May Street Cafe [Latino Eclectic?]

For the fish tacos and zesty-spicy tortilla soup, for the garlicky, porky jibarito, for the chipotle-guac-sour cream-pepper jack cheese-piled burger that's a wet wipe's dream come true, for Chef Mario--a great neighborhood chef who always has time to make the rounds and chat up diner, for being upscale (by Pilsen standards) without being uppity, and most of all for the heroic renovation/rehab/makeover, May Street Cafe gets my vote.


May St. Cafe
1146 W Cermak
Chicago
312-421-4442

Could you link to some past posts? Thanks.

The reason for linking to past posts, of course, is that one person's memory of a place's reputation may not be the same as the next. My memory of May Street Cafe, the one on Cermak as opposed to the unrelated May Street Market on Grand, is that there was a small LTH dinner there long ago which under-wowed everyone, and some more recent reviews that were somewhat mixed. This thread finds both pretty positive and pretty seriously negative:

http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=7287

Here's another older one:

http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=1792

If there's a better case to be made for them, someone should link to it.

In the meantime, I decided to try it for myself.

Post some renovation, May St. Cafe is an attractive little place with the customary techno beat and Latino-funky art on the walls.



For instance, check out this artful display:



To be fair, the pictures of schmoozing are tucked discreetly by the restroom (and, tonight, by the table of six schmoozers talking loudly about personal injury lawsuits they were trying). Perhaps because it's a bit of a getaway for downtown types who expect that level of Morton's*-like gladhanding, chef Mario Santiago came out and checked on us personally more than any chef I can remember. The kids played up to him (Myles was very proud of ordering dessert in Spanish) and it paid off in the end, as you'll see.

The menu is part Mexican, part Puerto Rican, and part semi-generic bistro with a Latin tinge. King's Thursday had a scallops dish with a buttery lemon pepper sauce; nothing especially Latino about it I could see (other than the presentation with black beans, coconut-scented rice and plantain spear which, by the time I took this picture, needed some support) but she liked the sauce enough to dip the last tostone or two in it, and I will say this, it was a better prepared scallop dish than I'd just had at the benighted Devon Seafood Grill.



I had, on the advice of our waitress whom I asked, "I like everything, tell me what people love," the lechon asado, roasted pork. This was terrific, salty and citrus-briny (yet not oversalty), tender and tasty. I liked the coconut-scented rice, too, a nice improvement on the usual mass o' starch.



One son had chicken mole, but as the thread linked above suggested, despite trying to dress mole up a bit (it claimed flavors of chocolate-- no really?-- and apricot) I found it thin and lacking the depth of flavor you expect, or ought to. Myles was fine spreading it on tortillas and eating it that way, but I considered it a fairly major miss. The other son had an off-menu order of quesadillas with cheese (brie! they have some rather interesting and exotic quesadillas on the menu) and black beans, invented specially for him, although he could have done without the glob of smoky (and quite good-- to Dad) chipotle salsa in the middle.

Liam's effort playing up to the chef paid off when we ordered dessert; we ordered a dish of flambéed bananas with blueberries in a sugar-tequila sauce, which I have to say was about the least photogenic dish I've ever eaten but was really nice, the tequila adding just the edge that the sweet fruits needed. But along with it came a little chocolate cake, supposedly just for Liam (though I'd never feed him all that right before bed) which was whisked away to be eaten before I could even snap a photo:



I have to say that I come out pretty favorably on May Street Cafe, even if I think its pan-Latin fusion cuisine is a little more contrived than, say, Fonda del Mar's straightforward upscale Mexican. But the food batted .700 (which coming off Devon Seafood Grill is an improvement of about .550), the price was reasonable (we fed the four of us for only slightly more than I spent on me at, again, Devon Seafood Grill), and as I say, although the chef worked the room because at least part of his crowd expects that, he couldn't have been friendlier and more genuine about it, and the same for our waitress.

