Champagne and Sushi

There’s a vacation, and then there’s a getaway—that quick trip out of town that refreshes your body, mind, and spirit. One fast-growing kind of miniretreat is the “girlfriend getaway,” a few days when women take off with their closest confidants for a bit of R and R, adventure, or shopping.

For some, shopping is all of the above. Shopping is relaxing and exhilarating—an expedition and a sport. A shopping weekend isn’t about mass consumption of goods, but mass consumption of an experience. And a shopping weekend doesn’t have an agenda. Or a schedule. Or a tour guide. It’s pretty much a free-for-all.

My two dearest friends and I try and carve out a getaway at least once a year. It could be downtown Minneapolis—or points beyond. Chicago has become a turnkey option. The flights are reasonable and the climate is similar, so there’s no need to pull out-of-season clothes out of storage. Plus, Chicago is an easy place to power shop. The hotels are smack-dab in the middle of the action, the cabs are plentiful, and the city is filled with pockets of concentrated shopping districts with a glorious assortment of retail.

Six years ago, I wrote of a similar trip for this magazine with my same two friends: Trish and Shelly. Since then, three more children have entered into our combined lives (Trish now has three, Shelly, two, and I have the twins.) We’re all in our (nearly) midforties. We’re more accomplished, busier, and wiser. And most of all, we are craving more time for ourselves.

Our most recent trip was in January, not exactly what you would consider the optimal month to explore the Windy City. It was a bit too early for spring fashion and well past the holidays, but I was able to tag it on to the end of a two-day magazine shoot. My travel mates took my lead and scheduled some business as well, so we all had separate activities on Thursday and Friday before having our fun. Here are some trip highlights.

The Hotel
We set up camp at The James, a fabulous hotel located on Ontario at Rush, just a block off Michigan. It had a facelift two years ago and is now a modern and hip, yet classic, establishment. It was the perfect spot to serve as the hub for the trip. The staff was attentive and pleasant, and we especially loved our Vince Vaughn–esque doorman—“Hey, ladies. Where ya headed this morning?”—and the complimentary car service in a tricked-out Audi Q7.

We opted for a corner “apartment” suite with one king-sized bed. The adjacent sitting room had ample space for the twin rollaway. The décor was very Design Within Reach, including a small sofa, a banquette and small dining table, and a low-slung lounge chair. It was easy for each of us to carve out space for working on our laptops. The CD player came with The James Euro-mix disk, but we also picked up Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black (to play before we went out) and Tony Bennett’s Duets (for the next morning). Great music makes all the difference in creating mood in a little getaway hideout. Once the dresses were hung, the shoes in a row, the straightening irons unpacked, and the makeup bags placed on the vanity (this hotel easily accommodated all of our gear), we were set.
Shopping: State Street
We started at State Street. Macy’s to be exact. Sure there were boutiques to invade, but there’s not much that compares with the mega—second largest in the United States—department store. It was our first day, and I only had a couple of hours before I needed to be on location for my shoot. We headed straight to Seven on State (the upscale equivalent of Minneapolis’s Skyroom) for lunch at Takashi’s Noodles. After fueling up, we checked in at the nearby visitor’s center for our five-day discount card. (It’s only 11 percent off, but it covers the sales tax we pay in Illinois.) Our immediate shopping need was a coat for Shelly. She hated the one she had along, and to make fashion matters worse, she had lost the belt on the plane. Of course, being January, outerwear was on sale. After trying on no fewer than twenty coats, our team consensus was a chic black wool belted car coat. Shelly asked the sales woman if she could dispose of her old, dated coat. “You aren’t the first woman to ask that today,” she replied.

My mind was focused on resort wear since I had a trip to the Bahamas in the coming weeks. I nabbed a royal blue, navy, and white long-sleeved tunic by INC that will be perfect over my swimsuit.

I reconnected with my pals later in the day at Nordstrom Rack (across the street from Macy’s) where we all found a score or two. Mine? A brown and white daisy floral shift by Milly ($40!), also for my trip to the islands.

Shopping: Bucktown
You’d think with Michigan Avenue practically out our front door—and oh-so-fabulous Oak Street in the Gold Coast district only ten blocks away, we’d stay close to The James. But Bucktown was beckoning. There was news that Cynthia Rowley and Nanette Lepore had each recently opened shops in the artsy-bohemian retail district. (Marc by Marc Jacobs opened two weeks after our visit). Bucktown is what Twin Citian’s wish Uptown could be. There’s a nice mix of owner-operated shops and boutiques focusing on local and emerging designers. Plus plenty of specialty retail stores and eateries. I was personally drawn to Nanette Lepore. This is her fifth store in the United States and the closest to Minneapolis. I’ve enjoyed her vintage-inspired designs since discovering her at Anthropologie many moons ago. My friends and I took the place over for about an hour (fall and winter collection was half off). Trish bought a black dress—I’ve lost count of how many she owns. And somehow, I walked out with not only a sweater, but a just-above-the-ankle brocade halter-style dress. Only girlfriends can get you to buy a long dress when there’s not a particular event you’re shopping for.

