In the Neighborhood
It’s got a small, dark tiki-bar feel, with the kitchen’s beaded curtain, high rattan-backed chairs, and the long bamboo-lined counter behind which our server whipped up mango and almond milk shakes as good as the famous ones at Irazu. Atlas Cafe bills itself as an “international kitchen”: the menu hops around madly from club sandwiches to (in winter) charquican, a Chilean stew, with a welcome $10 cap on nearly every item. The zalouk starter, a Mediterranean roast eggplant salad, was tangy and nicely spiced, with warm pita triangles on the side. Apio y avocado, a mound of big, squared-off celery stalks and creamy avocado with a light vinaigrette, was the size of an entree. A bland, overly oily garbanzo salad was a miss, but a veggie empanada was perfectly hot and crisp, and spinach ravioli had a blushing tomato sauce that begged to be sopped up (sadly, no breadbaskets here). The menu leans toward the vegetarian, and the kitchen can be spotty handling meat dishes: grilled salmon was hopelessly dry, but another night’s cheeseburger was just fine, served on a nice eggy challah bun. And we loved the cheesecake with a blackberry drizzle. —Tasneem Paghdiwala
$American, Ice Cream | Breakfast, Lunch: Sunday, Tuesday-Saturday; Dinner: Tuesday-Friday | Closed Monday | Reservations not accepted | Cash only | BYO
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It’s a long way from Malaika Marion’s first Chicago job at Planet Hollywood to her “soup, sandwich, and shake shack” on the western fringe of Logan Square. Most recently a manager at Lula Cafe, Marion’s lived in the neighborhood for years and when she saw the teeny Armitage storefront she knew the time was right to break out on her own. With help from her partner, Adam Lebin—formerly the GM at Red Light—she’s turned the space into a sunny, six-table destination for hearty down-home standards like a gooey grilled peanut butter, banana, and honey sandwich and beefarific chili laced with head-clearing handfuls of cumin and chile (a vegan version is also available). The daunting Reuben—a popular choice based on an unscientific peek at the other tables—comes piled with thick folds of corned beef topped with the traditional Thousand Island dressing and melted Swiss, plus grilled onions. There’s also rich mac ‘n’ cheese, meatball subs, Goose Island root beer floats, and daily soup, sandwich, and dessert specials (one week it was Lebin’s grandmother’s brownies). —Martha Bayne
Cocina Boricua2420 W. Fullerton | 773-235-7377
This little spot differentiates itself from many of the more home-style Puerto Rican joints on the Paseo Boricua by dividing its menu between “classic” and “modern” Puerto Rican cuisine. A waitress described the latter as “different from Grandma’s”—though not necessarily any less fatty. So for example, there’s a crabmeat-stuffed mofongo made with yucca rather than plantains, or asopaos, a thin, salty red-rice stew with shrimp, chicken, or neither (this, counterintuitively, is described as “traditional”). The “Classic” side includes steaks and other cuts like a dry, tough pork chop that was rescued by a stuffing of mashed plantain and raisins; this comes with truly traditional sides like mofongo, yellow rice, and pigeon peas. The dandified appetizers can be sampled in platters, which yield some tasty ones like arranitas (shredded plantain fritters) and some boring ones like the pastelillios (miniature meat puffs). Coco is more upscale than most Boricuan places in the neighborhood, with a decor meant to evoke old San Juan, DJs and live salsa bands, and plenty of martinis. —Mike Sula
F 7.7 | S 7.3 | A 7 | $$$ (6 reports)Mexican, Seafood | Dinner: seven days | Saturday & Sunday brunch | Open late: Friday & Saturday till 11