So does it deserve a GNR? My feeling is, it's close in the (deliberately undefined) number of positive reports that have been generated, but there are some definite negative reports, too, and I sure wouldn't mind if a couple more people posted about it in the next week or so. (We'll table the question of whether the industrial no-man's-land it sits amid qualifies as a "neighborhood." I guess Pilsen is straight behind it.) Check it out!

* Amusingly, though prices are generally reasonable, there is one surf and turf item for the macher who really wants to blow a steakhouse-sized wad-- a huge steak and equally monstrous lobster for a cool $150.

Dang.

I guess I'm still on the novice LTH side to find the links...and definitely still struggling with the photo thing. I searched, but came up with May Street Market, and no real discussions on May St. Cafe. Thank you.

I confess to a miss or two on the menu, but mostly pre-renovation (not that decor has anything to do with food, but I think he hit a rough patch in the early days of the restaurant). An overcooked steak and a flavorless hamburger experience...not enough to keep me from coming back. I may be off the mark, but is it enough to garner a GNR Award for being a solid, friendly restaurant that serves relatively innovative, flavorful, reasonably-priced--but not flawless--food, particularly in the area it's in?

My vote still stands. I hope other people check it out and weigh in, as well.

Yes, unfortunately it has the sort of name (unlike, say, "Topolobampo") that is tough to search effectively for, each of the three words is common. FYI, I did better going to Google's Advanced Search, searching for "May Street Cafe" in quotes (which forces it to seek the whole phrase), and limiting the search to this domain.

I too would like to see some more opinions of the place. May Street Cafe got a little mainstream press a few years back as an off-the-beaten path "find", and the reports I recall make me thing the expectant murmurs created a sense of anticipation that's not quite met by the execution. It strikes me as the kind of place that people really want to like going in, and are maybe a little disappointed because they want to like it so badly. But if you went in with low expectations, I think you'd be pleasantly surprised.

Would a GNR award raise expectations and lower satisfaction? I guess that's not really part of the selection criteria. But I'd like to see more glowing reports, if they're out there, and certainly more recent reports either way, since some of the links are pretty old.

HI,

Is the chef the same guy we encountered two years ago or someone new? My take at the time was his artistic expression over common sense. I recall Aaron had given him a budget, the number of people and told him to do his thing.

I was not impressed when we had at least 14 diners and a tray heaped with chile rellenos. As the first one to encounter them and trying to avoid shortchanging anyone I inquired, "How many chile rellenos are on the platter?" He claimed not know since they were mounded for visual impact. I didn't know whether to take half or a whole chile, I took a half chile and never saw the platter again. They were pretty good chiles, though I still wonder if I could have had a whole.

I know it is not a very big deal, though it killed my curiosity to return.

Regards,

All I can say is, what certainly sounded like a new restaurant with some very rough edges back then ran much more smoothly last night. For instance, all our food arrived at the same time and at the same temperature, a trick a certain high-end seafood place I've beat up enough on already couldn't manage.

I suspect May Street Cafe is what I know Fonda del Mar to be-- a much better restaurant than when it first opened. I really do hope a few folks check it out and report back.

Mike G wrote:I suspect May Street Cafe is what I know Fonda del Mar to be-- a much better restaurant than when it first opened. I really do hope a few folks check it out and report back.

I suspect you're right, and just to clarify, I'm not interested in judging a place on what I or anyone else thought a couple years ago. That said, having a body of mediocre old posts does, I think, raise the bar a little bit in terms of the number of current, positive posts needed to view the place as a community favorite. Based on crrush's nomination and Mike's second, it sounds like May Street may be there...just continuing to push for more reports.

I was part of the 2004 outing with Aaron, and the meal was not bad. I seem to remember some discussion of changes since then. Has there been any change in ownership, cook, or otherwise in the last couple of years? Just trying to gauge to what degree my experience is still applicable, or not.

No, same owner, renovated room, I think they've probably just gotten a bit better at their jobs over time. But I never ate there before the other night, so I'm just guessing.

Same owner, and pretty much the same menu (with the occasional oddball special, like alligator)--just renovated digs.

