The Spiffiest Islas Marias Ever

Well, let me confess, I have a fair amount of exposure to Islas Marias, but I have not been inside every outpost in the Chicago area. Still, I have little doubt that the location near the old Brickyard Mall is the spiffiest.

The menu is pretty much the standard, from fish grinds to langostinos. There are a couple of new thing, enabling my kidz to actually eat there, such as carne asada and quesadillos. Moreover, there is an extensive drink menu, almost like a Mexican version of an old time Cantonese place.

What distinguishes this place is, well, spiffiness. It's large and modern, with high ceilings and flat panel teevees and polished wood. I've only been at lunch, and have yet to see the place in full operation.

I've said this before, but there was something about the concrete annex outside of the Grand/Cicero location that reminded me of being on the beach. This location is a bit more evocative of, say Vegas.

I cannot find my card with the address of the Spiffy Islas, but it's on Grand just west of Naraghansatt. It's not in the mall where Target/Lowes is.

Vital Information wrote:I've said this before, but there was something about the concrete annex outside of the Grand/Cicero location that reminded me of being on the beach.

I agree. The Grand/Cicero location has excellent, fresh fish & seafood backed up by somewhat "authentic" ambience . Somehow, from your description I'm not sure if I want to try the new location or not. How was the freshness and preparation of the food?

The wife and son took me to this new location for my birthday two weeks ago. The only other location I had been to was Milwaukee Ave.

Here the Menu is well translated, and the bill is itemized, generated by a modern day system. I counted 36 tables (easy as they all have numbers) in the dining room with at least 10 Flat Screen TVs (the sound turned off to allow for the piped in music). There is also a seperate very modern bar area.

My wife and son both had the Large Grilled Shrimp and I enjoyed the small Langostino plate. All came with the usual very fresh chopped lettuce and outstanding rice.

I also enjoyed the best Michelada I had ever tasted.

I spoke with one of the Managers who excuded pride in this new flagship store. He informed me that the Chef is the original Chef from the Grand/Cicero store.

To me the ambiance is like that of a large Mexican Resort resturant as opposed to small in town or beach place like the other locations.

The food was oustanding and the the overall experience was better than we had experienced at the Milwaukee Ave. location.

Well, there ya go!

I also totally agree that their rice is exceptionally good.

Vital Information wrote:I've said this before, but there was something about the concrete annex outside of the Grand/Cicero location that reminded me of being on the beach.

There is an oddly beachfront vibe at this place (odd because it's on a grimy intersection backed up against a viaduct). I am intrigued by the murals of food under the "cabana" style roof on the south side of the building: artistic renditions of the dishes with very bright, Hairy Who-type coloration. Those, and the slightly naughty, nautical girly paintings on the walls.

Hammond

Vital Information wrote:I cannot find my card with the address of the Spiffy Islas, but it's on Grand just west of Naraghansatt. It's not in the mall where Target/Lowes is.

Rob,

Sounds like a nice addition to the Las Islas Marias family, looking forward to trying the new 'spiffy' version, though I'm a fan of the vibe at the Grand Cicero location.

Enjoy,
Gary

Las Islas Marias
6550 W Fullerton
Chicago, IL 60707
773-622-8970

Tried LIM (Bricktown) out for the first time last night. The facility is nice, but the room could use some extra touches to give it more of a comfortable feel (we also found all the tv's on the walls to be very odd for the main dining room). One small beef - our server was nice and provided some helpful recommendations, but the service became VERY slow once we ordered our meal.

All that said, the food was delicious. The "freebies" put down on the table when you sit down include a fantastic ground fish/veggie/lime juice concoction, and a very spicey green salsa. I ordered the pulpa de ajo (octopus in garlic) - very tender and flavorful. My dining companion ordered the carne asada, which was also very tender and flavorful (and came with some interesting sides, including a something akin to a grilled split-down-the-middle Vienna polish sausage, a grilled cactus leaf, and some really nice beans). I could have done with a little less butter on both dishes. I agree with previous posts re: the rice being very tasty. Overall, I was very impressed with the food, and would like to go back to try more of the many different (although mostly shrimp) menu items. The margaritas were also good (although slightly watery), and there was some great live music.

Just having returned from Las Islas Marias - Spiffy Branch, I'm sorry to report that it was a very disappointing experience. The room is spiffy all right. It looks like some Northern Italian place, or perhaps a ladies boutique or shoe store closed up shop and LIM moved in without changing the decor very much. Music was extremely loud. So much so that we could not hear the waitress. The multi-TV's were somewhat annoying and served no particular purpose. Maybe on weekends, they get a big soccer crowd, I don't know. Anyway, on to the food.

