MENUDO!! - Who serves the best in your opinion?

Has there been a survey taken on everyone's favorite place for Menudo?

If not perhaps I could get on started.

My favorite over the years, Taqueria Atotonilco 26th St or 47th St. The quality is the same. Available Friday night, all day Saturday and usually sold out by noon on Sunday.

What's yours?

orgullodemexico,

My new favorite place for menudo is Taqueria Taconazo, where I had it twice this past weekend, Saturday night around midnight and then Sunday afternoon around five. A huge bowl, well skimmed, nicely seasoned broth, large pieces of tripe, tender calves feet chunks, and four salsas on the table.

The Standard Club kitchen crew likes to bring in Saturday menudo from Los Comales #5 on 63rd west of Western. This was previously my menudo of choice.

Taqueria Taconazo at Western and Archer, next door to Dunkin Donuts. (Open until 5:00am)

Moderator(s),
Is it worthwhile to change the thread to "Menudo or Pozole"?
I think Pozole is more popular and I've avoided Menudo since tripe is kind of an acquired taste IMO. Recently the Chicago Tribune did an article on Pozole. I have enjoyed the spicy red pozole with lean pork although I understand there is a green and a white pozole with chicken sometimes used.

bontemps wrote:Moderator(s),
Is it worthwhile to change the thread to "Menudo or Pozole"?
I think Pozole is more popular and I've avoided Menudo since tripe is kind of an acquired taste IMO. Recently the Chicago Tribune did an article on Pozole. I have enjoyed the spicy red pozole with lean pork although I understand there is a green and a white pozole with chicken sometimes used.

Why change the title of this thread and hijack the purpose when it's easy enough to start a thread dedicated to discussing pozole?

I'm not much of a menudo afficianado, but i enjoy tripe and have tried the menudo at two Mexican restaurants in my vicinity - El Caminos Michoacan and El Palmar, off the Sheridan red line stop.

El Palmar's menudo I've enjoyed several times, with a good variety of very clean, nicely textured tripe and a sizable hunk of gelatenous fleshy footmeat. They also give you plenty of onion, cilantro, and lime to doctor the dish to your tastes.

Sadly, the Caminos menudo was sorely lacking - as soon as they brought it to the table i was overwhelmed by the odor of tripe. I tried one bite and it tasted as bad as it smelled. I'm guessing the tripe wasn't especially clean or perhaps they were just having a really off day, but i've never tried it again.

But, as i said, i'm something of a menudo 'newbie', so if anyone knows of a better menudo experience in the area please let me know. I'm sure there must be something decent off ashland, but i've been hesitant to make any trips to branch out and try unknown menudo spots after my experience at El Caminos.

Thanks!

I won't hijack in the direction of pozole, but suffice to say that pozole has been much and well discussed here. While chicken pozole supposedly exists, the original white version of the soup as ladled out in Acapulco is made with pork.

I also do not think pozole is the more popular soup by a long shot. In Chicago. if a taqueria or carniceria has but one of the two soups, it is almost always menudo.

As for the "best" menudo, I find that the stuff served on weekends by carnicerias is typically superior to the stuff that some restaurants carry all week. C. Leon is one option.

Every few months I get powerful cravings for offal. Cravings that can only be extinguished by taking diving headfirst into the depths of Chicago's ethic murkiness.

Sometimes its brain curry or paya; others I head south of the border for grilled sweetbreads; and once in a while in Chinatown, you can find me holed up between a plate of beef and maw and some sino-style chitlins for good measure.

This time, I really want a bowl of menudo. I'm a menudo novice. Does anyone have any recommendations up north, preferably Rogers Park, Uptown or even Albany Park?

Adelante!

H

For me, Poncitlan has the best spice to gaminess ratio. More spicy richness, less barnyard smell/flavor. I've tried a few others around the city, but in the end, nothing beats homemade.

Taquería Poncitlan
4158 W. Armitage Ave
Chicago, IL 60639
(773) 486-1424
http://www.taqueriaponcitlan.com/

LTH,

Chicago Meat Market on N. Cicero makes a tasty version, available for take out only Saturday and Sunday, and occasionally late on Friday. I've noticed inconsistency as far as richness. I guess what I'm trying to say is that several times, the spicing was heartier, with more chilies and what tasted to me like clove, not to mention a more highly reduced broth. (Greek influence maybe...I understand that cloves are used in Mexican chorizo, but not typically in menudo?)

The only downside is that it contains no feet.

Chicago Meat Market
3021 N Cicero Ave
Chicago, IL 60641
773-777-7116

Mrs. Trpt, who is Mexican, has always had a soft spot for the menudo from El Presidente. In almost every other way, it's not that good of a restaurant (their tacos are nacos) but she loves the menudo. And the menudo from Tierra Caliente as well, especially since you can get a piece of pig foot in it.

JeffB wrote:I won't hijack in the direction of pozole, but suffice to say that pozole has been much and well discussed here. While chicken pozole supposedly exists, the original white version of the soup as ladled out in Acapulco is made with pork.

.

I've never had pozole in Mexico made with anything other than pork. My mother in law, when she makes it, gets a big section of pig spine to cook with it, the bones giving good flavor. When I make it, I usually throw in a pig foot for good measure.