Topolobampo
Last Thursday was my brother’s 28th birthday. I was in town (Chicago) at the time. So I went with to his birthday dinner at Topolobampo. This dinner alone was worth the trip to chicago.
We got there really early for our reservation, so we bummed around in the bar until they were ready to seat us. Unfortunately, I’m still not drinking.
Once we got seated, it got really interesting. The menu was just phenomenal. It changes all the time, so this link will get stale, but I will copy the text of things of note for posterity. It was seriously hard to pick my food out, so much of it looked good.
I started out with a half dozen oysters. They were fresh and succulent. A perfect way to start out the meal.
Next up:
Crema de Espárrogos ~: creamy soup of Mick’s Michigan asparagus studded with thick shreds of smoked heritage turkey, wood-roasted poblano chile, crunchy cucumber and fresh cilantro
This soup was just phenomenal. The soup was so light and tasty. And the condiments really added to the experience, without overpowering.
As a side note, I was really sad that no one ordered:
Camarones en “Horchata†~: flame-broiled Hawaiian king prawns served in warm, cinnamon-scented, toasted almond horchata sauce; steamed camote (white sweet potato), pasilla chile and Three Sisters Garden greens
It looked so good, but I didn’t want the shrimp after oysters. And no one else at the table seemed to be in the mood for that either. Sad, because it does sound tasty.
My main course:
Pollito en Mole Negro ~: Gunthorp heritage rock hen in classic Oaxacan black mole (made from chilhuacle chiles and 28 other ingredients) with black bean tamalón and pickled chayote-jalapeño salad
This was wonderfully delicious. The mole actually tasted almost identical to the one at Vive Sol, my favorite Mexican restaurant in the bay area. But the whole plate was tasty, the sides and hen and sauce going so well together. Fresh corn tortillas were also served with the main courses. They were warm and soft and delightful.
Sadly, the dessert menu is not posted, so I can’t post exactly what I had – a strawberry & key lime tart. This was a great dessert, it was subtle, not overly rich or sour or sweet. A perfect end to the meal.
Everything that everyone ordered from the menu was fantastic. There were no low points to anyone’s meal. My brother, sister-in-law and dad found a spanish white wine that they liked a lot. I drank some sparkling limeade which was mighty tasty. My mom got drunk on a Margarita at the bar.
If you ever have an opportunity to eat here when you are in Chicago, do it. Also, a special note – you can order the food from the Topolobampo at the bar which is shared with Frontera Grill. You’d lose on atmosphere, but might win on convenience.
Here are some pictures.