My boyfriend and I went to Macarena Tapas for Valentine's Day. We had no problem calling the day before and getting an 8pm reservation. We arrived a few minutes early and had to wait just a few minutes before being sitted. The host was very nice and personable during the few minute wait.
Our waiter told us right away that 2-3 tapas per person is the norm so we chose 5 to share:
1. Scallops wrapped in bacon - This was highly recommended in other reviews and they did not disappoint. I would definitely order this again.
2. Beef Empanadas - This was one that was recommended by our waiter but I did not care for it. The empanada itself was good but I thought the parsley garlic sauce almost had a dill taste to it that was not very good. I would not order this one again.
3. Seared ribeye with mushroom sauce and blue cheese - I am not a blue cheese fan but it was not overpowering on this dish. This was not so much a tapa as other items on the menu. The serving size was larger and it was kind of difficult to eat - the knife on the table was not good for cutting through the meat. I would not order this one again.
4. Mushroom and apple croquettes in honey aioli - These were delicious! I even asked my boyfriend if it would be appropiate for me to lick the leftover aioli straight off the plate. Definitely will order this again next time.
5. Beef tenderloin medallions with manchego cheese - I loved this one too. The cheese and beef went very well together. I will order this one again.
We also shared a crafe of the roja sangria. It was good but we both have had better sangria. Next time I think I will try the white.
Also, this was our 2nd visit - last time we shared the garlic shrimp and the goat cheese croquettes - both amazing!!
The atmosphere is small and intimate. The first time we went was on a busy Saturday night and the service was not great... definitely better this past visit on Valentine's Day. We will definitely visit again for special ocassions as those tapas can add up to be quite pricey ($40ish a person).
As you can see fellow Yelpers, I've been on a Mediterranean kick lately and was excited to head out to a tapas bar! Yay for Groupon!
Very nice, quaint place in the western suburbs. Tastefully decorated, kinda noisy and small but they work the cozy bistro angle quite well. I think it would be nice for lunch.
I had the pork medallions with the coconut and orange teriyaki sauce... muy bueno! Very tender and tasty! Food was excellent. If the chef's goal was to win me over with the first bite, he did it! It's quite rare that you find a tasty, well prepared meal out here in Olive Garden hell.
Staff was very nice while we were there, though we had an issue with making the reservation. We were hung up on once, then got a voicemail when calling back. It took 12 minutes to finally get the reservation so 1 star deducted for that.
Such is life.
Macarena Tapas is a good restaurant. I've been here 3 times now and I must say I really enjoy it every time I go. Then I kind of forget about it and when I go again, I remember how much I liked it.
Last time I went, we got 4 tapas to split between the 2 of us. First was the patas alioli, which I liked, but not as much as ones I've had elsewhere. Second was spinach stir fried with apples, raisins, and walnuts. That one was really excellent. Then we got the goat cheese croquettes that I didn't care for (because I don't like goat cheese) but my husband loved them. And finally we had the empanadas with beef, they were fantastic and had a great sauce. I also have to recommend the bacon wrapped dates, I've had them previously and really liked them.
So why did I not give Macarena 5 stars? Well first, it's a little pricey, I guess I'm used to tapas in Chicago and it's usually not as expensive. The sangria especially is kind of expensive in comparison. Also I feel like I can re-create a lot of the dishes myself. We actually recreated the bacon wrapped dates and spinach at home easily. Then again, I liked the dishes so much it made me want to make them at home. So really, that's my only real critique of this place. The food isn't anything super fancy, but I can appreciate good simplicity.
One thing I do have to commend the restaurant on is their service. Every time I go I really appreciate the wait staff who are very friendly. Also, when we ordered the empanadas, the waiter told us that there were supposed to be 4 in an order and he only had 3, so he would give them to us for free. He didn't have to tell us that and he did, so I was pretty impressed. I like to support businesses like that.
We enjoyed our visit to Macarena Tapas. The food was good and the atmosphere reminded us of the places we like in the city. For those who have complained about the size of the restaurant or the spacing of the tables, you may want to stick with the big chain restaurants so ubiquitous in the burbs. The layout of this place is almost identical to most of the small restaurants in the city.
Now, on to the food! The stand out items for us were the Garlic Shrimp, Patatas Bravas, and the Banana desert. While everything was good, these dishes really stood out as good renditions of classic tapas dishes.
I would return for sure.
