El Pulpo + Los 3 Gallos, Melrose Park [Pictures]

LTH,

After feasting on cicadas with the Hammond's, Marilyn Pocius, Cathy2 and NTV, we were still feeling a bit peckish and started discussing where to go for dinner. Hammond, ever a source of good ideas, especially matters culinary, suggested simply driving up Lake st to Melrose Park and stopping at the first likely looking Mexican place. A version of Hammond's classic post Restaurant Roulette/My Dinner with Alien: Stacy’s, Bellwood

First likely spot was El Prado seemingly a simple diner, but none other than Vital Information have suggested there is a secret Cuban restaurant hiding behind a beaded curtain screen. Unfortunately El Prado was closed so we pressed on. Broadway in Melrose Park had a number of likely looking spots, though no more likely than Restaurant El Pulpo with it's magnificently muscled Octopus.

Restaurant El Pulpo


A modest place specializing in, of course, octopus. we went with three different preparations, Pulpo Fiesta, Coctel De Pulpo and Tostada De Pulpo. Of the three the tender lightly spiced fried octopus on the Fiesta was the winner. Rice and an odd sweet mayo based salad were included.

Pulpo Fiesta


Our other two fine, but mostly forgettable, octopus preparations were Coctel De Pulpo and Toastadas De Pulpo. Fish cheviche tostada was included in the mix as well.

Coctel De Pulpo


Tostada De Pulpo


Truthfully the two best things at the table, aside from Hammond and Cathy2's company, were the refreshingly citrus spicy beer based drinks. I loved the rim of chile salt and the no nonsense hit of citrus and spice. Chabelas contains Clamato juice, Micheladas only hot sauce and lime.

Chabelas (L) Micheladas (R)


While I love the concept of place focusing on Pulpo (octopus) El Pulpo is, at least that evening, a fine place to for a neighborhood lunch, but by no means a destination. One additional wrinkle was right about mid-meal they started moping the rear bathrooms with a bucket of heavy industrial cleaner with produced a strong disinfectant odor.

Following the Kuhdo model* we moved next door to Los 3 Gallos, a top pick in Pigmons seminal Carne en su Jugo post. Turns out it just wasn't our night, the cook had just left, they had a new evening crew in kitchen, and our Carne en su Jugo was served tepid sans beans and bacon. It was obvious the broth had great potential, and the bits of chopped steak were nicely griddled, but, even after they apologetically brought out a dish of beans and bacon to add, the overall effect was still mostly forgettable.

Los 3 Gallos Carne en su Jugo


Los 3 Gallos offers Chabelas as well, tasty, but I prefer the heavy rim of lime/salt/chile offered one door North at El Pulpo.


In a surprise twist our meal at Los 3 Gallos turned out to be quite pleasant due to friendly nature and, let's face it, attractiveness, of our waitress Abby.

Abby with ladle for us to divvy up Carne en su Jugo, Hammond must really like ladles as he seems awfully happy.


Los 3 Gallos had a computer setup on the lunch counter, I pulled up Pigmon's Carne en su Jugo post for their viewing.



I'm keen for a Los 3 Gallos retry, Pigmon saying it's one of the top in Chicagoland is more than good enough for me to schlepp out to Melrose Park, and there's always the off-chance Abby will be on waitress duty that evening.

Enjoy,
Gary

*If your first dinner is not up to snuff you owe it to yourself to have a second.

Restaurant El Pulpo
114 N Broadway
Melrose Park, IL 60160
708-344-7753

Los 3 Gallos
112 N Broadway
Melrose Park, IL 60160
708-344-5413

Gary, et al,

Definitely retry Los 3 Gallos -- I haven't had an off day on multiple visits. Additionally, that drive down Broadway in Melrose Park makes me feel more like I'm in a foreign country than any other strip in Chicagoland. I half expect sombrero-wearing tumbleweeds and the clink of spurs on a boardwalk. Maybe its just me

-ramon

Ramon wrote:Additionally, that drive down Broadway in Melrose Park makes me feel more like I'm in a foreign country than any other strip in Chicagoland. I half expect sombrero-wearing tumbleweeds and the clink of spurs on a boardwalk. Maybe its just me

-ramon

I know what you mean about Broadway. I think it has something to do with the way the cars are parked (diagonally), the low lying buildings, the cantina-like feel of some of the eating places, the lack of trees.

A sombrero, incidentally, is an excellent hat, and I would wear one if I did not fear appearing (more) absurd (than usual).

Hammond

I am a huge fan of Clamato and chili salt but have never had a Chabelas. Based on the picture I hope to get to El Pulpo soon. As for Michelads, Las Isles Marias have the best I have ever tasted.

On another note I know what you mean about the feel of Broadway, however I long for the feel the area had with Del Bello Beef and Catering, Leonard's Bar & Sandwich shop, Come Back Inn and the irreplaceable Slicker Sams.

That's a shame your CESJ wasn't up to snuff. A bowl last November was among the top two or three I've had.




