I am here often performing my work related duties and I have to tell you , everyone I've come in…read morecontact with have always been friendly outgoing and helpful. Funny how I've always had a certain opinion until I started going there with my boss for his interviews. And a special shout out to the security people at the station who are always awesome Keep up the great work guys and gals

Worst closed captioning in broadcast by far. Injecting names of hosts or anchors (Ex: Ji Suk Yi) or…read moreother added words that have NOTHING to do with context is beyond ridiculous and its constant. My poor hearing challenged husband has had enough... add Konrads "might" or "could" weather forecasts are exceptionally vague if not totally inaccurate and like others have mentioned leave actual Chicago hoods like lakefront out completely. Loyalists no more.

Great British series, always something classic and interesting to watch…read more Also informative and cultural.

If there's one thing to know about me, it's that TV is my life…read more So you can imagine my excitement when I nabbed a spot on 'Check, Please' to rep my beloved Chicago Suburbs before I departed for a life of television watching on Pacific Standard Time. My episode airs October 24th and I'll be real, I'm not so great on camera. On the internet? Sure. I'd like to think I'm pretty good on the internet, but on camera... welp... I trip on my words constantly, I can't make direct eye contact, and I talk out of one side of my mouth like the characters on the show Rugrats... it's possible I unknowingly had a stroke, and one time a coworker admitted that they legit thought I was autistic... for an entire 2 years. So I guess we'll see how this TV thing goes... they did give me a buncha wine, so the gap on the 50/50 of that is probably pretty wide. As far as WTTW in general, I can't knock 'em one bit. They were by far my favorite babysitter growing up and that Rick Steves... something about his voice is just very soothing to me. Puts my chakra in line or some junk. I recently learned that one in every 25 people is supposedly a sociopath... I don't want to incriminate myself or my cold, black heart, but I'll just say that WTTW taught me kindness and human emotions that I otherwise may have lacked. My parents tried really had to raise us brats but they had to work, A LOT, and I spent a lot of time in front of the TV, doing my learning and developing my character which I won't pretend is a shining example of humanity, but I could've come out a lot worse and based on the low-income area I grew up and seeing what the majority of other kids in my 'hood turned out like, I was better off in front of the TV than out in the real world. - Lamb Chop taught me how to be annoying with that glorious song that never ends. - Mr Rogers taught me that taking your shoes off inside the house important. - The Magic School Bus with my homegirl Miss Frizzle. - Freaking Kratt's Creatures - love those dreamy animal-loving brother. - Wishbone, the time traveling dog... couldn't get enough of that sh*t. - The Frugal Gourmet... Don't pretend like you or parents didn't own that cookbook. - WHERE IN THE WORLD IS CARMEN SNA DIEGO - for hours on end. - Clifford The Big Red Dog, what's not to love? - The Big Comfy Couch was creepy and wonderful. - This Old House --- Bob Vila version or bust! - Reading Rainbow didn't exactly get me reading, but I watched the show, sooo... - And let's not forget that babe Bill Nye The Science Guy. Hubba.Freaking.Hubba. Sure, their fundraising broadcasting is pretty unbearable, but I guess it's good to turn the TV off and get out of the house sometimes, so the phone operators in mini stadium seating are my cue. As far as the studio and the staff are concerned, the place is immaculate and everyone there was cool as heck. The make-up artist was mega rad and a trooper when she had to work double time when it became apparent that I'm the sweatiest person ever and basically need make-up retouching every 10 minutes. The new(ish host Catherine De Orio) is super down to Earth and that's coming a person who went through a mini version of the stages of grief when Alpana left, but now having met Catherine and seen her deal with some pretty awkward on-set conversations like a pro, I've got nothing but love for her. And the icing on the cake was getting to meet and chat with David Manilow, the series creator, during the interview process and on set for the first day of Season 14 shooting. Super cool guy who just emanates energy and really pumped us all up for the taping. I feel super lucky to have gotten to be a part of the 14th season of a show that's on perma-DVR at my house and really is a legit slice if Chicago history, but even without, WTTW is the crown jewel of non-cable television and a thing I'm eternally grateful for. And you can watch me be the first person to say the word 'pussy' on Check, Please... possibly on Public Broadcasting altogether right here: http://checkplease.wttw.com/restaurants/season-14-episode-2-full-show