Based on the past posts I read, the "negatives" about this restaurant seem fairly thin. Oversized portions? If it tastes good and there's a lot of it, is that a bad thing? Plus, as has been acknowledged (though I wasn't there) the meal of 14 LTHers seems to be an unfair experience on which to base a yay or a nay. How many places this size, with a regular menu (which they probably expect people to order from the usual way), would even bother to accomodate a request to serve the meal, essentially a chef's tasting, family-style without any kind of advance notice? The fact that the chef not only accomodated the request, but served it artfully according to Cathy2 (but didn't count the chile rellenos...but again, is that grounds for writing this place off?), seems like it would support the nomination.

I feel like that annoying, yipping dog in the cartoon, nipping at the bulldog's heels now, love-harping on this place so much. But if you live in the neighborhood (and, yes, even though it is on this desolate strip of Cermak, we still consider it Pilsen) and know firsthand the dearth of dining options, this place is truly a GNR.

So, for anyone following this thread, for the love of tortilla soup, check this place out. Tonight just happens to be 2nd Friday in Pilsen, so if you come down to the 'hood, Halsted will be fairly hoppin' with gallery openings and fashionably grubby hipsters staggering to the Skylark. May St. Cafe is still BYO, so grab a bottle of wine and come on down. Even if you end up flaming May St. Cafe and this nomination doesn't fly, I'll be able to sleep at night knowing that more than four or five people on this board have eaten there and weighed in on their experience.

Well said, Crrush. It is a place well worth trying, or trying again, and reporting on before we have to decide.

HI,

I already have it in my plan to visit May St. in the very near future because of this thread.

Regards,

I wasn't going to defend my negative review of MStC, but since my review was reduced above to "I don't like big portions", I feel compelled to. A more considerate read of my review indicates why I found the big, sloppy, plates at May Street Cafe to be a problem. It was not simply a matter of portion size, but heavy-handedness and severe lack of focus: an overdone effort to impress that was reflected in the food.*

There is a reason that good cooks and chefs take "plating" very seriosly. An overdone plate can and does have a very strong effect on how the food tastes and how the experience of eating the food is received.

That being said, I will not condemn MStC because of my one visit. The GNR awards are not about one singular experience, but rather a group-think ideal.

I believe that there is good food to be had at MStC. I belive they are trying hard and that sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. Like I said earlier, there's a really good restaurant hiding inside that place, but I didn't find it the night I was there. I'd like to return one day, but I'll have a hard time convincing my wife who wanted to leave right after we were served our entrees.

Best,
Michael

*This is in addition to the fact that they served my wife one of the worst salads I've ever tasted and a chocolate cake that tasted like it came from a foodservice mix (cake not referenced in the original review).

Any more comments on this one? Anyone want to go in the next week and post about it?

Fair enough to say that in general a party of 14 is an unfair test for a restaurant of that size. On the other hand...

The reasons it might have been a fair test, though, are that the food was brought out over a period of time in large platters, more or less at their pace (in other words, he was not making 14 main courses and holding them so all could come out at once, which can result in food that is not quite at its peak) and that there was no more than one or two other tables occupied the whole time we were here.

So if the quality was below normal, the only reason to forgive it would be that they had not expected so much business and there just was not enough food prepped and enough help to do it as they normally would. And, as I recall, the chef helped us choose dishes so I suspect he worked around those issues.

But my experience was not bad, as in the food was bad like some of what Michael had, just that nothing was really great. And I rather like Nuevo/pan-Latino food and have enjoyed some very good meals in that style.

Anyway, it was a while back and I am disposed to pay more attention to the more recent reports. There are a lot of things about the place that make me want to like it.

Keep in mind, crrush that it is okay if all the posts on a place are not positive, so you do not need to discredit negative reviews.

I've been regretting the "big portions" comment since eatchicago's reply, and have withheld further comment to avoid sounding defensive. I do understand the heavy-handedness and the point about plating, and I suppose it counts when the restaurant is clearly trying to take the food a notch or two above its surroundings. I, too, have had a disappointing dish or two, and freely acknowledge the restaurant's missteps in their early days.

I also think the restaurant has addressed some of this since the renovation, which is why I thought about nominating it.

