I went to Chicago two weeks ago and had the most incredible eats one's heart could ever desire! Of course I had my awesome friend and fellow blogger Jess in tow to experience all the goodness... Now feast your eyes on these (Warning: This post is picture-heavy.):

We got to Chicago just in time for dinner and Jess finagled a way to get us some treats from the all-vegan Karyn's Cooked while the omnis chowed down at a different restaurant. We got our dinners to go so we could all eat together as a group. We split the...

Jerk Tofu Wrap

and

Raw Plate of the Day. The raw dish had two different pates, a sesame one (our favorite!!!) and an almond one; cabbage salad; broccoli salad; avocado slices; and some raw nori rolls. This was soooo good -- I loved how the chefs at Karyn's were able to infuse so much flavor into raw veggies!

Our cashier took this picture. She was so nice and gave us free samples of one of the entrees because we had so much trouble deciding! It's not easy when the entire menu is vegan* (except *some desserts have honey, so just know that before ordering).

Did you think we'd leave without dessert? We had a luscious, soft Sweet Potato Cookie packed with nuts to wrap up the night!

The next morning after a quickie breakfast in our hotel room and a workout in the hotel gym, we walked from our hotel to the legendary Intelligentsia Coffee on Randolph. Note the "fresh roasted coffee" statement on the window -- that's what makes espresso worth having! These guys do coffee the right way, and they have the highest standards and serve the best quality espresso in the nation as far as my experience tells me. You do not even know how excited I was when I spotted Intelligentsia from across the street. It took everything I had within me to restrain myself from running across the street without looking to see if cars were coming!

The awesome baristas...

Jess's and my soy cappuccinos. Check out the latte art! And don't worry; I watched the barista make 'em and she used their special soy milk blend from the pitcher in the top right of the picture, not the dairy milk:

Oops, the cappies are all gone:

Me and Jess

Of course we had to explore a Whole Foods Market Chicago-style, so the boys dropped us off there so we could have the full experience. Jess and I had lunch and then looked up and down every aisle of the store.

My lunch included salad bar goods (roasted beets, raw kale salad, chickpeas, shoyu tofu, curry sweet potatoes, and marinated mushrooms), club soda (fizzy sparkling water is so yummy!), and vegan pizza that the kind WF guy topped with some Teese, just for us.

When dinner time came around, the group met back up to eat at the Chicago Diner, a meat-free greasy awesome yummy diner that serves mostly vegan food (cheese really is the only non-vegan thing there). For an appetizer, I got this:

Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Milkshake, made with Temptation vegan ice cream! I have had many a dairy milkshake in my lifetime, and this beats all of them! It was so decadent and delicious, I could not even believe it!

Best appetizer ever!!! Last time I came to Chicago Diner I had the Mint Chocolate Chip milkshake, but sadly it has been removed from the menu. But that's okay; the PB Cookie Dough is a bajillion times better!

Dinner's served:

Chicago Diner's own Radical Reuben sandwich, complete with thin-sliced seitan, avocado (which I asked for instead of cheese, but they have soy cheese too), sauerkraut, and vegan Thousand Island dressing on marbled rye bread. INCREDIBLE! Vegan Reubens have been my favorite sandwich for a long time now, and Chicago Diner just upped my standards. This is the best one I've had yet -- better than Native Foods in Cali, better than Green Vegetarian in Texas, better than the Vegan with a Vengeance recipe, and better than Dhaba Joy in Texas! Jess gave me half of her sweet potato fries and I gave her half of my steamed broccoli. It's fun to share!

Well, I told you a milkshake was my appetizer. That meant we needed dessert. So Jess and I split this baby:

Raw Mint Cacao Cheesecake

Completely raw, completely vegan. Jess thinks it is made of a cashew base. I think she's right. The cheesecake was all right, but I definitely liked the Reuben and the milkshake better.

I hope you had almost as much fun learning about my Chicago trip as I had on it! I can't wait to go back...which should be happening within the next month. Yee-haw!

All right, I must must must tell you about a new product find of mine and Jess's -- by the way, my friend Jess made a blog -- check it out! It's all vegan and all awesome! -- anyway, back to the product: Hemp Bagels from French Meadows Bakery. They are divine! The actual French Meadows Bakery is in Minneapolis, and I never got to go when I lived there, but now they are selling their products across the country in grocery stores' freezer sections. We found ours at our local Whole Foods! Tip: Sooo good with Justin's Maple Almond Butter...

Jess also hosted a potluck to celebrate her birthday and asked everyone to bring something vegan. I have a lot of photos from that, but they will have to wait for a future post! I know what you're most interested in, anyway: Cake!

My gorgeous slice (don't worry, it was so good I had more):

The whole honkin' cake:

The "small" cake was so big and tall I don't even want to know what a large looks like! Jess's hubby got it from a local bakery that does vegan options. It was German Chocolate (that means coconut, chocolate, and pecan).

Here's a lovely dinner I had the other night:

I got an amazing cast iron grill pan for Christmas and have been loving it! I used half of a House Foods Tofu Cutlet (look for the "Atsu Age" part on the label). These cutlets are freaking amazing! I don't know what "Atsu Age" means, but this is unlike any tofu you have ever experienced. It is so good you don't have to do anything to it. I just grilled it with salt, pepper, and olive oil. So, in even more words, these cutlets rock my socks and everyone should go out and buy some. You will be hooked and then super sad when they sell out at the grocery store every week (true story).

On to espresso updates. Here's a soy latte I got from a local coffee roastery:

It was pretty and it tasted good. I am aspiring to get my art to this point!

As you may know, I have a home espresso machine and fancy Italian grinder and have been practicing my own latte art. Here's the little section of my post where I update you on my progress, the good & bad & ugly (these are in the last two weeks or so):

Not too good.

This looks weird/cool, but it definitely isn't latte art.

But...

Finally! Some progress! This is the first kind-of rosetta I have ever poured. It's a baby. Let's see that again:

This is what I have been working towards:

I am so proud! This is actually a rosetta, and I made it the day I sifted and whisked some unsweetened cocoa powder into the espresso shots before I did the soymilk free pour. Yay!

And announcement time! I'm going to Chicago this weekend. !!!! In approximately 13 hours, Jess and I will be on the road! Stay tuned to hear about our adventure...because it's going to involve some crazy good vegan eats!