I walked by this door too many times before noticing it's an actual stationery store and printer's…read moreshop! Just browsing is fun. They have so many different kinds of journals, cards and letter writing supplies. They even have a regular letter writing Meetup. What a great way to get unplugged in a digital world! They also offer printing services. Check their website for the full list of services.

Tons of stationery items. You'll find something you like!…read more They have their own screen print studio in the back. Super cool! The owner is a graphic designer so it makes sense. Only bummer is the aisles are kinda narrow so you have to squeeze by a lot of it's super busy but otherwise it's nothing that should keep you from visiting!

Went here for NYE. I was really disappointed by the food. It has good reviews and a friend had been…read moreand liked it. I got the pre fixe menu. The pickled deviled eggs were tasty. It was not an "Amuse bouche" which is a single bite item, it was much more but I'm not complaining about that! The appetizer was grilled octopus over sweet potato mash. I learned that day that sweet and grilled octopus is not a good mix. It was nearly gross. I picked the octopus up and tried to brush off as much of the sweet potatoes and possible. The octopus tasted good but was over cooked. My main was the branzino. It was charred to a crisp and full of bones. It did not taste good and was extremely difficult to eat. I did not taste the German chocolate cake for dessert but was told it was dry and people barely touched it. My husband and others are our table got short rib goulash, which was served like a steak with gravy. It wasn't tender like short rib should be. He said the flavor was good at least. Someone got the fish and chips and said it was flavorless. Someone else got the burger and said it was also charred and over cooked. Over all, pretty disappointed. Cute place with decent service. Hopefully this was just an off night.

Third time at cobblestone and this time was for Valentine's Day. We wanted someplace cozy and cute…read moreand Cobblestone set the bar high with a candlelit dinner. They had a terrific Valentine's Day dinner $95 for two people which included a small amuse-bouche each, an appetizer to share, individual entrees, and a dessert to share. We loved the crispy broccolini and were fighting over it. The entrees were huge portions and packed with flavor. I consider myself a scallop connoisseur and in all the restaurants we've ever been in, these scallops were cooked beautifully. They had a perfect sear to them on the outside but cooked perfectly on the inside as well, 10/10 no notes this is the scallop I will compare all future scallops to. And the duck confit, oh my...we also fought over this dish which paired incredibly well with beans to our surprise. Chocolate cake had a beautiful strawberry sauce on the bottom. Everything was incredible including the service. Cobblestone remains our favorite in the area and is loved by all the locals. Thank you for a perfect Valentine's Day dinner.

I think Apple Fest is a great way to bring in the autumn season. Tasty Apple harvest. Cute town…read moresquare good selection of seasonal vendors. It brings small town feels to the city. The leaves are changing on Lincoln Ave and the air smells like sweet fruit and cinnamon. It's very family friendly we a large kids sections and multiple performance stages. Take in some folksy acoustic music while sitting on a hay bale, enjoy some hot apple cider, and of course some fresh apple pie.

