Tim, hey doing well, hope everythings been going better for you. I'm hoping to finalize a deal on the new ride in the next week or two. Of course I'm already ordering mods
. Hopefully I can bring it by the next get-together, if there ever is one.
Back to the topic at hand: Yeah, I forgot about the new Conrad downtown. I'm sure thats going to be the spot for celebrity watching.
As far as restaurants go you can find all the major chain type places downtown; Champps, PF Changs, Palomino, Rock Bottom, Hooters, Hard Rock, yada yada yada.
If you want something better and independent;
St. Elmo Steak House (next to the Canterbury Hotel)
Bazbeaux Pizza (on Mass Ave, best pizza in town)
Elements (Mass Ave, nouveau cuisine, not too pricey)
R Bistro (Mass Ave, weekly menu, upscale but again not too pricey)
Rathskeller (off of Mass, german cuisine, but I go for the Biergarten out back, live music, good crowd)
Slippery Noodle (S Meridian St just past the train tracks, don't eat here, just a good old school Blues bar)
The Bosphorous (Virginia Ave? Great little Turkish place SE side of downtown)
Santorini (Fountain Square area, get directions, Greek obviously)
If you're bringing kids and need an alternate activity the Childrens Museum is located at 30th and Illinois and is supposed to be really good. I'm sure others can chime in with some suggestions.
couple links;
http://www.slipperynoodle.com/
http://www.rathskeller.com/
http://www.childrensmuseum.org/catalog/home.asp