Wednesday night at the Goodman

My friend Nicole and I have a very limited subscription to the Goodman Theater. Recently, we had the privilege of seeing "The Convert" in the Owen Theater.

The play takes place in colonial Zimbabwe around the turn of the 19th century in the home of Chilford, a native Zimbabwean man, with aspirations of becoming a priest in the Roman Catholic church. Chilford employs Mai Tamba and later Jakesai, who comes to be known as Ester As the title of the play would suggest, Chilford works tirelessly to convert the natives in his town. His efforts have varying degrees of success. But no convert seems as pure or as righteous as Ester.

And that is the crux of the play. Throughout "The Convert", Ester struggles with fully adopting her new way of life, while feeling a sense of duty to her family and her culture.

The first act of the play was slow and full of context-setting dialog. On a Wednesday night, it's difficult for me to sit through a performance that doesn't immediately grab my attention. But I persevered and the acts improved. The third act was by far the best. Suspenseful, dramatic and compelling, I was disappointed when the play was over.

"The Convert" plays at the Goodman Theater until Sunday, March 25th.

Jazz & Classical Music at Julius Meinl

A few weekends ago, I met my friend Tamara for a late afternoon coffee beverage at Julius Meinl, a cute European-style coffee house at Southport and Addison. Our beverages came on an adorable tray.

Tamara was running late, so I had a few extra minutes to scope out the pastry case and read the menu. After settling on a mango smoothie (Tamara had a chai tea latte.), I flipped to the back of the menu and noticed a line up of concerts at Julius Meinl's Southport and Lincoln Square locations. Concerts are Friday and Saturday nights and often feature musicians who play for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra or have won or been nominated for a Grammy. I'll let you know when I check one out!

Julius Meinl is a Vienna-based coffee purveyor with a few locations in Chicago, including a soon-to-open cafe in Ravenswood. My mango smoothie probably had a lot of sugar, but it was delicious.

At Julius Meinl on Southport

Mom's first sushi

Sushi spread at Sushi Mon in Lincoln Park

I'm so proud of my mom! A couple of weekends ago, she finally took the plunge and fully embraced sushi. And not just California rolls and spicy tuna rolls. She went off the deep end and tried a dragon roll, a cucumber roll with raw tuna and a salmon appetizer, also raw.

We took her to Sushi Mon in Lincoln Park, a quaint BYOB place with some of the freshest, most affordable sushi in the city. Z and I stop by at least a couple of times a month and have never been disappointed. (Our favorite is the fresh gold uni they often carry.)

We started with miso soup and green salad, followed by the salmon appetizer--a piece of raw salmon wrapped around cucumber, avocado and crab meat.  Next came the crunchy California roll, which turned out to be Mom's favorite and contrary to her customary position of refusing shellfish or "bottom feeders" as she calls them.

We finished up with a Dragon roll of the pressed variety, another Sushi Mon specialty, a Vienna roll and a Viola roll.

Mom before her Vienna roll

And after! Yum!

Lotta gelato in Ukranian Village

(Photo courtesy Black Dog Gelato)

(Photo courtesy Black Dog Gelato)

Outside of Italy, authentic, creamy, flavorful gelato is hard to find. While nothing can compete with the experience of eating gelato while strolling through the streets of Roma, Black Dog Gelato comes close to the creaminess of real Italian gelato. And its flavors are unlike any I've found.

We went to Black Dog this past weekend with my parents and each of the eight flavors we ate between the four of us was divine in its own right. I tried a Salted Peanut/Goat Cheese Cashew Caramel combination. Z tried a lighter fruit combination, while my mom went for chocolate/vanilla and my dad opted for a Salted Peanut/Bourbon Apricot combination.

Flavors change daily. Black Dog is open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays in the winter, with longer hours in warmer months. If you "like" the shop on Facebook, you'll get updates about new flavors and gelato-making classes.

South Pacific in Chicago

At the Cadillac Palace Theater on Randolph

I have a confession to make. I love musicals. I know they are considered low-brow, but I'm not afraid to buck convention and admit that I like them. They make me smile.

I was jealous of my aunt when she said she was going to South Pacific at the Cadillac Palace Theater with some of her girlfriends. So when a coworker offered me an extra ticket to Wednesday night's show, I happily obliged.

I wasn't familiar with the plot before arriving at the theater, but could infer it had something to do with the islands of the South Pacific during World War II and a love story or two. It turns out I like the theme of the show--overcoming adversity and one's prejudices to find love and happiness. And I really liked the set design of this particular production, which is based on the Lincoln Center Theater production. The sets were complex, yet fit together very well.

But the show itself felt very long. The songs, which have a similar rhythm and tune to begin with, began to feel like one very long song. What I like most about musicals is their energy. Unfortunately, South Pacific, at least on this Wednesday night, lacked energy.

South Pacific plays at the Cadillac Palace Theater until Sunday, February 26. Tickets are still available.

Duck Fat Fries at The Bristol

(Photo courtesy starchefs.com)

What is it about duck fat that can make even french fries taste better? Potatoes fried in duck fat are crispier, more flavorful and oh so much more indulgent.

The duck fat fries at The Bristol in Bucktown are no exception. The portion size is generous, especially as an appetizer, which is how we ate them on a Friday night. Our choice of pairing them with the charcuterie plate wasn't the best decision, but, hey, we were hungry. Don't get me wrong; either dish would be fabulous on its own, but they're not the best combination. We washed down our apps with some delicious cocktails--Z had the Moscow Mule and I had the Poire & Elderflower.

For dinner in the main dining room downstairs we switched to wine. My viognier was excellent; Z's pinot noir lacked some flavor, but was still smooth and easy drinking. While The Bristol's menu has some staples, like the duck fat fries, most items change daily. On the day we went, my house-made pappardelle pasta with bolognese sauce was really yummy. Z's head-on prawns had good flavor, but a little too much butter. The Brussels sprouts also had a nice flavor, but, again, a bit too much oil.

The Bristol is participating in Restaurant Week, but this Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand award winner is a great value without Restaurant Week.

Barrelhouse Flat on a Friday night

(Photo courtesy chicagonow.com)

Z finally took me to The Barrelhouse Flat. I've been asking to go since it first took over the former Deja Vu space in Lincoln Park in October 2011. (Z went with friends about a month ago, but by the time I could meet up with them, they had moved on to a fratastic bar down the street.)

On a Friday night, Barrelhouse was as busy as I would expect. This place has been covered by every major Chicago publication at least once. And it's hype is well-deserved. From the decor to the glasses to the drinks themselves, the experience is period-appropriate and classy.

After hovering for a few minutes without reservations or plans to eat, we were able to find two seats at the bar. The interior is appropriately minimal. It looks like how I would picture a saloon from just before or after Prohibition--an upright piano, appropriately dimmed lights and at least one bartender in a flapperish-style outfit.

I ordered the Mamie Taylor, a delicious concoction of whiskey, lime, simple syrup and ginger beer. Z ordered the Sazerac, a rye whiskey drink. Next time I hope to check out the Queen's Park Swizzle or the Airmail. Maybe some food, too. Until the deviled egg trend started, I didn't realize I was such a sucker! Looks like Barrelhouse has a special variety of double deviled eggs.