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AirTran Drops Prices Now Through July 28!

Hot Spots, Cool Prices! Fly Each Way from $39 on AirTran!

Hugo's Frog Bar and Fish House - Chicago, IL

We were recently in Chicago for a week and had the good fortune to experience a number of great dining experiences. Chicago has all the culinary offerings of an American "big city", but really seems to differentiate itself when it comes to Service. Maybe it's because the SoCal restaurants are much more laid back. Or maybe it's because they aren't surrounded by as much immediate competition as the restaurants in Chicago. I don't know, but in almost every place we ate dinner all week, we had our tables scraped between courses and interacted with a variety of busboys and waitstaff at our table who were all very warm and friendly. And not liek they were goign through the motions because of where we were eating. I can go to any upscale restaurant and expect the service to be prompt and polite, but too often it comes off as stuffy or cold. In Chiago, it was like we were regulars everywhere we went, even though we had never been to any of these places before.

Now, I had always heard from friends and colleagues that Chicago has a great dining scene. Everyone has their "don't miss" spot, be it a hole-in-the-wall joint that it seems only "locals" know about, or it's one of the highlights of the city's downtown restaurant scene. In Chicago, it's agood bet that either will deliver on the expectations. But sometimes the best dining experiences can come when you least expect it. I'm talking about the times when you expect a place to be good, but it suprises you by being rip-the-rug-out-from under-you fantastic! Hugo's Frog Bar & Fish House overwhelming gave us this enchanting dining experience.

Located directly next door to and owned by the same guys who own Gibson's Steakhouse, Hugo's menu features fish, steak, and chops (overall leaning slightly more towards seafood - which shouldn't be a surprise given the name of the establishment.) It's on-par with pricing for other upscale restaurants in this North River neighborhood, but the portions are giant (more later) and the service a notch above Chicago's already high level of table service. Most of the meals are served by themselves, with sides ala carte. But our waiter warned us that the sides, which were reasonably priced (starting at $5.50) serve two people. I can see that with mashed potatoes, Crawfish mac 7 Cheese, or the various veggies, because that's not uncommon at other higher-end steak houses. But I figured at $5.50, the baked potato or sweet potato would be an average size, which is normally a perfect portion for us.

it was freezing out that evening and we definitely wanted something to warm us up. Our waiter recommended we try the Bookbinder's Soup, which they make from scratch everyday. Neither of us knew what it was. And darn if I can remember everything he said (he was very well-informed about the preparation of items on the menu), but I can tell you it is a tomato-broth based soup with green (and red?) peppers, celery, carrots, and whitefish. I think he could tell we were uncertain still and he told us that whenever he's served it to someone trying it for the first time, they have always told him they really enjoyed it. We were feeling a little adventurous to try something new, so we tried a bowl. Really good. Wow! I have no other Bookbinder's Soup to compare it to, but can honestly tell you I will look for it in other restarants now.

After also splitting a house salad, we ordered the blackened salmon sandwich on ciabbata roll for our entree (in the picture below). It normally comes with fries, but we asked to sub a baked sweet potato instead. Imagine our suprise when the waiter brought us this:

It was whole when he brought it, but, man was this yam huge!. There's a little bit of enlargement due to the angle of the camera, but let me point out a few things here.

(1) That is a full-size steak knife jammed to its hilt in HALF of that potato.

(2) That is not a bread plate. That plate is the same size as the one behind it with half of the salmon sandwich on it. And you see how far the yam stretches across it, right?

Did I mention the sweet potato was huge?

Anyway, our wait offered us butter or brown sugar, which he fetched and returned to the table with in separate containers. Normally, they leave you with these items to do with as you please. Not the waiters at Hugo's Frog Bar. Our waiter dumped the brown sugar into the melted butter and stirred and swirled it with a fork until the mixture was evenly blended. Then he drenched the potato in the rich buttery sauce. Now, that's the kind of service I'm telling you differentiates Chiacgo from some of the places I've been.

Unfortunately, we were too stuffed to try any dessert, but you bet we'll be thinking about it when we are in Chicago again. In the meantime, we highly recommend you taking in a meal or two at Hugo's the next time you are in Chicago.

Farecast Says: Holiday Airfares Going Up This Year

Airfares for the holidays are up over 30% percent from 2007. Travelers could be spending upwards of $100 more per ticket than last year. So it is important to keep these tips in mind:

• Be flexible with your travel dates. If you have flexibility you will be rewarded with big savings. Returning on Monday or Tuesday versus Sunday may save you more than $90 per ticket.


