Gaudi Coffee and Grill (West Town)

We met some friends earlier this week for dinner at Gaudi Coffee and Grill, a Ukranian Village/West Town BYOB coffee shop/sandwich shop/tapas restaurant on a somewhat desolate stretch of Ashland between Chicago and Grand. I had not heard of the place prior to our friend suggesting it after it popped up in his search for West Town/West Loop BYOBs. And I was a bit suspect after reading a menu online that ranged from standard American breakfast fare (omelets, pancakes, various egg dishes), to Mexican-inspired breakfast fare, to burgers and salads, to Spanish (and some Mexican-inspired) tapas. My experience has been that places that try to do too much and from too many different traditions or styles tend to do none of it particularly well. After speaking with our very nice waitress/hostess about the restaurant, she informed us that her family (she is either an owner or related to one of the owners) is Mexican but has a love of Spain and its cooking, and wanted to open a tapas-style restaurant and coffee shop that was a place where people could get a quick bite or linger with friends in an area where the proprietors felt there was not much on offer along those lines. Apparently, they have been open about 2 months.

We stuck with the tapas menu as being conducive for conversation and sharing over a couple of bottles of wine and I was impressed with the quality and execution of the food. The tapas menu includes a lot of standard Spanish tapas items, together with some Mexican small plates (a chorizo and cheese queso fundido-type dish, flautas, etc.). There is nothing particularly inventive or unique here (at least that we tried), but everything was well prepared with what seemed to be very good ingredients and the plating and presentation was better than I expected to find in a place that has the feel of a coffee shop/sandwich shop. Standouts from my perspective were the ribeye en tostada (a beef, cheese and potato combo over toasted bread) and goat cheese croquettes. The desserts we had were also very good, including a very good homemade cheesecake and excellent flan. Prices were reasonable for the quality (although it should be noted that the tapas portions are not particularly large, as tapas portions go), with our total bill for four -- about a dozen tapas, a couple of coffees, and three desserts -- coming out around $90 pre-tip.

The space is very nice and colorful, and seems as if it would get good natural light during the day (it is on the corner of Ashland and Erie and I believe there are windows fronting both streets). According to our server, they will have a patio in the summer, and they have free wifi. She also informed us that during Sunday brunch/lunch (around noon), they will have a flamenco guitarist. On the BYOB front, they have decent glassware (stemless wine glasses), no corkage, and for a small fee will convert your table red into sangria.

We will be back with our children for breakfast or lunch sometime or perhaps for an early dinner (the place seems very kid-friendly) and look forward to trying the other menu offerings. This may be a good place for a hard-to-please group looking for a reasonable meal considering the breadth of the menu selections and the fact that you can order off of any portion of the menu at any time of the day (which for some means pancakes for dinner but for me would mean tapas for breakfast). This is a nice place run by exceptionally friendly people that I hope succeeds; check it out if you're in the neighborhood.

Gaudi Coffee and Grill
624 N. Ashland Ave. (at Erie)
Chicago, IL 60622
(312) 733-9528
http://www.gaudicoffeegrill.com

[Hours do not appear on the website; I believe our server said 7:00 or 8:00 a.m. until 10:00 p.m. , 7 days a week]

We met some friends earlier this week for dinner at Gaudi Coffee and Grill, a Ukranian Village/West Town BYOB coffee shop/sandwich shop/tapas restaurant on a somewhat desolate stretch of Ashland between Chicago and Grand. I had not heard of the place prior to our friend suggesting it

Previously the space held a short-lived attempt at a Mixteco type place called Gourmex Cafe. Glad to hear this is promising.

Thanks, Matt, for the report. I live nearby. It sounds like Gaudi could be a good place for me to try out the next time I'm working from home.

Grabbed lunch today at Gaudi, which is a mere two blocks from my house. I think they aim to be a modern luncheonette; a place with a flattop that serves warm, freshly made food. When I walked it, I was pleasantly surprised by the inviting, clean, but modest, decor. This is not a dive. I ordered takeout at the counter from the very friendly owner, who, after taking my order, went in back and made my lunch. While I waited, I can hear the sizzle of the frying oil, the sound of ingredients hitting the pan.

Here are some pics of the pesto chicken sandwich. The pesto was very vibrant and fresh-tasting, the chef's "twist" was to put chopped green peppers on the sandwich (surprise, surprise). It was advertised as being a "panini" but as it was neither pressed nor had the appriopriate bread, so don't expect authenticity there. Still, a very tasty, well-made sandwich:




Here is the buffalo chicken sandwich:




Fries were quite good. Fresh from the fryer and very crisp.


