Guide to Tapas Restaurants in Chicago

Tapas bars are springing up all over Chicago, some serving traditional Spanish fare and others opting for more modern cuisine. Since returning from Spain I have been hesitant to give the Tapas restaurants and bars of Chicago a chance, fearing the worst. Finally, I have decided to see if I could find a dining experience that equaled or even came close to the tapas culture of Spain.

For comparison purposes I tried to stick to traditional tapas that each restaurant was guaranteed to serve, the differences were subtle but noticeable. I also ordered entrees that are very traditional to Spain and Spanish cuisine, but in this case tried not to limit my selection as much.

Read on for reviews of three of Chicago's most popular tapas restaurants.

1492 Tapas Bar, 42 E. Superior, Chicago

The setting and atmosphere at 1492 had me reminiscing about the lunches I used to enjoy back in one of my Madrid favorites, Casa Lucio, all that was missing were a few Spaniards arguing over the state of olives at the bar. For the most part the menu was traditional Spanish fare but the chef managed to add a couple of new twists to old favorites.

Tapas sampled included vegetable croquettes, palitos de queso, patatas bravas, alcachofas al ajillo and tortilla de patata. The palitos de queso, or bread battered feta cheese, was the standout among the dishes and came with an incredible mango sauce. The patatas bravas, potatoes topped with a spicy tomato based sauce, and the alcachofas al ajillo, artichoke in garlic, were both tapas bar worthy. I did not like the croquettes, perhaps I erred in choosing the vegetable variety, and the tortilla de patata would be better served hot.

For the main entree I chose a plate of chicken breast stuffed with goat cheese, peppers and spinach called pollo relleno. Several Spanish favorites were all pulled to make this into an incredible dish. The wine list was a surprise, entirely Spanish!

Go there for the wine, the authenticity, atmosphere, and excellent dining experience.

Sangria Restaurant and Tapas Bar,901 West Weed Street, Chicago

Sangria serves not only tapas, but cuisine from over twenty Latin coutries so the variety is incredible. The restaurant is just as vibrant and modern as the menu and just as great a place to people watch as any sidewalk cafe in Plaza Mayor.

From the tapas menu I tried the tortilla espanola, the manchego plate, the chilled asparagus, and the fried dates. Every choice was excellent, better than some of the traditional tapas fare I have sampled in the best bars in Spain. The chef has taken traditional tapas and prepared them in a new way, without straying too much from the original idea. After seeing a plate of seafood paella make its way to another diner, I decided to give the paella a shot. Generally, I try to avoid paella because it is either a hit or an unbelievably big miss. I highly, highly recommend Sangria's seafood paella, the perfect amount of saffron was used to season the rice, just perfect.

While the food was great I was not at all impressed with the service at Sangria, my guest and I waited, and waited and then we waited some more. Also disappointing was the traditional selections of Sangria, we took another look at the selections and went with the mango and pear varieties which were great.

Cafe Iberico Tapas Bar, 739 N. LaSalle, Chicago

Cafe Iberico is an old Chicago favorite of mine, as well as what appears to be the entire city of Chicago. Word of warning, make reservations or dine when Spaniards do- at 10. The restaurant has a friendly and lively atmosphere, guaranteeing you a good time.

Generous portions of all tapas ordered filled the entire party so no entrees were ordered. The tapas included grilled octopus, croquetas de pollo, grilled mushrooms, grilled shrimp, ternera asada, and jamon iberico. The grilled octopus and ternera asada were the best of all the selections, the ternera asada, roasted veal, was marinated in raspberry vinaigrette making it very moist and tender. The grilled selections were all done with garlic and olive oil true to the traditional SPanish way of preparation.

I especially recommend Cafe Iberico for large parties, families and couples on their first dates.