Pizzeria Due
619 N. Wabash AvenueThis is where our Chicago plans took a detour. If you’ve read the last few posts (Sugar Factory, Corey’s NYC Bagel Deli, JoJo’s Shake Bar), you’ll know we took a trip to Chicago for L’s birthday. We hit all these fun restaurants, did some shopping at Water Tower Place then expected to go skating at Maggie Daley Park. We got most of that in, but not the skating.
I had skating reservations for Saturday evening. We ate lunch at JoJo’s pretty early, did some shopping, then came back to the hotel to relax and swim. As we were about done swimming, L started not feeling well. The hope was she ate something that didn’t agree with her but that turned out to be not the case.
We told her to take a nap and see if she could sleep it off. We pushed it right up to 5:00 when our skating reservation began and realized we weren’t going to make it. I look at the schedule for the 8:00 session and there were still openings so I told her if she shook whatever was wrong, we’d go at 8:00.
L went back to sleep for a while but the rest of us were hungry. J suggested pizza. She beat me to it because there was pizza right down the street.
Pizzeria Uno and Pizzeria Due were just a few blocks from our hotel. I know many of you have eaten at Uno Chicago Grill, but, ya’ll….that is not the real deal. The restaurant lost a little in translation when it was franchised. The two original locations, Uno and Due, did not. They’re just as they were when they invented Chicago Deep Dish pizza in the 1940’s.
For many years, the restaurant was just known as Pizzeria. When they got so popular they needed to open another restaurant, they differentiated between the two with the designations Uno and Due.
I chose to order from Pizzeria Due on this trip. I enjoy a good, authentic Chicago deep dish but my family is more of a Chicago thin and crispy type of people. Due offered the thin crust on it’s ordering platform while Uno did not.
Pizzeria Due is on the corner of Wabash and Ontario in Chicago’s River North Neighborhood. The restaurant is just a little over a block north of Pizzeria Uno on Wabash. The restaurant is interesting because it looks like a three story house right in the middle of downtown Chicago. No clue what the building was originally….I searched the interwebs for quite a while and there’s no mention of it anywhere. The building has been Pizzeria Due since 1955.
Read more…JoJo’s Shake Bar (River North)
23 W. Hubbard StreetMore ice cream! I mean, this was a celebration weekend and we were kind of going all out.
When we were in Chicago in July, we were looking for some kind of dessert after a meal at Centennial Crafted Beer + Eatery. I just did a Google search in the area and found a “shake bar.” I figured that’d be fun so we headed that way.
It would have been fun but it started raining really hard on us and there was quite a line outside. I didn’t realize it was a full service restaurant at the time. I just wanted shakes for the kids.
We passed on it that night but when we made plans to go back for L’s birthday in January, I snatched up reservations to make sure we’d get a chance at it this time.
JoJo’s Shake Bar has a couple of locations in Chicago. There’s soon to be one in Naperville and there’s a location in Water Tower Place that just does all the deserts.
The main JoJo’s location is in the River North neighborhood in Chicago on West Hubbard Street between State and Dearborn. The restaurant got started as JoJo’s Milk Bar in 2019. The name was changed to Shake Bar after Milk Bar, a bakery in New York, sued.
Read more…Corey’s NYC Bagel Deli (River North)
515 N. Dearborn StreetWe were really trying to make L’s birthday weekend special. All she wanted to do was a trip to downtown Chicago. She wanted to eat at Sugar Factory (we did that Friday night), get Starbucks for breakfast, and ice skate at Maggie Daley Park.
We woke up Saturday morning fairly early. The hotel we were staying in is connected to Weber Grill and that’s where they did their breakfast. Breakfast is not included with the stay so we didn’t even walk in to see what it was.
L wanted Starbucks but she doesn’t really love Starbucks breakfast selection. There was a Starbucks right across the street (and around the corner and down the block) so that wasn’t going to be a problem. I wanted to take her some place else to grab something for breakfast though.
L’s favorite breakfast is just a bagel. A plain bagel with cream cheese. As I was looking at Google maps to see what was around us, I saw a place with “bagel” right in the name.
Corey’s NYC Bagel Deli is a small New York Style bagel shop on Dearborn Street near West Grand Avenue in Chicago’s River North Neighborhood. The shop is pretty unassuming with just a sign jutting of the side of the building to let you now you’re heading in the right direction.
