RPM Archives - My Inner Shakti

No Added Sugar Challenge – A Progress Report

It’s been 20 days since I started my no added sugar challenge. And believe it or not, I’ve managed to tame (not eliminate completely!) my sweet tooth.

The first few days were obviously the hardest, but I avoided the added sugars. Then came Chicago. I didn’t drink any alcohol, I didn’t drink any sugary drinks in the morning, but I did have dessert at RPM (there is no way anyone can resist the donuts!). And then I had a few bites of the chocolate tart at Osteria Via Stato.

But you know what, I don’t feel guilty, and I certainly don’t regret my decisions. And here’s why. A big reason why I love dessert is because eating it is always a special experience. One you share with other people. These were conscious decisions, not emotional ones. NBD! And really, the donuts at RPM are truly little bites of fluffy heaven!

A recycled picture…but you get the point!

Other than those few bites of dessert, the only other added sugar I’ve been consuming every now and then is honey. When I was in Chicago, I ate oatmeal for breakfast every morning, but because it was completely plain, I had to sweeten it with a tiny amount of honey to make it palatable. Also, I make my own salad dressings now, and I need to add a little bit of honey to balance the acid from the vinegar.

Again, I don’t think of my use of honey as a weakness. It beats the sugary muffin or store bought dressing alternative. Am I right?

Other than that, I’ve stuck with the rest of the challenge. Promise! How you ask? Lots of willpower and fruit. I usually eat a piece of fruit with my lunch. And I’ve been avoiding the after dinner no added sugar treats. If I really want something sweet, I’ll make some banana fro-yo (one frozen banana, a little almond milk, and a little instant coffee all blended together).

Apples, berries, and grapes are my favorites!

Once the challenge is officially over, I’ll share more tips and tricks along with the benefits I’ve experienced.

And for anyone who thinks my little challenge doesn’t count, I beg to differ! I avoided 95% of the desserts available to me in Chicago (cookies, bars, M&MS!, etc.) without having to think twice. And I’ve gone from staring at the bag of chocolate chips sitting in our fridge, to forgetting about it altogether (until right about now). WHO AM I?!?!

More to come…

What’s your favorite no added sugar treat?

Chicago – Food and Fun

written by Parita 10 Comments

I’ve been looking forward to recapping my trip all week. And now that it’s time to do just that, I’m not feeling very wordy! Funny how that works. I’ll try my best!

One note before I share more – my photos kind of suck because I wasn’t focused on taking great pictures, just creating great memories! And I apologize if you’ve already seen these pictures via my Instagram.

FOOD

RPM

This was my third time dining at RPM (first time and second time), and it just keeps getting better. Looking back, we probably ordered a little too much food, but it was all so delicious! You really can’t go wrong here. Everything is just so fresh and well made, which makes the higher price point totally worth it in my opinion. This is a MUST visit Chicago restaurant!

Native Foods Café

My coworker Thea and I ate at Native Foods Café a few times when I was in Chicago last September. It’s super close to our office, and the food is so tasty! This time around we shared the nachos and an order of sweet potato fries. A few of our other coworkers joined us for lunch and absolutely loved the food as well. It packs quite the punch for a vegan restaurant!

Roti

On Wednesday our team hosted a lunch for some of the other teams in our organization, and we catered the meal from a place called Roti. Everything is very flavorful, especially the hummus. So creamy and rich…LOVE!

Osteria Via Stato

On Wednesday night we had our big team dinner at Osteria Via Stato, a local Italian restaurant. Because of the size of our group, we had prix fixe menu, and even then, all of the food I tried was delicious – salted ciabatta bread with roasted garlic marinated in balsamic vinegar (MY FAVORITE!), crispy polenta, spring pasta with veggies, farro risotto (second favorite!), and the list goes on. I can’t wait to bring Vishnu back here because I know he’d love it!

Little Goat Diner

On Thursday evening I took a break from team stuff and made dinner plans with my friends Ankita and Rena. We went to Little Goat Diner in the West Loop neighborhood of Chicago. The food was fantastic! Some of the items we ordered were comfort food “ish”, while others were innovative and unique. But everything was really fresh and bold. I will be back Little Goat!

FUN

Cubs game

My London coworkers wanted to experience American baseball, so a bunch of us went to a Cubs (vs. Brewers) game on Tuesday evening. It was so fun seeing them get excited with the rest of the crowd, and surprisingly, they got the gist of the game fairly quickly. I had to explain a few things like stealing and bases loaded, but overall, everyone really enjoyed themselves!

Fireworks

Every Wednesday and Saturday night during the summer, the city of Chicago does fireworks by Navy Pier. Because of my coworker Toni’s husband, we got to watch them from the rooftop of one of the buildings on the lakefront. Amazing!

Well, that’s all I have in terms of a recap. I did go down a slightly wordy path…oops! That was bound to happen though, especially considering how packed and full this week was!

I head home today and can’t wait to see Vishnu!! AND we have some very special guests visiting this weekend…my parents! Yay!

Cheers to the freakin’ weekend!

RPM and Siena Tavern

written by Parita Leave a Comment

Needless to say, my first couple of days in Chicago have been nothing short of fun. Not only was I reunited with Vishnu after three weeks of living apart, but I also got to try two amazing Chicago restaurants!

RPM

My friend Ankita made a reservation for me and Vishnu at RPM for Monday night– our first date in three weeks (I am so dramatic)! This was my second time dining at RPM and Vishnu’s first.