First the annoyance: The festival started at 9 am, but there were quite a few booths that weren't…read moreready at that time. For the most part that was some of the food booths so fine, I wasn't going to eat anything that early anyway. AppleFest Is a better fest than a lot of the other fruit-forward festivals because it actually has a lot of items that follow the theme or things that complement it. You'll find bushels and bushels of apples, apple cider, donuts, raclette, hard cider, and so on. Many of the neighborhood restaurants have booths here. There are many vendors, and some of those are in the neighborhood as well, but its not limited just to stores in the square. I bought some earrings from a place called Milagros that works with women in Guatemala to make them, and they have a portion of their fingerprint on them. Eco and the Flamingo had a booth, so I purchased a couple things from them too, as well as Nomadic Ant. The woman at one of the textile booths said she'll make me a Little Bean onesie for my bean since she didn't have the right color and size, and I bought a few things from another textile artist whom I hadn't heard of--Tori Grace Outfitters--and ended up with some super cute things (and now we're ready for baby's first Cubs game!). I think the best food really was the apple pie from The Chopping Block. In the first two years of the pandemic they offered full pies in the cast iron pan and I didn't buy one, but I probably should have even though I definitely shouldn't have. They're back to selling single slices and wow, it's probably the best apple pie I've ever tasted. It was somewhat tart, and it didn't have a traditional pie crust; rather, it reminded me a bit of a cobbler crust. We are lucky to have this festival right in our neighborhood. For 2023, they have expanded it significantly because where it once went from Lawrence to Leland, it now extends down to Sunnyside just before Welles Park so another two blocks or so. The children's section is great! There were lots of activities for the little ones and I look forward to bringing my own little one to it in the future. There three stages, one in Giddings Plaza, one in the children's section, and one in the Old Town School parking lot. Events started early, at least in the kids area, and go throughout the day. Parking is questionable but luckily the Western Brown Line stop is literally steps away from one of the entrances, so that would definitely be the easiest way to get there. They have ATMs posted in several areas but many or most of the booths took cards or digital wallets, and some had credit only or cash only lines. The cash only lines were definitely shorter on some of the booths. I think we'll be back regardless of whether we're still in Ravenswood.

I'm very proud to say that I grew up listening to WFMT. It was constantly on in my house. And,…read morewhile many classical radio stations -nationwide or in Chicago - have moved online or dissipated, WFMT has persevered. I think that this fact speaks volumes about its leadership and listener base. The format is mainly classical music, although they do lean towards folk music on some evenings (um, no thank you). WFMT has it's own traditions, such as all commercials are read, not recorded. There are no irritating commercial breaks. And, it's funny when their stuffy voices read Red Lobster commercials. I especially enjoy celebrating the birthdays of familiar composers. And, on those days, expect to hear a day devoted to some of the more famous pieces and work of Bach/Mozart/Rachmaninoff. Today, in my house, the tradition continues: I get the chance to share my love for this station with my children. And, I want you to know that I totally could have blended my feelings for this station with some Haydn wordplay, but chose not to (you're welcome).

I grew up listening to WFMT and it's still the station I have on most of the time, especially in…read morethe car on my way to and from work. Classical music is the soundtrack for my life. My favorite hosts are Carl Grapentine, Suzanne Nance, and Candice Agree. During the morning and afternoon rush hours, they play mostly shorter and lighter works that are enjoyable to listen to while driving. I can thank my parents for introducing me to classical music at an early age. They paid for piano lessons and later on, violin lessons. The violin became my primary instrument, leading to several years playing with the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and later on, the NU Symphony. Because of this early exposure to classical music, I find that my life is immensely enriched by having access to it on the radio, and WFMT helps fulfill that need. I don't agree with people that say this station plays a limited selection of music or that the presenters sound monotonous. WFMT has an extremely diverse schedule, offering everything from opera to folk music, symphonic works, chamber music, and choral and organ music. Much like the changeability of Chicago weather, if you don't like what's on at the moment, come back a little while later because it will be something different.

Found 60 year old transparency slides and brought them over to Scan5. Beautiful digital copies of…read morethe slides were made quickly and efficiently. The download was ready in less than a week,and in time for a memorial service. The photos projected beautifully and a very meaningful event was enhanced. Thanks Scan5! Your professionalism speaks volumes for the quality of your business. Will be back and will send anyone who may need such services in future.

Awesome friendly fast service! I had approximately 4 hours of 35-year-old videotape footage…read moredigitized and the results were excellent. The price was great, the turnaround was really quick and I received my digital footage in two different formats. The staff even gave me a second copy of some of the footage because it didn't track well on the first pass which was definitely "above and beyond." Great to see these old memories again and to be able to share them (easily) with friends. Highly recommended!