Address: | 333 E Benton Pl #100, Chicago, IL 60601, USA |
Phone: | +1 312-240-5000 |
Site: | mezcalina.com |
Rating: | 4.3 |
Working: | Closed 5–9PM 5–9PM 11:30AM–9PM 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–8PM |
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J Shepard
Man, this place is good. Went here for a business lunch without any expectation. The room is nice, informal, active, and bright. The tables are a little closely spaced, but nothing I couldnt deal with. Service was friendly and attentive. The menu was a little smaller than Id expected, and about half of it is devoted to brunch. I guess all the Lakeshore East residents must come down here and pack the place for brunch on weekends. I would if I lived there. The menu, while small, offered plenty of tempting items. My colleague went with the 3 tacos. You can pick from pork, carne asada, pescado, and veggie. She got the three meats and liked all of them a lot. The pescado looked the best to me. After much deliberation I got the Tasajo Asado, a steak dish. It was delicious. The meat was perfectly cooked and seasoned, the tortillas were great. The black beans were a bit bland and cold but certainly not a deal killer. Oh, I forgot to mention the three salsas they brought out when we sat down, along with blue and white tortilla chips with coarse salt visible on them. YUM. All 3 salsas were good. When we finished the first tray of chips, they brought more unrequested. Nice. The food took a little while to come out (maybe due to my steak?) but we still were in and out in 45 mins or so. The bill was just over $30 for the two of us, which I thought was a great deal for the quality of food we got. No alcohol and no desserts. Ill be back for sure. This was a super find. Its a smallish room, so make a reservation if time is an issue at all. It was nearly at capacity at lunchtime.
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Kathryn Quickert
Id only been in Chicago for a few hours, but fresh from OHare at dinner time, I checked into my hotel and I knew I had to find some grub, and soon! I looked up nearby eateries, and Mezcalina looked like a good bet. It was. the chicken mole verde was a succulent, boneless (spatchcocked) roasted half bird, with nice diced veggies and a very tasty green mole. It was served with a weird scoop of rice on the side, which had a few peas and carrots mixed in. Not sure what that was about, and I wish theyd just given me some fresh tortillas to sop up the yummy mole. I asked for sangria, something that apparently is not on the menu. (It should be!) They were kind enough to mix one up for me anyway, a nice touch. Why only 4 stars? Well, it was a slow night, but the service was ridiculously slow. There were just 2 occupied tables when I arrived. Shortly after I got there, 2 more parties came in. Despite the fact that I had ordered my food before they got there, the other tables received their food - chips - drinks before I did. I waited 10-15 minutes before I was acknowledged; by that time, the lady across from me had already finished her soup! My order may have taken a while to cook, but thats no reason for the chips and salsa to be missing from the table! Waiting for the check, etc., at the end of the meal was the same story. I felt as if I was intentionally being ignored.
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Hayley Stokar
This restaurant is absolutely incredible in every regard--it is perhaps my new favorite in all of Chicago. Tucked away behind Millunium Park, this tiny, artsy, classy establishment serves up traditional Oaxacan food that does for your palate what Diego Rivera did to blank walls. Guacamoles? excellent. Traditional Moles? excellent. Salads? Excellent. Churros? Foodgasm. Their $7 mezcal cocktails should not be missed. The service was at least as good as the food. Our server, Martin, was attentive and informative, making spot-on recommendations and treating us like classy clientele and old friends at the same time. On the way back from the restroom, I managed to sneak a message to the bartender that my boyfriend and I were celebrating an anniversary. After our meal, Martin brought out dessert on the house, and the chef came out from the kitchen to ask how our meal was and to wish us a happy anniversary! Needless to say, we cant wait to go back. If not for dinner, for their full coffee bar or cocktail bar. Mezcalina: muchisimas gracias por una experiencia maravillosa, nos vemos dentro de poquito!
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Niq Howard
The food was awesome and the margarita was even better. This is a small place, and although hole in the wall, its very nice and new. The bar has limited seating but there is also outdoor seating. The paintings are awesome and decor elegant. I got their classic margarita. It was about 8-10 oz. A smaller margarita but very high quality and very well done. For food, I tried the chips and salsa. They like to push the guacamole but the chips and salsa are great. The green salsa is more spicy so beware if you arent into spicy. I had the enchiladas poblanas. They were pretty good. Came out hot and fresh like the chips. They were smothered with the mole sauce which was the strong mole sauce one would expect. The queso was light on top, I was disappointed as I have a special place in my heart for queso but the flavor was excellent and the queso amount turned out to be perfect and reveal the other flavors better. The rice and beans on the side were standard. I didnt eat much of them and focused on the good stuff. My service was slow but overall this food was great. I would go back.
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Thomas Besore
I live in the neighborhood and I had heard on three separate occasions that this place has gotten a rough start. So I decided to head over there with a friend now that its been around a while. I am so happy that I did! We went over on a Friday evening and found the place to be busy, but not too busy to find us a table. We started off with the Molotes appetizer which did not disappoint. These were puffy and fresh, loaded with chicken and cheese inside. The only trouble was that they did not last long and we should have requested a double order. For our entree we enjoyed both the Cecina Adorada and the Mahi Mahi Envuelto, both of which were a treat to share. The food was excellent, the presentation clean and bright and the service second to none. For a terrific artsy decor, wonderful new-age Mexican fare and outstanding service you cannot go wrong with Mezcalina.
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Mike Abyad
During our visit for brunch this past weekend we had a few issues. 1. My glass had a chip at the lip. 2, Other glass had a little bit of water in it. I assume from the previous customer. 3. 3rd glass on the table was dirty (food or something on the side of the glass) When the food came out, it was less to be desired. My order was very simple, eggs and bacon. The bacon appeared to be cooked with a torch. Hard and brittle. I request the waiter to provide some additional food, it wasnt much better. The waiter wasnt very experienced. We had to continue to request items that at other restaurants are a given. that is something that can be fixed with a little training. I dont think Id go back to this restaurant. If they want to be competitive and open for breakfast in Chicago, theyll need to step it up.