We just came back from Cabo where we had some excellent food, but nothing was as outstanding as Salpicon! Yes, it's pricy, but there is a good reason for that: the food is incredibly fresh, and the flavors are outstanding. You do get what you pay for. I had one of the specials - swordfish with a slightly spicy sauce, mushrooms, and fried leeks as a garnish. I don't really like swordfish, and I normally avoid mushrooms, but the combination sounded so unique that I decided to try it. Wow - it was an incredible combination of ingredients and flavors. The wine list is also notable (I recommend being a bit more generous on the pour, so I hope they read this review - that would be my only suggestion). We were there on a Friday evening, and the service was great - we were well cared for - no one hovered or ignored us.
Review Source:I'm the first to criticize bad food and service, and it's rare that I rave about everything on my plate at a restaurant. I can't say enough good things about Friday night's dinner at Salpicon. I asked for a special preparation on a seafood item, and they were very happy to accommodate a special request. Everything was delicious and fresh. I am not wild about rice, and even that was excellent. My wife and I shared the house salad, which had a flavorful dressing (with cilantro) and generous portion of cherry tomatoes. The wine list has a lot of great options. This is the perfect place for a date night - exceptional food, beautiful setting, and fine service.
Review Source:Fantastic restaurant!! Definitely a favorite of mine. Â The food is always delicious with just the right amount of spices. Â The Staff is very friendly, attentive and knowledgeable on the food or the extensive tequila and wine selections. Â It's a great problem to have deciding between a tasty margarita with my favorite tequila or order from their massive wine list.
My absolute favorite meals are the fish specials with chipotle cream sauce, the lamb shank with red mole, or the beef tenderloin. Â Chef Satkoff is in the Chicago Chefs Hall of Fame and after dining at Salpicon its evident it's a well-deserved honor.
Four of us were excited for a good Sunday night meal. The meal started out well. Good Margaritas and chips/guac. Waiter was good, very descriptive of the menu, energetic.
But that's where this good review stops. The meal was overpriced. Our total bill was over $200 (more about this later) and we each only got one drink each. Hardly any vegetarian options. No one was very impressed with the quality of the meal.
It was only a couple of weeks later that I looked at my credit card statement and noticed a huge charge from Salpicon! Almost $100 more than what I signed for! Of course, I didn't have a receipt, and my CC company said they would need proof I was overcharged. So, I called Salpicon. The woman on the phone couldn't assist me, but said she would pass along the concern. Almost a week later, I get a call from a Salpicon representative. As it turns out, instead of using the 15% tip I wrote on the bill, the waiter charged my credit card with a "tip" of the cost of the bill! So I was charged 2X the bill! Incredible. Thankfully I looked at my cc statement to catch this really bad mistake on Salpicon's part. I'm not sure if the waiter did this intentionally and thought he would get away with it, but either way, it's bad. To add insult to injury, they made the same "mistake" on the other couple's bill we dined with!
If you decide to eat here, make sure you check you credit card bill afterwards!
Salpicon serves five-star food, and if I were the chef, I would be livid to know that I was creating such amazing dishes in a restaurant that appears mismanaged and has bafflingly poor service. I would not recommend this restaurant, unless perhaps you came here on a weeknight when it's less busy or if you can handle the work involved in tracking down your server.
I dined here on a Saturday night for Chicago Restaurant Week, and my first disappointment was the pricing. Â If you don't double check against the regular menu, you may not see that you're actually getting screwed -- that for several combinations, it would be cheaper to order off the regular menu instead of their prix fixe menu.
Take, for example, what my friend ordered off of their $44 menu:
$10 seviche + $20 tinga poblana + $8 pastel tres leches
This is only $38 on their regular menu, but, if you are fortunate enough to dine here during Chicago Restaurant Week and not catch the pricing error, you'll pay $44, as she did.
What a rip off.
My boyfriend had the best deal of the night with the $13 scallops and the $33 quail. My selection was the scallops, the duck, and the chocolate espresso cake (which is $47 on the regular menu, so I saved three bucks). Pricing annoyance aside, each of these was absolutely amazing. The cake was so rich and ooey gooey, and the bacon-wrapped scallops were too die for, and I'm not even particularly fond of bacon (shocking, I know!).
But, then, there was the service.
One friend said that we saw our waiter four times during the meal -- that's four times for a three-course meal plus an additional appetizer. I don't want to rip into him, because I know Salpicon was busy and I know everyone has off nights. But for a meal that cost roughly $75 per person with drinks and gratuity, I don't think it's too much to ask of the server that he come back and check on us and ask us if we would like another drink. My friend's margarita glass sat empty for at least fifteen minutes. We all would have had at least one more round of drinks had we actually been able to get some service.
I don't know what to make of their Restaurant Week pricing -- either they really didn't know what they were doing when they priced it, or they were hoping to take advantage of naive diners. I don't actually think the food is overpriced ordinarily, so I didn't need the price break to eat here, but it was certainly what drew us in. And that just felt sketchy. Add to that the flaky server, and I can only give this three stars.
My apologies to the chef. If only there were a better way to sample your delicacies.
