Adobo Grill
1610 N. Wells
Chicago, IL
We had an 8 o’clock show at Second City with M and his family, so we needed to find someplace close and crowd-pleasing for dinner. We settled on Adobo Grill, which is conveniently located right next door to the theater on Wells. The restaurant was lively when we arrived, with warm yellow walls and crowds of theatergoers getting a bite to eat of a drink at the bar. Adobo’s menu consists of some upscale takes on traditional Mexican food – tamales, sopes, enchiladas, etc. They are also known for their extensive tequila and drink selection.
M was pleased to see a rather esoteric ingredient on the menu, like huitlacoche, a specific type of corn fungus prized for its taste (sounds gross, but in reality tastes kind of mushroom-y). Intrigued, we ordered a huitlacoche quesadilla appetizer ($8.50). The quesadilla came stuffed with corn, cheese and ancho salsa, along with the huitlacoche. M said the taste of the huitlacoche itself was very mellow, an much milder than the type he remembers having in Mexico City. We also ordered Adobo Grill’s famous guacamole tableside. They even have a little cart set up with the ingredients all ready for the “Guacamole Lady” who expertly prepares the guac to order in molcajetes (sadly, plastic instead of stone) for each table. Despite the inauthentic molcajetes, the guac was good – we ordered two batches – spicy and mild ($7.99)
For entrees, I (L) ordered the chicken enchiladas with mole rojo ($14.99), but I substituted Oaxacan black mole sauce instead. The enchiladas came topped with sour cream, añejo cheese, onions; black beans. However, the mole was the star of the show, with perfect notes of sweet and savory. Unfortunately there was one major problem with the entree- the chicken. Honestly, an enchilada can hide a lot when it comes to the quality of the chicken. It seemed like they just took the whole bird, bones and all, and chopped it up to throw in the tortilla – not acceptable. I spent a lot of time simply picking out bone and cartilage chunks, which for $15, isn’t a welcome task. M fared better with his pollo al tamarindo ($15.99) – a grilled half chicken in tamarind-chipotle glaze. The chicken was tender, and the tamarind sauce was pretty sweet, but offset by the smoky chipotle kick.
To finish we ordered a chocolate flan ($5.99) and churros ($5.99) to share among the table. M and I were reminded again that we are not particularly fans of flan – as it is a bit too gelatinous for us. We know – that’s the appeal of flan – so we assume Adobo Grill’s rendition was perfectly fine. The churros were pretty basic (you cant mess up a churro) – but the chocolate sauce made the dessert and was perfect for dipping. Adobo Grill has to be used to theater patrons on tight schedules, because our meal went like clockwork, with plenty of time to spare before the show. Despite this, we still feel that Adobo Grill is good, not great, especially for the price point. We hear that a popular plan is to just order the guac and some drinks, which may be the route we go in the future.
Eating The World 