Chilaquiles

***** (5 stars)

I’m so happy to see this restaurant open again, as it is one of my favorite Mexican places in Chicago. They were closed for many months during which time they ripped up the floor to work on water pipes and removed the under-performing coffee bar in one corner. So now it’s just a large, very stylishly decorated space with a wall of tequila and many walls of beautiful paintings.

The salsas and guacamole are terrific, especially the red salsa, which has a complex flavor and a bit of a kick.

The tacos are still reasonably priced, although a bit more than they used to be. What I love is that you can mix and match; so many places in town force you to get three or four the same. Here I like the conchinita pork pibil and the chicken with either conventional mole sauce or the pistachio mole.

On our latest visit we tried the chilaquiles, and they were the best I’ve ever had. That’s saying a lot, because in Orlando we frequent a place run by a Jaliscan native and his are really, really good. But these were better. I especially like the option to get them with a fried egg.

We didn’t try the lunch fajitas, but they smelled great, and at $12-$15 they are a bargain in Chicago.

Service was fast and friendly.

My Previous Review

At last! My search for a great, authentic Mexican restaurant in downtown Chicago is complete. Mezcalina is the real deal.

It’s located off the bucolic but hard to find Lake Shore East Park (go down a four story spiral staircase at the end of N Park Dr south of Wacker). The space (and even the dishes) are shared by the Black Coffee Company. Beautiful large murals grace the walls, and a decorative bar runs along one side.

Of course there is a full bar with a wide range of tequilas and mescals, but I tried a bottled sangria soda, a non-alcoholic concoction that tasted a lot like sangria.

Complementary tortilla strips are served with two excellent salsas, a red and a green.

I started with the ceviche tasting, which featured shrimp, octopus, and the day’s special, corvina. All were good, but the octopus was outstanding, tender and bursting with fresh flavors, the best octopus ceviche I’ve had.

Nearly all of the menu is authentic Mexican (with the exception of nachos) so of course I tried the tacos. A bargain at only $3 each, they are served on traditional corn tortillas (single ply, though, not double as in Mexico). Each was served with handfuls of fresh cilantro, a wedge of lime, and raw or pickled onions, according to type.

The carne aside was a bit chewy, but the pollo mole was wonderful–tender, moist and suffused with the rich, dark, slightly bitter sauce. But the pork pibil was the most remarkable, with layers of complex flavors from the marinade, and huge hunks of tender shredded pork. Definitely the best pibil I’ve had anywhere.

I sat at the bar, and the bartender was friendly and helpful.

This is definitely a place I’ll be returning to often. Yay! Real Mexican food in Chicago!

Mezcalina
333 E Benton Pl
Ste 100
Chicago, IL 60601
(312) 240-5000
http://www.yelp.com/biz/mezcalina-chicago

**** (4 stars)

My second visit to El Hefe was much more successful than my first. I really liked the food, and the service was good.

I was a bit hesitant to try this place because of its reputation as a noisy dive bar and a jam packed disco. But that’s at night. At lunch time it’s just a Mexican restaurant. It was still noisy on my first visit, but the place was empty on a Friday at lunch during my second visit.

The nachos are a very generous pile of just about everything you’ve ever seen on nachos. The underlying chips are thin and crispy, and the only fault I found was the use of liquid cheese rather than melting real cheese under a broiler.

The guacamole and chips are also a very generous serving (and were free, because of a yelp check-in. Deal!)

I really liked the two tacos I had: pastor, and crispy fish. Both were on small single tortillas and piled high, so you have to eat at least half before you can pick them up.

My companion said the quesadilla was one of the best she’s had, and since she makes the best quesadilla I’ve ever had, that was high praise.

The margaritas are served in a 20-ounce glass, but they’re more than half ice cubes.

Service was friendly and efficient.

El Hefe
15 W Hubbard St
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 548-6841
http://www.yelp.com/biz/el-hefe-chicago-3

*** (3 stars)

I liked the hole-in-the-wall ambiance of this Mexican place, and the experience was, on the whole, pretty good. I’m not sure about the reviewers who’ve described it as “authentic.” Authentic what? It’s certainly not authentic Mexican food from Mexico. It might be regarded as authentic suburban US Tex/Mex food! That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as long as it’s what you’re expecting.

They definitely make a good Margarita. I upgraded to the Golden Margarita, and it was worth every cent of its $10.50 price. It came with some excellent chips and okay salsa. The chips were the real kind, made from cut tortillas, so they had a nice sturdiness to them that I associate with old time Mexican restaurants before the Doritos era.

The botanas appetizer sampler was a good opportunity to try most of the apps on the menu, but none were particularly noteworthy. The best was the chili relleno, followed by the seasoned ground meat, although I had to remove it from the stale round chips it was served on and transfer it to the chips in the basket. Nachos were definitely a miss.

The vegetable fajitas, on the other hand, were really good, and the lunch size portion was just enough. The accompanying refried beans and rice were pretty good, too. I neglected to specify corn tortillas, so ended up with flour, but the waitress cheerfully replaced them when I asked if corn were available.

Overall I’d go back for certain items such as the fajitas, and I’d certainly visit if I just wanted a great margarita.

Su Casa Restaurant
49 E Ontario St
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 943-4041
http://www.yelp.com/biz/su-casa-restaurant-chicago