My only (extremely minor) quibble is that it came with the radishes already added. I prefer to add my own so they stay fresh and crunchy. I'm sure they'd be happy to serve them on the side if requested.

Other than the waitress, there's plenty to look at.


At Los Tres Gallos, venado is prepared fresh daily.


Be sure to try the conejo (tastes like venado).

G Wiv wrote:First likely spot was El Prado seemingly a simple diner, but none other than Vital Information have suggested there is a secret Cuban restaurant hiding behind a beaded curtain screen. Unfortunately El Prado was closed so we pressed on.

One of these days, I'll do a fuller report, but yes dear LTH reader, there IS a Cuban restaurant in Maywood called El Prado. See, according to LTH resident Cuban expert, JeffB, Maywood was once the place for Cubans in the Chicago area. Roughly, as I understand, Maywood is to Cubans as Cicero-Berywn is to Bohemians. That would make El Prado Klas, no?

Prado used to have a menu. An interesting menu, where that days offerings had prices penciled in. Of late, the Dona has reduced the menu to oral communication. Yesterday's "menu" was not atypical:

- boliche (the pot roasted stuffed meat that JeffB does not like)
- ropa viejo
- carne asada (which is another pot roast dish, not grilled meat)
- bistec de's palomilla or pollo (covered with onions)
- arroz
- frijoles nego
- plantain maduras
- yuca

The other things that show up lately are frijoles corrado, bacala and seafood soup.

Eating at El Prado is very much like eating at your Cuban grandmother's house (right down to her inability to speak much English). The food is so damn homey, but in a great way.

The only thing that confuses me is the plating procedure. You are provided a blank plate on arrival. Then, your entree comes in a small platter, the rice in a small plate, and your beans in another small bowl. Do you transfer all to your blank plate, just the entree, just the rice, what?

I cannot find the exact address for the place, but its on Lake street a few blocks west of 1st Avenue, on the South side of the street. When you walk in there is counter where some drink cafe and eat sammy's, a small Versailes in Maywood. You have to continue past a black door, marked dining room, to get to the other food.

Vital Information wrote:The only thing that confuses me is the plating procedure. You are provided a blank plate on arrival. Then, your entree comes in a small platter, the rice in a small plate, and your beans in another small bowl. Do you transfer all to your blank plate, just the entree, just the rice, what?

Until JeffB chimes in, I'm going to take a stab at an answer and guess that the expectation is for diners to move contents of smaller plates to the larger plate as required, so that the larger plate would have smaller quantities of everything, and you add more as needed. If you finish one (like say the beans), you can ask for more and keep adding beans to the big plate.

Cuban food, for me and many Cubans, is very much associated with cafeterias. Like Manny's, Valois, or Priscilla's, you get a bunch of little plates to combine. I'd dump them all on one plate and then get rid of the little saucers. There's no correct way to eat the rice and beans. I'm strictly a beans on top of rice (like gravy atop potatoes) guy. I never mix the beans and rice to approximate congri/moros. But many Cubans do this. OK condiments for frijoles include oil, vinegar and chopped onions.

I'm not completely boliche-averse, though the dish is very much like braciole, for better and worse (mostly the latter) in execution.

Some slight corrections and commentary below re the menu:

-boliche (the pot roasted stuffed meat that JeffB does not [ususally] like [most often stuffed with Spanish style chorizo])
- ropa viej[a]
- carne asada (which is another pot roast dish, not grilled meat) [most likely carne con papas, which sounds similar when spoken in a Cuban accent that combines words and drops the "s"; carne asada is not common, though there is a Cuban dish by that name that is fried, not long-cooked]
- bistec de palomill[o] or pollo (covered with onions)
- arroz
- frijoles neg[ros]
- pla[tanos] madur[os]
- yuca

Hammond, how was the Teresita?

JeffB wrote:Hammond, how was the Teresita?

Thanks for the reminder...I really must post about that place before it is (further) obscured by the mists of memory.

OK, my Spanish sucks, especially the spelling , but carne asada is definately what it's called, and it's something akin to pot roast (yes, it does include potatoes); it's quite tasty by the way.

Part of my plate problems, to return to that issue, is that the dishes all have lotsa gravy/juice, even the bistecs have good grease that needs mopping, and I never have enough rice to do justice to all the excess liquids.

Vital Information wrote:OK, my Spanish sucks,
Part of my plate problems, to return to that issue, is that the dishes all have lotsa gravy/juice, even the bistecs have good grease that needs mopping, and I never have enough rice to do justice to all the excess liquids.

Okay, I can help here. When this happens, you look the server right in the eye, smile, and say "Mas arroz, por favor" (Mahs a-rosse pour fah-vor) When you get it, you say "Gracias" (Grassy ass) There you go; glad to be of service.

David "Marginally literate in several languages" Hammond

David Hammond wrote:"Gracias" (Grassy ass)
David "Marginally literate in several languages" Hammond

You have the most excellent pronunciation a la Peggy Hill.