On the 12th of January, a hot, dry summer day in Chile, I started packing my bags to leave for Chicago the following day. I would be joining the team at Interpro Translation Solutions and enjoying 3 weeks in the greater Chicago area during training. I had a few expectations for joining a new company, but I never really imagined just how much I would get to know different cultures through food by going to work at Interpro.I arrived on Sunday after 8 hours from Santiago to Miami and 3 hours from Miami to Chicago. That day I mostly slept, but on Monday my culinary adventure began.
An American sunrise from Javiera’s hotel in Naperville, IL
An Enjoyable Welcome Lunch of Chinese Cuisine
As a welcome lunch, Interpro took me to MingHin Cuisine, a Chinese restaurant that in my eyes, was the most authentic I had ever tried.
Being a vegetarian, I was nervous that I wouldn’t be able to enjoy food as much in Chicago, but the Chinese place was one of many pleasant surprises in that regard. I had Mapo Tofu with white rice, a very (to my palate) spicy plate from the province of Sichuan. And I had no idea, but the custom when you go to a Chinese restaurant is that they serve you a very warm kettle of green tea, which was much welcomed by me since the Chicago coldness (-20 degrees Celsius) was freezing my very bones.
An Italian Feast
On a Friday night my boss who is Italian, his wife and her lifelong Mexican friend took me to Maggiano’s, where we had an incredible Italian style feast. As starters we had fried zucchini (which is actually one of the veggies that I least enjoy), stuffed mushrooms and a spinach/artichoke dip; to my surprise, what I enjoyed the most was the crispy and delightful fried zucchini. For dinner I had Mushroom Ravioli, which had a nice touch of sourness to it and a very creamy sauce. For dessert I tried the Tiramisu, which I thoroughly enjoyed, it was moist, the right amount of sweet and very spongy. But I quickly learned from the Italian natives that it wasn’t exactly as they do it in Italy. Hopefully one day I’ll get to try the real thing.
Indian and Nepalese in Chicago
The only time I actually got to go to the city we had an amazing dinner at an Indian place called Chicago Curry House, a delicious Indian and Nepalese restaurant. I got to try different dishes since we decided to share, so we had Paneer Tikka Masala, Chickpea Curry, and Veggie Korma paired with different kinds of naan as well as basmati. As starter we had samosas, which were very aromatic and packed with flavor.
American Lunches
At the office we ordered sandwiches from an Italian place, I had one with provolone cheese, avocado, lettuce and pickles, very nice, with a side of Mac and Cheese, which I was very excited to try since it’s one of my favorite American foods. I also had a Red Velvet cookie, which was honestly the best I’ve ever had.
Another really good place that I randomly got to try was Cinnaholic, which we don’t have in Chile. They are basically gourmet style cinnamon rolls, with a wide variety of options for every liking. I had the Caramel Apple Pie, which had pecans, one of my favorite kind of nut. The apples in it balanced the sweetness of the cinnamon roll very well.
Almost by the end of my trip I got to try Jojo’s ShakeBAR in downtown Naperville, which had a very notorious aesthetic for their food as well as for their décor. The milkshakes were extravagant, with fun flavors and cookies, brownies, pop cakes, ice-cream cones, classic whipped cream and lots of sprinkles. For dinner I had a grilled cheese, another American staple that I thoroughly enjoy. This one had five (!!!) different types of cheese, as well as roasted tomatoes and bacon (which I ordered without). The actual place was very beautiful, with fun little trinkets, flashy neon signs, and cool retro gaming style decorations.
Pictured Left: Cinnaholic; Pictured Right: Jojo’s ShakeBAR
Chicago is definitely a great destination for foodies, so I’d recommend doing some research and getting right to experiencing different cultures through their stunning flavors!