Category Archives: reviews

An Opinionated Guide To Restaurants At Midwest FurFest – 2023

This is an update of a post I made in 2021. Note that this is completely unofficial; it’s just me and my overblown opinions. Also, your opinions may be different from mine. I don’t care. Get your own blog!

Midwest FurFest used to publish a 20-30 page booklet of listings and reviews of local restaurants, but unfortunately when you have to print 5,000+ copies of anything (let alone a 20-30 page booklet) costs start to get prohibitive, and with the availability of Yelp and similar sites we had to make the difficult decision to discontinue the Restaurant Guide.

That said, I’m happy to offer a (completely biased) overview of restaurants in and around the Stephens Convention Center, though I will leave it to the reader to find exact locations on Google Maps.

Inside the Hyatt Regency O’Hare

  • O’H Restaurant (or whatever they’re calling it these days): a buffet restaurant serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The food ranges from OK to pretty good, which is a disappointment because I know they Hyatt can do a lot better. I haven’t tried it since last year, but I really hope they have stepped up their game.
  • Red Bar: Bar/restaurant open late afternoons and evenings with has a small food selection available as well. The prices are also not cheap, and the service can be regrettably slow, although they are actively working with MFF to improve this. It sure is convenient, though!
  • Perks, the coffee shop/gift shop. They have a selection of grab-and-go sandwiches and salads. Personally, I’ve lived off their salads for lunches during the con and they’re not bad.
  • There are rumors of a food truck as well. We have made our opinion clear that the one (and only one) truck they have had in previous years was neither very good nor very fast, and they sold out quickly. Anyway, stay tuned to MFF’s social media for more info on that.

The Hyatt will set up larger food service stands (drinks, sides, burgers, chicken sandwiches, hot dogs) that are on the expensive side but terribly convenient.

In the Stephens Convention Center

  • Expoteria: Right across the street from the hotel. Hours can vary. The food is cheap, and it is certainly…food. So, there’s that.
  • Starbucks: In the ground floor lobby of the convention center. Pretty much your standard Starbucks, and the prices are surprisingly not inflated for the location.
  • There will be a concession stand in the Dealers Den in Hall G. Expect drinks, sides, burgers, chicken sandwiches, and hot dogs that are on the expensive side but terribly convenient. The food is provided by Aramark which supplies many school cafeterias. I’m sure the similarity between the food quality is purely coincidental.
  • Bist-Rose: This is a new cafe that has been created in the lobby of the Stephens Convention Center. The food is still by Aramark, but it’s slightly elevated. Expect $13-15 sandwiches and salads and $10 beers.

In the Parkway Bank Park Entertainment District

  • Five Roses Pub: Pseudo-Irish pub. Average. Closed. This has been replaced by:
  • Saltwater Coastal Grill: Trying for a “Just off the Carolina shore” vibe that I find mildly grating given that 1. I’ve lived in that area and am quite familiar with it, and 2. We’re in freaking Illinois. Decent seafood menu with non-seafood options as well. They also have a sushi sub-restaurant with a surprisingly good menu. It’s all on the pricey side, but they do have all you can eat sushi/crab/shrimp for $30 on Fridays. They take reservations on their website.
  • King’s Dining & Entertainment: Bowling and restaurant. The place is loud, though fun with a group of friends out for drinks.
  • Adobe Gila’s: Mexican-ish. Not recommended. Carrying on a fine tradition of hating on this place for ten years now!
  • Sugar Factory: Ridiculously overpriced tourist crap (think $19 burgers)
  • Bub City: BBQ. Haven’t tried but reviews aren’t terrible. Takes reservations on their website.
  • Park Tavern: Gastropub with some good food selections and a great beer list. Service can be slow at peak times, though. Takes reservations on their website.
  • Fogo de Chao: Brazilian steakhouse. “The Meat Faucet”. Takes reservations on their website.
  • Crust Brewing: Craft beer and pizza place. The beer isn’t bad, nor is the pizza. Think Rock Bottom/RAM Brewing levels of beer quality. Could be fun with a group of friends.
  • Pete’s Dueling Piano Bar: This is the sort of thing you would like if you like this sort of thing. (Come to think of it, I say the same thing about some of my friends’ more adult social media posts. Anyway…)
  • Pete’s Tiki Tiki: It’s a bar. It serves tiki drinks. Does that make it a tiki bar? I have strong reservations. Shares a building with the piano bar and you can walk between them. FFS, if you want tiki, please go to Hala Kahiki instead (see below)
  • Verilife Dispensary: Hand if it’s a novelty for you, but keep in mind that Illinois is the second-most expensive state for cannabis in the US, and also that the TSA frowns on bringing cannabis products when traveling by air.

