I ventured to new Lakeview eatery Native Foods Café (1023 W. Belmont Ave.) before an Octavarius show at ComedySportz one Sunday this fall. After a delish Scorpion Burger—homemade blackened Tempeh, chipotle sauce, romaine, carrots, avocado and onions—I ordered the Cardamom Rose Cupcake. The cake and frosting both tasted like rose. It was also very aromatic. Moreover, since our taste buds and sense of smell are so connected, the flavor was reminiscent of grandma’s perfume.

The production of "Love, Loss, and What I Wore" is a journey into women's lives through fashion. You fell head over heels for your date at prom while dressed in an 80's Madonna-inspired frock, were mortified when staining that white upholstered chair at the fancy dinner party (but luckily didn't permanently stain your paper dress) and were ecstatic walking down the aisle in your very own color palette. This is a taste of the performance I enjoyed with my mother (perfect bonding outing) last night at the Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place. 


Your wardrobe tells a story. Each piece attaches memories of where you were and what you did while in the item. "Love, Loss, and What I Wore" speaks to this concept, featuring a new cast of five women—actresses Roni Geva, Cindy Gold, Taylor Miller (of "All My Children" fame), Barbara Robertson and Whitney White—who tell (scripted) stories about happenings in their lives and what they wore. Nora and Delia Ephron wrote the monologues, which are all true accounts from others. The stories are based on best-selling book "Love, Loss, and What I Wore" by Ilene Beckerman as well as recollections of the Ephrons' friends.


The production has been performed all over the world since its debut in 2009. Such celeb cast members included Melissa Joan Hart, Stacy London ("What Not to Wear" co-host), Rosie O' Donnell, Kristin Chenoweth (Broadway and "Glee" star), Fran Drescher, Haylie Duff, Jane Lynch, Brooke Shields, Rumer Willis and many more!


"Love, Loss, and What I Wore" is playing through December 4 ($68-78). Purchase tickets here.


*Note: I conduct PR at a firm that represents this show.

Yesterday was the grand opening of TOPSHOP in Chicago. On my way to work I received a scone and gift card. At about 10:45am, my colleague received a text that her friend saw Miley Cyrus walking into the ginormous shop. Naturally, we ran across the street to spot Miley. We searched both women's floors for the girl in the pink sweater. Just when we were all set to give up, lo and behold, I see Ms. Cyrus sitting on her boyfriend Liam Hemsworth's lap. She was just chilling—touching her locks and chatting with fellow Disney Channel celeb Brenda Song (stared in The Sweet Life of Zack & Cody and The Social Network). The bodyguards stood in front of them to block photos and explained that they needed some private time.

The celeb spotting was not widely promoted ahead of time so I was lucky we got in to spot the starlit. It was the perfect pairing of fashion and celebrity—one could say it was the Best of Both Worlds! I will be back tomorrow to roam the racks full of gorgeous pieces for my fall wardrobe.

Photographed: Brenda Song

Walk into the Roscoe Village spot (1955 W. Belmont Ave.) and you'll find cupcake-shaped tables, associates clad in "Shut Up and Bake" shirts and a bathroom with graphic graffiti art of people, human hearts, brains and cupcakes.

I ordered a chocolate peanut butter cupcake. I was pleased at the amount of sugar; it was not overly sweet as to make my teeth hurt. The peanut butter frosting had much flavor and the cake was heavy but had a slight bitter dark chocolate taste. Unfortunately, I could not savor the flavors because both parts of this Bleeding Heart treat were as dry as a bone. The frosting was even hard. I tried to enjoy but just couldn't shake the dryness.

For more information, visit http://www.thebleedingheartbakery.com/. 

Carson Kressley, known for Queer Eye for the Straight Guy and his new Carson Nation show on OWN - the Oprah Winfrey Network (and new song titled "Tough Go Shopping," with line "When the going gets tough, the tough goes shopping."), was at the launch of the first In-Fashion: The Magnificent Mile Shopping Festival, last Friday, August 26--a two week fashion extravaganza that features tons of events leading up to the third global fashion initiative Fashion's Night Out on September 8.

Carson was at Pioneer Court by the giant flashing Marilyn Monroe statue speaking about various vignettes of fashion, home decor, food and theater inspired by fall trends. Carson was being his goofy self, for instance, he pretended the large tablet was a phone and that he hit his head on the featured sports car (see both pictured above). Carson (perhaps Ellen's long lost twin brother) was the perfect celeb to kick off the exciting fashion festival. For information on upcoming In-Fashion events, click here.

Let's talk turkey! Larry Donahue, executive chef of yummy eatery Mity Nice, located behind Water Tower Place's foodlife, tweaked the restaurant's turkey burger recipe (coined Dr. Bob's Turkey Burger) for at-home cookin'. Donahue offered the recipe to Chicago Sun-Times. I tried my hands at cooking the dish and it was delish!

1. I made six smaller burgers with the recipe, versus four which the recipe calls for. This makes the most of your ingredients, plus you eat less. 
2. I did not chill the meat in the frig and the burgers turned out great.
3. Here's another tip: grilling on an electric grill will cook the meat faster but cause it to become drier and less flavorful than on the stove.

To make 4 (or 6 smaller) Mity Nice Turkey Burgers:

In 2 tablespoons olive oil, saute ¼ cup chopped yellow onions, 1 teaspoon chopped, peeled garlic and 1/8 cup chopped green pepper until vegetables are light golden.

Cool and mix with 2 pounds ground turkey, ¼ teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, ½ teaspoon kosher salt and ½ teaspoon cracked black pepper.

Form into 4 patties; place on sheet pan and refrigerate until chilled, 30 minutes to 1 hours. Season patties with salt and pepper; fry, broil or grill patties until well-done (165 degrees) but not overdone. Lightly toast 4 buns.