I will NOT be coming back!  I went for restaurant week and was really excited because I had been a couple years ago and liked it, but I was VERY disappointed.  I understand they were busy but that did not excuse the horrible service.  We had a reservation, but our table was not ready when we arrived.  After we were finally seated, no one came to our table for a good fifteen minutes until the waiter finally walked by and brought us water.  He kept disappearing for long periods of time so it took us a very long time to actually order wine and our meals.  I'm pretty sure our waiter forgot to put our dinner orders in because  we had our appetizers and then it was a good 45 minutes before our dinners came out.  The food was good, but it wasn't anything special and definitely did not make up for the bad service.  We had to ask our waiter to order dessert, it took a long time to come out, and then it wasn't very good anyways.  He also overcharged us for our meal so we had to ask him to adjust the bill.  When we talked to the manager, she didn't seem to care that the service was so bad.  We spent a good part of the night just trying to track down our waiter.
I will definitely not be coming back here. Â The food was good, but there are better restaurants with better food and better service, so don't waste your time coming here.
Five stars almost as much for our server Christopher as the food he brought us. I've been out in Old Town any number of times but hadn't ever heard of this place until my date and I stumbled upon it randomly on Thursday night, and I'm glad we did.
Not too packed despite the fact that it was prime time on a Thursday night. Christopher was warm and friendly, his knowledge of the menu blowing both of us away as he took time to explain various dishes in great depth. Despite the fact that we were there for several hours, we never once felt rushed. The food itself is stellar, authentic Mexican with unique flavor profiles that make your taste buds jump. The drink menu features a smoky margarita that tastes unlike any other you've ever had. For oenophiles, there's a fairly extensive wine list and a cellar upstairs that's worth seeing for yourself.
So to recap -- friendly, knowledgable staff + great menu appealing to foodies and non-foodies alike + a drink menu with plenty of options to choose from = five stars. If you go, ask for Christopher because again, he's terrific. Definitely looking forward to my next visit.
I love Salpicon, but I was so disappointed last night when they didnt have Salpicon on the menu! I moved here from Texas and its so hard to find that dish any where!
The food here is definitely authentic Mexican food, so if you are looking for Tex-Mex, you should go elsewhere. The food is delicious and definitely a gem in this town. Â Great food quality and great service. Â I cant wait to go back, I just hope they have salpicon on the menu!!
It started out well enough. Friendly waiter, check. Dim lighting and artwork that lets you know it's an upscale restaurant, check. Initial offering of chips and salsa/guacamole, check. But once I got my plate, it took a nosedive and flatlined from there.
I opted for the pork chop with what the menu called "earthy Oaxacan chile ancho mole." Sounded good! But what I got was a tough, chewy, bland, criminally under-seasoned chop sitting in a pool of the most watery mole I have seen in my life.
With a mole sauce that might more aptly be called "water with a hint of mole flavor", and a pork chop with less seasoning than a tortilla chip, I would almost say this dish was entirely lacking in flavor. But I would be forgetting about the burnt taste from the charred grill marks. That burnt taste dominated the entire dish, and it stayed on my taste buds the entire night. And to top it off, when I got the bill, it turns out they charged $8 for the chips and salsa/guacamole which I thought were complimentary!
In all, a major disappointment. Based on that, I would never come back to this place. Except maybe to steal my money back, which would be justified because they essentially stole it from me.
Normally I would give this experience a generous two stars, but you can't charge $23 for that, and $8 for chips and salsa/guacamole without getting away with it.
My friend and I were strolling along the street on a sunny weekend afternoon, looking for an outside bar to grab a drink or two. We were pretty casually dressed, but looking to drop some serious cash.
Despite the rather empty interior, we were greeted upon entrance with a less than warm look from the hostess that screamed, "oh paupers, off with you!" I thought it was not exactly a great start, but decided to give it a chance. We asked for a table outside and they told us that we could have one for an hour and a half before the guests with reservations arrived. Perfect, that works! Once we got out to the patio, there were quite a few open tables, but we didn't question it. Instead, we just ordered around $150 worth of high-quality tequila.
A few minutes later the server returned to our table and informed us that we could only have an outside table if we were ordering entrees. We asked if we could order a few appetizers instead, since we simple weren't hungry and entrees costs far less than what we would be paying. Simple math eluded the establishment, and they told us that no, we must select from the $12 entrees! It was so absurd that we simply left. No, I do not want to sip my top shelf anejo while sitting at the bar. And no, I do not want your $12 burrito when I would rather order four $8 appetizers.
We went down the street and dropped our cash at a restaurant with a calculator and less of an attitude.
I came here by accident as a last decision choice - and usually I look up places on Ylp before setting out for the night. Â But the reward was worth the trip.
The place is small enough to be called cozy, and when at full tilt I am sure its loud here, but this friday night it was only about half busy and that gave our waiter time to reall explain things better and when you have 100 Tequilas to choose from its worth a little investigation.