Front, Gaudi menu


Back, Gaudi menu

As Matt points out, the menu is broad. But I think this is meant to be an homage to a coffee shop by day, and the owner's twist on tapas by night. If their goal is to serve very good luncheonette-type fare, I think they achieve that. I'd like to go back and sample more of the menu. I have a hunch that they probably do a good breakfast.

aschie30 wrote: It was advertised as being a "panini" but as it was neither pressed nor had the appriopriate bread, so don't expect authenticity there. Still, a very tasty, well-made sandwich:

Hi Wendy,

Time for us to get into one of our classic nitpicking discussions where we go back and forth ad nauseum, unintentionally turning the rest of LTHForum completely off of an otherwise useful thread

The word "panini" just means sandwiches. Throughout Italy, Spain, Mexico and elsewhere, one will find the term used to describe just about any type of filling-stuffed bread, including something that looks like what's in your picture. There's nothing inauthentic about it. For whatever reason, in the states I've encountered numerous people who are disappointed when they order a panino and end up with a regular, non-pressed sandwich.

Kenny

Kennyz wrote:Time for us to get into one of our classic nitpicking discussions where we go back and forth ad nauseum, unintentionally turning the rest of LTHForum completely off of an otherwise useful thread

The word "panini" just means sandwiches. Throughout Italy, Spain, Mexico and elsewhere, one will find the term used to describe just about any type of filling-stuffed bread, including something that looks like what's in your picture. There's nothing inauthentic about it. For whatever reason, in the states I've encountered numerous people who are disappointed when they order a panino and end up with a regular, non-pressed sandwich.

Yes, I'm not sure that "panini" translates into "sandwich," meaning, the generic American term for anything between two slices of any bread. In my various trips to Italy, I see what I, as an American, would call a sandwich identified as "panini," but what I really see is something that is on a specific type of bread and which is generally, though not always, pressed. To me, that's what panini are, and in America, jack, that's what it's come to mean, anyway. Go to Italy, ask for an egg salad "panino," see what you get, but tell the nice Italian who tried to make your sandwich that "panino" is only the word for sandwich, so why can't you have an egg salad panino?

In any case, as I think you know, Kenny, I am trying to provide useful information and I would not describe what I received as "panino." I've never had a panino in Italy like the one described above (with lettuce, tomato and that type of bread) - that's a fact.

Anyway, I see now that the menu lists it as a sandwich served on panini bread, not as "a panini". Which opens up a whole new possibility for even further meaningless arguments about authenticity and word definitions.

Anyone tried the Montecristo? I've got a hankerin' for one of those.

Gaudi



I was out shopping for granite countertops and floor (for a updated kitchen at home) today at Belstone (on Hubbard, E. of Ashland) and as a friend and I left and headed N. on Ashland I noticed Gaudi on the corner of Ashland and Erie and not having had breakfast yet we stopped for something to eat. I thought I'd heard the restaurant name mentioned before, but didn't recall where.

The restaurant is owned/operated by a couple of young ladies, sisters, who are from Mexico City. An uncle of theirs has a restaurant near the Zona Rosa in Mexico City and they decided to open a restaurant here in Chicago - one of them explained to me. The women were very accommodating and friendly not only with the two of us but with the other 4 or 5 people eating in the restaurant, from what I witnessed.

The restaurant surprised me a bit because the menu is all over the place - seemingly uncertain of just what kind/type of restaurant it/they want to be. It's a pleasant enough room - with several pictures on the walls, big windows overlooking both Erie and Ashland, but chairs that'll probably make people uncomfortable if they sit for more than 30 minutes - hard wood seats. An "artistic" themed place which one would expect given the name.

Huevos a la Mexicana



I ordered Huevos a la Mexicana and my friend ordered eggs fried sunny side up, and some link sausage. The huevos arrived about as I find them served in Mexico City, but with more eggs here than there. A small side of refried beans was on the plate and there were several corn tortillas wrapped in a paper. I enjoyed my breakfast but my friend complained that his eggs were fried a bit too long and the sausage was hard. I ordered te de manzanilla and he had a coffee. The hot drinks are served in soup bowl sized cups, a bit too large for the beverages unless you're going to drink them in their entirety right away. Smaller cups would be better, IMO.

The restaurant has been open a couple of months and is obviously trying to find its legs. I liked the atmosphere and the owners/employees and though I wouldn't drive cross-town to eat there, if I'm in the neighborhood again I'd stop for something to eat.

