Katie & Justin

Looking for some fun activities to do while you’re in Chicago? Here are a few ideas for you — including a couple of our favorite spots.

The Taste of Chicago takes place in Grant Park from July 8 – 12. (Grant Park, by the way, is where Justin and I play softball every summer.) Here’s more info, including the concert lineup and participating restaurants.

The Irish American Heritage Festival is taking place July 10 – 12. You can always count on good music and a fun time there. (One of my favorite bands, Gaelic Storm, is playing — but on July 11, unfortunately.)

Another fest that week is the Glendale Heights Summer Fest. Glendale Heights, in case you don’t know, is my home town, located in the west suburbs. The firework shows (there’s one on July 8 and another on July 12) are always pretty impressive.

In Chicago, be sure to take a stroll along the lakefront. If you go by Belmont Harbor, you can watch all the sailboats go in and out, and catch a nice view of the Hancock Center downtown. Or if you head over by the Adler Planetarium, you’ll get great views of the city there, too. My new favorite spot along the lake is at Promontory Point on the South Side, which is where we will be taking pictures the day of the wedding.

Try bowling at Southport Lanes. Be prepared to do some math — you have to keep score the old fashioned way. And there’s a person behind the lanes who sets the pins for you. Don’t forget to tip him/her by sticking a few bucks in the bowling ball and rolling it down before you leave! (This is where Justin and I had our second date.)

Catch a movie at the Brew & View. When it’s not hosting concerts, the Vic Theater plays movies on the big screen for a cheap price.

Not too far from there is the Cubby Bear — a bar near Wrigley Field that should be avoided on game days. However, when the Cubs are away, the second floor is usually quiet and it has a bunch of arcade games and batting cages, which is what we love to do there. They’re small but fun for a few swings.

Justin follows the comedy scene pretty closely, so we like to go and check out different shows. Very rarely have we seen any bad ones, no matter where we go. One of the most consistently good (and inexpensive) places is the I.O. Theater. Their improv Shakespeare show, in particular, is incredibly impressive!

My mom and my sisters and I all have subscriptions to Broadway in Chicago so we regularly go to plays at all the nice theaters downtown. We recently saw the musical “On Your Feet” and the two main singers were awesome. The next one on our schedule is Kinky Boots at the Cadillac Palace on July 14.

Lincoln Park Zoo is always a fun time. You may or may not see a lot of animals, but it is free and at the very least, it’s a nice walk through the park. Justin’s favorite: the lion den. Mine: the sea lion pool.

As for other city institutions, we like the Shedd Aquarium and the Museum of Science and Industry the best.

Forest Park is a short drive from Chicago but our annual visit to the west suburb is always one of the highlights of the year. Every time we go, Justin and I spend an afternoon doing archery at an indoor range on Madison St., competing to see who can get the highest score. (It’s an ongoing tally, going on six years. So far it’s:  Katie 3, Justin 2.)

From there we always go to my absolute favorite restaurant, Gaetano’s. It’s the best and most authentic Italian food I’ve had since living in Italy. Just don’t ask me about the time I accidentally forgot my leftovers at the restaurant….

Speaking of food, we love going out to eat — and probably do it WAY too much. There are so many places that we love, but here are a few that come to mind:  Raw Bar for seafood, Crosby’s Kitchen for brunch, Moody’s Pub for burgers, and 35th Street Red Hots for hot dogs (where you have to ring the Bell of Shame if you ask for ketchup.)

Want pizza? We like D’Agostino’s, Art of Pizza, Giordano’s, Lou Malnati’s and Antica Pizzeria in Andersonville. And if you want to try a fancier restaurant downtown, you can’t go wrong with Gibson’s or Wildfire. The chicken at Bandera is also quite tasty.

The Dock at Montrose Beach is a cool spot to grab a bite to eat in the summer. Justin and I played volleyball at the park over there and our team went to this restaurant after each game for dinner and drinks. You can sit outside, enjoy live music and watch the waves roll in.

On to dessert! For amazing gelato, try Ge Pa De Cafe by the Art Institute (they have good pizza and sandwiches, too). Jeni’s Ice Cream has some interesting and bizarre flavors; the homemade whipped cream is delightful.

In Evanston, where Justin grew up, there’s Andy’s Frozen Custard — an ice cream shop that originated in Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri, where my family vacations every summer. (While we’re in Missouri, we hate Andy’s because it’s the rival to our favorite frozen custard shop: Randy’s. However, in Chicago, Andy’s is the only option, so in that case we’ll take it!)

Justin’s mom also recently discovered the newly opened Ghiradelli Chocolate Bar. We haven’t been yet, but it sounds pretty cool with a chocolate-making station and fruit and nut bar.

Ah, there’s soooooo much more that I’m leaving out… if you have any questions, or if you’re looking for something in particular, just hit us up and we can give our recommendations.