Salpicon (was: Fine-Dine Mexican other than Bayless?)

MrsF's birthday is coming up, and she suggested going for 'nice' Mexican. We've done Topo and Frontera a few times over the years, so we'd like to try something different.

I was searching here and was saddened to find Bahena has bugged out of Chicago, with Ix-whatever long gone, and Chilpancingo just in the last couple weeks.

We've also done Don Juan's in Edison Park, and San Gabriel in Bannockburn.

It doesn't have to be a $$$-labeled meal, but definitely not counter service. A little fine-dining atmosphere would be nice, tablecloths, wine...

Any suggestions?

Real de Catorce in Pilsen.

Picante Grill, what do you know? also in Pilsen

recently reopened:
May Street Cafe
(edit) what do you know, someone just had dinner there last nite
alas, STILL in Pilsen!


gee, looks like Joel's coming to my neighborhood soon

Ixcapuzalco does still exist; my experience there was a bit ennh, but you might have a better one. Here's where the thread starts talking about it reopening:

http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?p=40077#40077

You could also try Dorado:

http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=2831

or Fonda del Mar:

http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=6603

(Has anyone been back since that initial flurry?)

Salpicon on Wells?

I second Salpicon as well. They do have quite a nice wine list to accompany their food, which is a welcome departure, in my opinion, from the standard margarita.

aschie30 wrote:I second Salpicon as well. They do have quite a nice wine list to accompany their food, which is a welcome departure, in my opinion, from the standard margarita.

nice tequila list there, too.

I have to say, my husband and I went to Salpicon for New Year's Eve 2004, and we were really unimpressed, given its great reputation. Most of our food was lacking in flavor, which was really surprising. It was a prix fixe menu, and since it was a while ago I've forgotten most of what I ate (which is a bad sign). I do remember a particularly bland soup and unremarkable huitlacoche enchiladas, if I'm not mistaken. The best thing of the night was the tres leches cake. For the money ($75/person), I would much rather go somewhere else.

NYE isn't always the best representation of what a restaurant is capable of (kind of like Valentine's Day).

I've been to Salpicon a few times and have had great dinners each time.

Just my 2 cents.

Sounds like I may try Salpicon (our shopping trip for the day is mostly north side, sorry Tony, I don't think I'll get to Pilsen).

I'm a little concerned, as there really aren't a lot of reviews of Salpicon here, and the ones on Metromix are decidedly negative. Personally, I'm dying to go to Taqueria La Oaxaquena, but that's for a non-birthday.

Let me throw my vote in for Salpicon. I typically ignore what I read on Metromix since the reviews provide little depth and one person (if upset enough) can post several times using different names.

Back to Salpicon, I think the food is every bit as good as the food at Topo/Frontera and the service is always excellent and very friendly. It's not a large restaurant where you get lost in the crowd. They have an amazing tequila list, and they also offer a chef's tasting menu with matched wine pairings. I enjoyed the tasting menu once with a large group and it was fantastic. I've been to Salpicon about 10 times and I continue to believe it's one of the most underrated restaurants in Chicago.

I am not sure of the name of it, but it is in downtown Arlington Heights not far from Alt Thai. My hubby just went there for lunch and said the food and ambiance were really good. It is right by the building he is working in (has a Starbucks in it) Anyone know what I'm talking about?

Having left Chicago over a year ago, it's been awhile since I've dined at Adobo Grill on Halsted. More upscale Mexican and I'd always enjoyed their food. Excellent margaritas. They were the first restaurant to my knowledge to do tableside guacamole preparation, which by the way was very good. I remember a killer snapper veracruzano. Don't know if it's still open or is still good. I'm sure other LTH'ers can answer that question.

LA CASA DE SAMUEL on cermak rd east of Marshall blvd north side of the street (sorry I can't give an exact address I just know how to get there)has what I would call very good food and Ok feeling to it,if you go there on the weekend you are assured to catch some live TRIO music.
You can expect to spend somewhere around $30-35 per,depending on how many shots of DON JULIO you have.

Casa de Samuel is wonderful but not quite in the same fine-dining category as Frontera/Salpicon/etc.

Antonius has posted extensively on it, as have others. It's a great place. They've got other locations throughout the Chicago area, but I've only been to the flagship on Cermak.

