I’ll be doing a lot of traveling over the next few months which, coupled with a few friends visiting Chicago, led me to enjoy some traditional Chicago favorites.

With my friends staying downtown, I suggested we eat lunch at the Billy Goat, a Chicago institution which was made even more famous thanks to a Saturday Night Live sketch from years ago. The menu is a bit limited but is all excellent. They even started serving fries, breaking away from their mantra, “Chips, no fries!”

Of course, sports is always on the list of things to do. We managed to squeeze in a National Pro Fastpitch Chicago Bandits game, a WNBA Chicago Sky game and an independent league Chicago Dogs baseball game. With a little luck on our side, we saw three Chicago wins!

(c) CHRIS BEJCEK

Back to Chicago dining, we enjoyed pizza at Lou Malnati’s. I must admit, though, I did veer from the traditional fan favorite of deep dish to enjoy their very underrated thin crust. You win with either style, though. I love Lou’s.

I also guided some friends to typical tourist stops, like Cloud Gate (which we usually call “The Bean”), Millennium Park, Water Tower Place, the Art Institute, Magnificent Mile, Buckingham Fountain, Navy Pier and several other downtown popular spots.

We even took a trip on the elevated trains, just for the experience. It’s times like these when I realize again just how much Chicago has to offer. I helped my friends have just a small taste of Chicago, but there is so much more.

— John Wroblewski, online contributor