whenever anyone came to visit me i'd take them to rockit and cafe babareeba or cafe iberico. or maybe i'm just saying this because i'm craving food from the aforementioned restaurants. but really, tapas is fun and iberico is loud and festive and cheap. rockit i love for the food and the fact that whenever my friends and i walked in there there was never a lack of men who wanted our attention. haha.
shanti. i love you. but ROCKIT?? and CAFE BA BA REEBA?! nooooooooooo. shanti. next time you come to chicago, i will kick you if you don't call me so i can drag you (maybe against your will) to some other establishments.
now. on to the topic. and warning? i will ramble. sorry.
fun dinner spots:
1. avec. it's a little out of your way (i think you're in wicker or lincoln park?), but the place is a lot of fun. first of all, executive chef is paul kahan (aka blackbird) so the food is top notch. prices are super reasonable though, and the idea is to share everything. small plates, bigger plates, etc. one of their desserts is homemade crunch bars. delicious. alcohol is reasonable too - they have a wide variety and everything they have is great, so you can know that even if you immediately look for the one with the cheapest dollar amount next to it (what? just me? when i still have another week to wait for my paycheck but apparently my liver can't wait until then to be tested just a little more?), it'll be good. they have super long banquet style tables and everyone sits crammed together and if you sit next to strangers who are fun, you can all end up getting drunk and stuffed together.
me, deep breath.
2. sepia. their bar serves prohibition era drinks - think: old school, legitimate manhattans. and their drinks are hella strong. as in, they're actually worth their $10-12 dollar price tags, unlike the 75%redbull/25%wellvodka $14 crap i got the last time i was at the apartment in 2005. one cocktail - honestly - can be enough to start the drunk happy. i recommend veronica's vacation - lots of tequila, limoncello, and fresh grapefruit. that is, if you love tequila. which i do. their food is mouthwatering-ly good (must try flatbreads.) it's lively on the weekends and it's located in an old print shop so if you're a history nerd (again, like me, and when did i decide to make this all about me?), you'll enjoy. i love the place - makes me wish i could have lived in chicago in the 20s. and now maybe i'm sharing far too much about myself.
3. carnivale. because, hi, it's latin inspired. and latin = fun and delicious. need proof? margeritas. and shakira. although i can't promise shakira is served on the menu.
if you go to any of these places, all west loop-ish, i recommend victor hotel or fulton lounge for after dinner spots. victor, i love, but they do have cover sometimes. there are ways to get out of it though but i think it includes knowing someone there, having bottle service, or shamelessly flirting with the bouncer. the spot is fun though. beautiful interior, beautiful people, and a necessary dose of funkiness. speaking of funky, you could also head over to funky buddha after dinner.
another dinner option is: tango la sur if you like meat, meat, and more meat. (it's an argentinian restaurant.) it's byob, so bring bottles of vino. (we brought three for a party of four last friday, and maybe stole a half full bottle fro
ha, i got cut off!
and i don't remember the genius i had written but i will try to reproduce. for you, d, for you.
"(we brought three for a party of four last friday, and maybe stole a half full bottle fro..."
m the table next to us when the couple left - hi, we're lushes). we had to wait an hour before dinner because they only take reservations for parties 6 and up so we went next door to take five, where a cubs game was on and the drinks were flowing. our waiter was awesome and may have brought me free long islands? yes, it was great. i don't think anything on tango's menu is above $20. except maybe the "dinner para dos" which my boyfriend and i got and my god that was a lot of food. you will not leave this place sober or hungry. afterwards, you could go to places on southport - justin's? if you're okay with more casual. if the weather's nice, they have a (i whisper, so as not to angry the weather gods) patio.
there's streeters and beer pong on chicago and rush for the late late night. it's where my friends and i meet up almost every weekend at around 2 am because, you know, why stop the fun at 2 when you can stay up just a few more hours and hit up the breakfast menu at mcdonald's?
shanti - shanti. next time you come to chicago, i will kick you if you don't call me so i can drag you (maybe against your will) to some other establishments.
don't fret. damsel doesn't call her local blog friends...odds are you wouldn't hear a peep from her if you visited us in chi-town
off to actually read damsel's comment
okay, i read your entire comment, damsel, and i truly adore you.
i've been to all those places, and LOVE hearing your POV on them.
i think it's down to avec, carnivale, or tango sur (TS isn't my pick, but with a lot of friends at the cubs game to meet afterwards, it's got location on it's side).
seriously you rock. let's have tequila sometime.
