Once more thanks to all of you grate LTH Folks. Yesterday we get a call from Check, Please! Producer and Xni-Pec show it’s scheduled to be on air on October 19th 2007. Every one is welcome to come and see the show whit us in our big screen.

Regards,

Antonio

MrsF and I took a day off for a jaunt into the city: A visit to the Oriental Institute Museum, which neither of us has ever had a chance to get to, and lupper (lunch+supper) at Xni-Pec.

At 3PM, there was just one other party finishing up, the staff was chowing down on pollo en mole as we were leaving, and we ate up a storm in between.

The chips and house salsa and habanero sauce are both outstanding, and just what we needed after several hours of walking and driving without a break.

The chiles en nogadas were a miracle of flavors: raisin studded meat in a flavorful chile covered with a creamy sauce that I'll have to try to duplicate, because I can't get down to Cicero often enough to satisfy that flavor crave.

Codzitos, which are rolled tortillas, fried and topped with a tomato sauce and cheese, were good, but not exciting, not something I'd order again, with so many other things on the menu I want to try.

A vaporcito, a banana-leaf tamal, was slightly sweet from the flavor of the leaf, and filled with a tasty meat/veggie mix that benefited from the brightness of the table salsa.

A gordita de villa is more standard mex fare, with lettuce and crema, but a star of the breed, with a crisp shell, and great shredded beef -- the only thing we ordered not on the Mayan Heritage page.

Lastly, we split a taco de cochinita, where the shredded pork is perfectly balanced by the pickled onions. We should have ordered a dozen of these, as it is we were getting pretty full.

The server talked us into the flan, which was starchier than some I've had, almost toward cheesecake in texture. Very good, different from the usual eggy custard.

By the way, they had what appeared to be brand-new business cards, with a web page that I'm not sure anyone else has posted:

http://www.xnipec.us

JoelF wrote:At 3PM, there was just one other party finishing up, the staff was chowing down on pollo en mole as we were leaving, and we ate up a storm in between.

I thought Xni-Pec no longer had lunch hours. Has this changed? That would surely be good news.

Well, they were open when I got there :D
I'd found the hours on Centerstage Chicago, which said 10A-11P, and their website says 2PM-10PM weekdays.

They do still have lunch hours (though if the previous night has been exceptionally busy, they will sometimes post messages on the door and voicemail and come in slightly later than 10). Service has been better lately and I know they're ramping up for the Check, Please! effect (starting tomorrow). The food remains celestial.

jacontrerasv wrote:Once more thanks to all of you grate LTH Folks. Yesterday we get a call from Check, Please! Producer and Xni-Pec show it’s scheduled to be on air on October 19th 2007. Every one is welcome to come and see the show whit us in our big screen.

Regards,

Antonio

Anyone going tonight? I'm debating....

I'm dropping by after the episode since I have a play rehearsal earlier in the evening; I'll likely be there at 9:40-ish for a michelada and flan.

Anyone going tonight? I'm debating....

Yep, so far we are planning to watch it there.

I'll be there around 6:30 - 7:00 p.m.

My bride and I are walking out the door now.

I'm so glad to see Xni-Pec getting a bit of the recognition that it deserves. Did I see Trixie Pea on the episode for a moment?

Jus' got back. Great turnout! All the tables were filled and Antonio had a few extra tables in the back he was able to pull out.

He also put on some additional staff which were very professional and kept the dinners and drinks moving.

The applause was strong and Antonio was very gracious and you could tell the staff was very proud.

I tried the Chicken with the Mole Rojo and it was very good. The mole was in good supply and by the end I was licking my plate. The chicken could of been cooked a touch more.

I was there last week on Friday and there was a comfortable crowd there with, perhaps, 6 tables filled with customers coming and going steadly. I am sure this will pick up over the next few weeks.

Both last week and tonight Antonio was the prefect host making us feel very welcome. We wish him all the best.

A fun evening!

I'd like to give a shout out to Binko for not only being a great spokesman for Xni-Pec, but for also being able to talk coherently about all three restaurants on last night's Check Please episodes. Check Please needs more guests like Binko!

I missed it last night, does anyone know if WTTW has a late night rerun scheduled for it?

Cogito wrote:I missed it last night, does anyone know if WTTW has a late night rerun scheduled for it?

From this cached google page

Friday, October 19 at 8:00 pm
Restaurants reviewed include Tanoshii, Xni-Pec, and Timo.

Encores:
Saturdays at 4:30 pm
Sundays at 11:30 pm
Thursdays at 10:00 pm

deesher wrote:I'm so glad to see Xni-Pec getting a bit of the recognition that it deserves. Did I see Trixie Pea on the episode for a moment?

I was sure I had a "you know you're an lth'er moment..."