We started off with shrimp empanadas, a usually solid LIM dish. In this case, they were soggy and somewhat limp (I'll leave out the Wiviott sausage joke). They were not at all crispy like the ones I have had at the Grand/Cicero location. We also ordered langostinos a la plancha, which were OK, but a little smaller than others I have had, camerones in garlic sauce, which seemed to be the best dish of the night and a big pescado zarandeado, perhaps the biggest disappointment of the evening, being cooked to overdone dryness and without a distinctive achiote rub and moistness from clarified butter, like the fish I had recently in Puerto Vallarta.

This was the Chow Poodle's first visit to a Las Islas Marias, and I'm afraid it is going to be a tough battle to get her to give the far superior Grand/Cicero branch a shot. Las Islas Marias is not doing itself any favors by opening this branch so close to the stellar original(?) location.

stevez wrote:Just having returned from Las Islas Marias - Spiffy Branch, I'm sorry to report that it was a very disappointing experience.

Steve,

I'd have to agree, more than once during the meal I found myself wishing we had gone to the Grand/Cicero location of Las Islas Marias. The music was impossibly loud, though upon request the waitress turned it down a notch, which meant our conversation mode shifted from shouting to talking loud. TV's were distracting, even with the sound off, but TVs TVs everywhere and nary a drop of content seems to be the way the world is moving.

Food wise, Ellen's Camarones al Ajo (Shrimp sauteed in garlic) were quite good, as were the rice and beans, gratis fish ceviche and green table salsa.

Camarones al Ajo (Shrimp sauteed in garlic)


Fish Ceviche/Salsa


Shrimp Empanadas were flaccid with a dull quality that, at least to me, said they had spent a while hanging out under a heat lamp.


Langostinos a la Plancha, which were ok, but a bit small and hinting at overcooked.


Pescado Sarandeado was disappointing, overcooked salty mostly dry fish flesh saved by the occasional crunch of crisp skin.


I found the room oddly stark, though I liked the solid wooden tables, service was fine, though communication was hampered by both music level and Spanish/English coordination.

I should note that Las Islas Marias, at least the Fullerton branch, adds a 12% gratuity to every party of 4-adults or more, including ours. Frankly, this seems like an invitation to undertip, we left more 12%.

Our mediocre Thursday experience on Fullerton should not dissuade people from trying the new LIM, might have been an off night might be they need a wee bit more time to hit their stride.

Enjoy,
Gary

G Wiv wrote:TV's were distracting, even with the sound off, but TVs TVs everywhere and nary a drop of content seems to be the way the world is moving.

So true. Lighterweight flat panels seem everywhere, probably because they take up less space and are easy to mount and I got to believe some restaurants must get great deals for buying in volume. They are very common in Mexican restaurants...but perhaps it just seems that way because I'm very common in Mexican restaurants.

Hammond

A 32" LCD HDTV can be had these days for $600, a 37" for $900, and a 42" for $1100. It's not going to be a Sharp or Sony, but it'll still look good for the amount of time most restaurant patrons will spend staring at it. I think it's just that they've hit a price point now where it can be something of an impulse purchase for a restaurateur, especially since it's a tax writeoff.

I admit, I was pretty surprised to see the big (42"?) tv appear at Honey 1, but I think it probably fits in better there than at most Mexican restaurants.

And, really, I think a lot of these are restaurants that would have a TV anyway. Casa de Samuel and Lao Sze Chuan both have televisions mounted in the dining area, and it's a really nice, fairly cheap, upgrade for them these days.

I hate 'em.

I've sat in the bar area of the Galewood location and it's much quieter, and you can get full food service. There's a waterfall wall that separates it from the main dining area. But it might just be 2-tops in the bar. Still, there's a TV in there but I didn't find it distracting. I was quite happy with the food (paella and a whole fish entree, don't remember which) and the freebie appetizers.

grace

G Wiv wrote:I'd have to agree, more than once during the meal I found myself wishing we had gone to the Grand/Cicero location of Las Islas Marias. The music was impossibly loud, though upon request the waitress turned it down a notch, which meant our conversation mode shifted from shouting to talking loud. TV's were distracting, even with the sound off, but TVs TVs everywhere and nary a drop of content seems to be the way the world is moving.

personally, i can't stand televisons or loud music in restaurants, and don't allow them in anything i'm affiliated with. i can stay @ home to watch tv or go to a concert if i want to have a worthwhile musical experience. imo, music @ dinner should be in the background and not in competition with the conversation that is occurring exactly because the television is not on.