I enjoy the innovative dishes at Macarena Tapas. They do a great job at fusing together different flavors and the small plates allow you the opportunity to try a handful of different items. Â We have dined here several times for dinner and also love the sangria options. Â We prefer the hot tapas and some of our favorites are the Maccarones con Queso Azul, Patatas Bravas, Croquetas de Queso de Cabra, and I loved the popcorn soup they used to serve. Â The only issue is the slow service. Â The last few times we have dined the evening always starts out great until it is time to get our check and then the process is very slow as the server is not very attentive.
Review Source:Excellent Restaurant, would recommend to anyone! Created a Yelp account, just so I could leave a review for them.
After reading Yelp reviews, my husband and I thought we would try this restaurant on New Years Eve. Glad we did, we had a great overall experience.
Environment: Small, intimate, happy, dim light and simple. People say it's too small...I actually enjoyed it, think it's what gives it its charm.
Food: HIGHLY recommend the following;
-Vieiras envueltas en tocino, scallops wrapped in bacon. Delicious and innovative.
-Croquetas de queso de cabra goat cheese fritters. My personal favorite!!!!!!! Try it.
-Datiles con tocino, dates wrapped in bacon. Great.
-Pallea de marisco. Very Good, but missing a bit of flavor.
Additionally, owners of the restaurant are very hands-on. You don't find this too often. I loved this about this place. Very personable and gave great service!!
From what I hear, they will be opening a location in St. Charles.
Very good food, very nice servers, nice looking interior. I just wish the place was larger. The only other complaint was that our water wasn't refilled. Our waiter was fantastic and offered a ton of recommendations for dishes to try. Every tasted fantastic. We were able to get a reservation for a Saturday night for a party of 5 the same night. I definitely want to go again.
Review Source:It was ok, but wasn't the greatest. Â The place was empty when we went in for lunch and the staff awkwardly stood around and alternated between watching us eat and chatting loudly with one another. Â It just felt very uncomfortable. Â As for the food, it wasn't anything amazing. Â The spicy potatoes were the best dish that we had there. Â I would say that if you are craving tapa style food, there are probably better places out there.
Review Source:I won't hold the fact that my GPS misguided me to this place against my review, so we were late for our reservation this past weekend. Â I called, asked for directions mentioning we'd be late and we were still seated promptly so a plus for that!
A friend of mine checked into this place on facebook and had like 20 comments about how great this place was. Â I stumbled upon a groupon so I figured I'd check it out. Â Yes, this place is SMALL so I encourage you to make reservations for sure. Â The place was packed full at 6:30 on a Saturday and people coming in had a half hour wait so keep that in mind.
We ordered a spanish salad (mind you I have no idea what the spanish names were to what we ate so I'll describe them the American way :) Â The salad had walnuts and fruit and was delicious!!! Â Next we had beef skewers, then the goat cheese fritters (yum) and finally we decided on the pulled pork on crostini which was a special for the night...it was all fabulous!!! And washed down with the raspberry sangria, also fabulous!
The couple next to us asked if we'd ever been there...they informed us that our waiter was the owner! Â He was extremely entertaining and the service was exceptional. Â At the end of the night we both received 2 $15 off coupons on our next visit. Â With our Groupon for $20 off, our bill came to around $35 - not bad. Â Worth checking out for sure!!!
Buyer beware if you bought a Groupon they will treat you badly. We were ignored most of the night and out check took about 20 minutes to arrive even after we requested it. Since the beginning when we let them know we had a Groupon the waiter didn't seem too pleased. Not to mention, feeling sick to my stomach after eating there. Will not go back. IT WAS a waste of time and money. The place is so cramped, you can  barely walk in.
Review Source:Ambiance and service is nice but food was not that good. The beef was chewy, the garlic shrimp was tasteless, the meatballs tasted gamey, the ham and cheese was doused in olive oil and even the bread was just ok. Â Definitely not worth going. Â Good thing I got a Groupon of $20 for $10 otherwise I would have been more disappointed.