Read more…Sugar Factory (Chicago)
55 E Grand AvenueWe pretty much let the kids decide what they want to do for their birthday’s. Most of the time they pick friends parties but occasionally, they’ll want to do an experience trip. We did Great Wolf Lodge a few years ago for L’s birthday but that was probably the last time we did something.
We took an extended weekend trip to Chicago this past July and L loved it. She had been begging to go to New York City or Tokyo because those are the cities she sees in media and just thought they looked cool. She never knew Chicago is actually a big city and has the feel of city life that she was wanting to see.
We picked a pretty busy weekend in July when we went last year and I didn’t realize just how fast restaurants would fill up. We had a few in mind to eat at but we couldn’t get reservations the day before. They were already booked up.
L decided she wanted to go to Chicago for her birthday weekend and were really happy to oblige. I booked a hotel and started right away making reservations for all the places she wanted to eat at.
The big one we absolutely had to do was Sugar Factory. J and I tried to walk in to the place on a Thursday night when we were there in July with no luck. We also tried reservations for any time on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday…again with no luck. This time, I booked a couple of months out to make sure we got to do what L wanted to do for her birthday.
Sugar Factory has two locations in the Chicago area. There is one in Rosemont near O’Hare International Airport, but we were downtown so we booked at the River North location on the corner of Grand Avenue and Rush Street. The space is part of the Nordstrom building and has been everything from a Cosi to a wine bar in the last decade.
Read more…Crumbl Cookies (Oshtemo Township)
5097 Century Avenue, Suite BIt’s taken a while but a lot of the things promised to us when the homes and trees were cleared off Century Avenue so a Costco could be built are taking shape.
For such a long time, we had Costco, a bunch of empty storefronts, and multiple banks. We were promised food and shopping. It’s been slow going but there are actually quite a few food options and some pretty good shopping.
One store we’ve been patiently waiting for is Crumbl Cookies. The sign went up probably last spring on the storefront between MOD Pizza and Chowhound right off Century Drive but for the longest time, it was just an empty storefront. No was being done. Trust me. We checked every time we went to MOD.
Finaly, we saw a “Grand Opening” sign. J wasted no time stopping to get cookies one night and holy cow were they good. I wasn’t with her that night, so no blog….but L and I went ice skating this past weekend and once we got done, I asked if she wanted to stop and get cookies for J and B.
Crumbl Cookies is in the Corner@Drake shopping plaza on the corner of Drake Road and Stadium Drive. The building is on Century Avenue which cuts between Drake Road and Michigan Avenue. The deep, narrow storefront has pretty much been empty since the shopping center was built.
Read more…Famous Famiglia Pizzeria (Miami)
2100 NW 42nd Avenue- South Terminal, Concourse H-J Connector
- Miami, FL 33142
- (305) 871-0559
- Website
- Menu
Time to come home. I was complaining because it was so hot and humid during our time in Miami but I knew we were coming home to below freezing temps and snow. I was ready to get home, out of the heat, and to my family, but not ready for the cold that was about to greet us.
I messed up when I got our rental car for the week. I thought our departure was 11:50 AM. It was actually 1:50 AM. I had the car until 10 AM and I couldn’t extend it a few hours without paying for another full day. That means we had to get to the airport way too early.
The Miami airport is pretty big and it takes a while to get the car checked in, take the shuttle to the terminal, get checked in and get through security…but it doesn’t four hours. I had to check in at the ticket counter because I have special baggage with a special rate and we were still through TSA before 11.
I had to go get souvenirs for the kids so we kind of went our own way for a while before boarding. Co-Worker went to look for a place to nap while I hunted down some overpriced “Miami” t-shirts.
There weren’t a lot of food options at the airport which I found pretty disappointing. I was planning on sitting down somewhere and eating a burger with a beer or two while we waited. I didn’t really run across anything like that while I was walking around.
I eventually found a pizza place and decided that was probably the best I was going to do in this terminal.
Famous Famiglia Pizzeria is between the H and J concourse in what they call the “Connector” in the south terminal at the Miami International Airport. The pizza place is part of a little food court area that also has a McDonalds, Gilbert’s Food Bar, and La Pausa…which actually would have worked as a sit down place if I really wanted to go that way. There are a couple of other restaurants in the area but they were all closed.
Manhattan New York Pizza
1923 Cordova RoadThere is almost never a time that I will travel somewhere and not get a pizza. My travel companions usually ask where I’m going expecting me to say Papa Johns or Dominos…but hell no. We’re going to find some place local.
