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Arrived around 9:15AM on Saturday morning via Amtrak Lakefront line from Elyria, Ohio – comfortable seats, and much less expensive than flying. Train times are awful though, so I would recommend taking the train there and flying home, if you’re going that route.
We stayed at Freehand Chicago. It’s a hostel, but WAY more comfortable than any European hostel I’ve seen, and perfect for a weekend trip. I met up with some friends from Minneapolis, and I only paid $47 for one night by the time we split the room. Also, Chicago is the perfect halfway point as it’s around 6 hours from both Cleveland and Minneapolis.

Day 1

Brunch on Saturday at Bellatrix. Excellent mimosas and pastries! Gourmet lunch food.
Drinks at Kerryman Bar – good selection of beers and whiskies
Dinner at Lou Malnati’s – my favorite deep dish place!
Stopped by Pops for Champagne bar at night. Would be good, except we weren’t in the mood for dropping $200 on a bottle.

Day 2

Firecakes – AMAZING doughnuts.
Brunch at Brunch. My favorite place out of any of them! Amazing food, great customer service, everyone who worked there seemed to love their job.
The Bean (or Cloud Gate) – must see attraction in Millenium Park.
Walked down The Magnificent Mile (Michigan Ave.) for some shopping.

I stopped by another friend’s house in the city for dinner after my Minneapolis friends left, and my train departed at 9:30pm. Didn’t arrive back to Elyria until 5:00am. It was a rough Monday morning, but Chicago is a great place for food!

Year traveled: 2017

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Weekend in Chicago

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