Review Source:I really like this place a lot, but when I walked in, I was immediately disappointed by how small it was and the seemingly unclean silverware and glasses they provided us with after we had to sit at the bar because there were no tables left. After getting over my initial disappointment, I ended up being very happy with my seat at the bar because we sat by the kitchen, so we could see all the food coming out, which helped us decide on a few things to try. We tried a couple different things which were all good. We tried the beef empanadas with green sauce, the spicy potatoes (not sure what the real name is but the waitress said it was the spiciest thing on the menu, but trust me, they're not spicy like that), the blue cheese mac n' cheese (which I didn't too much care for but my fiance loved it), and the garlic shrimp. Oh, and our waitress was nice, she explained and translated all of the things on the menu we had questions about, and even made some recommendations for us! The only reason this place did not get five stars is because they clearly need a bigger location. I'm not sure why they picked a store front for a tapas place this good, I'm sure they'd get more business if they had a bigger space...
We came here because of a groupon, but we'll return because of the awesome food.
I had high expectations for this tapas place considering the reviews on here are good, but after having their tapas I was sorely disappointed. The dishes don't taste nearly as good as they're described in the menu. We ordered one dish which tasted HORRIBLE and when we told the waiter, he tasted it and said it was because they "forgot" to put one of the ingredients in there! How can they forget how to make these dishes? Even though he was kind of rude, he was decent enough to take that dish off our bill since we didn't like it. But I would NOT recommend this restaurant. Even having a groupon wasn't worth going to this place and paying to eat such bad food.
If you want a good and authentic tapas restaurant go to Cafe Iberico in Chicago. Hands down the best tapas you will have there. Don't waste your time and money here.
This.place.is.tiny!
I didn't like that we were seated RIGHT NEXT TO (read: bumping chairs) another table when there was a restaurant full of other tables since we got here on a Monday night, and it was all but dead. Â But then they left, and when another family came, they put them RIGHT NEXT TO US AGAIN. Â Dude, spread the wealth...
Other than that, I thought the experience was great! Â I had a drink that was strong, but I don't remember the name of it (correlation between the two, perhaps??).
There were three of us, and we ordered four tapas. Â We got the Croquetas de Queso de Cabra (Goat cheese fritters), Patatas Bravas Estilo Americano (Spicy Potatoes w/ cheese), and the BBQ Pulled Pork over tostadas. Â Later on, we ordered the bacon-wrapped dates, but I didn't have any of those.
But the food was really good! Â Flavorful, for sure. The spicy potatoes were definitely too spicy for this white girl, but I got to enjoy a few bites before the spice crept up on me! Â My favorite, by FAR, was the Pulled Pork over Tostadas. Â Those were amazing. Â Flavorful, crunchy, and fresh--all I could ask for!
I would definitely go there again, even without the Groupon that we had!
I bought a LivingSocial voucher for this place and I was extremely disappointed. Â Here's why:
1) Extremely expensive for the portion sizes. Â Example: I ordered the asparagus and roasted red peppers for $8.50. Â When I received the dish, there were literally 6 pieces of asparagus (baby asparagus, not even the big ones) and 3 miniature slices of red pepper. Â
2) Does not taste like true tapas. Â The food was lacking flavor, and not well cooked. Â For example, the patatas bravas were not at all spicy and were rather mushy instead of being crispy. Â
3) Small interior. Â Even though the place was not busy, I felt extremely cramped in there.
4) Poor service. Â The waitor was not prompt, did not refill our waters, did not clear empty places timely, etc..
Overall, I was not happy with the experience and will not go back again.
My boyfriend saw a Groupon Coupon for Macarena Tapas and mentioned he had been there a few years ago and suggested we go for dinner. Â So glad we did -- the experience was delightful.
We started with 2 cold dishes -- the marinated olives and salmon with capers & cavier in a paprika tartar sauce. Â The salmon dish was wonderful, the flavors blended wonderfully and I was glad we ordered the olives as an accompaniment. Moving on to the hot dishes, we had the goat cheese in a tomato sauce with bread, but, unfortunately, the bread was like a burnt Texas toast and soggy, but the tomato sauce was fresh and tasty. Then roasted asparagas with peppers in a balsemic reduction -- wonderful. Â For a protein we had the pulled pork -- I thought I was at an authentic Texas barbecue as the sauce was wonderfully smokey.
But we finished with the item you just have to try -- it took the place of dessert for us -- Macaroni with blue cheese. Â Now, I admit I will eat blue cheese with anything, but this was to die for. Â Hot pepper flakes were added to the blue cheese topping on the macaroni, giving the creaminess of the dish a bit of a kick without being overwhelming. You must have this...it's not macaroni for the kiddies.
