Shea’s Dining Suggestions
Shea finds inspiration everywhere she goes, including her favorite restaurants. Whether enjoying a Michelin-starred experience in downtown Chicago or partaking in the casual gastronomic charms of Saugatuck, Michigan – home to the Wickwood Inn, which Shea co-owns with design partner Martin Horner – Shea appreciates good food served with style in an unforgettable atmosphere. Here, the many ways Shea satisfies her appetite for a memorable dining experience.
Feast with Your Senses
I’m into the food I’m eating, of course! But I like to enjoy my surroundings just as much. I study the flatware and table linens. I wonder where the light fixtures came from. I pay attention to how well the sound-absorbing ceiling treatment does or doesn’t soften the noise, and make mental note of the music playing. It’s a true fact that while everyone else at the table is busy talking, I’m secretly running my hands along the leg of my chair leg thinking, “Is this wax-polished wood?”
Befriend the Wine Expert
My husband is an avid wine collector, and we have a wine cellar in our house. So when we go out, wine is top of mind. We like to spend a few minutes getting to know the sommelier and letting them lead us to the hidden gems on the wine list. The conversation usually flows pretty easily since we’re so enthusiastic, which often leads to the experts pouring us sips of this and that. It’s fun to discover new wines, especially the great values we may not have known existed. Those kinds of finds help us relive our experience long after the meal has ended.
Share and Share Alike
One of our friends is a dining critic, and he often invites us to join him and his wife when he goes to review a restaurant. You can only imagine the amount of food we order so he can sample and write about it all. That in itself is a ton of fun, but so is the way we eat it. We usually push everything to the middle of the table and we all just dig in. Things usually get pretty festive. Sharing food seems to automatically increase the camaraderie. I highly recommend it.
Go Local
I like to immerse myself in a sense of place. So when we’re in Michigan, for example, you’ll never find us at a chain restaurant. I mean, why would you ever want to go out of town and eat someplace you could just as easily eat at home? One of my favorite places to eat in Saugatuck is Coast 236. Martin and I recommend it to all our guests at the inn, and we entertain there a lot. Their food is straightforward, honest, and seasonal – and always prepared in some out-of-the-box manner I just love. Ethical, sustainable food practices are a big part of their menu offerings, and they rely on local ingredients. I admire that aspect of their food. I also love their dining room. It’s light, bright, white, and airy – but at the same time, it’s welcoming and comfortable. As a designer, I appreciate that balance, which they’ve gotten just right.
Be Open
Some of the best food I’ve eaten in Michigan has been from an unassuming little carry-out place called Farmhouse Deli & Pantry. Actually, they do have a dine-in seating area, but I love this place for the ability to carry out what is truly incredible food and bring it back to the inn, or take it with us on a hike or a boat, or cater business meetings when our Soucie Horner design team visits, or our SHIIR Rugs team holds an offsite. Everything they sell is delicious, from their salads and sandwiches to their homemade soups and baked goods. I also love that they have a little retail shop where you can pick up interesting things for hostess gifts, should you find yourself unexpectedly invited somewhere and you want to bring something special. Their story is great, too: chef Christine Ferris opened Farmhouse in 2013 so she could shift from being a caterer to having a “more spontaneous relationship with local produce.” I mean, how can you not love that?
Celebrate Unheralded Heroes
We like to go to this Mexico City–style taquería attached to a corner grocery in Little Village called La Chaparrita. It’s a great little family-run place where the owner hands out free cups of homemade pineapple tepache from a wooden barrel by the counter. More amazing is the guy who makes the tacos. His name is César Castillo. César moves between a charcoal grill, a small griddle, and a charola pan full of beef and corn tortillas. And he never stops smiling. Everything gets sprinkled with onions, cilantro, caramelized sweet onions, and house made salsas. It’s magical. Sometimes I get a steak called suadero, but if I’m feeling adventurous, I’ll try the lengua (tongue). I’ve yet to take the plunge with the seso (brain).
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Our resident wordsmith describes her home as a living scrapbook. "Everything in it tells a story," she says, noting that when it comes to design, she's not exactly a minimalist. "Quirky architecture, pattern, patina, collections, books - to me, more is more."