I have never met Trixie-Pea in person, but I pointed at the screen and said, "Hey, isn't that Trixie-Pea?"

Binko - great job.

And yes, I saw both Trixie-Pea and Pigmon there. And was that Santander?

That was indeed me (thanks for the invite, Antonio and Binko!). The Figs were seated to my left (camera right) and I think I saw them for a sec. GreenFish, Hammond, Amata, and others were there as well but I didn't catch them in the episode.

I caught a glimpse of Jazzfood also.

Good job Binko. I thought the segment went very well. Plus, it was the only restaurant that the panelists all agreed on. It must be nerve-wracking not knowing what your fellow panelists might think about your choice ("I'm from Phoenix, so I know barbecue"). Sometime I would like to hear about the inner workings of the show from your viewpoint as a guest reviewer.

Nice job, Binko! You demonstrated a real depth of knowledge about Xni-pec and articulated its virtues very well. I am confused about one detail though. Is the namesake xni-pec salsa the pico de gallo-like stuff or the super-hot liberally habaneroed creamier one?

Unless Antonio has misled me this whole time, Xni-Pec is the pico de gallo-like table salsa. The hot habanero sauce that comes with the cochinita is called kub. I think I've asked him about this three times, because I always forget the name of the salsa habanera he serves. His kub is just made with two ingredients: roasted habaneros and lime. There's no onion or anything else in that sauce. Maybe salt. If you look up xni-pec recipes online, you'll see they're not blended and always contain onions, sometimes tomatoes.

Thanks for the kind words, everyone. That was my first time on TV, and I was nervous as all hell during the taping, but it came out okay. The magic of editing.

d4v3 wrote: It must be nerve-wracking not knowing what your fellow panelists might think about your choice ("I'm from Phoenix, so I know barbecue").

Funny you should mention that. When I was in the green room waiting for everybody to arrive, I chatted with David Mannilow (executive producer/creator of Check Please) and I brought up that exact quote as a WTF Check Please moment.

We were very proud of Antonio Friday night. The room was packed! We were glad to have arrived early, by 6:30, to grab a table.

The food was awesome, even with all the orders. I had the Pescado Caribeano, which was the white fish fillet in coconut sauce. The fish was very good, cooked to perfection. My wife had the Tikin Xic, which was a whole fish cooked in achiote, wrapped in a banana leaf. I'd like to see them change it to a fillet, as it took a lot to pick the meat off the bone.

Once again, congratulations Antonio....excellent job!

Xni-Pec segment on Check Please posted for posterity:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=OHYVkqJPubc

Ahh, just what I was looking for! I knew it wouldn't be long before it got posted, thanks! Great job on the show, by the way. Saw you with your party Friday night. Never saw Xni Pec so packed...way over due.

Just went to this place on Saturday, took one hour to get a table, took another hour to get the food. Was it worth it? Not really. The food is okay (my papadzules were way too salty, and husband's red snapper was all bones), not worth a two-hour wait, and the margaritas tasted like something college kids would mix up at a party, all mixer, nothing fresh. You can find other, overlooked Central American restaurants in town. I think people are just flipping over something "different" here. The best thing about Xni-Pec was the super-nice staff.

I don't think there have been any raves about the margaritas here - order the micheladas and you'll be much happier. The wait is to be expected on weekends with all of the press they've been getting, but I'm glad you were intrepid enough to try it. Come back with us on an early weeknight when Antonio really has time to explain what's fresh and wonderful that day, and then I think you might be wowed. Panuchos, cochinita pibil, and vaporcitos are consistently off the charts when laced with their homemade salsas, and if you're lucky enough to run into the relleno negro, that will be a good day. There is no other taste like it in Chicago.

Yes sir...the relleno negro. I was lucky to try it only once, and it was incredible. What flavor. I kept reordering more of these tacos...couldn't get enough. Couldn't get them on my last visit, which forced me to try other items, like the vaporcitos(tamales) and the pescado caribbeano, which was a white fish in coconut sauce, really excellent. We were lucky to go here many times on weekends before the"curse" of Check Please!
But we are really happy for Antonio. We just have to adjust our hours to come in at a less crowded hour. We always liked the margaritas here, personally. He explained what he uses, but it escapes me now. It was a good tequila, I remember. Also, it was because of Antonio that we like other Yucatecan liquors, like Rompope and Xtabentun! Always a learning experience here, no doubt. We felt "empowered" on our last trip to a small town in the Yucatan this past May because of Xni Pec.

astrid wrote:I think people are just flipping over something "different" here.

I think so, too. I don't think the restaurant has proven itself yet - not to the extent warranting many of the comments I'm reading.

astrid wrote: You can find other, overlooked Central American restaurants in town.

Please let us know which ones. I am always up for trying a new joint.