Our third day in Miami was a long day. We had to do a lot of driving around the Miami metro area…and if you’ve ever been to Miami, you know how taxing that can be. I grew up near Chicago and have done a lot of driving in the Chicago area and that seems like a cake walk compared to Miami.
We got back to our hotel rooms right around 6:30. We both still had some work to do individually. Co-worker wanted to get on it right away because there was a social event he was wanting to go to. I wasn’t in a hurry because I’m not a social person.
He went to work and I sent him a text asking if he wanted a pizza. He said yes and didn’t care what kind. Just get something with meat. I said pepperoni or sausage…he said yes, so I took that as both.
I did my usual Google searches for nearby pizza places. I don’t typically put much weight in reviews but I take a good look at the pictures posted. I think I have a pretty good eye for what a good pizza looks like and I just trust that instinct.
I picked Manhattan NY Pizza in Fort Lauderdale. The small pizza joint is in the Harbor Shops near the intersection of SE 17th Street (also known as Florida State Road A1A) and Cordova Road. The restaurant is tucked in between nail salon and a therapeutics place near a Publix.
Read more…Versailles Cuban Bakery
3501 SW 8th StreetDay two in Miami was a little bit slower paced. We were able to work from our hotel most of the morning before venturing out to the downtown Miami in the afternoon.
We wrapped up our work a little after 6:30. We had been hanging out on one of the islands connected by the Rickenbacker Causeway just kind of south of downtown. The view was good and it got better as the sun set and the city lights came on.
We started heading back towards the hotel and my colleague asked where we were in relation to Little Havana. I asked if he like Cuban food. He said he liked Cuban sandwiches. Me too…and wouldn’t you know it, there is a really famous Cuban restaurant in Little Havana that we weren’t too far from.
So, our original idea was to sit down for a meal at Versailles Restaurant but that was way too busy. We could tell when we drove by there appeared to be a line but we thought maybe since it was just the two of us, we might be able to get a table. We parked in the large parking lot across the street and checked in a the host stand. No dice. It was over an hour wait and we still had work to do.
Read more…Guacamole Station
118 N. Federal Highway- Dania Beach, FL 33004
- (954) 544-2259
- No Known Website
- Menu
Our first day in Miami was a pretty long day. I got up around 2:30 AM for a 6:00 AM flight out of Grand Rapids. We got to Miami just before noon and by the time we got our car, got to the hotel, ate lunch, and finished the work we still needed to accomplish that day, I was beat.
We both figured we were going to bed early that night to get ready for the next three days of long workdays. As I was laying in bed, I realized I was thirsty. I didn’t have anything in my room to drink and because it’s a Marriott, there are no vending machines on the floors.
I did a quick Google search to find a nearby Publix. I figured I could grab some Pepsi and a couple six packs of local beer. That should be enough to keep me hydrated for four days.
The Publix I found wasn’t too far from my hotel. On the way there, I passed a little taco stand. It was getting a little late but I figured if the open sign was still lit when I passed by again, I’d stop for a couple of tacos.
Guacamole Station is on Federal Highway in Dania Beach between 1st and 2nd Streets just south of the Fort Lauderdale International Airport. The small building was previously an ice cream shop and they have the same walk up window service you expect at places like that.
Read more…TooJay’s Deli, Bakery, Restaurant (Dania Beach)
131 South Compass Way, Space #C120Miami in December? Sure, why not?
The opportunity to travel for work came up with a New Year’s trip to Miami. I don’t really love Miami. The traffic there is killer and traveling to the area for New Year’s didn’t sound all that fun, but I do look forward to these work trips so I took.
We had a pretty early start on Tuesday morning flying out of Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids. We didn’t take the direct to Miami because it was double the price of a little bit longer trip connecting in Chicago.
We got to Miami a little earlier than expected then made the looooooooong trek through the airport to baggage and the loooooooon trek to the shuttle that would take us to the rental car center.
I picked the wrong rental car company. The line was obnoxious when we got there. It took an hour to get our car and we had a 30+ minute drive to our hotel in Ft. Lauderdale. Neither I or my colleague had eaten much since a couple of snacks at the airport back in GR.
We had to hit the ground running and get some work done once we got checked-in. We were both pretty hungry so I asked him if we should slow down and go grab a sandwich. He was on board with that so I started looking for quick sandwich places near our hotel.
I found TooJay’s Deli, Bakery, and Restuarant in Dania Beach at the Dania Point shopping plaza. The small Florida chain has an end space off South Compass Way and Stirling Road.
Read more…
SW Michigan Dining 