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player ready...MORNING
Put away that namby-pamby fancy coffee, because today we’re spending a day on the South Side. You’re going to need a car or a few taxicabs for this one, but the trip is worth it, beginning with breakfast at the Soul Vegetarian Restaurant (205 E. 75th St., 773-224-0104). The deal with this place is precisely what its title implies: tasty, low-fat cooking with style. It’s generally crammed during weekend dinnertime, but early on Saturday morning it’s easy to get a seat. The brunch is marvelous, and no animal products are used to make any of the dishes.
AFTERNOON
Get yourself over to the South Shore Cultural Center/Country Club (312-742-6250 or 312-747-2536). Play golf if you feel like schlepping clubs around, but the views of the city’s shoreline are glorious, as you walk around the manicured grounds. The Cultural Center building, designed by Marshall & Fox, is an architectural gem. And if you get there before the onset of fall you’ll be able to take in the extravagant garden that dominates the front of the center.
EVENING
Get grub at Army & Lou’s (422 E. 75th. St., 773-483-3100). This South Side stalwart is 50 years old. Though it changed hands years ago, the cuisine is still top notch. The cobblers rock, though chitterlings (chitlins down there) are an acquired taste. Following dinner, hit Lee’s Unleaded Blues (7401 S. South Chicago Ave., 773-493-3477). Think of the dark, low-ceilinged Lee’s as a rec room with a really cool band. Johnny Drummer and the Starlighters is a regular band, playing the gritty sort of blues that Lee’s specializes in. There is no cover charge.