Exploring the Midwest :

The Midwest is sometimes considered the sensible heartland of the United States. But, make no mistake. Instead of unsophisticated and rural communities, this exciting region not only has soaring cities of modern architecture, but some of the country’s best restaurants and many exciting sights. It also has plenty of blankets of stars, lush parks, open space, great lakes and recreational diversions for those who want to get away from daily stress and retreat to unexplored territories.

To visit the string of Relais & Chateaux resorts and restaurants in this part of the country you might begin by flying in to Minneapolis and renting a car to take you to Canoe Bay just over the border in Wisconsin. Before leaving for this wilderness retreat, however, get a city fix by spending a couple days in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, a thriving metropolis perched on the both sides of the Mississippi River. The climate in the Twin Cities varies considerably with moderately warm summers and cold winters accompanied by plenty of snow to appeal to the outdoor recreationalist. Add this to the nearly 1,000 lakes, hundreds of beaches and even ski resorts and you have a natural playground at any time of year. Come in mid-July and join residents for the Minneapolis Aquatennial, ten days celebrating the city’s multitude of lakes.

The Twin Cities are also known for a vast array of cultural attractions. There are more than 100 theater companies producing plays and musicals in more than 30 venues. The Guthrie Theater is one of the best known repertory companies in the country. Both classical and contemporary performances are held in the theater’s new facility just east of Mill City Museum. Of all the museums here, the recently expanded Walker Art Center is the most renowned. After undergoing a recent expansion, this world class institution has a permanent collection of 20th-century art and photography including work by prominent U.S. painters. The grounds of the Walker holds one of the biggest surprises: a 7-acre Minneapolis Sculpture Garden with a link to Loring Park by a sculptural pedestrian bridge that spans I-94.

Smaller and quieter than Minneapolis, St. Paul has managed to retain more of an historical air than it’s sister city. The Cathedral of St. Paul presides from a hilltop perch overlooking the city. Aside from that, literary enthusiasts will want to stop by the Victorian house at 599 Summit Avenue, where writer F. Scott Fitzgerald once lived and wrote. And for something completely different, stop by and learn about the sport of curling at the St. Paul Curling Club. A favorite pastime of residents here, curling is played each winter from November through March. To see just how popular cold weather has become in this part of the country, visit in January for the St. Paul Winter Carnival, ten days of ice sculpture and other cold weather celebrations.

Just outside the Twin Cities, shoppers will find a true paradise at the Mall of America, largest in the country. For kids there’s an indoor amusement park with 25 rides including a roller coaster. End your visit with a stop by the Minnesota Zoo, where natural habitats have been arranged for more than 400 species, with an emphasis on animals who live in colder climates.

About 150 miles along I-94 you’ll come to the wilderness resort of Canoe Bay, located in Rusk County, Wisconsin near the town of Chetek. The distinctive 280-acre Canoe Bay is located on a private lake where guests may spend days on end hiking and riding in summer or snow-shoeing or cross-country skiing when the weather turns cold. This romantic retreat, which opened in 1995, was created in the style of Wisconsin’s great visionary architect Frank Lloyd Wright. All of its 19 buildings were constructed using local materials and designed to harmonize with the natural surroundings. Often called the most luxurious resort in Wisconsin, Canoe Bay offers the ultimate in terms of relaxation and privacy. Resort chef Scott Johnson creates a special four-course dinner menu each evening using local ingredients from growers, farmers and fishermen. A 3,000-bottle wine cellar completes the picture.

Those spending at least a few days at Canoe Bay will find much to do at this year-round resort. There’s boating and hiking in summer and cross country skiing in winter. Fall, when the autumn colors are at their height may be the favored time of year. The 50-acre private lake situated on the property has canoes, kayaks and rowboats and more than 3 ½ miles of hiking trails. Only 40 minutes away Canoe Bay guests will find the Ice Age Park and Trail Foundation. Established in 1958, the foundation protects a thousand-mile foot trail tracing Ice Age formations across Wisconsin and literally thousands of acres of dynamic glacial geology. A huge section of the Ice Age Park is accessible to the public all year long.

Located 35 miles to the northwest of Canoe Bay lies the city of Rice Lake, with fishing, hiking, ATVing, camping and much more. Golfers convene at the Turtleback Golf Course, convenient for players of every level. In winter, cross country skiers have the Blue Hills Trail, a 20-mile trail system of loops within a rolling forest cut by small streams. Go as far as you like. Few run out of terrain before the day’s end.