Also Nearby

A 10-15 minute walk south on River Road is the Fashion Outlets Chicago (fancy name aside, it’s just a mall). The food court and other restaurants have some decent options that are quite affordable. A 10-15 minute walk north on River Road brings you to McDonald’s and also Giordano’s Pizza, one of the Holy Trio of Chicago deep-dish pizza restaurants. New this year are Stan’s Donuts and Big Chicken, just behind Giordano’s. Both aren’t bad but definitely on the pricey side.

A little further walk (or a short Uber/Lyft/whatever trip) south on River Road, two blocks south of the Loews Chicago O’Hare, is Short Fuse Brewing Company I’ve found their beer to be pretty good; apparently they are doing something right as they were named Great American Beer Festival Brewery of the Year for their class. The food is pretty good, too.

Finally, a few miles south on River Road is Hala Kahiki Tiki Bar and Lounge. This is a shockingly legit retro tiki bar that has no business being tucked away in a Chicago suburb, but there it is. They have a huge menu, and the drink prices aren’t outrageous. You’ll want to eat before you go though – the food options there are pretty scarce. They have a special Christmas tiki menu this year, too!

Other good things to know: The Rosemont Entertainment Circulator is a free shuttle that runs nonstop all weekend and even late into the night. It stops at the CTA Blue Line station, at the front of the convention center, in the Parkway Bank Park, and at the Fashion Outlets Chicago.

Finally, Grubhub, UberEats, DoorDash, and other food delivery services are alive and well in Rosemont. Don’t be shy about using them to order as well!

Book Review: Wolfsong by T. J. Klune

 

Wolfsong, by T. J. Klune

Ox was twelve when his daddy taught him a very valuable lesson. He said that Ox wasn’t worth anything and people would never understand him. Then he left.

Ox was sixteen when he met the boy on the road, the boy who talked and talked and talked. Ox found out later the boy hadn’t spoken in almost two years before that day, and that the boy belonged to a family who had moved into the house at the end of the lane.

Ox was seventeen when he found out the boy’s secret, and it painted the world around him in colors of red and orange and violet, of Alpha and Beta and Omega.

Ox was twenty-three when murder came to town and tore a hole in his head and heart. The boy chased after the monster with revenge in his bloodred eyes, leaving Ox behind to pick up the pieces.

It’s been three years since that fateful day—and the boy is back. Except now he’s a man, and Ox can no longer ignore the song that howls between them.

Wolfsong is a truly remarkable book. Although I found it through the m/m romance genre, it is so much more than that – if anything, I would place it more in the modern fantasy category. It’s an epic story with werewolves, but also the story of an enduring relationship and friendship.

Klune skillfully employs some great world-building here, not only basing some of the ideas on traditional werewolf lore, but also introducing new concepts that explore what it means to be human or wolf, family or pack, and what it means to be Alpha. The ideas are solid and well-thought-out. I am left wanting to know so much more about this world and the Bennett family.

With this setting as a backdrop, the author explores themes of family, belonging, and loss, but most importantly the concept of choice – when you have a choice, when you do not, and what the ramifications of those choices can be. Sometimes we find that we make the wrong choices in life, but once they are made, you have to live with that. These themes are interwoven into the narrative with frequent callbacks to earlier conversations and events that make the book a tightly-woven tapestry.

I’ve been wracking my brain to figure out why this book struck so viscerally, why the climactic scenes had me caught up in the excitement, why the heartfelt moments moved me to tears (multiple times!). The author has a talent for characterization, for one. The main characters are believable and three-dimensional. They can be intelligent and wise, but they can do stupid stuff, too. We start off seeing Ox as a shy, slow boy who feels his father’s scorn, but we learn that he is so much more, and capable of so much more. Watching this evolution engages the reader and you find yourself cheering them on, though also being disappointed when poor choices are made as well.

From a literary construction standpoint, Klune’s writing is fascinating to read. Ox’s story starts with short, simple statements, but as we learn more about who he is and as Ox matures into a man, the writing gets more complex. Repetition of certain phrases throughout the book ties the story together and invite the reader to compare the characters now versus where they were earlier in the story. Best of all is the dialogue, spoken and unspoken. The banter is funny and smart, and the characters speak like you, your family, and friends might. It’s believable and makes the reader a part of the story. The unspoken dialogue (an oxymoron, I suppose) is  excellent as well, showing communication through the wolves and the pack, often more emotions than words.

This is hands-down the best book that I have read this year, and in fact in many years. I rate it 5 out of 5. If you like stories of werewolves, of modern fantasy, or of an enduring romance, I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

(Note: this book does contain a few scenes with descriptions of sexual contact between adult males. If this freaks you out…what the hell are you doing reading this, anyway?)