We will definitely be returning -- even without a coupon. Â The staff was top notch, with everyone from the hostess to the 2 other servers, who when passing, stopping to check if we needed anything. Â Be sure to make a reservation on a Saturday evening as they do get crowded.
The thing I hated the most about this restaurant is how small the interior is.
That's it.
This place was phenomenal. Â My picky girlfriend (she's less picky lately, but used to be pretty bad) and I headed here for dinner and we are already looking forward to going back. Â When we arrived the hostess politely let us know they had a couple of large parties coming in, but still offered to seat us provided we could be done somewhat quickly. Â I appreciated the heads up, we told her we would, and she showed us to our seats.
We had 4 dishes, and since I was embarrassed enough trying to use the Spanish names with the waiter, I'm not going to even try here. Â
1) Our first dish was the bacon wrapped scallops with chipotle cream and avocado sauce. Â We both offered to split the last one on the plate, but we were equally begrudging about it.
2) We moved onto the pulled pork dish which had, again, an avocado sauce and crumbled Latin cheese. Â It was somewhat sweet with a little spice to it all well balanced with the accompanying flavors.
3) The potatoes in tomato sauce dish was equally great. Â My favorite aspect of this dish was it delivered on the spice the menu promised without blowing out our taste buds. Â This was built by someone educated and talented.
4) The Tortilla (that's actually the Spanish name, it was the omelet dish) we had to take to go, but it was fantastic. Â Very light and flavorful.
It may be small, but if that is the reason they are able to turn out such great food I hope they take it down to a two seater restaurant. Â
Dibs on the first reservation.
We are not experienced in the tapas scene - writing from the perspective of novices. Â There were 3 of us and it seemed that the tables were too small for any more than a party of 2. Â At times there was virtually no place to set anything down. Â
Although we understood that what was being served would be in the format of appetizers, the portions seemed to be small for the price. Â At other restaurants I recall being concerned about having sufficient "room" for the entree after indulging in just one appetizer, let alone 3 tapas platters. Â . Â
What was served was tasty. Â However, one of the asparagus spears was too stringy to chew (with exception of the leafy part), and one of the beef skewers contained excessive grizzle and couldn't be chewed. Â For the prices being paid I would expect the food quality to be at least "fully edible". Â
The sangria was OK - nothing special. Â It seems that for what we paid for a half carafe would have purchased a full pitcher elsewhere.
The server (Jen) was pleasant, accommodating, and willing to answer our questions in sufficient detail.
Rules for running a restaurant:
1.) Spell check your website.
2.) Don't put your boring/tacky name-dropping resume on the front of your menu.
3.) Don't put potatoes in a pan over heat because they oxidize and turn black.
4.) Refill waters.
5.) Clear plates.
6.) Cut the artichokes so they don't look like you poured them out of a can.
7.) Purchase plateware that isn't too big for tapas.
8.) Don't serve soggy texas toast with your Queso de Cabra.
8.) Do not activate credit card and remove sticker at work. Â Definitely don't let the sticker find a way into patron's food.
9.) Make a better attempt to be professional.
Additional Note: Take a class on problem solving and interpersonal speaking. Â Consider adding to boring resume.
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I will never go back to this dump of a restaurant. Â The food is mediocre at best. For how many classes you've claimed to have taken...and don't even get me started on your supposed El Bulli class...your quality of food is a disgrace to the culinary artists you claim to have learned from. It's boring. Â It's not homemade. Â I can dump things out of a can and mix them with olive oil and garlic powder and pretend I'm a chef, too. Â Give me creativity. Give me artistry. Â Give me quality. Â
I'm pissed off at my experience. Â We tried to be nice and tell the owner, quietly, about a piece paper in our food (not a paper, a sticker, an activation sticker to a credit card...how does that happen again? how?) Â and we get some mumbley-jumbley apology that was completely incoherent and included an excuse that I don't care about. Â don't care. Â don't care about your excuse for a completely UNACCEPTABLE incident. Â I mean at least they took that one item off our bill. Â That's probably the only positive thing that happened all evening.
This place is a joke. Â You can make your own tapas at home and save yourself $60.
Owner (?) was really attentive. Â Offered my friend wine samples so she could choose her wine. Â He gave us plenty of time to study the menu but we didn't feel forgotten or neglected. Â
I would love to take a date there because I am sure it would be memorable. Â I was a little surprised at a family walking in. Â So beware there could be children to interrupt your romantic/intimate evening.
