The End of Great Food Recommendations? Certainly Not!

It isn't the end, readers!  The Foodie has found herself dropped into the middle of a veritable Mecca of tasty cuisine.  And our first stop on this culinary journey is the beautiful country of Spain for (you guessed) tapas!

I feel like I'm cheating on Meson Sabika with a sleeker, hipper restaurant.  And I guess in a way I am.  But Naperville is just too far away for me right now!

So there's this place in Lincoln Park, down on Halsted...you may have heard of it.  Or maybe the name just reminds you of a Ricky Ricardo catchphrase.  Of course, I'm referring to Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba.  No, I'm not joking...that's the name of the place.

Anyway, it's a Lettuce Entertain You restaurant, so if you get points...more power to you.  The decor is old-fashioned and cool.  Think a blend of wood paneling, exposed brick and murals, toss in some rockin'-looking Iberico hams (love!) hanging from the ceiling above the bar (not joking...they have hooves on them and they're imported and awesome), and you've got one heck of a spot.

The gorgeous bar is a main feature when you walk in, framed up nicely by the long row of windows to your right when you walk in.  The bartender has a really snazzy mustache (this must be a big trend, because Bayless's bartender has some wacky facial hair too).  And according to my parents and my aunt, their sangrias (both traditional red and seasonal white peach) were tasty.  Not that I'd have any clue.

Anyways...

We went to town trying their tapas, even ordering some dishes that we consider our mainstays at Meson Sabika (just for comparison).

I'm going to make this a photo review!  Something shiny and new!  Read the captions, dearies...

~AF

(For the record, I do still adore Meson Sabika.  It is my first love when it comes to tapas.  And I like it just a little bit better.  But this is an awesome place too.  Nothing scathing on this page, that's for sure.)

Okay.  Clockwise from top: sangria (looked pretty); bread (heartier than Meson...but tastier in a way because it was served with olive oil, not butter!); aceitunes (marinated olives, more of a mix than Meson...I like the variety of it, but the flavor at Meson was far superior. But you should still order them); datiles con tocino (loves, they are so good! Crispy bacon, melt-in-your-mouth dates, dressed in an apple vinaigrette and served with little apple chunks.  There's bacon. Can't go wrong.).

Queso de cabra al horno: Baked goat cheese in a tomato-basil sauce.  Almost as good as Meson.  Missed it by that much.  Sorry, the first was the better in this case.

Meatballs in sherry tomato sauce: They were tender to the point of being crumbly.  And the sauce seemed a little flat to me.  Sorry, but I just wasn't digging it.

Oh. My. Goodness.  That is a plate of sweet potatoes with pomegranate aioli.  Order it.  Order it now.  It is that good.  I could have just eaten the aioli with a spoon.  If only they'd given us more of it...

Skewer of chicken and Spanish chorizo: Not what I would have ordered.  It was my sister's idea, and it was a good way for her to branch out a little.  There's not much that could mess up good chicken and good sausage.  If you're not adventurous enough for pomegranate aioli, this is the route to take.  It's good, just not bold enough for my liking.

Well, she ain't pretty...These are sherry-glazed pork ribs.  And they're good.  Thing is, there's a lot of sherry glaze going on on the plate.  If you like barbecue ribs, you'll probably like this.  It seemed a little more South Carolina than south of Spain.  But it was tasty.

Ask them to bring you a spoon with this item.  This, my friends, is a slow-braised beef shortrib.  And you can cut it with a spoon.  Try it.  It comes with velvety mashed potatoes, and if you're smart you'll have it brought out early, before you've filled up on hearty bread and goat cheese.  I just wish I'd had room for it.  Because it was good...

Pincho de Solomillo: It's so simple.  And simple dishes are where you can tell if a restaurant is doing things right.  Ba-Ba-Reeba sure is.  This was just as tasty as the pincho from Meson, and I may have even liked this horseradish cream a little better.  Just meat and a grill.  And they made it taste good.  This is how you do it.  But I still love my Meson Sabika.

Tapas Autenticas in the 'Burbs

Okay, darlings, it's time to travel to Spain...old-fashioned Spain.  Think gorgeous Victorian-style architecture meets Mediterranean culinary delight.  Close your eyes for a moment.  Now are you with me?  I know I can almost taste the...well, I guess I need to tell you about it, don't I?

This Spain experience can be found in Naperville, Illinois, at a great restaurant called Meson Sabika.