Unepectedly, I found myself near Gaudi at lunchtime today (11:30 a.m.) and stopped for something to eat - accompanied a friend who was doing the driving. I opted for what turned-out to be an excellent sandwich consisting of chicken breast, goat cheese and a roasted red pepper sauce - served on a unexpectectedly sturdy yet soft (odd to imagine, I know) and tasteful bun. Serving as garnish on the sandwich were leaf lettuce and tomato, and a couple of rings of freshly-cut red onion. The sandwich fixings worked well together and the roasted red pepper sauce "made" the sandwich. The accompanying fries (I wasn't asked if I wanted fruit) were okay, but a bit stiff as if they'd been sitting for a while. My companion ordered a club sandwich which he and I thought was rather skimpy - maybe the club sandwich with the least fixings I've ever seen; he didn't enjoy it. His sandwich was accompanied by sliced fruit, which he did enjoy. Both of us had tea with the meal - and the restaurant nicely presents its collection of teas. It was a quick lunch but good/fresh one (for me) and if the restaurant was more convenient to my travel patterns I'd stop more often. Friendly service, comfortable and interesting decor.

Three of us ate at Gaudi several months back and enjoyed its simple, well-prepared fare. Sister and I split a giant wrap, a special for the day, with still-warm grilled chicken (love knowing it isn't sitting in a bin), crisp lettuce, corn, black beans, colby & chipotle sauce. Mom's salad was fresh and good, and apparently all the dressings are homemade too. I'm glad to live not 2 blocks from this nice little cafe, as they seem to care about the easy extra touches - like homemade dressings and splitting our wrap onto two plates - that make all the difference.

Went for the first time and tried what had been previously recommended: the Dante sandwich. Wow! all of us had one and loved it. Service was friendly and loved raspberry ice tea. Definitely going back....

A friend and I had a good dinner here last night. The tinga was pretty straightforward. The shredded chicken was very moist and redolent of tomatoes and onion, served with chips greasy but hot and pleasantly puffy from the fryer. I liked the tinga primarily because it brought me back to my childhood. The only tacos Mama happy_stomach ever made for us growing up were tinga. Gaudi's was just like hers.



The spicy grilled calamari were also enjoyable. The squid itself wasn't anything special, but the sauce was on the thicker side and had quite a bite, full of smoky red pepper.



The artichokes with cilantro were just standard marinated artichokes served warm.



One aspect of Gaudi I do not like is the bed pan-shaped dishes on which our tapas were served, but that was really my only objection of the evening.

Finally, friend and I split one of their newer burgers (not listed on the menu scanned above or the menu currently online). It's either called the Dali or the Alexander Calder. The beef patty was OK as far as school cafeteria-type burgers go, but the warm goat cheese croquettes, piquillo and balsamic with which it was topped were excellent. With the generic but very crispy fries, I would definitely eat this burger again.



Gaudi is a more than respectable option for a relaxed weeknight dinner in West Town.

Fortunately remembered this place this morning during a stuck-in-a-rut debate about where to have brunch in the 'hood. I was quite impressed with this little spot, particularly the food. Its a warm and charming cafe complete with requisite, endearingly bad art on the walls. Good vibe. Service was patchy, particularly as the place filled up, but it may have been our particular tight schedule that kept us on edge whilst waiting for the bill. Regardless, we thoroughly enjoyed our plates of huevos. Desayuno in the Chi can get pretty tedious- the standard al la mexicana and ranchero fare. In Mexico you can find new egg, bean, tortilla, salsa combinations for every day of the week. Gaudi has a nice range of Mexican breakfast dishes that break the typical, uninspired monotony found at corner taquerias. They definitely put their own spin on the originals. My girlfriend's enfrijoladas, for example, were way embellished with the tortillas concealing scrambled egg, and topped with a mound of chorizo and a drizzle of crema. This dish would more traditionally be a pretty modest affair of tortillas dredged through runny beans with maybe some meat and a garnish of onions and perhaps a little crumbled cheese. My "divorce" eggs were stellar, a fairly faithful rendition of huevos divorciadas with two fried eggs on opposite sides of the plate, one topped with a smoky chipotle and tomato salsa and the other a bright and spicy, slightly chunky salsa verde. Really nice salsas. Their unique spin on the dish was to separate the eggs with molletes, soft grilled rolls topped with a smear of frijoles and topped with melted chihuahua. They provided the perfect foil to the saucy eggs, great for mopping. Very nice.
Its great to have a new weekend breakfast joint in the rotation. Real deal Mexican flavors with just enough flair in a cozy room.