Book Reviews: Howl at the Moon series, by Eli Easton

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How to Howl at the Moon, by Eli Easton (Howl at the Moon #1)
How to Walk Like a Man, by Eli Easton (Howl at the Moon #2)

First off, a few things about me: I’m a gay man who enjoys well-written gay romance novels. I am a complete sucker for courtship stories. Finally, I’m a fan of anthropomorphic fiction and art (colloquially, a furry fan).

All of these things combine to make me the target demographic for these books (though the latter is not a requirement – if you enjoy fantasy fiction, this will be up your alley as well).

Eli Easton has created the tiny town of Mad Creek, California. It’s a secluded hamlet on the edge of Yosemite National Park, that is hidden for a reason. We all know of werewolves, however Easton introduces us to the quickened, people who are part human, part dog. Dogs of all breeds, and the breed has a strong influence on the person’s personality. They appear human, but can take on canine form at will. The trait is passed down genetically, though when a dog forms a very close bond with a human, they can become quickened as well. The residents of Mad Creek are almost all quickened, or are their human allies. The need for the town to keep the existence of the quickened a secret is the driving force behind these stories.

The plotting of these books is not going to break any new ground, but not every story is required to do so. What really sets these apart is the writing and the characters. Easton really gives a good feel for the mountains and forests around Mad Creek (particularly in How to Walk Like a Man), and writes in such a way that it’s easy to feel you are present in the story. Additionally, the courtships in the books, willing and not, intentional and not, are incredibly sweet and romantic.

The characters, though, are the best part. Sheriff Lance Beaufort, the unofficial protector of Mad Creek, comes from a family of border collies, and it shows in his intensity and protectiveness of his pack. Tim Weston, is a human seeking a safe place in the mountains after his life has crashed down around him. Deputy Roman Charsguard, a German shepherd quickened only two years prior, is naive in human ways but grateful to have a place in the world. That naivete could easily have been overplayed, but Roman’s confusion and dogged (heh) determination to understand human behavior make it easy to sympathize with his plight. All of these characters are engaging, relatable, and fun. You want to know what happens to them, and you genuinely cheer for them.

If I had any complaint, it’s that the “conflict” (as every story has to have a conflict, Chekov’s gun sitting on the mantel) that is a thread in these books, illicit marijuana farmers, seems sort of low-stakes. This is a minor gripe, though, because of the rest of the stories are so enjoyable.

Finally, there is the caveat that if you are offended by explicit descriptions of sexual activities between male adults, you may wish to look elsewhere. They are a small part of the overall books, but they are present. If you happen to like that sort of thing (I’m not complaining…) then it’s icing on a very wonderful cake. Ms. Easton has said that she is working on the third book in the Mad Creek series. I eagerly await it and will certainly buy it the moment it becomes available.

4.5 stars out of 5!

Knitting and Gay Romance

I never really thought I lived a sheltered life. I mean, I’ve been involved in various fannish activities in different genres, I’ve read science fiction and fantasy all my life, fanfiction (both good and awful), and nonfiction of all stripes. I generally have a good idea of what is available to the modern reader. Apparently there is one genre I overlooked: romances. Specifically, gay romances written by women. So that’s a thing.

I have always thought of romances as bits of puffery that one reads while lounging at the beach, half paying attention. Perhaps the literary equivalent of a Twinkie. A few months ago, one of my favorite podcasts, NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour, devoted an entire show to romance novels. It’s not something I normally would listen to, but I do adore all of the people on the show and enjoy listening to them chat. An offhanded reference to gay romances caught my attention. “Huh.” I though.  “I wonder if that’s worth looking into.”

Continue reading →

A Pretty Good Week

It’s been a pretty good week. We got a new car, and he passed a huge hurdle once we got online registration up and running for MFF. Work has been steady and shows signs of getting even busier, which is not a bad thing.

The one down note was that my dad had to go back into the hospital Wednesday night because they found he was leaking cerebrospinal fluid – about 100-150 cc’s worth. Eek! The whole idea gives me the willies. The good news is that they were able to go in and fix the problem last night (there was a small laceration in the dura, or membrane around the spinal cord) They patched the hole with a surgical cyanoacrylate adhesive. Yep, super glue. Hmm, I wonder where that came from, eh, ladyinthetower? He’ll be in the hospital until Sunday, but I think that’s more to make sure that he stays flat on his back and doesn’t push himself quite as hard as he did initially after the surgery. Your thoughts and prayers are very much appreciated!

Tomorrow afternoon we’re off to the wilds of McHenry County once again to take takaza‘s mother to lunch for her 60th birthday. Sunday we’ll be gadding about Chicago on a top-secret mission! Woo!

Finally, and this is going to come a huge surprise to everyone, I know, but it’s true: Roger Ebert hated Deuce Bigelow: European Gigolo. But it sure makes for quite the entertaining review!