Nov. 27--It's cold. You need a drink. Everywhere is crowded. That could be your fate on whichever Saturday this season your relatives want to go shopping on the Mag Mile, but it doesn't have to be. Below, three spots where most people don't realize you can get a cocktail, beer or glass of wine:
Nordstrom
Take the escalator to the second floor, and it's not a mirage -- that is actually a bar in the middle of the men's department. It has the glossy feel you'd expect from Nordstrom, with a name that must have come from a room full of marketing execs (Habitant) and showpiece liquors staring at you from a 360-degree shelf that seems suspended in midair, but cocktails ($10-$12) are decent. We liked the Pimiento Pomelo (tequila reposado, muddled sweet pepper, grapefruit and lemon juices, rhubarb bitters) and tolerated a slightly too bitter negroni. A menu of highbrow snacky food includes smoked sea-salt frites (frites: way sexier than plain old fries, right?), smoked salmon crostini and a cheese plate with fig jam, pickled cherries, candied pecans, sea salt lavosh crackers and prosciutto. Bar stool: Certainly a welcome upgrade from a chair outside the dressing room.
55 E. Grand Ave., 312-464-1515, Monday to Saturday 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sunday 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Target
The world's first Target with a bar was letdown city when it opened in Streeterville in October: The "bar" is simply a Starbucks inside the store that sells wine and beer, which is nothing new in Chicago (see: the Starbucks at State and Ohio, the Starbucks at Michigan and Adams, the Starbucks at Oak and Rush, etc.), and you can't even carry your glass around as you shop. Looks as if you'll have to drink, then make Chardonnay-driven decisions at the $1 Spot. Prices are relatively cheap for the area: Beer starts at $5; wine starts at $7.
401 E. Illinois St., alcohol sales start at 2 p.m. Monday to Friday, noon Sunday.
Dylan's Candy Bar
Walk into this blindingly bright two-story candy shop on Michigan Avenue, dodge at least six kids scampering among bins of gummy bears and land safely on a candy-striped bar stool in the adjoining cafe, which has a full bar. Every cocktail on the menu is, of course, made with candy. Are they cloyingly sweet? Mostly. Are they the most fun thing you'll drink all week? Absolutely. If you're looking for a show, try the Pop Rocks Explosion ($12): When the drink (gin, elderflower, hibiscus, lemon) hits a martini glass filled with Pop Rocks, the candy goes flying from the glass. The Nerdy Mojito ($14) looks like an island scene, with the Nerds as "pebbles" at the bottom and a Swedish fish swimming above. As far as best bet for adult taste buds, the Drunken Sour Patch (rum, sorrel, Galliano, lime, pineapple) is tart enough to balance the sweet.
445 N. Michigan Ave., 312-702-2247. Monday to Thursday noon to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday noon to 10 p.m., Sunday noon to 8 p.m.
mconrad@tribpub.com
Twitter @marissa_conrad
