Belated Birthday in Geneva

July 21, 2023

Met up with folks in the suburbs, after work today, for a belated birthday dinner/celebration for Michelle.

Traffic wasn’t too bad, though we did crawl for a while. Something to be expected, when out on the highway close to Friday rush hour.

Along the way, we spotted this vintage looking set of El cars. What’s odd was that the front cars looked more modern.

// Edit: wondering if these were the “wrapped cars” that debuted last year, when the CTA turned 75.

We gathered at a place called The James, in Geneva. We learned that this was formerly a restaurant known as Fiora’s, a place that had been open for 13 years until it shut down recently.

This was a favorite place for Michelle and Mike, and they always preferred the outdoor/patio seating. So much so that of all the times they came here, they’ve yet to have a meal inside.

We had reservations inside for 6:30, but a few folks showed up early to put our names for outdoor seating.

The process was a little complicated… apparently you can’t reserve outside seating, and can only put your name on the list if at least half your party is present.

Luckily, they were able to accommodate our large group (we were the biggest party that we could see). A brief wait at the outside bar, and we all got our seats.

We were seated near the live music, which tonight was singer Jacquelyn Vale.

After dinner, as we were walking back to our car… Liz spotted the nearby chocolate shop, Graham’s. It was at this point (with it being darker) that I realized we’d been here before – a long, long while back for a dinner with Michelle and Mike.

We saw that Mike, Michelle, and Fritz had gone inside… and so Liz and I decided on an impromptu detour/dessert. And got a little something for the road.