Open for Business: Welcome to Donna and her Cafe

A couple of weeks ago Donna Adams commented on the site:

Good morning!

I hear someone thinks I'm not opening...well I am! The road to this project has not been easy. The learning curve is/was tremendous and it will continue for a bit! I am new to the world of restaurant owning but not new to the world, learning or being flexible. I hope I can count you guys to help me grow in a positive way, thereby providing you with a positive and enjoyable experience at Donna's Cafe!I look forward seeing you all VERY soon!

Peace

Well we recently were walking by and it looks like a lot of progress has been made. Below please find a couple quick phone pictures we took from the outside.

Ironically, a reader just wrote us about the subject:

Hello Sloopin Crew,

Donna's Cafe on State and 13th is now open for business! I haven't been able to stop in yet, but I noticed that their hours are 6am-10pm Monday-Saturday and they're closed on Sunday.

Hopefully they have lots of success!

We second that thought! Welcome to the Sloop and can't wait to try it out. Best of luck!

(Hat tip: CR!)

Do Bears Fans Know Kroll's is Owned by Packers Fans?

Love the place, but we're just saying...

Blackhawk Tradition Becomes Chicago Tradition?

We love the Blackhawks...almost everything about them (even Brian Campbells unnecessary spin-o-ramas). One of our favorite things is when the fans cheer boisterously during Jim Cornelisons powerful rendition of the national anthem. This was a truly unique thing to the world of sports and as far as we know something that only happened at Chicago Blackhawk games.

To our surprise, when we turned on the Bears/Seahawks game last weekend, Mr. Cornelison was front and center getting ready to show off his voice. As he started, Chicago fans knew what to do. Right on cue, they immediately started cheering:


Is this becoming a Chicago tradition and not simply a Blackhawk tradition? From reports we read earlier in the week, Mr. Cornelison will be back at Soldier field for the Bears/Packers game on Sunday. Hopefully he can bring some of the Blackhawks good luck from last year to Soldier Field and bring home another playoff victory for the Bears.

Bear down!

(Hat tip: K-Pack!)

Chinese President Hu Jintao Comes to Chi & the Sloop

In case you missed the news this past week, a big international story has been taking place in Chicago and our South Loop neighborhood. China's President Hu Jintao came to the city yesterday and stayed at the Hilton Towers on South Michigan Avenue. If you were out and about in the Sloop, chance are you saw the effects of the president's visit.

Walking around the area you saw a lot of security, a lot of Chinese Flags and a lot of cold people.

Here is a video we found on YouTube outside of the hotel:


For those of you who are curious as to why the Chinese president was in Chicago:

Chinese President Hu Jintao took his roadshow to the U.S. Midwest, where executives from the two countries were set to sign up to 60 deals on Friday to
underscore the message that China is open for business.

Leaving behind the rancor of Washington where he was pressed on human rights and currency policy, Hu was feted by the Chicago elite at a gala dinner in U.S. President Barack Obama's hometown.

The Chinese leader was scheduled to wrap up his four-day state visit with stops at a school and a business exhibition.

A New Way To Get Discounts?

It appears that the South Loop is the testing grounds for a new deal site. We recently read about this concept on the NBC Chicago website and were intriqued. Althought the QR
(which stands for Quick Response codes) readers are pretty easy to use, seems like an unnecessary step to get a deal. Can't it just say text XXX to XXX and we will send you a deal? Who knows, maybe people are intriqued by this?

Smart phone addicts are probably already aware of QR or Quick Response codes -- those square-shaped, funky-looking bar codes that appear in magazines, train stations or even on business cards.

Now they're impossible to ignore. Chicago company ScanForDeals.com is placing gigantic QR codes in locations around Chicago. The first 600 square foot code popped up near the corner of Polk and Clark streets in the South Loop.

South Loop businesses such as Jimmy Green's Tavern and Blackies appear to be utilizing this technology according to the NBC article.

(Image from NBC Chicago's Website)

Confused By the Soldier Field Events Parking Restrictions?

Just in time for the final Bears game of the season, a concerned Sloopite details a frustrating and confusing street parking episode:

Hi Sloopin,

I wanted to write you about a situation I am currently in the middle of involving parking in the South Loop during the Soldier Field events. From the information I have gathered, there have been many victims of this same misunderstanding.

