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Sophia Bush Dishes on 'Chicago P.D.,' Favorite Restaurants, Winter Beauty

By Jackie Kostek | February 11, 2014 8:44am | Updated on February 11, 2014 9:08am
 Bush spoke to DNAinfo at Unleashed dog boarding facility in Lincoln Park while volunteering with  Trio Animal Foundation  to support the Barefoot Wine Soles of the Year Program.
Sophia Bush
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LINCOLN PARK — Sophia Bush is on a restaurant tour of Chicago.

The 31-year-old California native is in town filming NBC's "Chicago P.D." — a spinoff of the TV series "Chicago Fire" — and she's taking full advantage of the city's cuisine.

"Mott Street is incredible. The Girl and the Goat is great. I also discovered the best turkey sandwich I have ever had at J.P. Graziano's deli, so I'm in there at least once a week now," said Bush, who first rose to small-screen fame as Brooke Davis on the long-running CW series "One Tree Hill."

Bush spoke to DNAinfo Chicago at the Unleashed dog-boarding facility in Lincoln Park while volunteering with Trio Animal Foundation to support the Barefoot Wine Soles of the Year Program. The effort recognizes "good soles," including Sue Naiden of Trio, which funds the medical treatment of homeless animals.

How has it been filming in Chicago?

I'm loving working in Chicago. It's such an awesome city. There's such a vibrance and energy here. It really is kind of a character in our show.

It's funny because there are so many shows and films shooting here, and people seem to be just excited about it, which is great for us because we never want to feel like we're in the way. So to be in a city that is so welcoming to the film industry is lovely.

How did you prepare for your role as detective Erin Lindsay?

We did a full week of boot camp with intelligence officers on the SWAT team, and so we got the real inside scoop on what they're investigating, where they're working, what's going on, what neighborhoods deal with — what kind of issues. It's intense. There's a lot that most of us don't know about what those men and women are doing to keep us safe.

We did a lot of things with the cops, some of which I don't think I'm allowed to say. But they showed us the city.

Did you study the Chicago accent?

We are around our crew and the police, but they also didn't want anyone to put on too much of an accent because that can be weird for your viewers.

What's it like to jump into another TV series after "One Tree Hill"?

It's my job. You know, I'm an actor. I love to tell stories, and it's the reason I really dedicated a lot of time, even when we were shooting the last show, to make sure I could make movies on my hiatus, my breaks, so that I had other things to touch and make and see.

This was just a no-brainer for me. I'm working with some of the best creative minds in television and an incredible cast. We're having the times of our lives.

How often are you filming?

We work every day. We do 14 to 16 hours a day, so it's long.

Chicago is a food town — what are your favorite restaurants? What have you eaten since you've been here?

I'm on a full-blown restaurant tour of the city. Mott Street is incredible, The Girl and the Goat is great. I also discovered the best turkey sandwich I have ever had JP Graziano's deli. So I'm in there at least once a week now.

Any deep-dish pizza?

I have had so many things. What was actually cool, our bosses a couple of weeks ago had guys come to the set with this truck, and they had a pizza oven. They were just rapid firing these little, thin crust pizzas. That's not normally how it is. Normally you have a craft services table, and there's like power bars. Suddenly, we had a pizza truck, and it was the greatest day at work ever. So I'm hoping that happens again.

Have you tried a Chicago-style hot dog?

I really want to go to Hot Doug's, but I'm always working, so hopefully soon.

How are you handling the winter?

It's very cold. Lots of layers.

What does your winter beauty routine consist of?

With this extreme cold, it's just about taking care of your skin. I try to drink a lot more water, I use really mineral-rich products. Ahava, Perricone, just really good skin food because this weather will just destroy you.

My friend Eva Chen is the editor at Lucky Magazine, and she actually gave me a great tip. She said add two drops of face oil to your moisturizer in the winter because you just need more help. That's really a good tip.

What's your workout routine?

I don't have time to do that anymore. I just try to stretch at work so that I don't get totally destroyed.

Why did you want to volunteer at the rescue animal event with Barefoot and Trio?

I've been a dog rescuer my whole life. My parents are incredible people who have always had rescues coming through the house, so I grew up loving dogs and wanting to make sure that I could help in some way and make a difference for them.

When I got to Chicago, it was really exciting to come across Trio and to have them highlighted by Barefoot. I just think it's so cool, because for a company that large to have such an ethos of corporate responsibility and to want to give back and make a difference, I think is very rare. I think they are setting such a great example. So to be here with these guys is pretty much the best way to spend a Saturday ever.