• Watch October for holiday price drops. Most previous late December itineraries saw price drops in the first two weeks of October. Farecast data suggest there are 50% more price drops during the holidays than other times of the year, so alerts are critical to catch elusive deals.


• If you're traveling from a big market you should wait. Major markets are much more likely to see price drops this Fall, and you should closely monitor for lower fares before purchasing. If you're flying out of smaller/regional airports, you should buy as soon as you find a fare you're comfortable in.

You will pay more this year. Unless you find the deal of the season, you will pay more for holiday flights than in years past. You should accept this and not hold out for a lower fare. It likely won't come, and the cost will just continue to rise.

Check Farecast for more airfare predictions >

Hotel Rates Drop Up To 20% From Last Year

Breaking news: Some hotels at key vacation destinations are significantly lowering rates to counterbalance a rise in airfare prices. In many cases, overall trip costs have not increased above 2007 trip costs.

A typical eight day trip for two to Miami in September saw airfare prices increase $109 compared to last year, but hotels are $173 less expensive, meaning the total trip cost has dropped $64. -- Farecast press release August 20th, 2008.

The trend holds true for many destinations in Hawaii and Florida. This is particularly interesting for Hawaii, which this year has seen some of the steepest fare increases of any destination. Nationally, hotel rates are about even with last year, but rates at leisure destinations such as Hawaii and Florida are down as much as 20 percent.

Learn more at Farecast.com >

INDYFANS and the Quest for Fortune & Glory

On Sunday April 27th, Brandon Kleyla premiered an hour of footage from his new film Indyfans and the Quest for Fortune and Glory as part of the Newport Beach Film Festival at the Lido Theater.
I loved what Brandon Kleyla has put together in this film. The movie is a not only a celebration of the cultural icon created by George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, but a fairly in-depth look at the people who helped bring Indiana Jones to life both on and off the big screen. Kleyla, who was too young to see any of the original three Indy films in theaters, fell head over heals for Indy when he first watched the Indiana Jones stunt show at Disney's MGM Studios. Sine then, Kleyla has amassed what is reported to be one of the largest Indiana Jones memorabilia collections in the world.

Kleyla's film chronicles many facets of Indyfandom, including Deborah Nadoolman-Landis' design and creation of Indiana Jones' wardrobe, Disney Imagineers Tony Baxter and Tim Kirk's contributions to creating the various Indiana Jones themed shows and rides in the Disney parks, and numerous fan experiences ranging from Dads who took their little kids to watch filming of the new movie, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, in New Haven to Lucas and Spielberg's Kingdom of the Crystal Skull announcements at 2007's San Diego Comic Con.

Kleyla told the audience that the reason he only had an hour to show is that this footage only represents a few of the highlights he strung together strictly for screening at the Newport Beach Film Festival. He says he continues to edit it and is indeed still filming pieces through July. I suspect he couldn't in good faith complete this ultimate fan documentary of Indiana Jones without covering the opening of the new movie. The mention of "filming through July" leads me to wonder if Brandon also plans to cover Indy-related happenings at this year's San Diego Comic Con (rumor is that there will be an Indiana Jones panel in addition to other confirmed things.)

Also attending the film's screening were costumed actors dressed as the titular archaeologist, Marion Ravenwood, The Monkey Man (from Raiders), Willie Scott (Temple of Doom), Short Round, and even a guy dressed as Mutt Williams, the character being played by Shia LeBeouf in in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

After the film as a Q&A session with the filmmakers and some of the film's guests, including Tony Baxter and Tim Kirk.

I got this nifty Indyfans t-shirt for correctly guessing a few questions in the Indy Trivia game we played inthe theater before the screening.

The plan is to show this one hour footage of the film again outside the Big Newport theater at Fashion Island in Newport Beach just before the midnight showing of Kingdom of the Crystal Skull on May 21. So, if you're in the Orange County area, be sure to at least stop by and check it out. According to the Indyfans website, the screening of Brandon's film will be outside the theater, so in theery, you shouldn't even need a ticket to the new Indy film to enjoy the screening of Brandon's fanumentary.

For more info on the new Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull film, check out the official website.

The New Disney Dream Suite

Tucked inside Walt Disney's former apartment at Disneyland theme park, the new Disney Dream Suite has just debuted. The exclusive overnight accommodations are elegant and are located in New Orleans Square above the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. The Suite also offers a wonderful view of Fantasmic from it's private balcony. Check out the new Disney Dream Suite.