La Casa De Samuel
(773) 376-7474
2834 W Cermak Rd
Chicago, IL 60623

I do need to point out here that Amanacer Tapatio compares favorably with any place I have been to, including Chilpancingo and Topolobampo. Now, it is not fancy other than the quality and variety of the food, and it is in Joliet, but it is great.

Probably not what you are looking for Joel, but as good as anywhere, and I hear Monica and her family has been expanding and upgrading the place a bit, tho it has been too long since I have been there.

Check it out thru the GNR thread if you wish.

RevrendAndy wrote:It's been awhile since I've dined at Adobo Grill on Halsted.

Adobo Grill (which btw, per foodie1 last nite, was the restaurant/google search that brought her to LTH) is the Filipino diner next to Garden Buffet (where we had LTH anniv dinner). You're thinking of Picante Grill which I posted above and yes, they're still open.

so +1 for Picante Grill?

and Lake Tahoe, eh?

TonyC wrote:

RevrendAndy wrote:It's been awhile since I've dined at Adobo Grill on Halsted.

Adobo Grill (which btw, per foodie1 last nite, was the restaurant/google search that brought her to LTH) is the Filipino diner next to Garden Buffet (where we had LTH anniv dinner). You're thinking of Picante Grill which I posted above and yes, they're still open.

so +1 for Picante Grill?

and Lake Tahoe, eh?

I think Revrend Andy probably meant this Adobo Grill, no? I think you might mean Adobo Express, Tony.

I've eaten at neither (although I have been meaning to check out Adobo Express for a while now), just being pedantic.

Oops, double post

LionRock wrote:I think Revrend Andy probably meant this Adobo Grill, no? I think you might mean Adobo Express, Tony.

yes, that's the Adobo Grill. Didn't know they opened a 2nd location. Good link to be able to check the menu.

Adobo Express

Adobo Grill

We dined at Salpicon last night, and it was wonderful, and at least as good if not better than our last trip to Topolobompo.

Unfortunately, the tasting menu wasn't available (it sounds like they don't do it when the house is full, probably to keep the turns up), but we chose several items from the specials (click today, because they change weekly), which the server said would have been on the tasting menu.

Starters:

Trio of tamalitos: a nice way to taste the variety of sauces, but not big enough to really appreciate either the fillings (MrsF even ate the zucchini-filed one) or the masa. Delicious.

Gorditas Divorciadas: sort of a ropa-vieja filling, nice slow-cooked flavor and great sauces with chewy masa discs.

Entrees:
The entrees were served with wonderful chewy corn tortillas.
Costillitas de borrego con salsa de chile pasilla y tomatillos: MrsF is a big lamb fan. This was delicious, but may have not been the best sauce for the very mild lamb. A pasilla-tomatillo salsa was tart, which didn't fit so well with lamb - the sauce I had (see below) might have worked better. The papas con chorizo were also a little strong-flavored matched with the lamb, so she ate them after the chops.

Codornices en salsa de chile con miel: The three quail were demi-deboned (just wings and legs left), making a very generous serving. Sweet, smoky ancho chile sauce was terrific, and paired with a sort of pommes annette with cilantro and queso añejo , creamy and nice.

We accompanied this with a relatively inexpensive Zinfandel (St. Somebody's Old Vines), which I thought terrific, but I can generally find no wrong in a Zin.

Desserts:
flan: Lightly orange flavored, and under a spun-sugar dome that in my wine-amused state I dubbed a tholian web. Nice and not too heavy.

crepas con cajeta: Fantastic cajeta sauce, nice tender crepe, I just didn't see the need for raspberries and mango. I'd have rather had another crepe in there instead. It's more traditional without fruit, and a place as far up the ladder as Salpicon probably needs to kick these things up a notch to get people to order them. Actually I liked the razzes, but the mango added nothing.

Overall, a fantastic meal. Service was prompt and unobtrusive. The restaurant was a little noisy and crowded for my tastes, but hey, Oldtown on a Saturday evening, that's pretty much what I expect.

