I have something to share with you.
It’s been a long time since I posted and after dining in South Bend, I realized I needed to start sharing again!
I flew from DFW to Fort Wayne, rented a car and headed to South Bend. If I had had a little extra time I would have stopped at one of the many cute boutiques in FW so hopefully next time I can make that happen. The drive was pretty easy and in less than two hours I was checking into the Aloft South Bend.
Aloft South Bend
The Aloft is a newer hotel and located downtown. Parking was in the building and the staff was great during check in. There is a bar, a few social areas and a spot for breakfast. Plus you can walk to numerous restaurants in the area. My room overlooked downtown and I could see the Notre Dame campus. Fast forward to the next morning, I slept great, had a quick breakfast of lemon pancakes with fruit and granola in a breakfast bowl and started my day!
LaSalle Grill
I had looked up all the spots downtown and settled on LaSalle, a fine-dining restaurant and steakhouse. I normally would not choose a fine dining spot but they had a casual third floor lounge that got great reviews. But, it was a Monday night so the third floor was closed and it was a super quiet night in the main restaurant. Since I was dining at 8pm I decided to order a light meal- the wedge salad with the herb dressing and the pan seared scallops over a roasted leek johnny cake with nueske’s bacon pomodoro. Both were fantastic! My server was great and she timed everything perfectly so I could finish my presentation due the next morning.
Cinco5 International
Full day meeting so we take our client to lunch and they choose Cinco5, a casual spot for Mexican and Thai food. Yes, Mexican and Thai. Since I had to pick one, I kept it simple and went with Pad Thai. Half the table did thai, half did tacos. The best part – private room for a group of 10!
Tortas Frontera
When flying through O’Hare and super hungry, this is your stop. Braised pork torta with pickled red onion, black beans and amazing bread. Cannot go wrong with Rick Bayless!
Have other favorites in Fort Wayne or South Bend? Let me know!
Always Travel With Peanut Butter 