When I returned home from out of town on Saturday night, I tried parking in my usual permit only area around 14th and State. There were no spots available, so I found one on 14th Place. As we all do, I checked the signs and the only restriction was "No Parking 2 hrs before Soldier Fields Events and 1 hr after except vehicles displaying resident permits". I knew there was a Bears game the next day, but I had a "Residential Permit" clearly displayed in my shield
with the local neighborhood permit area listed on it as well.

I went to leave on Monday night to go to my hockey league and my car was nowhere to be found. I went online and found it at the Sacramento impound lot. I took a cab to the impound lot for $15. At the impound lot, the attendant told me that there has been many people saying they also had the correct permits displayed according to the signs and they too were towed and I can request a hearing to dispute the tow charge. I had to pay $170 to get my car out and hurried on to my hockey game.

On Tuesday, I called the number on my tow stub to schedule my hearing and they told me I was supposed to do that at the impound lot or I could write a letter and wait three weeks for a reply. This perturbed me since I was not offered to schedule a hearing even after complaining about the towing. I was also told that it is not the city that is towing the vehicles but yet another vendor the city has hired and I can take my complaint up to their supervisor.

On a side note, a friend of mine was also towed a few months ago for a Solider Field event and he said there was a line of people there with the same argument then.

I then called Alderman Bob Fioretti's office to explain that there seems that many of their local citizens are being abused by the tow truck operators towing their vehicles despite having the correct permits displayed. The person on the phone explained to me that there is yet another permit (besides the City parking sticker and the neighborhood permit sticker) that you need to have to park during Solider Field events. I said fair enough, but the signs do not say "except vehicles displaying a Soldier Field event permit" but says a "resident permit" of which I (and many others) believed we had. They asked me to bring photos in to show them. Thanks for the proactive help.

So that is where I stand now. I have spent almost $200 to get my car out of impound that was improperly towed in the first place and still have to return to an impound lot to schedule a hearing to argue my case. So it will be weeks before I have a chance to get my money back.

I am curious how many Sloopin readers have been in similar situations with the Soldier Field events parking? I really believe they need to pay attention to the "resident permits" that we have all paid to have to park in the area or else change the signage to require a "Soldier Field event permit".

Thanks,

A Concerned Sloopite

Personally we haven't had a problem, but we agree these signs are confusing. What do others think?

Sports Night in the Sloop

Yesterday we watched two young women talk about the Sloop. Mostly positive things to say, but one comment stuck out like a sore thumb:

“For a fun time if we wanted to go anywhere after 9 o-clock, we’d just go to the Jewel.”

Well this past Saturday we were looking for some fun post 9 o'clock. Although it's easy to concede that the Sloop might not have as many night time options as River North, Lincoln Park or Wicker Park...going to Jewel is a little bit of an exaggeration in our mind (although it is a funny one).


This past weekend was a huge sports weekend and consequently we wanted to head to a bar to get some drinks and bathe in the glow of numerous Televisions. In the past we've had some discussion on where was the best place to watch the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament in the Sloop. At that time the consensus was Kroll's on the Northwest corner of Michigan and 18th. We still agree that that's a great place for sports.



However, tonight we had a friend coming down who lived in Streeterville and didn't want to go that far South. So we were looking for something North of Roosevelt. Villain's? Bar Louie? Kasey's Tavern? South Loop Club? We ultimately decided on Jimmy Green's Tavern (825 S. State), after all the place is new and packed with brand new flat screen Televisions. Ironically they were also hosting that night's Chicago Blackhawks Cityroad watch (which is a good time and something we've covered before). Since our goal was to watch and listen to the Blackhawks, but also be able to watch the Bulls vs Heat (NBA) while watching the Packers vs Falcons (NFL), this seemed like the perfect solution.


Well we weren't the only people with this game plan in mind. We walked in a found a lengthy wait for tables. Luckily the wait wasn't as long as originally anticipated. We got a table and had a prime seat in the middle of the bar. Best of all we were perfectly positioned with plenty of TVs in view to catch all of the sporting events. We came for the sporting events, but obviously had to get some food and drinks.


To our surprise, Jimmy Green's has their own Lager that is brewed specifically for the bar by Argus Brewery. Naturally we had to give this a try. Personally I enjoyed it and drank it the rest of the night. My wife (who prefers light beer) enjoyed it but switched to something a little lighter as the night progressed.


