Chicago, Carl Sandburg's City of the Big Shoulders, has painted its toenails. A carpet of tulips runs along the Magnificent Mile of North Michigan Avenue. But don't get the wrong idea. This is still a city for meat-eaters.
Checking out the saloons, you might run into what the Canadians call "cougars." Women in their mid-to-late 30s, on the prowl. You find them in bars along Rush Street, nursing a drink. "I'm waiting for my husband," they tell you. Have a cocktail while you're waiting?
Gibsons, a venerable steakhouse, has the liveliest bar on Rush. The bartenders, beefy fellows like their (mostly male) patrons, shake hands with the regulars, and shake the best Gibsons in town. It's a huge drink, well worth the $8.50.