A couple other foodie items the same day:
The Cheese Stands Alone is fantastic. We walked out with some 4-yr gouda, 4-yr cheddar, a small disc of goat and a slice of a wheel of a french blue. Our car was then suffused with cheese farts the rest of the evening, probably from the blue.
We also stopped in the Music Box neighborhood to check a couple of shops out, including a resale shop, a pearl specialist and a home restoration warehouse, and stopped in a sweet shop with some very pretty cupcakes and rum balls. We snacked on a mini brownie cupcake with a peanut butter cup in the center, and a white chocolate/dried cherry crusted rum ball. Mmmm. Wish I could remember the name.

JoelF wrote:We dined at Salpicon last night, and it was wonderful, and at least as good if not better than our last trip to Topolobompo.

So glad to hear you enjoyed it -- and my sentiments exactly: I think the dining experience at Salpicon matches if not exceeds the one at Topo. I have never had less than a very good meal at Salpicon but it just never seems to get the praise I think it deserves.

JoelF wrote:We also stopped in the Music Box neighborhood to check a couple of shops out, including a resale shop, a pearl specialist and a home restoration warehouse, and stopped in a sweet shop with some very pretty cupcakes and rum balls. We snacked on a mini brownie cupcake with a peanut butter cup in the center, and a white chocolate/dried cherry crusted rum ball. Mmmm. Wish I could remember the name.

I believe you are speaking of Sensational Bites on Southport. It's a new little bakeshop that I agree serves up some pretty tasty treats. I believe the owner used to be at both Tru and Sweet Mandy B's.

I was extremely impressed with a recent visit to Salpicón.

I am not normally someone who makes a big deal about great service (the best service to me is the service that I barely notice), but I found myself in awe of the staff there. Not only was our waiter knowlegeable and genuinely enthusiastic about the food, but the kitchen and support staff anticipated needs, moved quickly, and paced things perfectly. And they made it look really easy.

Now onto the more important topic, the food.

Both petit pois and I ordered appetizers from the weekly specials menu and entrees from the standard menu. I found the two menus quite interesting and complementary. The standard menu is full of familiar items while the specials are more creative and contemporary. A nice mix of items that really piqued my interest in return visits.

From the weekly specials, I tried:

--Langostino con salsa cruda is a refreshing dish with a variety of textures, flavors, and temperatures. Plump and tender prawns wrapped in crispy sweet potato strands, served over a bed of cool corn and chile salsa. This is exactly the kind of dish that puts the "appetize" in "appetizer". It woke me up just enough to make me want more.

--Hongos para taquear is a very simple dish of mushrooms in a mild chile sauce served with tortillas. It approximates a carne en chile colorado in a vegetarian style and tasted great wrapped in a warm tortilla.

From the standard menu, I tried:

--A darn good pair of chiles rellenos (one Chihuahua cheese, one pork picadillo). Fresh poblanos, stuffed, breaded, and fried are served in a shallow pool of tomato broth. A lot of different flavors and textures, and it didn't miss a beat. I devoured this dish.

--Chuletas de Borrego con Salsa de Chile Pasilla (lamb chops) I think this is another example of a use of a very mild lamb. These chops tasted more like a NY strip than a lamb chop. Not exactly what my wife was looking for. Still, a quality dish with a very good salsa.

And I'll echo JoelF: Fantastic crepa con cajeta. Mine had strawberries, which I didn't need either. Still, the cajeta had a terrific flavor.

I also really enjoyed their wine and tequila list, specifically the wines by the glass which included a few varietals that you don't normally see on a restaurant's "by the glass" list. I was a bit intrigued by their lime juice dispenser for margaritas. It was essentially the same type of dispenser that a hot dog stand would use to dispense lemonade. I assume this is done for convenience, but it struck us as rather odd.

I left Salpicón in a very good mood, eager to return and check out more of the menu.

Best,
Michael

Went to Salpicon for the first time last night and while I loved the food, the service left a bad taste... I went there with a group of 6 with reservations for 6:30. From the moment that the hostess called to confirm the reservation, they made it abundantly clear that we had only "reserved" the table until 8:30 and that we were expected to be out of there before that time. When I arrived, I was told again that we had to leave within 2 hours. When one of my friends was 15 minutes late, we were warned again that we had to leave by 8:30... When we took more than 2 minutes to look at the dessert menu, they told us we only had 20 minutes left. It really made the whole evening feel rushed


While I understand the need to turn tables, larger parties by their nature tend to take longer. And that's a good thing for the restaurant - more drinks, more food, more coffee, etc. Reminding us throughout the night that our "lease" on the table was almost up made me very uncomfortable - especially since it was me who had organized the outing & suggested the venue. It was like telling your guests at a dinner party that you've got other friends coming over so they have to leave.