I guess I'm not conveying what it really is about this place that makes it a good nominee? For people who live in booming neighborhoods with lots restaurant options, May Street Cafe might not seem like a standout. But when your options are few, as is the case in Pilsen, and the new places that are popping (a la the newly reprocessed Maxwell Market) are not so great, May Street stands out as, in my mind (though I'm still a newbie here), exactly what a GNR is.

This is not a slam to the great places that do exist in Pilsen, but more of a general comment on the fact that we don't have an overwhelming number of restaurants serving that quality of food, in that kind of an atmosphere, with that much enthusiasm and passion. If you look at May Street Cafe in the context of the neighborhood, I think it scores.

LTH,

Had dinner at May St. Cafe last evening with Cathy2 and Helen, and overall had a very enjoyable time. Physical space is comfortable, aesthetically pleasing, I particularly liked the artwork on the West wall, and the service was friendly, efficient and informed. I was appreciative of the fact, at their own initiative, took my 6-pack of beer, attractively arranged it in a bucket of ice, and brought it back to the table.

We started with escargot in phylo w/strawberry garlic butter, sounds a bit odd, but worked really well together. Also had quesadillas with double cream brie and pear, which was pointed out, both by our waitress and on the menu, is a Chicago Magazine favorite choice. A nice combination, especially with a dab of chipotle sauce.

At this point things got a bit dicey, I was, as per usual, taking a few pictures and Chef/Owner Mario came out to issue a cease and desist order. I think he had worked himself up a bit prior to coming out as he seemed to imply we were culinary spies (No not that CIA ) out to steal his mojo. Don't get me wrong, Chef Mario was polite, but firm, not that we gave him any guff, it's his place, he doesn't want us taking pictures, not a problem.

I will say he made a mistake in not allowing us to snap a photo or 17 as the man really knows how to dress up a plate. The presentations were wonderfully attractive, and tasted as good as they looked.

To his credit he seemed to realize he might have overreacted a wee bit as he immediately sent out a mix of sauteed mushrooms, including morels, came out to check on our progress a few times during the meal, sent out additional dessert and was basically friendly as all hell the rest of the evening.

Nice GNR nomination by crrush, love the ironic urban juxtaposition of comfy eclectic oasis in the middle of nighttime deserted industrial no man's land, like the mildly idiosyncratic chef/owner and particularly like the fact that for $37 per person, with tax and tip, three of us had a nicely prepared multi course, well thought out, fresh, attention to detail driven meal.

Nice nomination, thanks crrush.

Enjoy,
Gary

I ate here once before the renovation and twice in recent weeks. I would give this a solid vote as a great neighborhood restaurant, particularly because it's nice to have some geographic diversity in there.

I second the endorsement of the brie/pear quesadillas and the escargot with garlic and strawberries. It was unusual; it was excellent and it was $10.

I've also sampled the black bean and goat cheese quasadillas, which contained a good ratio of cheese to beans and a very spicy salsa.

One of my dining companions was moved to order the pork chop, even though she doesn't really like pork, and couldn't get enough of it. Two other friends ordered the scallops, which came in rather dainty portions, but alongside a mountain of plantains and an unusually good butter-curry.

My boyfriend ordered the steak and it was right up there with anything you would get at a reputable steakhouse, and certainly better than some of the things I've seen at places like Las Tablas. The chef was extremely attentive and even the boring old caesar salad came with fresh lettuce and an interesting dressing.

HI,

I still have mixed emotions about May St. Cafe. I found myself comparing it to Fonda del Mar with comparable prices and similarly ambitious menus. I will give the nod to May St. Cafe for the food and presentation.

While Gary is more forgiving of the Chef's terse request we cease and desist with the pictures. After we agreed not to take pictures, there was a girl planted at the bar keeping a keen eye on our table. When Gary inquired about the Allen Brother's steaks being dry or wet aged, the Chef was called to the table by the server. Chef had this here-we-go-again attitude as he approached our table. Sure he eventually warmed up, sure we got some off menu items to taste, though the earlier events still left me feeling unsettled.

