And they're off

Upon arriving in Chicago from Traverse City, it became clear that we were on the short list to get bumped from our overbooked flight to London. As savvy travelers with no very pressing agenda, we jumped at the offer to stay overnight in the Windy City and fly business class the next day.
Armed with the deep knowledge of the city one can glean only from the lyrics of a Wilco song, we set out in search of a deep dish pizza with tomato sauce atop the cheese. What a great opportunity to compare the famous Chicago-style pizza with the thin crust coal oven pizza we’d enjoyed in New Haven for the past few years! Nearly halfway to the loop, we noticed the hipsters on our car departing at the Damen stop. Naturally, we leapt up to follow and found ourselves in the land of Urban Outfitters, horn-rimmed glasses and very cool eateries. Our keen instincts drew us toward Piece, a pizzeria and brewery. Once seated, we learned that Piece was inspired by Bar, a New Haven favorite. As soon as we opened the all-too familiar menu to discover a mixed green salad with bleu cheese, apples and candied pecans and noticed mashed potatoes among the choices of pizza toppings, the similarities in décor leapt out as well. We shared the salad and a red pie with mozzarella cheese, Italian sausage and sautéed mushrooms, both were tasty and comfortingly familiar. The home brews at Piece outshine those at Bar. We enjoyed two seasonal beers – the medium bodied Worryin’ Ale and the Fornicator, which was sweet and hoppy and went well with the pizza. All in all, a fine way to bid farewell to the States with a final taste of New Haven in Chicago.