All in all a great dinner. Â :-)
I love Macarena Tapas!!
I don't understand why a restaurant with so delicious food is in such a small place like this , they deserve a biggest  place with a nice patio!!
The menu here is really complete, the only dish that I will add is        "albondigas".
I went with my hubby few weeks ago and we were really happy with the food and service. If you have been in Spain before you will taste very similar flavors in each taas ( it won't be exactly the same as we are in a different country) here.
Everything taste fresh and that is a plus!!
Came here for a late dinner with a Groupon. Wasn't really sure what to expect, as some of the reviews mentioned terrible service and bland food. As mentioned in previous reviews, Macarenas Tapas is a quaint little restaurants, with 10-15 tables. The restaurant has mood lighting and the decor has a Spanish flair, making it very suitable for a date night.
We were seated promptly and given menus, water, and bread. Being our first time at the restaurant, we asked for suggestions and the number of tapas to order. Our waitress, Jenn (I think?), said that we could start with 2-4 tapas and order more if that wasn't sufficient. She was super courteous and was all smiles!
I enjoyed my mango sangria. I didn't think that it was too watered down; you could still taste the wine. There were what I think is an average amount of fruit in my glass.
We started off the with the bacon-wrapped dates and goat cheese with artichokes. The dates were delicious! (My mouth's watering). There were probably b/w 8-10 of these bite-size dates on the dish. The sweetness of the dates and the honey glaze were a perfect match with the bacon. The bacon was perfect - not too crispy. The girlfriend thought this dish was on the sweet side though. The goat cheese had a pretty strong taste. The cheese was in a little dish of marinara sauce, which you were supposed to put on a piece of garlic bread. We thought this dish was average. the goat cheese may take a little getting used to.
Still being hungry, we ordered the bacon-wrapped scallops and the crab cakes. The scallops were very tasty. There were 6 of them on the plate. Each had a bit of avocado, Chipotle aioli, and Teriyaki  sauce to complement the bite. The scallops were very tender. All the flavors made this a memorable dish. The crab cakes were okay. The cakes were bite-size and there wasn't very much crab in them. There was a small helping of cabbage on each of the 4 crab cakes.
By the end of the meal, we were both stuffed and we opted to pass on the dessert. However, the dessert menu did look promising. There were a couple of custards (hard and soft). The cheesecake of the evening was also passion fruit! Overall, I enjoyed the meal. (Get the dates!) I don't have any complaints about the service. With drinks and about 4 tapas, you're looking to spend about $60 minus t+t for a couple.
I was so excited to get the groupon for this restaurant last summer and it took me until today to cash it in. This was my first and last visit to an otherwise promising place. The website was chic and it touted the chef's skill. It was near my boyfriend's new apartment. I love tapas. It had so much going for it that it almost makes me sad that I won't be returning. Almost.
Upon arrival, my dining companion were greeted by the hostess who seemed obviously taken aback by our presence. We were dressed casually in t shirts and jeans but not anything to be remotely shocked at. We were seated promptly, however we were placed in a cramped area by the bar about 12 inches from another set of patrons. Our server joked and otherwise was very friendly to our neighbors but short and rather stern to my companion and I. I mentioned before ordering that we had our groupon and he made a fuss about it not being applicable to the special all you can eat menu (which I understand and was not planning on ordering from) almost to the point of adamant  chastisement.
We attempted to order an item but in the middle of saying the dish name our server interrupted us saying "no! We don't have that. It'll take 30 minutes." I understand restaurants run out of stuff but the abject rudeness of his interjection set me aback. We finished ordering with no further issues.
The food was mediocre at best. The dates were overly sweet, drizzled (more like poured) with honey. The hambuergesas were bland aside from the chipotle mayo which was pretty tasty. The tortilla de patatas was devoid of any flavor yet greasy like Chinese take out egg Foo young and there were definitely eggshells in it. Aside from bringing the plates we had no interaction with any of the staff, not even to see how we were doing etc.
Overall the pretentiousness of the staff and clientele was a bummer. The high prices ($15 for their manchego and naming) only added another nail to the coffin. I will not be returning, even though they had so much potential.