Today I recalled another issue I had had with our meal a few years ago. Last night we ordered their chocolate cake to share. This dessert was presented on a long rectangular plate with the unfrosted cake (cut from a sheet cake) at one end, two balls of vanilla ice cream in the middle for $6.50 and two complimentary pieces of mango flan cut into 1-inch square pieces. My at-the-moment response to the mango flan was how nice to give us a taste of a dessert we had passed over. Today while sitting in traffic I recollected the itty-bitty flan pieces served to our group of 14 as a dessert. Why did I recall this because they were the same exact size as last night's samples.

There are very few restaurants where I have any reaction to the Chef's personality. More often than not the Chef is a back of the house creature I never meet. I have been to May St. Cafe twice and each time had some negative interaction with the Chef. If it were not for this GNR evaluation, I would not have been there last night. If Gary had even a twinkle of a notion to settle up the bill and go somewhere else after the appetizers, I would have quickly seconded the idea.

A few years ago, I wrote some of the Puerto Rican reviews for the Slow Food Guide. It was suggested to go to a bakery cafe as part of the evaluation process. I went there only to try Puerto Rican pastries, so I pick one-each of everything I was unfamiliar with. The owner-server confronted me inquiring where was I going with her pastries. She wanted to know if I was stealing her recipes. She almost declined to sell me the $5 worth of pastries already packaged. When I got home, I contacted MAG who had told me of this cafe. She had already known other people who were treated the same way. I told there was no way I could recommend anyone to visit this cafe with an owner with this demeanor.

While the food is great, I have the same problem with this Chef as I did in the Puerto Rican bakery. How can I really recommend it as a GNR when I have already had two meals where the Chef's personality got in the way.

Regards,

Based on the Check Please review, we've been wanting to try this place. We went last night before going to the Bulls game. Sorry to report that this was probably one of the worst meals that my husband and I have eaten in a long time. As we were there at 5:15 p.m., the place was nearly empty.

We started with the shrimp and mango quesadillas. They were extremely greasy on the outside. There was no mango flavor and the shrimp (what there were of them) were the tiny shrimp you find in a can. They had no taste at all. We asked if we could split tortilla soup. Our waitress said if she split it she would have to charge us the $6 splitting charge so would it be okay if she brought us a small cup and we could divide it ourselves. That was fine with us. I can understand a splitting charge for entrees but this was soup and we were each ordering an entree. The soup had one piece of avocado, a couple of hunks of chicken, lots of tortilla strips and a small dab of sour cream. It was ok but so spicy that we could not finish it. Probably could have used alot more sour cream to counter the spice. We almost got the appetizer special of crabcakes and, after seeing them delivered to the table next to us, we are glad that we didn't order them. They received a plate which held 3 crabcakes, each the size of a quarter. I have never seen a crabcake appetizer with such small crabcakes. It looked like it should have been served as an amuse bouche.

My husband had the tuna special for his dinner. I guess we are spoiled and used to having tuna served in a few rare slices on the plate. It was described as seared tuna with a fig sauce. Sounded delicious. Unfortunately, an example of what you think you are going to get based on past experience and menu descriptions and what you do get can be completely different. What was on the plate was a grey slab of tuna with a white sauce on the side which had a few figs in it. The tuna, which was cooked medium rare on the inside at least, had no taste. The sauce had absolutely no taste. Even the "special made to order" wasabi mashed potatoes had no taste.

Even so, his tuna was the better of the two entrees. I ordered the pork prepared Puerto Rican style which our very nice waitress described as delicious and one of her favorites. I asked how it was prepared and was told it was loaded with spices and there would be four pieces of meat on the plate. I got a plate of 4 extremely fatty hunks of meat that tasted like boiled meat. There was no flavor to the meat at all and it was tough. I tried one bite and it was awful. My husband, after tasting it, agreed (and he eats most anything) and told me not to eat it and he would get me a pulled pork sandwich at the United Center instead.

Have to admit that the best thing I ate last night was that pulled pork sandwich with sweet potato fries. We will scratch another Check Please restaurant that looked great on the show and in reality was terrible.