Barbakoa

Celebrated Father’s Day with my hubby at Barbakoa Sunday.

Went for brunch, but ordered from lunch menu instead. I had heard some good things about this place and Chef Dudley Neito, but it was better than I expected. Restaurateur Jerry Kleiner did a great job of transforming a tired Buona Beef into a vibrant, breezy room. Inside the room was cool, though everything was open to the outdoors (which included a bar and fireplace). I preferred the interior of the room, more visually appealing than the traffic on Butterfield Road.

Inside, I felt transported. I pretended I was back in Spain while I enjoyed the Latin music and sipped a dry sherry, Gonzalez Byass Tio Pepe Fino. I saw flights of beer and sangrias being served and had a flight of sherries been on the menu, I would have ordered that. I don’t know anything about sherry other than I enjoyed all kinds of it in Spain and rarely drink it here.

We started with the traditional guacamole; there are three to choose from. We tried salsas too, ordered a la carte. (Serrano, grilled tomatillos, garlic and cilantro and Macha, described as piquin chile, de árbol chile and roasted tomatoes) As a salsa lover, I’m not big on this practice, but I’m sure it helps keep costs down.

Happy to have some quiet time with my husband, I didn’t spend much time with the menu. I ordered a shrimp torta (Negra Modelo beer-battered shrimp topped with Chipotle slaw). My husband ordered tortilla soup and the Cubana Barbakoa. (roasted pork, ham, chorizo, Manchego cheese, caramelized onions and a morita spread)

Our waiter returned to inform me that they were out of the bread used for my sandwich and that he would suggest something else because without that bread, the sandwich wouldn’t be as good. I was surprised that they ran out of something so early in the day, but went with shrimp tacos (Mexican shrimp, Asian slaw & coconut). These were good, though I didn’t taste any coconut. I was going to order rice and beans, but turned the menu over and saw the cheese board. Decided I’d rather spend $12 on cheese than $6 on rice. I loved the three cheeses I sampled (don’t remember names). The plate came with some crusty rolls, various olives, nuts, strawberries and orange jalapeno chutney. Cheese is my favorite food in the world and I loved it with this chutney (which I think they could sell in jars).

Had I taken the time to review the entire menu, I would have ordered the cheese with the sherry. So it was my fault that the cheese tray came right after my tacos. An attentive hostess came by and dropped off a new water bottle when she saw we quickly drained our first one. We would order everything we tried again.

My office is within walking distance, yet I’ve never heard of any of my coworkers mention Barbakoa. I hope word gets out that this is not just another fast-food type place.

We’ll be back and I’ll be looking for that chutney.

1341 Butterfield Rd
Downers Grove, IL 60515
(630) 852-2333
http://www.barbakoa.com/

janeyb wrote:

We started with the traditional guacamole; there are three to choose from. /

the chicharon guacamole i had a few weeks ago at Barbakoa was one of the best things I have eaten all year.

Other items ordered didnt shine quite like the guac did.

I had lunch there recently and really enjoyed the barbacoa (short rib torta/sandwich). Very impressive place; I'd like to go back for dinner some time.

nsxtasy wrote:I had lunch there recently and really enjoyed the barbacoa (short rib torta/sandwich). Very impressive place; I'd like to go back for dinner some time.

I went back for lunch yesterday, and really enjoyed it. They have a menu with lunch specials; one side had tortas (sandwiches) for $12, the other side had a great multi-dish menu, for $12 you get (a) choice of tacos or tamales or tortitas (sliders) - I had the short rib sliders and they were excellent, lots of meat, a bit messy to pick up so I used knife and fork; (b) guacamole, served with a bowl of chips; (c) choice of Caesar salad or tortilla soup, I loved the latter; and (d) vegetable, I forget the other choices but I had the elote style corn (not on the cob), loved it, very spicy. We also split a dessert order of six churros cooked to order, also excellent. I'd still like to go back for dinner some time, but in the meantime, it was a great lunch!