Anyway, it was very unfortunate that this issue came up (& continued to come up), because the food and margaritas were fantastic. I'm not sure what they did to their guacamole, but it was creamier and fresher than I've ever tasted. Fried squash blossoms filled with goat cheese were fantastic, as was the pork tenderloin, perfectly cooked, in an avocado-based sauce (sorry, I forget all of the components, but it was truly excellent).

I'd return in a heartbeat for the food... once I stop steaming over being so rushed.

Ms.Paris wrote:Went to Salpicon for the first time last night and while I loved the food, the service left a bad taste... ....

I'd return in a heartbeat for the food... once I stop steaming over being so rushed.

Ms. Paris,

I guess this general sort of behaviour on the part of the management of a restaurant is hardly unheard of, but it is nonetheless completely despicable. And that it happened at a Mexican restaurant (I would say the same for restaruants serving the food from several other cultures where relaxed dining is a real part of the culture) is even a little extra galling.

Thank you for posting about this -- as far as I'm concerned, this issue is an important one and I have no desire whatsoever to eat in a restaurant that is so money-grubbing as to have it's staff in effect stand beside patrons with a stop-watch, no matter what the quality of the food is. The fact is, dining in a restaurant is -- as others have recently said on this board -- about an overall dining experience, not just about the quality of the food, and feeling pressured to mind the clock would ruin the overall dining experience for me.

Antonius

A conference downtown and a couple of visiting friends who are long-time Bayless affecionados gave us the excuse to finally try Salpicon.

After our experiences at Fronterobompo became somewhat inconsistent in value/quality and because of the no-reservation policy, Chilpancingo became our go-to place for visitors who weren't up for too far of a trip away from the hotels. We've really enjoyed the discoveries of both Dorado, Fonda del Mar and Sol de Mexico in the mean time, but now we're also glad to have another downtown option.

We can enthuisiastically recommend Salpicon.

The setting is bright and upbeat. The restaurant is a bit on the loud side, but its festive. Our server was almost a bit too festive/
enthusiastic, in a TGIF, pieces of flair, kind of way, but after my first margarita I mellowed a bit. We visited on a Thursday night. We did have reservations and that was wise because the place was nearly full if not full.

For appetizers, we got:

flores de calabaza
squash blossoms stuffed with goat cheese and epazote in a roasted poblano cream sauce

enchiladitas oaxaqueñas
shredded chicken breast enchiladas with Oaxacan black mole

These were both off the seasonal menu and were both excellent, especially the sauces. The waiter described epazote as "Mexican Basil" which was a new one on me. Again, this was before my first margarita, so I was still in critical mode. But, he got points back for recommending the enchiladitas in black mole over the trio de tamales from the regular menu. The black mole was simply spectacular.

We also got the
ensalada de pulpo

grilled baby octopus marinated in orange and lime juice with fava beans, roasted corn, poblano strips and grape tomatoes

This was also a seasonal appetizer, but it didn't hit the heights of the others. The octopus was chewy.

For meals we had 3 specials and a regular dish. The three specials were: Garlic ancho roasted quail, pumpkin seed crusted rack of lamb and cornmeal crusted halibut. Also griffin got the lamb chops from the regular menu. All three specials were stellar, and the lamb chops only a bit less so. My lamb (the rack) was a wigwam of 8 ribs, perfectly cooked to medium rare. The mole was rich and dark, and the sides were brussels sprouts and papas con chorizo. The lamb at Salpicon as noted by others is not gamey, so the strong flavors of brussels sprouts and chorizo were welcome complements. The quails were crunchy and tasty from the garlic chile glaze (I think there were a couple of birds in the serving). The halibut was atleast a fist size filet, served atop fried leeks or potatoes and with a bright spicy tomatoey sauce. The lamb chops were served as three small tbones. They had a slightly different dark mole than the rack. The lamb tbones were a bit fattier, and less tender, but not any more gamey than the rack. The moles were similar but we had a hard time coming up with any defining features. The side for the lamb chops was a poblano stuffed tamale which was very good. I am not one to wax poetic about fish, but everyone else was raving about it. It was a very nice, not fishy, white fleshy filet, and it was nicely complemented by a strong spicy tomato-based sauce.

