Scared Panda » Chicago

Fourth Quarter Growing Home Donation

Clint — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 02:32:25 +0000

I’m both happy and sad to announce that we made our final donation to Growing Home today. This was the biggest donation that we’ve ever given to them and we want give a big thank you to everyone who bought a tee last year. It’s because of you guys that we were able to help Growing Home provide job training and access to healthy food to those in need.

Looking forward to a great 2012.

Happy Birthday, Clint

Clint — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 19:41:35 +0000

In honor of Clint’s birthday, we give you this.

Two Years And Still Going Strong

Clint — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 17:33:37 +0000

Two years ago we made a t-shirt about the tamale guy in Chicago. At the same time we were looking for a way to give back to our community. Over a couple of beers at this great little bar in our neighborhood called Sheffield’s in Chicago, Scared Panda was born and we haven’t looked back since. Thank you to all of our amazing supporters, nonprofit partners, friends and family – we couldn’t do it without you!

Cats Dressed As Humans

Clint — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 22:17:33 +0000

Tees for cats are so hot right now! This was just shared with us by our friends and fantastic printers, Replica Chicago. Do you not love this as much as we do? Get your cat or human their very own Scared Panda Kids tee now!

Chicago The Great: Logan Square/Wicker Park/Bucktown

Clint — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 01:27:01 +0000

These are the hip “cool” kids neighborhoods that I never got to live in. You could compare em to Williamsburg or The Mission but with the friendliness of the Midwest. There are some great bars and restaurants all over here and you can get there from downtown from the Blue line or a quick cab ride. The intersection of Damen & Milwaukee is what is shown in background of the Chaotic Peace t-shirt.

Longmen & Eagle - Probably my #2 favorite restaurant in Chicago.

The Whistler - Best cocktails in the city. There’s no sign or anything, just look for people outside a non nondescript building. If there is a wait dont worry, it goes quick.

Lula Cafe - Brunch and just about any other meal is perfect. Local organic thing.

Map Room - Great beers and can get crowded. Look for the Tamale Guy.

Bongo Room - Hooray brunch!

Chipp Inn - Neighborhood bar.

Quencher’s - Another really good beer bar. Get the tater tot pizza. A quick walk from the Whistler if you’re looking to bar hop it.

Big Star - Don’t eat here. It’s over priced and not very good. They do have a great selection of Bourbon though.

Quencher’s – Another really good beer bar. Get the tater tot pizza. A quick walk from the Whistler and Chipp Inn if you’re looking to bar hop it.

The Southern – have only had drinks, brunch is supposed to be amazing.

Takashi – delicious. Go for dinner.

Hot Chocolate – Hot chocolate and mac and cheese.

What did we miss? Let us know in the comments.

Photo from David Hilowitz on Flickr

Sneek Peak At The DJ Panda T-Shirt For The Little Ones

Clint — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 20:13:14 +0000

Jeremy over at Replica Chicago just sent over the first sample of the DJ Panda kids t-shirt. Stay tuned for more kids t-shirts to come. In the mean time, what do you think of this one so far? Pretty cute, eh?

Chicago The Great: Lakeview

Clint — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 20:54:14 +0000

Although we don’t live in Chicago anymore, it’s still a place that is fresh in our minds and close to our hearts. A lot of friends have been taking trips there lately so we compiled a list of our favorite places, by neighborhood, to grab a bite (or drink) for them to check out. And now, we want to share it with you. To kick things off lets start with the ‘hood that we called home, Lakeview. Enjoy!

Finley Dunne’s – Awesome neighborhood bar. Fantastic place to hang out and the staff is top notch.
DMK Burger Bar - Organic grass fed burgers, incredible fries and good craft beers. Get the bison burger with blueberry compote and an order of truffle parmesan fries. Every burger is amazing and they have awesome seasonal specials.
Murphy’s Red Hots – Chicago style hot dogs.
Cafe El Tapatio – Great Mexican food. Sit on the patio
Southport Grocery – Brunch. Amazing.
Kanela Breakfast Club – Great brunch. Nice patio.
Jake’s Pub – My favorite neighborhood bar in Chicago. Awesome beer list.
Duke of Perth – Scottish. Whiskey. Good Beer. All you can eat fish and chips on Fridays and Wednesdays. No TVs
Tony’s Tex Mex – Little taco joint that serves some of the best late night tacos around. Kate loves the vegetarian fajita burrito.
Pick-me-up Café: Amazing sandwiches, pancakes, everything. BEST hot chocolate. Open 24 hours on the weekends
Twist – Great tapas. Not exactly Spanish style, but delicious.
Uncommon Ground: Great cocktails with local and healthy food. Good for brunch or dinner.
Sheffields – Good beer and BBQ. Avoid it on the weekends.
Paulina’s Market – Local butcher, weird hours. Great meat.
The Globe Pub – The best place to watch soccer in Chicago.

This doesn’t come close to covering everything that we loved so much in Lakeview, but if it’s a pretty solid start.

Nonprofit Love: Free Growing Home Event August 6

Kate — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 13:57:54 +0000

Most of you know that our 2011 nonprofit partner is Growing Home, a Chicago-based organization that provides job training through an organic agriculture business. We’ve really enjoyed getting to know them over the past six months and now is your chance to get to know them.

On Saturday, August 6 they are throwing a great FREE event that is guaranteed to be a good time. Take a tour of their farm, Chicago’s first year-round USDA-Certified Organic production farm, enjoy a cookout and check out cooking and gardening demo.

If you get inspired by the cooking demos, pick up some veggies from the farm stand and whip up a tasty lunch later that afternoon.

The event is held at Growing Home’s Woodstreet Farm in Chicago. RSVP on the organization’s Facebook page and don’t forget to invite your friends.

Vacation: Chicago & Minnesota

Clint — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 13:29:44 +0000

This weekend we’re taking a Midwest adventure. First stop: Chicago. We’ll be in Chicago all weekend hanging out with friends and eating a whole bunch of delicious food. I’m looking at you Claudio. I can’t believe it’s been close to five months since we’ve been back there. Man, that is too long if you ask me. We both really miss it there, especially the people. After Chicago we’re jumping a jet plane up to Minnesota to spend a much needed week of relaxing with our families.

During our time in ‘sota we’re gonna take in a Twins game, catch a Trampled By Turtles show and meetup with some local artists. This trip is a big one for us as we are going to be exploring the city and doing a lot of thinking about where we want to take Scared Panda in the next couple years. I really want to tell you more but I can’t, I’ll tell you more later.

So, check back in when we have pictures and great stories from the trip.

Happy Fourth Of July!

Clint — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 16:19:04 +0000

Happy fourth of July everybody. We’ll eat a Nathan’s Famous for ya!

Pic courtesy of our buddy TheeErin