When I think of Chicago, I think of all our great Latino restaurants. Yummmmm! Some of my favorites:
1) Cafe Laguardia
2) Carnivale
3) De Cero
4) Cafe 28
5) Topolobampo
Other spots I love (going with the theme) but omitted due to location/price/less favorite experiences are: Mas, Cuatro, DeLaCosta and Frontera Grill. Holy crap do we have some great eateries in this city.
Oh yeah, one other bit of advice. Please don't sacrifice a great place to eat just because it's not in Wrigleyville. I can think of a million better places to eat - paying for the cab afterwards will be worth it!
I wanna go to Hopper! I keep missing it. It was at the Modern Tate in London, but I couldn't get in. It was in New York, but I couldn't get in. Bah.
I don't remember any of the places I ate in Chicago. We usually just stopped at Whole Foods and kept walking.
d - so harsh, so harsh. seriously, how do you feel, knowing you made a girl CRY with your words? and you better not tell me it's not your first time, like some of my guy friends would.
i know i've been awful about meeting up. new year to end of march was madness. i think the only person who saw me on a consistent basis were: co-workers (ugh) or my boyfriend (and i live with the fella).
but i've finally gotten life in a chokehold and i'm breathing down it's neck: i'm in charge now, sucka.
so you, me, tequila? yes. and dude, it's summer time. we chicagoans know that the only reason we deal with this city's winters is for the nirvana that is summertime here.
i feel like we'd both talk each other's ears off. awesome. (and seriously, i could have said SO much more about all those places - and more - i just didn't want to go on and on. yup. that's right. you got a shortened version. talk much? don't mind if i do.)
and also, should you make your way to streeters this weekend, maybe an impromptu meet up will happen there. over a game of beer pong. where i will (most likely not) destroy you.
OH. i forgot to recommend SALPICON. hands down, my favorite mexican restaurant in the city. their tequila menu? holy god. it's in old town. on wells. you could always head to suite lounge afterwards, whose drinks, admittedly, are priced high, but quite, quite delicious.
directed at damsel and d:
okay! in my defense...salads and martinis from rockit were like a lunchtime staple for me. and their truffle french fries. babareeba was my cheap dinner spot, 4-6, 3 dollar tapas in the bar area. come on now.
now, without a doubt, i totally agree with all of the delicious places people have listed, but my parents and friends who visited weren't foodies and therefore would throw a fucking fit if i made them eat there. i don't know what D's friends are like! haha
but uh, i like dropping money on delish food with awesome people. so next time im in town, lets eat and drink our way through the city. yes? yes.
Carnivale is amazing.
The shortribs will melt. in. your. mouth.
I have to concur on Carnivale - there's nothing particularly "Chicago" about it, but the rum-glazed pork shoulder is TO DIE FOR. Also, anywhere I can get a strong, well-made capirinha is high on my list of places to be.
my ideas probably have poor foundation since i'm not from chicago - but i hear the underground music scene is really, really good from bands that tour through my town. i mean, with the track record of having given the world tortoise, smashing pumpkins, shellac, and not to mention some impressive electronica and hip hop, there's gotta be something to do, right?
truffle fries.....
oh sorry, distracted.
i realize i am late to the party on the comments, but had to throw in some thoughts. mainly around drinks and west loop restaurants and maybe an idea for another blogger meetup?
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