For a full day’s excursion head to the spectacular Apostle Islands, approximately three hours from Canoe Bay, and according to many, well worth the trip. Here an unspoiled sprinkling of islands around Lake Superior serve up windswept beaches, lighthouses, and a multitude of wilderness areas. These natural resources are closely protected and the forests, wildlife and other natural features seem untouched by time.

Within the town of Chetek there is much to see and do as well. The prime attraction is the Chetek “Chain of Six Lakes,” which covers 3,800 surface acres and more than 120 miles of shoreline. A small city with only 2000 year-round residents, there are some fun things to do within Chetek itself. The Chetek Hydroflites Water Ski Show Team, a wonderfully talented group of water skiers, performs weekly shows including tricks and choreographed acts each summer on Lakeview Drive, just a mile east of Chetek.. The Chetek Museum-Pioneer Village Museum in nearby Cameron has 40 buildings, many historic, filled with heirlooms from Wisconsin’s past. Finally, the Bear Paw Company, owned by the Curtis family, collectors of wildlife mounts, have a number of them on display for all to see. The accompanying sporting goods store is helpful for gearing up to enjoy Wisconsin’s great outdoors.

From Canoe Bay your travels continue past Milwaukee and into the state of Illinois, where along the shores of Lake Michigan you’ll arrive in the great city of Chicago. The New York of the heartland, this metropolis has well earned its nickname as America’s “Second City.” While it continues to break ground in architecture, nightlife, and culture, the city is perhaps best known these days for gastronomy. There’s no need to read a food magazine to know that Chicago is one of the nation’s finest restaurant cities. Just ask anyone who has visited lately and they’ll spread the word that the city’s more than 7,000 restaurants, spread through downtown and into the nearby neighborhoods, will have something to please the most discerning gourmand.

Chicago is home to three Relais Gourmands beginning with the renowned Charlie Trotter’s, widely regarded as one of the finest restaurants in the world. Designated a Relais & Chateaux property in 1995, Charlie Trotter’s has won nearly every award known to the food world including “Best Restaurant in the World for Wine & Food (1998) and “America’s Best Restaurant (2000) by Wine Spectator. Trotter produces three daily degustation menus including a Grand Menu, the Vegetable Menu and the Kitchen Table Menu, all highlighting the freshest food available. Food is treated as art at this amazing establishment and those lucky enough to score a reservation are assured an experience to remember.

Everest is another pinnacle of fine dining where the cuisine is matched only the magnificent views, among the best in all Chicago. That is because Everest, living up to it’s name is located on the 40th floor of the Chicago Stock Exchange. Sit back and enjoy an evening of dining as theater. The restaurant is in the hands of Alsatian chef Jean Joho, who draws his inspiration from his home city. He not only comes up with interesting and filling entrees but has won national acclaim for having one of the largest selections of Alsatian wines in the world. The New-French menu changes with the seasons and guests may order a’ la carte or from a three- or seven-course degustation menu.

The third of the Relais & Chateaux designated gastronomic locales is Tru, an acronym for “Tramonto Unlimited,” which refers to Executive Chef Rick Tramonto, who opened this delightfully whimsical restaurant in 1999. Daring and innovative, Tramonto has become known for his creative use of Foie gras, caviar, and fish. A formal affair, Tru has an art deco design with an interior accented by blacks & whites broken only by art work. The real art, however, comes in the way each of Tramonto’s dishes is served, beautifully and as imaginatively as the cuisine. Choose from a 7-course vegetable or seafood degustation or a 10-course Chef’s tasting menu.

Before and after dinner, of course, there’s all of Chicago awaiting you and anytime of year is the right time to visit. Bundle up in the winter because the winds that whip off of Lake Michigan have rightly earned the city the nickname of “The Windy City.” Nevertheless, there are festivals and attractions to appeal to the cosmopolitan traveler year round. Believe it or not, Chicago, for all it’s reputation as a winter cold spot, hosts a Winter Festival Flower and Train Show in December and January. Several model trains wind their way through a miniature village set in a vibrant field of poinsettias for a colorful experience. Springtime brings the Wright Plus House Walk, a tour of private homes in historic Oak Park which were designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Trained docents provide an inside look at why his architecture was so extraordinary. Summer brings the Chicago Blues Festival, a four-day, three-stage event on the city’s lakefront Grant Park. And in fall movie buffs get their turn at the Chicago International Film Festival, a red carpet affair featuring more than 100 films over two weeks.

