I’d almost suggest hitting the Map Room on a night that isn’t International Night. It’s been a few years since I’ve been to one, but I’m tempted to suggest that the benefits offered by a few steam trays full of Molvanian cuisine are more than offset by the crowds that are drawn. A nice quiet weeknight, when one can more easily get a table and converse is a better time to enjoy this fine bar. I like Duncan’s idea of hitting it on a coffee night.
Also, I very definitely second Duncan’s recommendation of The Hopleaf. The front room is a nice standard bar with a remarkable beer list, but in back is a cozy, befireplaced restaurant where you can explore their collection of Belgian ales at leisure. I (heart) the Hopleaf.

Hee! Been there, finished that. But I still love that game.
And now Taki’s picked up Karaoke Revolution 3. Oy.

Nope. With Jak and Daxter you can restart the game, but that’s about it. As I’ve mentioned before, the game really annoyed me with a lot of little twitchy stuff that you were required to do to get anywhere in the game, and if you failed all you could do was keep trying, over and over and over again. Not my definition of fun.
Ratchet and Clank is definitely on my to-buy list, and will probably be the next game I pick up. Since I’ve never played any of them, I figured I’d start with the first one and work my way up.
And thanks for the positive thoughts! Hopefully this will be the one that comes through.

Thanks! And incidentally, the best of luck to you as well, on all fronts!
Yep, it’s mighty damned cold up here – a high of 13 F today, and lows below zero. Toasty! The mall that blew up is nowhere near the Hyatt, though – it’s a good 30 miles away, actually, just south of Midway Airport.

Very far away. South side of Chicago, I think, as opposed to a western suburb, where MFF is.