When you walk inside, you are greeted by the charm of a really old residence, turned into a really rockin' restaurant.  There's oriental rugs running down the length of the building, down what was clearly once the home's main hallway.  A staircase leads to the upper-floor dining, and each former sitting room has been converted into a cozy-comfy dining room.

As soon as you are seated, you are presented with bread and butter and...marinated olives.  Yes, my dears, marinated Spanish olives.  And there's not enough there.  You will want more.  They call them aceitunes, and you can order a whole bowl of them to accompany your other tapas.  Do it.  No, don't ask questions, just do it.  Unless you don't like olives, in which case...

Anyway!  When you order your drinks, if you are in the habit of enjoying an alcoholic beverage on occasion, my aunt tells me they make an excellent sangria roja.  If not, they also make an excellent non-alcoholic sangria with fruit juices (shown right).  But you won't care much what you have to wash down those tapas once you get to eating.

Here's my favorites list:

1. Datiles con  tocino:  Bacon-wrapped dates that are so crispy, so candy-like, that you will want to eat the entire plate of them.  True, there's only five, but when you go with a group, you'll be willing to fend off your companions and keep these little guys all to yourself.  They're topped with a silken red pepper sauce that adds just a little moisture (even though they hardly need it).  They were gone so quick I couldn't even snap a photo.
2. Queso de cabra (al horno) (top right):  Baked goat cheese swimming in a creamy tomato-basil sauce.  They only give you five toast points, and you'll need more.  My advice?  Hoard the bread they bring you as a starter.  True, it doesn't have the super extra-virgin (green) Spanish olive oil on it like the toast, but that tomato sauce is so good I could spread it on my shoe and it would seem appetizing.
3. Pincho de solomillo (Top middle photo, at the top of the plate):  Steak.  Awesome steak.  Here, they cut it into little cubes and skewer it, then grill it to medium-rare perfection and serve it alongside luxurious horseradish cream and caramelized red onions that just melt.  Don't skip it.  You'll only be doing yourself a disservice.
4. Jamon serrano (Top left, at the top of the plate):  Cured ham.  If you like prosciutto, you'll love it.  If you've never tried prosciutto, you'll still love it.  If you don't eat pork, you're out of luck.  Oh, and there's Manchego cheese.  So. Good.
5. Patatas con aioli (Top left, right side of the plate):  They say 'robust garlic potato salad.'  I say 'Holy lord, this is so garlicky I'm going to smell like an Italian restaurant for a week or so.'  You won't encounter any vampires afterward.  You also probably won't encounter anyone who wants to kiss you.  Or hug you.  Or come within ten feet of you.  So make sure the whole table eats some.  So you're not left to find your own way home...that would be unfortunate.
6. Champiñones (Top middle, right side of plate):  (Cue the choir music!)  Stuffed mushroom caps!  They're mushrooms stuffed with cheese, breadcrumbs, and more mushrooms.  So good!  (This almost warrants a smiley, but this is my blog, darlings, not my Facebook)

We tried some new stuff this last time, including but not limited to alcachofas con crema (top left, left side of the plate), which is a dish of artichokes topped with a tomato-cream vinaigrette served with tomato and hard-boiled egg, and calamares a la plancha (Top middle, left side of the plate...but you probably guessed that), little squids grilled with olive oil and served with lemon to sprinkle over top.

We tried a bevy of dessert delights at the conclusion of our meal.  I always brake for flan, so I had to inquire about the flan del dia (pictured right).  It was hazelnut!  Perhaps I haven't mentioned this, but I love, love, love hazelnut.  And it certainly didn't disappoint.  I was hard pressed to share a taste of my dessert in exchange for tastes of everyone else's.

Let's see...my sister had something called delicia de chocolate (At left).  And delicious is how I would describe it.  It was a rich, ganache-like mousse cake served with a smooth and luscious raspberry coulis.

My mom had crema catalana (shown right), which is Spain's answer to creme brulee.  It wasn't as heavy as a traditional creme brulee, and it had a citrusy flavor.  While I far preferred the flan and the delicia, the crema was tasty if you're not interested in trying something adventurous.

We left the restaurant pleasantly full, and ready for a nap.  The whole meal took more than two and a half hours.  I think that's the real Spanish experience that you find at Meson Sabika.  They don't rush you out the door.  They refill your drink, place orders for a few more small plates, and let you relax and chat while you slowly and laboriously finish your dessert and coffee.

Next time we'll enjoy our meal on the outdoor patio.  Enjoy being the optimal word.

~Amateur Foodie.