Lunch Field Trip: Merchandise Mart + Indian Food
For lunch today per Ben’s suggestion, a bunch of us (Jane, Chris, Ben, Bryan, TJ, Nick, Masha) went out for some Indian food, over at Klay Oven. This restaurant used to be an occassional treat for us, back when we used to work in the Merchandise Mart. I, for one, haven’t even been back near the area since our move.
We hopped on the Brown Line, and got to walk through the Mart. I’m sure it was a bit surreal for TJ, Nick and Masha… as the rest of us were ooh-ing and aah-ing about the Mart. “Ooh, remember the Food Court?” and “Hey, the McDonald’s moved to the second floor!” and that sort of thing.
The meal itself was pretty fun – lots of laughing and joking around. It’s rare that we all go out as a group together, and this was yet another reason why it felt so nice.
I didn’t take any photos, unfortunately – I was feeling a little over-stressed and under-motivated. For a while during lunch, I had a hard time enjoying myself because I kept thinking about the work waiting at the office – things to do, emails to reply to, etc. In the moments where I could ignore the pressing concerns of the day to day, and really focus on the present company of friends… it was most definitely a good time.
On the way back to work, we stopped over at Artisan Cellar – where we used to get coffee every day. In addition to having some great caffeine, Artisan is also a cheese and wine shop… and home to both the Carlos Santuna and the Cadillac of Bolognas.
On the train ride back to work, a lot of us old-timers were remembering our old work space. In particular, we were remembering the Merchandise Mart rooftop, and how we got to see the very top of the building. We were also remembering the great view we used to have, and those amazing windows… where there was always something interesting to see.
Ah, me. A nice mixture today of where we are, and where we used to be. Felt like old new times.
Awww, looks like fun. Sad I missed it. Hope we can get another big group lunch happening soon!I still lament the absence of a place like Artisan in my life. Someplace that kind of plucks that “where everyone knows your name” chord, to say nothing of Greg’s wine advice. And that rooftop morning sure looks like an amazing one!
Allison (March 12, 2008 at 9:46 am)