Aside from the superlative sauces and moles, the other striking impression was that the servings were quite a respectable size and a good value. I think our orders came out very quickly after we ordered (but also after the second round of margaritas, so perhaps my impression of time was distorted).

The tequila selection was quite good and they do offer a taster of the Del Maquey mezcal series. We had a couple rounds of margaritas, with various tequilas ranging from the house Herradura silver, to a couple anejos and reposados. I found I liked reposado the best (I am a fan of mezcal margaritas, so I enjoyed some slight smoky/woodiness).

Alas, after all this there was no room for dessert!

The margaritas at $8-10 each do add up. The dinner ended up at 130 for 4 for food, and another hefty amount in alcohol. But a good time was had by all. Thanks for the recommendation. This is definitely a keeper!

After my recent trash of La Cantina Grill I thought I owed a more complimentary review to balance things out. Salpicon is the chosen one.

I have been to Salpicon maybe a dozen times over the years and had not been for a while due to some mixed experiences. Not that the food is ever bad, but I expect more than just a solid meal when I go there. On a few occasions the meals were a little too precious - tiny pyramid of rice, a few delicately arranged pieces of pork or beef, a little bowl of guacamole surrounded by 15 tortilla chips. The food also seemed to have lost some of its originality and flavor.

On my last two trips, I was much more impressed. Its hard to put my finger on what has changed - the menu continues to evlolve but is not drastically different from what we have seen in the past - but the last few meals have been much more satisfying.

Most recently I ordered the Queso Empanizado appetizer - lightly breaded and fried cheese topped with red and green chile sauces. For an Entree the Pato en Mole Verde - Duck breast in a green mole along with duck leg confit which was perhaps the best duck confit I have ever had - perfectly tender and succulent inside with a nicely crisped skin. The food is a little on the mild side, but there is a wonderful habenero sauce that they will bring to the table when asked that spices things up for me while imparting a nice fresh chile taste. For dessert I had the Tres Leches which was only disappointing in that I could have eaten twice as much. The only thing that did not appeal to me was a house Margarita to start things off which I found overly sweet. Next time I would have them make one by hand, or order one of their tequila flights which I have enjoyed in the past. All told it was one of the better meals I have had in some time and I look forward to coming back soon.

This Wednesday FIGMolly and I went to Salpicon for my birthday. We've had a gift certificate sitting around for around a year and finaly decided to cash it in. I have never been before, but Molly has. There was a tasting menu avalible, so we decided to go for it. The waiter had to check with the kitchen to make sure it was avalible. This did not seem weird to me until we were finished with the meal and relized that all of the courses were avalible on the menu. The margaritas were great and our server was on top of things.
We started off with a bacon wrapped scallop served with a white bean puree and cilanto & chile oils. Scallop was cooked perfect, the bacon was crispy and puree was tasty. The chile oil could have used a bit more of a kick.
Second we had a spinach salad with sesame seeds, goat cheese and a honey-chipotle dressing. It was good, but a little over dressed.
Then we had the empinadas picadillos with a spicy chimichurri. The pastry was great and the filling good as well.
Next was the best dish, the seared halibut with a potato cake, shitake & crimini mushrooms and great mango and chile sauces. I would say a must if avalible on the menu and cooked perfectly.
Then we had the Roasted Quail with another type of potato cake(not as good), ancho chile sauce and queso anejo. The bird was great but the sides were blah.
Next we had the rack of lamb with Mole more potatoes and 3 cold tiny beans. The lamb was cooked perfectly but again the sides not worth while.
For dessert we had a awsome lime-serano-tequila sorbet palate cleanser and a pear mango cobbler wich was actualy a tart and a cajeta ice cream. Both yummy but only the sorbet was memrable.
If you go to salpicon do not order the tasting menu. The reason is simple, all of the menu options are avalible and they split plates in the kitchen anyway. Our portions were excat half portions of the regular menu items we saw in the resturantt and there was no creativity in how they were presented. Four corses in a row had potato and if we had ordered ala carte and had the kitchen split everything we would have saved $8. Thats one more drink.
In closing good food high prices with good service. Avoid the tasting menu and try the halibut.

