The (not so) Windy City

My work trip to Chicago went by fast! The conference I attended was the Institute of Food Technologists' Annual Meeting and contained a large Food Expo (basically companies were advertising their products in new foods). Most of the foods weren't the best (new foods = low fat, low sugar, high protein, no flavor), but I did find one really big success - warm carmel corn from a carmel flavoring company (so it's an old favorite, it still was really good!). A huge plus was that a large group went from Work and a lot of old friends were attendees as well, so it was a fun social event consisting of a lot eating/drinking outside of the conference! Some highlights:

Pizzeria Uno - Enjoyed some traditional Chicago-style deep-dish pizza!
Tizi Melloul - For a change, the girls went to a Mediterranean restaurant and enjoyed light, unique food that was quite good.
Pops For Champagne - The bar was kinda pricey, but the champagne was very good.
Star of Siam - Two words ~ cheap and delicious!
1492 - Tapas is such a good idea for a big group of friends on a warm summer night!

Millennium Park - I took a break from the craziness of the conference Monday afternoon by grabbing a coffee and a magazine and enjoying a quiet afternoon on a bench in the shade.
The Art Institute of Chicago - D and I had limited time to check out the museum as we arrived late in the afternoon and it closes at 5pm, but I hit the main sights quickly and absolutely loved it. If I lived in Chicago, I could see myself enjoying the museum practically every lunch break!

The only minus point for me was that the conference started on Sunday, so my work week stretched from Saturday to Friday, making me completely exhausted right now. Also, my parents are currently in town for the weekend, so I must find the energy somewhere to last until I can crash Sunday night!