Let’s just say this was the perfect way to kick off my month in Chicago! As we walked in, I couldn’t help but notice the chic décor – beautiful chandeliers, soft curtains – so romantic!

After being seated, we spent a few minutes deciding what to order. In the end, we decided to share a few different things.

We started out with two cocktails. I ordered a strawberry spritzer type of drink and Vishnu got a ginger blueberry drink – summer in a glass. When our waitress told us about the appetizer special, we knew that was what we had to have. I’ll describe it as best I can – mozzarella, ricotta, mascarpone, basil and tomato stuffed baby squash tempura battered and lightly fried. Essentially mozzarella sticks taken to the next level! For our entrees we ordered two dishes – eggplant parmesan (SO cheesy, so good!) and this seasonal corn pasta (little ‘purses’ stuffed with roasted corn, ricotta, and mascarpone in a light butter sauce). And the grand finale was light, fluffy donuts coated in cinnamon sugar served with two dipping sauces – Nutella and whipped mascarpone.

Warning – [crappy] iPhone pics ahead!

The food was just as delicious as I remembered! And every dish that passed by our table looked so good!

During dinner, Vishnu and I talked non-stop, catching each other up on life and planning other fun things to do in the city. I missed my man so much!

Siena Tavern

On Tuesday night, we went to Sierra Tavern, except this time it was a group date! Jayesh, Ankita, Samir, Roshni, Vishnu, and I spent the evening ~~stuffing our faces~~ eating and talking…and laughing. Oh the laughing!

No pics of food – just three lovely ladies!

This restaurant also has a very special, laid back vibe. The décor is unique and welcoming – perfect for a big group of people. And our server was very accommodating and offered lots of recommendations.

We were promptly seated. Then began the deliberations about what to order. We decided to order a few different things and share, which was the perfect plan because I got to try a little bit of everything!

We started with beers for the guys and sangria and wine for the girls. Food wise we ordered mushroom truffle pizza, shaved Brussels sprouts salad with almonds and some kind of cheese, potato gnocci in a cream sauce, and tagliatelle with mushrooms in a truffle sauce. Jayesh and Vishnu ordered a couple of meat dishes that they also loved! And of course, we had to order dessert – donuts! The difference between these donuts and the ones at RPM is that they were bigger and came with three sauces that you ‘infuse’ into the donut. Delicious and cool!

There is a reason why everyone was so hyped to eat here. The food is out of this world!

To all my fellow foodies, please make an effort to visit both of these restaurants the next time you are in Chicago. I promise you won’t regret it!

Have a great Wednesday!

Chicago + Las Vegas

written by Parita 7 Comments

Last week was such a great week, both professionally and personally. It was also exhausting. My body is definitely craving some normalcy, mostly in the form of sleep and homemade meals! One more mini-trip to go and then we’re home for an entire month and a half before we have to fly again.

The first part of last week was spent in Chicago where I attended a workshop called Fierce Conversations. If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you may remember that I attended the same workshop while I was with my last company. I plan to blog more about my takeaways (some of which are the same as last time) in the next couple of weeks. Overall, I left the two days with lots to think about in terms of how I communicate.

The highlight of my stay in Chicago was eating dinner at a restaurant called RPM with two of my best friends. The food was absolutely amazing, the ambiance was very chic, and my co-diners were pretty great too!

I wish I had better pictures to share, but trust me on this…the next time you’re in Chicago, make reservations and GO. You won’t regret it!

We ordered a number of dishes to share. After looking at the menu, I really don’t think you can go wrong with any of the items.

Personally, we went with the…

Burrata – OMG! This was the creamiest, richest, silkiest, freshest burrata I have ever had. In fact, my mouth is watering right now!
Cremini mushroom pizzettes – The subtle truffle flavor took this seemingly simple dish to another level.
Truffled garlic bread – Apparently, we have a thing for truffle!
Eggplant parmesan – This was one of the best eggplant dishes I’ve ever had. I think the eggplant was fried because there was a little crunch as you cut through the layers.
Donuts with Nutella and mascarpone cream – These were essentially fluffy pillows dusted with sugar. Airy, light, and the perfect ending to a delicious (and filling) meal.

And Vegas – oh what a weekend! It was seriously one of the most fun trips I’ve ever been on, and I’m not just saying that because I helped plan it!

I’m going to oblige by the “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas” mantra but will share some details in case anyone reading is planning a trip out there in the near future.

We stayed at the Aria Resort and Casino. I highly recommend this hotel – beautiful, great restaurants, and nice casino. Not to mention that the beds are the comfiest things I’ve ever slept on!
As far as nightclubs go, we went to Tao (at the Venetian) and Hyde (at the Bellagio). Good choices for our group since everyone wanted to dance to top 40/hip hop type music.
We gambled at the Aria, the Venetian, and Excalibur (where I won lots of $$$!!!).
We also went to Platinum Entourage one afternoon to get blowouts. We thought this would be a fun alternative to getting manis/pedis, which it was. Everyone’s hair looked fabulous and sexy!
As far as restaurants are concerned, we ate most of our meals at the Aria. We did, however, venture 3 miles off the strip one night to eat at Firefly. This was the perfect place for a large group because the entire menu is made up of shareable tapas. And the sangria…so good!

If you’re planning a trip to Vegas, especially a bachelorette party, don’t hesitate to email me. After 4 months of planning, I have lots of suggestions and ideas!

Have you been to RPM? Thoughts?
Any fun Vegas stories out there? Feel free to share. 🙂