Stir Crazy
28252 Diehl Rd, 630-393-4700
http://www.stircrazy.com/

8100 Mountainside Bar & Grill
50 West Thomas Place, Avon CO 970-827-6600

http://www.hyatt.com/gallery/beave8100/

I usually do not post really bad reviews of places since I choose pretty carefully and rarely have terrible experiences plus I am super easy going and give places the benefit of the doubt. With that said I have no choice but to put up a honest review of 8100 and I can honestly say it was one of the most disappointing meals I have had in years. First thing was nobody up front to greet us and we stood up front like idiots for like 5 minutes. We finally got greeted and sat at the bar to wait for our table and had a local Colorado beer. The menu was pretty solid with many options that sounded good but the problem was that they missed almost on every item we ordered. The Poached Pear salad was served with cold un-poached pears followed by a miserable attempt at Foie Gras that was poorly cooked with a bitter gross aftertaste. We also ordered the Seared Scallops and they were decent accept they left off the Pine Nuts that we were really looking forward to. The entrees came and they were both pretty bad also and I have never seen a piece of Salmon served so burned on both side and the burned taste went through the entire piece of fish and was totally inedible. I ordered the Braised Short Rib which is one of my favorite things and it was gross also and covered in a gross bbq sauce that tasted like open pit. With all the amazing options in Vail and Beaver Creek I really wish we would have chose better and the entire meal was a huge bummer.

Roy’s
720 North State Street, (312) 787-7599
http://www.roysrestaurant.com/locations/IL/chicago.asp

Kelly Liken
12 Vail Road
http://www.kellyliken.com/

Garcia’s Restaurant
1758 West Lawrence Ave (773)784-1212

I really enjoyed Garcia’s on my 1st visit and was really surprised how large and busy this place was. I learned that it was more of a small Taqueria before the hug renovation and they did a really nice job from the look and feel of the restaurant is pretty authentic and nice. The meal started with a good chips and salsa and I really enjoyed the Tortilla Soup and was surprised with how large the serving was. I decided to try the Ceviche as an entree and that was also very good and fresh. I will be adding Gracia’s to my regular stops for good Chicago local Mexican food around the Chicago area.

Jam
937 N Damen Ave, (773) 489-0302
http://www.jamrestaurant.com/

Old Town Social Chicago

455 West North Avenue, Chicago 312-266-2277

www.oldtownsocial.com/

This was my second visit here and I love the design and atmosphere and the beer list is awesome.   I have not enjoyed a full meal here yet but the cheese and meat tray with perfect and we enjoyed with a glass of red wine.  The meats and cheeses can be chosen a la cart or you can go with the chef’s recommendations.   The vibe of the place changes on Friday and Saturday night around 11PM  and turns more into a club  which is not my style but it is a great place to go before or after Second City or Zanies or just for a nice night out.

Moto Restaurant Chicago
945 West Fulton Market (312)491-0058
www.motorestaurant.com/

Went to Moto to celebrate my Birthday with a friends birthday as we do every year on the 14th and we decided to visit Moto, we both actually went to Moto about 6-7 years ago when they 1st opened in Chicago and I remember how amazing it was so we decided to see how it compared to then. Everything was amazing and the service was top notch as I remember and I would say Moto is one of my top 10 Restaurants in Chicago. We opted for the 10 course tasting with the full pairing and each and every course was incredible and the wine pairing was perfect, from the edible menu to the smoking dessert. Don’t miss Moto if you have a chance.

Islamorada Fish Co
81532 Overseas Highway Islamorada (305) 664-9271

http://www.fishcompany.com/

We had heard good things about this place from a few people but got a little nervous walking in and it was empty and we were the only people sitting for dinner,  it was the lull before busy season so we gave it a try.   The food was really really good and we enjoyed everything we had,  the Oysters were great, the Stone Crab was fantastic and the Dolphin was also good.  I had the Conch Salad and it was ok but nothing like the Bahamas that I hoped for.  The service was good and we actually met a very cool couple from PA that we talked to for  couple hours after eating.  Fun times

Mastro’s Steakhouse Chicago
520 N Dearborn St (312) 521-5100
http://www.mastrosrestaurants.com/

Let me start by saying that I have had many amazing steaks in my life from Morton’s to the Chophouse to Delmonico’s  in Vegas to everywhere in between all around the world.  The steaks at Mastro’s were easily up there in my top 5 best steaks I have had and I loved everything about this place.  The main bar area is really cool and the actual bar is huge and had a very nice feel.  They were late seating us for our reservation would be my only complaint of the night and there lack of apologizing or making good on being seated so late that some of the higher end places like this would have done.

We enjoyed a wide range of the menu and everything was fantastic,  we started with the Tuna Tare Tare, Steak Tare Tare and the crap stuffed mushroom caps and they were all very good.  For dinner 2 people had the 18oz bone in Filet and I tried both and they were cooked perfect and very great.  One person enjoyed the Bone in Kansas City Strip and it was outstanding also and I did the Rack of Lamb that was an enormous full rack of 8 full super huge shanks and they were by far the best I have ever had.  We enjoyed a couple sides with our meal,  the famous Lobster Mash was outstanding and the brussel sprouts were good but a little too hard.

Great great meal all around from the service to the wine list and all the food was amazing.  I will definitely be going back and I need to remember that this place is pretty pricey but the portions and the quality and taste make it all worth it.