I went back for a visit and gotta say that I really was disappointed with the experience. Â Their new menu is very non-descriptive as compared to before and it left me feeling like there wasn't a thing I even wanted to try. Â I ordered the beef skewers which were flavorless and half of the order was very raw, while the other half was cooked properly. Â One of the bites made me think the meat was bad, like old/expired bad. Â
On the positive side, the patatas bravas have made an incredible improvement with the garlic cheese topping...the sauce, too, seemed better than I remember it to have been.
Adore this place! The food is excellent and the owner so friendly and interesting to talk to! The kitchen has always been so accommodating-- I usually go with a group and am the only vegetarian so if we order a dish like the bacon wrapped dates they always leave 1 date without bacon for me. The fried goat cheese croquettes are to die for and even something as simple as potatas bravas is super!
The inside is small, decorated beautifully, and intimate. Very nice spot for a first date!
I love tapas, but I am not in love with Macarena Tapas. It's such a shame, because it has a lot going for it: well dressed and attentive servers, the best Mojito I've ever had anywhere, a wide selection of dishes to chose from and very attractive decor. However, I was underwhelmed by most other aspects: It's hard to find, hard to get to and even harder to get out of their location. They are nestled between a Big & Tall and a Weight Watchers *snickers*, which isn't bad but they aren't open on Mondays. I came when closed and had to come back the following weekend.
It could have been because I came the last week to redeem a Groupon that JoJo F. graciously gifted me with, but on a Saturday evening around 5pm they had no available tables until 8:30pm. You'll probably want to make reservations. We opted to be immediately seated at the bar. I think it was a good choice because we wanted to just have some light bites and hit the road. Usually bar seating gets you in and out faster.
I ordered the Sangria and my boyfriend got the Mojito. I was thoroughly unimpressed with the Sangria. It was weak and diluted. There were a few bits of fruit but I found myself wanting more. The Mojito, on the other hand, was spectacular. I would come back just to drink those!
The food is nothing to write home about, unless you make it a point to write home about uninspired dishes. Honestly, if I had never had tapas before this would probably have been four stars. Nothing was bad, but it just wasn't great. The Beef Meatballs with sauteed mushroom in a rioja red wine reduced sauce were OK. The Grilled Squid had a delicious sauce that I soaked up with bread. I was expecting the Patatas Bravas to be the show stopper as they are at Chicago's Cafe Ba Ba Reeba. Sadly, they were not.
4 stars for food, 2.5 stars for service.
My friend told me we had to come here, she'd been before. Any time I hear tapas, I think bacon wrapped dates and I'm there.
I really enjoyed the items we ordered, I had the salmon, my friends had the scallops, we were all happy. The goat cheese fritters were great as was the coconut shrimp. Â We were all fans of the meatballs. As an aficionado of all things wrapped in bacon, I felt that the bacon-wrapped dates w/ honey were good, but not the best I ever had.
The sangria was okay, but I had piece of the core in my drink, which isnt appealing. The mojito was good, my friend ordered it, but when she went to order another - she was told they ran out of mint (on a Friday night before 8PM? hmm...)
As for the service, our server was all about the business, getting us in and getting us out. She didnt seem to realize we wanted more water (even after we asked, we had to remind her). She wasnt particularly engaging nor was she attentive - no clearing of plates, asking if we needed more bread, getting new plates, etc. That was disappointing...
You can miss this place without trying.The address of this place is on 59, but it really is on Aurora - if you are coming from  59, head east on Aurora and its on the right side in the first of many strip malls.
Bring back the all-you-can-eat and popcorn soup!
Macarenas used be one of my fav tapas bars because they had small portions and a large variety of tapas (including the amaaazing popcorn soup) so I was able to try a bunch of different dishes during every visit. Unfortunately, they no longer have that all-you-can-eat special with small portions, and instead have much larger portions now with a higher price point. Still good, but you're kinda stuck with 2 or 3 dishes per visit (unless you come with a large group). And no more popcorn soup =(
But if you have a big appetite or are coming with a big group, this is not a bad place.
I'm a fan.
We've been to 15+ different tapas places all over the country and I feel they get it right here from a service perspective. Â Victor is a good guy, and he's always willing to share in the history of tapas in Chicago, the different families involved, and how they do things differently. Â
Plus, the menu changes. Â We've been to Meson Sabika numerous times and it's simply not creative. Â Same selections every time. Â the wine list is "better" than Macarena in the sense that you can get really solid reservas and old vine selections. Â Macarena is better than Tango for sure.