With a few days time in the city there are some “must-dos.” Begin your visit with a trip to the top of the Sears Tower, a 110-story skyscraper that until 1996 had the distinction of being the tallest building in the world. On a clear day you can see not only all of Chicago but Michigan, Wisconsin and Indiana from the Skydeck here. Then head to Chicago’s Museum Campus, a scenic 57-acre lakefront park with three of the city’s most prestigious museums: The Field Museum, the Shedd Aquarium, and the Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum. Besides the hours you could spend on the treasures inside these hallowed institutions, save at least a little time to peruse the grounds, known for lush green spaces, gardens, and broad walkways for bikers, roller bladers and other outdoor adventurers.

Magnificent Mile, which stretches along Michigan Avenue from the Chicago River to Oak Street has four vertical shopping centers to keep the most intrepid shopper ecstatic for days. Oak Street, which branches off Michigan Avenue, is the city’s answer to Madison Avenue with boutiques that carry name designers from around the world. “Mag Mile” as it sometimes called, is also full of upscale restaurants and theaters.

Finally, a very “Chicago-like” activity is to catch a baseball game, particularly at Wrigley Field home of the Chicago Cubs. Grab a hot dog during the seventh inning at this famous ballpark and then soak in the local atmosphere at one of the local sports bars after the game. Chicago fans are enthusiastic at best and they are happy to have visitors (particularly those who are rooting for the home team) join them in a favored activity.

It’s a 250 mile hike from Chicago to another Midwestern hotbed, Cincinnati, Ohio, but many feel it worth the price to sample the cuisine of the Relais Gourmand designated restaurant Jean-Robert at Pigall’s. Headed by the much heralded Jean-Robert de Caval, Jean-Robert at Pigall’s is located in an historic building in downtown Cincinnati where it has been infused with a lot of modern Parisian charm. Though the menu changes seasonally, you can always count on the cuisine to include the freshest local ingredients available, prepared just so they are bursting with inventive flavors. Dishes such as ravioli de jarret d’agneau come served on Limoges porcelain dinnerware, just one example of the detail given to ensure that everything in the restaurant be as beautiful as possible. Three or five-course prix fixe menus are available each evening and smart diners allow the sommelier to choose wines from the extensive cellar to go along.

Though, as an international city, Cincinnati is busy year round, favored times to visit are in the spring and fall when the weather is fine and some of the most popular festivals take place. Cincinnati’s May Festival holds the distinction of being the oldest continuous choral music festival in the Western Hemisphere and, for two weekends in May, everything in the city revolves around classical music. April is the month to find the Cincinnati Flower Show, the only North American flower and garden show endorsed by the Royal Horticultural Society of Great Britain, renowned for producing the Chelsea Flower Show. For nine days and two weekends the city is abloom with color.

If you haven’t been to Cincinnati lately you may be surprised to find the downtown in the midst of a renaissance. In 2004 the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center opened on the banks of the Ohio River. This $110 million facility has three pavilions set up to celebrate the heroic legacy of the Underground Railroad in the American struggle to abolish slavery. Then there’s the pedestrian-only, 2,670 foot long Purple People Bridge, which connects Cincinnati to Newport, Kentucky. This unique bridge climbing experience offers incredible vistas of the riverfront and the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky regions. On the Ohio River itself you’ll find the Tall Stacks Museum of 19 riverboats, the biggest collection of vintage steamboats in the world.

Culturally, Cincinnati is on the move as well. The Contemporary Arts Center has provided a forum for progressive art and ideas in the city for more than 65 years. The Taft Museum of Art opened more than 125 years ago, making it one of the oldest arts institutions in the United States. Today its collection includes more than 60,000 works of art ranging from ancient art of Egypt, Greece and Rome, Far Eastern art, African art and even many contemporary pieces.

You might wrap up a trip in Cincinnati in much the same way as you did in Chicago - at the ballpark. Cincinnati’s Great American Ballpark, located on the banks of the Ohio River in downtown, is home of the Cincinnati Reds, baseball’s very first professional franchise. The Great American Ball Park, which opened only in 2003, also has the Reds Hall of Fame. Come in fall or winter and you can join the locals in cheering on the Cincinnati Bengals, their football team which plays at the Paul Brown Stadium, located just a few blocks from Pigall’s. If they win, there are worse ways to wind up a trip to the splendid Midwestern region of the United States. It’s a heartland with enough “cool” for the most discerning traveler.

Exploring the Midwest : nearby Relais & Chateaux properties