I was recently in Chicago and decided to go to an art festival in the Rogers Park neighborhood. Well, it's pretty clear that I fell in love with that part of the city and, ugh, I have to live there for at least a little bit at some point. But, one of my favorite things was this restaurant my girlfriend and I found for lunch. It's called the Heartland Café, located in the heart of Rogers Park. It was one of those places that was rundown enough to look a little worn-in, as if it was old but had seen a lot of life, though it still had quite the personality. There were overgrown plants everywhere and you had the option of eating outside, at the bar, on a screened patio, or in the open air. We chose the screened patio and it was wonderful. The chairs didn't match each other and each table was different, as if they were purchased at a rummage sale.
Then we got our menus and everything was as green as could be. All the meat products were from a great farm who did not use any extras to enhance their meat, it was all farm-fed and Amish-raised. We decided to order an appetizer of hummus, avocados, tomatoes, and warm pita slices - which was delicious. And then our entrée was chicken marinated in maple syrup marinade and topped with pineapple pieces and it all came with mashed potatoes and gravy on the side. I kid you not, it was THE best meal I've ever had. And I felt genuinely healthy and good about eating it...all of it.
After being full with our delicious, healthy, and eco-friendly meal I truly felt like I was welcome in this place, as silly as that may sound. Then we walked around a little bit and found what we thought was a vintage store right next to the restaurant. We walked in and I eavesdropped on a conversation an older man with gray-white hair was having with some people that I gathered were from France...I'm not sure about that one though. He was telling them that they should vote in the next election to lean France a little bit more to the left...you know, fight for social justice. I immediately liked him. The Frenchies left soon after and we were looking around and he introduced himself. We asked him how he got all this stuff and he told us that it actually wasn't a shop and nothing was for sale, this was just where he stored all his old stuff but people kept walking in since he left the door open. He showed us some pictures that he took after a motorcycle trip he took to Mexico, one of which was of President Kennedy driving and waving from his car. He then asked us if we had seen the Heartland. We told him we just got done eating there and absolutely LOVED it. He informed us that he was the owner.
Afterwards, I remember saying that it felt like one of those places that serves the community more than it serves food. Bringing the community together in a supportive, generally happy place, to just be.
