February 4th? After that, we are (let's hope!) rushing headlong towards Spring, hooray! Lots of snow and cold weather are what we expect in February, but the longer days are starting to cheer us up, so let's get started, shall we?
Winter Romance
and More
Let's take time for a “fifka” at Lost Larson, 5318 N. Clark St., Chicago, where the owner, Bobby Schaffer, offers us a joyous celebration of his Scandinavian heritage. Located in the Andersonville neighborhood, historically Chicago's Swedish and Scandinavian area, Lost Larson is perfect for a long, casual fifka. The word translates roughly as “coffee break”, but not at all in the American sense of dashing into a Dunkin Donuts to grab and gulp a cup. No. This is about taking time to sit, sip, talk, breathe, and actually take a break from our usual hectic schedule to connect with each other. In Sweden, fifka inevitably involves baked goods. Here I'm ordering an open-faced, pickled herring sandwich, served on Sunflower Rye bread, with a cardamom bun for dessert. You might try the smoked ham sandwich on their Country Loaf, and try this chocolate croissant (it was voted #1 in Chicago by Chicago Magazine!). The real treats here are the fresh roasted and ground coffees and the bread – it's not only baked in-house, it's stone ground from fresh grains right here in the shop. Yes, it's all delicious and of course I'm getting a loaf of their Potato Bread to take home, aren't you?
This
Friday, February 7th, let's set the mood for the month by paying a visit to Porchlight, in the Ruth Page Center for the Arts, 1016 N. Dearborn St., Chicago, to see and hear Sophisticated Ladies, a worthy tribute to the influential jazz great, Duke Ellington. The show starts at 8pm, so please meet us there about 7:15? This is a musical, not merely a concert; check out those dancers! Ellington had a long, meaningful career, with so many great hits. Listen, isn't that “Take the A Train”? This, “Mood Indigo” and “It Don't Mean a Thing” are among my favorites, how about you? Wonderful choreography and even better music, what could be better? https://porchlightmusictheatre.org/events/ sophisticated-ladies/ Before heading out this morning, Saturday, February 8th,, please be sure to call or go online to the Shedd Aquarium website, https://www.sheddaquarium.org, 312-9392438, and reserve your tickets for the free day on February 28th. Do it now, or there won't be any left! Finished? Then let the adventures begin!
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February 2020 Ukrainian People
Chicago knows how to pump some excitement into a dreary winter weekend. That's why
we're heading over to McCormick Place, 2301 S. King Dr., Sunday, February 9th, for the 112th Annual Chicago Auto Show. Meet us early, please, the doors open at 10am, and we need time to explore; the show encompasses over 1,000,000 square feet. Yes, that's right, we'll be walking through more than one million square feet filled with most of the best automobiles in the world. Look at these beautiful cars. Want to “drive” that new Telluride SUV over the indoor mountain test track? Yeah, I'm in, let's get in line. While I'm looking for a new city-friendly little hatchback, I really want to see the supercars, Bentley and Aston Martin from the UK, Lamborghini and Maserati from Italy, the French Bugatti, the Ford GT and especially the new mid-engine Corvette. Admit it, you do too. Isn't it beautiful?
