Oh no, not another food topic! But yes many of us are spending at least some time in Chicago in addition to the other host cities over the course of the week.
Beginning with Sunday evening, I think we all find it highly unlikely that we will arrive into Chicago before dinnertime. That would mean an "extra" meal on the Empire Builder #8 which I am sure they are used to serving. In the event we do show up in Chicago a little before 4 PM as scheduled, we can deal with that at the time. I however think that we are going to want to get to our respective hotels and dump our luggage anyhow.
Monday calls for a busy day on the rails, doing the NorthCentral Service, a short shuttle bus between O'Hare Airport fringe parking lots, the people mover on the airport, and the Blue Line back downtown. It will be a bit late for lunch, but we will have just a bit over an hour and a half in the Millennium Station area (between about 1:30 and 3 PM) to eat. My restaurant listing for Chicago shows a few places both within the station and nearby outside the complex. There are surely many more along the streets within a few blocks, but I will leave that to personal exploration. Knowing we need to catch a train at 3:05 PM, we do need enough time to ensure we have our tickets and board the train before departure.
By Monday evening, some will have departed from the group but a handful will still be in town. Penny had originally suggested having dinner together in Chicago, however now there may be a points run and thus dinner outside Chicago for those who go. I'll still be in town, but perhaps this is just personal time for those who are around. Depending on the time I can just grab dinner in my travels on the way to my hotel.
Tuesday is an Amtrak Hiawatha points run to Glenview and return, with the 1 hour 19 minute layover coinciding with an early lunchtime. I know some may prefer the adjacent pub on the east side of the station in Glenview. My plan is Viccino's Pizza Company, a block southwest of the station, when they open at 11.
And that brings us to the Tuesday official end of the Fest.