MPTC Culinary Club goes to 2012 Chicago Food Show

G’day Mates! Recently, members of the culinary club and I headed down to Chicago for the 2012 National Restaurant Association at the McCormick Place. In order to participate in this trip we had to volunteer forty hours throughout the school year as part of our club dues. The National Res

taurant Food Show in Chicago is similar to Wisconsin’s Food Show, but is triple the size and I mean literally super massive. We stayed at Hotel 71 which is a prime location in downtown Chicago and minutes away from the food show. I was excited to stay at this hotel because this is the same spot where the film “The Dark Knight” was filmed. As we checked in I found out my room was on the top level on the 39^th floor, and the views were amazing.

After checking in we got on a shuttle bus to attend the Food Show at the McCormick Place. When we entered the building my eyes got huge because I realized how big the Food Show was. Numerous food companies were everywhere including food products, drinks, and even marketing firms. There were so many things to see that I didn’t know where to start. We decided to divide and conquer to see all the attractions and sample the various products. Throughout the show I talked to different people and networked to hopefully find a potential career in the near future. After awhile I got tired because of all the walking. We were there for seven hours and we still didn’t see everything. I recommend if you have the chance to attend the Chicago Food Show to attend at least two days so you don’t have to rush through things and can enjoy the time there.

When the food show came to an end we headed back to our hotel to change clothes for dinner. We attended a restaurant called Vermillion, which is located a block away from Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago. Vermillion is a fusion type restaurant that specializes in India and Mexican cuisines. I was excited to check out the restaurant because I love both styles of cuisines, and combining these two was amazing. There were eleven of us and we basically tried everything on the menu. The food was amazing. For the entrée I decided to try a Red Fish mixed with vegetables. Although the waiter said this was the spiciest item on the menu, I didn’t believe him because I love spicy food. When my food came I dug right into my food and the waiter was not lying this dish was beyond spicy. It had great flavor but the spice behind the meat was so overwhelming I began to sweat. After that I could barely finish my meal, but I kept going because the flavor was delicious although the heat kept coming back hotter. As we finished our entree we ordered desserts and they were beyond amazing. The flavors were out of this world, and the decorations were fantastic! Once dessert was done we were full, but a healthy full since all the ingredients were freshly made. We decided to walk back since the weather was nice. We even saw a super nova moon, which is when the moon is closest to the Earth’s atmosphere than any other time of the year. I wish I had a better camera because this moon was beautiful, and I couldn’t get the quality picture I wanted. After a successful fun day it was time for bed. Until next time, ciao!

Cheers,

Lee IV