Is This Chicago’s New Latin Dining Hot Spot?
When four new restaurants open in an area known for quality Asian cuisine, it’s a thing.
They say it takes three things to make a trend so what happens when you have four? It’s a movement.
Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood, where Drew and I have lived since 2005, has long been a haven of fantastic Asian restaurants, mostly along or around Argyle Avenue. With top destinations like Ba Le or Nhu Lan Bakery for banh mi; Pho 777 or Pho Viet for, well, pho; Immm Rice & Beyond for authentic and spicy Thai street food and Thai Pastry for more approachable dishes like pad siew, crispy mee-krob, and sweet yet spicy panang curry; Rakkan Ramen for the outlier vegan ramen; and Sun Wah BBQ for tableside Beijing duck service, barbecue spare ribs, and in my opinion the best egg rolls in Chicago. Even Lao Sze Chuan opened a location in the neighborhood.
A few years ago, Kie Gol Lanee opened just off Argyle on Sheridan, bringing something different to the area. This lively Oaxacan spot quickly became a go-to for high-quality Mexican food in an understated storefront. We were worried it may not survive the pandemic, but Michelin bestowed its spotlight on it and it continues to thrive today. If you’re a fan of tamales, tlayudas, rich mole sauce with flavors that just keep giving, and chapulines (fried crickets which, yes, are dammmmmn good. Seriously, they’re like eating little nutty snacks packed with protein), Kie Gol Lanee is a must. And they now have a full bar, which unfortunately replaced a coveted BYO option.
In the last year, two more Latin restaurants joined Kie Gol Lanee at the east end of Argyle. First, Don Pablo’s Kitchen & Bakeshop arrived right around the same time as and next door to the acclaimed Milly’s Pizza in the Pan. Walking into this Chilean empanada shop, the wonderful scent of pastry dough baking wafts from the back where owner Pablo Soto prepares fresh empanadas. No matter if you get the Poeta with sautéed shrimp, corn, and mozzarella; the Greek Tragedy with artichoke hearts, crimini mushrooms, feta, and kalamata olives; or the Napolitana, with tomato, basil, and three cheeses (my favorite one so far), these big as your head empanadas are a treat.
Then in early January this year, the lively and colorful Venezuelan restaurant El Rincón de Fabio opened across from Don Pablo’s. If you want a taste of truly wonderful food that tastes like you’re eating in an abuela’s house, go there. If you only want an arepa, these are some of the best in the city (the Infatuation called it one of Chicago’s best new restaurants so far in 2023). They also have Venezuelan empanadas, patacones (a plantain sandwich with pork and slaw), yuca fries, tacos, and quesadillas. But you’ll go for the arepas.
Now as if three weren’t enough to signal a trend, birria just arrived in the neighborhood. Birrieria Zaragoza, the 15-year-old award-winning restaurant in the Southwest Side Archer Heights neighborhood known for hours-long braised goat — a specialty from Jalisco, Mexico — opened its second location at the corner of Lawrence and Broadway next to the famed Green Mill jazz club and across the street from the Riviera Theater and Demera Ethiopian Restaurant.
I’ve long said Uptown was ripe for a restaurant boom. Back when I was editor of Eater Chicago, I often lobbied restaurant owners and chefs to look at Uptown. One heavy hitter once told me he wasn’t going to pioneer Uptown when so many of his other restaurants sat more downtown. Andersonville, just a few minutes north, has always had great bars and restaurants and now local chains like Parson’s Chicken, Lonesome Rose, and Lobo Pizza have opened. Kilwins is coming (following Jeni’s Ice Cream) and sadly so is a Taco Bell Cantina (not happy about that). And it seems like Uptown is finally poised to continue emerging as a restaurant destination.
When Rahm Emanuel was mayor, he declared the area around Lawrence and Broadway a new entertainment zone for Chicago and championed the renovation of the long-shuttered Uptown Theater (c’mon Jerry Mickelson — let’s make this happen!). We have the Riv and the Aragon Ballroom. The Baton moved its renowned drag club from River North. Of course there’s the Green Mill. And Double Door is scheduled to hopefully come back to life on Wilson near Broadway.
So with the trend of Latin restaurants opening, bringing new energy to the area, it’s time for even more restaurant owners to look north.
SG LIST: Here’s What I’m Loving This Week
The Who’s Tommy at the Goodman Theatre
Growing up in the ‘80s, Tommy was both a soundtrack and an album of our youth. Was I a massive Who fan? No but I definitely liked them (I was more of a Stones fan). I remember watching the movie (or half of it?) at Jason Brody’s house, so seeing the opening night of this revival took me back. And watching the show really makes so much more sense of the lyrics. I liked the first act, but damn if the second act wasn’t on fire. From the start, the energy level exploded and didn’t stop. And the closing number truly took off and brought everyone to their feet. The show runs through Aug. 6.
All 378 Elton John songs ranked
Talk about a massive undertaking! Writer and producer Shana Naomi Krochmal was asked to write something about Elton John for Vulture and the result is this incredible ranking of every! Single! Song! Elton John ever wrote. I won’t say what’s in the top, you have to find out for yourself. But big big props to Krochmal for doing this. Then over the weekend, Elton finally headlined Glastonbury — to reportedly the largest crowd ever at the English festival — and supposedly his last U.K. show ever. What a way to go out!
Morning olive oil shots
About a month ago, Drew said he read that taking a shot of extra virgin olive oil first thing in the morning on an empty stomach could be beneficial. Whether or not there’s any medical or scientific evidence to back this up, I can’t say. But EVOO is anti-inflammatory and can benefit digestion and overall gut health. So why not try it? So almost every morning, we’ve taken an ounce shot of olive oil. Last week, when I was in Temecula, Calif., I stopped into Temecula Olive Oil Company for a tasting. I asked the manager if taking a daily shot is healthy. She said it can be if you use a higher-quality olive oil pressed from younger olives so get the most antioxidants. So I guess we continue to do morning shots!
We saw Tommy last Sunday, amazing!!
We have been regular at Kai-Gol-Lanee since it opened. We really loved that it was a BYO for the first few years. I get the need for a license and hope that their wine and beer program develops into something more curated in line with their food and their audience.