In regard to food, we had some quesadillas, steak nachos and the surprise of the night, a Salmon Sandwich on a pretzel roll. The first two were huge portions and what you would imagine from a bar. Solid food, but they're not quite competing for best in the city. The Salmon Sandwich was an odd choice, but was pretty good. Definitely not disappointing.


All in all it was a solid night. Saturdays are always big bar nights, but the sports made it seem even bigger (judging by the fact that every establishment we walked by seemed to be overflowing). Given the fact that one of the biggest football games in Soldier Field history is taking place this Sunday (Bears vs Packers for a trip to the Super Bowl), we imagine another big weekend is in store.


So if you're looking to enjoy some beer and sports in the Sloop, we would suggest Jimmy Green's. Just make sure you get there early to get a seat!


(Hat tip: ND & Jean G!)

After 9pm, Go the Jewel for Fun?

We recently saw this video posted on YoChicago that highlights two women who used to live in the Sloop and have since moved up north. You probably won't find any surprises while listening to it, however it's always good to hear opinions about our neighborhood.

Seems pretty reasonable. They bash the nightscene in the Sloop, but besides that mostly positive things to say:

Yikes! A South Loop Standoff

From Chicago Tribune Breaking News:

A standoff between Chicago police and a man refusing to get out of his vehicle in the city's South Loop has ended, authorities said.

A police spokesman didn't readily know whether the man who refused to get out of the vehicle in the 1100 block of South Wells Street was armed with a weapon.

No injuries have been reported in the roughly two-hour standoff, which resulted in the police shutting down several streets surrounding the scene, including vehicle and pedestrian traffic on Roosevelt Road.

(Hat tip: K!)

City Council Approves Ping Tom Park Expansion

We recently read on the City of Chicago website (via curbed chicago) that the city council has approved expansion of a field house in Ping Tom Park:

Approved also was an ordinance that finances the construction of an athletic field house in Ping Tom Park on the City’s Near South Side.

Funds for the $10 million proposal will be allocated from the River South TIF district.
The field house will include a main gym, club rooms and community meeting areas for nearby Chinatown residents and other users. Specific design details are anticipated to be completed in 2011. Construction is expected
to start the following year.

The park is located on a 12-acre site adjacent to the South Branch of the Chicago River at 300 W. 19th St. Initially featuring a children's
playground, community gathering areas and Chinese landscape design elements, the park was later expanded north of 18th Street to include ball fields, play areas
and a variety of river edge improvements that are currently under construction.

We remember seeing some renderings of a field house (click here), but haven't heard much about the project until we read the article above. It's a great piece of land, so hopefully this comes to fruition.

(Image from Site Design Group)

Trader Joe's and Retail are What Sloopers Are Looking for in 2011

I Have a Dream

Bearing Down Towards the Super Bowl?

The Chicago Bears are one step closer to the ultimate goal of winning a super bowl. A dominant performance today against the Seattle Seahawks has people thinking big. Hopefully the same team shows up next Sunday at 2pm at Soldier Field to beat up on our most hated rival, the Green Bay Packers.

Interestingly, this is only the second time the Bears and Packers have faced each other in the playoffs.

Anyway, the city will likely be electric leading up to the game next week and it should be a fun time around the Sloop! Although most people around the city are happy to watch the Bears advance to the NFC championship game, our guess is that business owners in the South Loop(mainly restaurants and bars) are particularly happy that they will have another opportunity to cash in on another game day in the South Loop.

Next Sunday should be fun...

Bear Down!

Chiropractor Moving Into Clark and Polk?

A reader writes:

I walk by the intersetion of Clark and Polk everyday and noticed for awhile that something is going into one of the commerical spaces in Burnham Pointe. Does anyone know what business this will be?

Although we're not 100% sure what this might be, we had some old emails from a reader letting us know that a chiropracter's office was moving in:

I believe Dr. Christina Know is a chiropractor in the river city building. Since that got flooded, she is likely moving locations. It's going to be a "Proper Balance Healthcare"
location. They are going to have health food, therapy, massages, etc..There is a lot of construction in the space - completely transforming interior.

(Hat tip: AW & DG!)