Great affordable bottles at Macarena. Â It's a perfect weekday visit. Â
Top food selections: goat cheese fritters, chicken skewers, bacon-wrapped dates w/ honey, albondigas (meatballs).
I honestly don't care about the ambience. Â Give me a solid selection of varying tapas, reliable wines, and great service and I'm a happy camper. Â
In fact, I'd eat these tapas and drink wine on the curb. Â Really a non-issue. Â We are talking about Spanish bar food here, people.
I hope they stay open. Â Hard to stay open tucked away in a strip mall in Naperville.
Got food, payed 35$, was so hungry after I went home and cooked myself a hamburger. Â When I reflect on my Macarena experience that's what I remember. Â
Took my girlfriend for food because we pass it from time to time and finally decided to give it a shot. Â We were seated pretty much immediately, which was nice. Â The only tables open for two people were tucked into the corner by the front of the store, which would have been fine, but it was sub zero outside and the store doesn't have proper insulation, so it was freezing at our table.
Our server came and visited with the table next to us and was chatty and made jokes and laughed with the couple next to us in spanish, turned around and all the mirth drained out of him. Â He was didn't answer my questions about the menu, which wasn't very descriptive and generally gave off the attitude that he was putting up with us. Â Because of this, we ended up ordering four things off the menu, two of which had we known what we were actually getting we would have steered clear of due to food sensitivities.
Portions were tiny but it's tapas, what do you expect. Food was hit and miss: Â Chicken Fritters were inedible but the honey bacon dates were unbelievably wonderful. Â And everything was expensive, but again Tapas. Â
Time has made me less bitter about my trip here. Â If I had 80 bucks to blow and a party of four I'm sure it would be a blast, and the food wasn't bad, we just didn't have the information to make well informed decisions on what to order, and it's hard for me to fault a restaurant for that. Â But service was poor, and it was cold, and the seating staff were less than professional. Â Your visit might rock. Â Mine sucked.
Came back for lunch today, as they've started serving lunch on the weekends. Â Food was great, service was friendly, BUT: they charged me $0.30 for two slices of lemon with my water. Â Seriously, you guys??? Â So INCREDIBLY tacky. Â I mean, I'm spending $6-10 for each small plate of food here, please don't nickel-and-dime me like I'm at a freaking Chili's.
/rant
Terrible name, terrible location, great food, excellent service. Thank god I went here with someone from the area, because I would never have found it on my own. It's in one of a dozen strip malls along Route 59, nestled between a For Eyes and a Casual Male (aka "the fat man store"). Search the address on Google Maps, and in addition to those establishments you are given a choice of Cingular Wireless, Closet Works, Helzburg Diamonds, Household Finance, and Second Wind Exercise Equipment.
Once you walk through the door, though, all trepidation melts away. It's a very welcoming spot, with warm walls, cute design accents (my friend calls them "touches of elegance"), and best, a bar. The bar only serves wine and sangria, but when that sangria is 99 cents a glass (on Tuesdays), how can you lose?
The server was very knowledgeable, steering us toward some of his favorite dishes, and away from choices which were pedestrian or repetitive. If there's tapas, there must be dates wrapped in bacon, and these were excellent, served with a bit o' honey. Other standouts include the goat cheese croquettes, the beef tenderloin with horseradish sauce, the chorizo empanadas, and the pork loin. One member of our group ordered the lentil soup, which he declared the best ever. (He has not been to Taste of Lebanon, so I will forgive him.) The big disappointment for me was the grilled octopus, which was tough and flavorless. On the other hand, the desserts were surprisingly good. I don't think of dessert when I think of tapas. But there was this chocolate mousse... I'm not even a chocolate nut, but I couldn't get enough of it.
In all, we devoured 16 different items and managed to spend $130. For dinner for four. Not bad. Though I admit, the buck sangrias helped keep the price down. At the time, the server told us they were planning to offer unlimited tapas for 16 bucks a head. It seems that have started running this special, so I would recommend running to Macarena Tapas. It's well worth the price.
$15.95 pp all you can eat tapas on Sundays - if that's not enough to entice you, I'm here to tell you the food is fantastic.
Returned last night with Johnbee and two other friends. Â We pigged out and the tab was $132 + tip. Â 16 tapas, four desserts, 7 sangrias and one glass of champagne. Â The $0.99 sangrias helped matters - I didn't realize this was a Tuesday night perk. Â But they've lowered prices since we last dined.
It's a 9/10.
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