Gorditas de Don Angel

I've lunched at this gordita place in Cicero a couple of times now and wanted to flag this out because they have outstanding gorditas. As implied by the name, they serve little else other than gorditas, but these are some of the best ones I have found in the city. What I really like is the tortilla - most places, even the great Aguascaliente, typically have pretty thick tortillas with which they make the gorditas. This is fine, but I've always felt that it was too much "filler" for what gorditas are supposed to be. They get big thumbs up from my Mexican friends.

At Gorditas de Don Angel, the tortillas is much thinner and crispier, which makes it quite easy to eat several gorditas without getting too full.

Here is what I had today:
Gordita de Chorizo y Papas (Chorizo and potatoes) - very good
Gordita de Rajas y queso (peppers and cheese) - also very good
Gordita de Picadilla - Probably my favorite of the day. Nice and spicy with green chiles mixed in with fine ground beef. Excellent!
Burrito de Desh..(sp?) - I forget the exact name but there is only one "burrito" on the menu. This is not your typical burrito...it is quite thin and looks more like a taquito with a soft shell. It is absolutely outstanding, though, stuffed with shredded steak and filled with cheese and red chile sauce.
Taco Bandito - small open-faced taco with shredded steak and onions...it was okay but I'd probably skip next time.

They have several more types of gorditas, a few of which I have tried but can't remember their names. Either way, this place has some fantastic gorditas so if that's your thing I'd check it out. It is a very small place with only six tables and gets quite busy on the weekends so would recommend going there during the week if you can. Seems like the do a brisk take-out business as well.

Gorditas de Don Angel
Southwest corner of Laramie and W. 30th St.

rdstoll wrote:I've lunched at this gordita place in Cicero a couple of times now and wanted to flag this out because they have outstanding gorditas.

Gorditas by way of Santiago Papasquiaro, Durango

Stopped in this afternoon and 2,684 days later this remains a great recommendation. I hope someone just forgot to post about this place which I admit is what happened with me however I only tried it for the first time this past Summer. I missed this original post but found it searching the forum for 'gorditas' looking for a thread to post this in. I'm somewhat surprised to see they've been around this long though I should of known as it's been very busy on my visits. The front space is small but there's additional seating in the back and lots of families were in there. The menu is simple with the gorditas taking the lead role.


The Menu

I'm not extremely well versed in gorditas but as the OP notes the ones I've tried have all had a thicker skin than these and in some cases used a different technique when stuffing them. Online notes say gorditas from the Northern States of Mexico tend to be smaller and are made with wheat flour resulting in a product that looks like pita bread and tastes like a flour tortilla. Compared to La Placita de Durango these are a bit smaller, thinner and boast more of a golden hue and thus equally as delicious. They're slit on one side then filled with various ingredients and Gorditas de Don Angel offers 19 options on their menu. Thus far the picadillo and chile posado have been real treats that I went back to the second time. Also of note are the Tacos Piratas which are another regional specialty of Northern Mexico. Made with steak, grilled onion and melted cheese as you can see they're not much different than a steak quesadilla (less cheese). Some places do make them using mozzarella but this isn't one of them. Still a pleasant product further enhanced with the spicy tableside salsas added on. You cant spell 'Las Gorditas De Don Angel' without a G an N and a R.


Gordita + Taco Pirata

Las Gorditas De Don Angel
3000 S Laramie Ave
Cicero, IL 60804
(708) 780-7433

Excellent re-con. I've been hitting that ice rink right down the street a few days a week, and I've driven by this place several times thinking about popping in. Now I've got extra incentive to plan a meal there.

I did pop in here last night, and this place is decent for what it is. Nothing mind blowing, but good, honest, well priced, food, and it's not trying to be what it ain't. I'd really like to try the barbacoa (weekends only.) We tried 5 or 6 different gorditas, and the taco pirata - not a bad one in the bunch. The red table salsa was a clear standout. Could have come right from Chaparrita. Nice find. God eats.