Our time in Bucktown was focused on a stretch of Damen Avenue north of Milwaukee Avenue and included stops at Helen Yi, p.45, PsychoBaby, Pagoda Red, Tangerine, and Stitch. Had we headed farther north on Damen, we would have discovered Apartment No. 9, Roslyn, and Veruca Salt—all recommended by the Nanette Lepore staff.

Shopping: Off the Beaten Path
Our photographer for this story, Callie Lipkin, is a TC native now making a name for herself in Chicago. She met up with us in Bucktown, and once we’d had our fill, she said she wanted to take us to one her favorite shops. We made our way to the West Loop to visit Bess & Loie on West Lake Street. The handbag and accessories boutique captivated us the minute owner Allyson Holleb opened her ring-the-bell-for-entry door. She offered us sparkling wine and then we did the divide and conquer. A half-hour later I had a great bag for schlepping stuff, Trish and I each acquired a new necklace, Trish and Shelly had new lipsticks, and we each decided we needed chic headbands. We also popped in next door to Koros, a stylish store that I’m sure would become a favorite if I was a local. Cocktails, Anyone?
We had some great chats over drinks—marriages, children, careers. The first watering hole we discovered was the Atwood Café, located in the historic Hotel Burnham, just across the street from Macy’s at State Street. It was there that we met the French martini. Our bartender put his own spin on the vodka, Chambord, and pineapple drink by adding a splash of Champagne—the perfect touch. So the French martini made an appearance here and there throughout our weekend, as did our customary glasses of pure bubbly—most of them in our lobby bar at The James.

Trips to Chicago are not complete without a stop at the Ralph Lauren Restaurant. In the current climate of Euro–hip bars, the bar at the RL Restaurant provides that perfect counterbalance with its dark wood-paneled walls, loads of framed art and books, and lots of rich leather. We scored a corner table near the fireplace with a view of the historic Water Tower Place. We sipped (you guessed it) champagne, nibbled on cheese, and enjoyed a divine lobster bisque.

Also not far from our hotel was Pops For Champagne. The Champagne bar is open from 3 p.m. until 2 a.m. and offers 125 Champagnes and sparkling wines, plus a raw bar, caviar, small plates, and cheeses, all with the perfect flavors to please a Champagne–sipping palate. As a sidenote, the owner, Tom Verhey, is a St. Paul native.

Dining Out
We are three women who appreciate good food, so dinners were a priority. Fortunately, one of the hottest steak houses in town, David Burke’s Primehouse, is located in The James. The décor offers a fresh and modern take on the classic Chicago–style steak house—including deep red, leather-topped dining tables. Like any good restaurant, it’s a little crowded and has great buzz. The meat is all dry aged on the premises in the lower-level Himalayan salt room. We shared two cuts of Black Angus beef, including a rib eye that was aged for seventy-five days and had a slight hint of Gorgonzola flavor.

We also scored high with a recommendation to try Socca in Wrigleyville. The neighborhood bistro serves a chef-driven menu of Mediterranean–inspired cuisine, including homemade pastas, fresh fish, poultry, and pork.

Our last night, we took in the scene at Japonais, a contemporary Japanese and sushi restaurant. The service was less personable than the other restaurants we’d visited, yet the staff was attentive and the food succulent. And I could have one of their sake martinis (with fresh cucumber) every Saturday night.

Sunday Morning
Our flight home was at 2:30 p.m. So we opted for Meet the Press, room service, and a leisurely morning. It’s a morning experience moms don’t often get, so we decided to soak it up as long as possible. But we saved just enough time to hit the Nordstrom shoe department (for us) and Vosges (exotic truffles for the husbands), both located in Westfield North Bridge on Michigan, before grabbing a cab to O’Hare.

How to Find Our Favorite Windy City Spots Atwood Café, 1 W. Washington St. Bess & Loie, 1015 W. Lake St. David Burke’s Primehouse, 616 N. Rush St. The James, 55 E. Ontario St. Japonais, 600 Chicago Ave. W. Koros, 1019 W. Lake St. Macy’s on State Street, 111 N. State St. Nanette Lepore, 1623 Damen Ave. N. Pops for Champagne, 601 N. State St. Ralph Lauren Restaurant, 115 Chicago Ave. E. Socca, 3301 N. Clark St. Westfield North Bridge, sixty-plus shops, including Nordstrom Suggested source: Pick up a copy of Front Desk Chicago from your hotel lobby. It includes great maps of the top shopping districts.