Cheers!!

Just wanted to post about another wonderful meal I enjoyed at Salpicon. I enjoyed the blue marlin ceviche and guacamole appetizers, but the special of sauteed halibut with a spicy caper sauce and raisins was outstanding -- the fish perfectly cooked, and the combination of the spicy/tart caper sauce with the sweetness of the onions could not have been better. The halibut was served with a somewhat spicy roasted banana pepper filled with goat cheese and pine nuts. This was one of the best seafood dishes I have ever had.

Also very good were the perfectly cooked (med. rare that is) lamb chops in a garlic-pasilla sauce and the pork tenderloin served with both a spicy tomato-chipotle sauce and a cooling avocado tomatillo sauce.

The tequila-serrano sorbet for dessert was also excellent and offered a very nice spice kick. Service was excellent and I always love the bright colors of the restaurant.

Here are my five cents from last Saturday's trip to Salpicón.

The night started off well, with the restaurant being very gracious and accepting a fifth with the original reservation for four as well as not giving us any trouble for being 15 or 20 minutes late. When I walked in, however, I was immediately struck by how the inside decor, inviting as it seemed from the outside, was not really quite up to par. In fact, it was quite a bit of a Monet - looked great from afar, but was a mess up close. The tables were set very close together and were not of the best quality. Nor were the plate settings, the silverware or the floor (all of which looked like they needed to be scrubbed). The paintings looked garish and grotesque. It was certainly not a fun-chic-summer-sparkly-tequila atmosphere I expected. I did not despair, however, as I've come to realize that in Chicago, the restaurants that look good serve worse food than restaurants that look crappy.

We got a round of The ¡Salpicón! Margarita (made with Herradura Silver, Gran Torres liqueur and fresh lime juice), which my friends thought was pretty good. We then ordered appetizers to share. The first was the Camarones al Carbón (grilled tiger shrimp served with an avocado-tomatillo sauce and a spicy roasted tomato and chipotle sauce, and garnished with fresh mango slices), which while good, was not awe inspiring. The sauces were too spicy for my taste and the shrimp were forgettable. The Guacamole Picado was very good, but would have been even better if there was a bit more of it. The Ceviche (which the restaurant for some reason spells "seviche" on both its website and the menu) was of fresh blue marlin marinated in lime juice with onions, tomatoes, fresh chiles and herbs. I thought it good, but not great.

The best appetizer and the best dish of the evening came in the form of squash blossoms stuffed with goat cheese and epazote (dipped in a light batter, sautéed and served with a roasted poblano cream sauce). The fragile blossoms were most delectably complemented by the delicate poblano cream sauce and the goat cheese was not at all over-powering but played well with the rest of the ingredients and provided great texture to the dish. This dish had an almost surreal quality to it and seemed like it just floated out of nowhere and landed on our table (no thanks to the harried waiter). It was marvelously elegant and I almost felt embarrassed for it having to make its appearance in that garish, loud, clumsy dining room, but I did not let it suffer for long.

The main course I almost feel like skipping as I have nothing good to say about it. I'll just briefly mention that my friend who ordered a Mahi Mahi (charcoal-grilled and served with salsa fresca and white rice) said the fish was a complete blah and the rice was absolutely unseasoned. I tried a steak, which while well cooked to specifications, was completely overwhelmed (as in the taste of the steak was entirely and sadly killed) by a very spicy chili sauce which I ended up scraping off the meat.

If I ever go back to Salpicón, and that's a big "if" because the prices were overly extravagant for the level of food and the atmosphere, I'll skip the appetizers (the squash blossoms with goat cheese are seasonal, so there's little chance I'll encounter them in the future) and the main course and go straight for the dessert. All at the table were satisfied with the dessert. Mine was Crepas Con Cajeta: a delicious crepe with a great sauce. It was for some reason stuffed with strawberries and raspberries, which were very much out of place, but the crepe and the sauce themselves were simply excellent.

To bring this review to its dutiful end, I would say find other places in Chicago for Mexican food, but if you are in Old Town and feel like a tequila and a dessert, Salpicón is as good a place as any.