The colors are vibrant, the walls and pictures give this a festive atmosphere, while there is outdoor seating who wants that on a 92 degree 8 PM dinner night? We were seated all the way in the back so it was perfect for a dinner date and the waiter was quite funny taking his time to give us some of his other patron stories but left us to our privacy as well so a good balance. Â
The menu has some typical dishes and some non and the specials were worth listening to. Â The Salsa was hot and I am not a big fan of the hot stuff but we also had some Guac to start the night right off and it was fresh and countered the hot nicely. Â Usually in some mexican spots I can get used to the burn of even strong medium salsa but not here so be warned.
The kitchen was slammed with a lot of orders all at once so dinner did take a while to get to us but with a simple request they put 1 margarita on the house for us and my date got to try something else from the list for free. Â She had the large shrimp dish and I had steak Tomatillo. Â I had never found it paird with a filet but it was full of bite and quite tasty with a little cheese on top to counter the spicy sauce.
We skipped dessert, and this is not a cheap resturant so be prepared to shell out more then your average price for dinner. Â When the food and the service are good enough, I dont mind paying more. But because the place was not full I can see on some nights the kitchen could be overwhelmed if not better staffed. Â They told us someone was out that night. Â Well worth a second visit.
Dinner at Salpicon, while delicious, was not quite worth the price point.
We started with shrimp queso fundido appetizer which was delicious and greasy with hot corn tortillas. The boyfriend had a Negro Modelo (he gripes that there is nothing on draft & the bottle selection is poor) and I had a Margarita, with what tequila of the 100 plus they have to offer, you ask? I have no idea. Our waiter was very funny, fast talking and good at his job, he took a look at me and determined what tequila I would like and I went with that and it was delicious! Â I finished out the meal with a second Margarita with a different and delicious tequila, also per our waiters recommendation.
For our main my boyfriend had the Colorado lamb loin chops with a spinach and cheese tamale. He said this was pretty good, cooked medium rare to his liking but the pasilla chile sauce drizzled throughout the dish was too bitter and not the kind of sauce he was looking for to slather his lamb in. The tamale was tasty. The dish was good but not overly exciting or creative. Â While good not a total winner.
I had the Sockeye salmon with grapefruit, Â grilled corn, avocado, cilantro and other delicious accoutrement. The salmon was our waiters recommendation and it was very very good. I was very pleased, the avocado, corn and grapefruit all worked very well together and the fish was incredibly moist and flavorful.
To end we shared a coffee/chocolate molten lava cake which was pretty divine.
Overall the food was good, much better than average, nice food presentation and their impressive tequila selection is really fantastic but the restaurant space itself is small, a little clumsy and cramped. I can't help but compare Salpicon to Carnivale. Their prices are pretty much the same as each other so when it comes to taste and creativity of the food I find Carnivale to be way more delicious and a much more rewarding dinner experience for the same price.
In sum - certainly not a bad restaurant, the tequila selection is a big plus if you're into good tequila but for the price there are better dinners to be had (namely at Carnivale for a similar style food and restaurant feel).
A friend and I went for dinner the other night. Â The food was very good, and the decor wonderful. Â But the waiter was rushed, patronizing, and inattentive. Â When we left a small tip on the credit card, he increased it! Â He felt the service was excellent, so he increased the tip after she signed the credit card slip.
My friend was able to get the tip back to what she had determined it to be, but only after quite a long conversation with the manager.
Will not go there again.
My husband and I ate here last night; he had been once before, but this was my first time. Â Our entire experience was wonderful. Our waiter, margaritas, wine recommendations, appetizers, entrees, and dessert were all excellent. Â
I liked that our waiter asked us different questions about our likes and dislikes before choosing the right tequilas for our margaritas.
I was disappointed that the kitchen wouldn't do the tasting menu because of "the amount of time it would take on a busy Saturday night." We had the time and money to spend, so it was their loss.
That said, everything we had was very, very good. If not for the odd tasting menu situation, I'd give them five stars. I'll definitely be back.
To start - RUSHED, now going into detail - I had only heard great things about this place in the past and ignored the recent reviews saying that this place is all about making as much money as possible. Â I had made reservations and we had gotten here early, so as expected we grabbed a seat at the bar! Â As my girlfriend mentioned, the bartender came across as arrogant. Â I thought he was good, he knew his Tequilas and I thought he did a good job and was accommodating. Â But as mentioned, my GF wanted me to state that he was just Arrogant. Â
So we got to sit down for our reservation 15 minutes early, we were happy to not have to close the bar tab like other places, they had transferred our bar tab to our table which was a nice tough! Â The server had a great attitude and was very personable, very helpful, told us of the specials, got us our second round of drinks, very pleasant overall at this point. Â He came around about 5 minutes later, took our order and that when this place went from being very great, to terrible. Â
Not 5 minutes after our order was placed, our dinner was on the table, my girlfriend's dish, the Stuffed poblano peppers was cold in the middle. Â Now I can understand not having to wait long between the appetizer and the main dish, but around 5 minutes and the the bar back hovering over us to ask if we were done with a plate far sooner than we had wanted them to ask. Â As her dish was cold, we sent i back and instead of continuing to eat, I thought I would wait for her to get hers back. Â This took about 10 minutes, in which time I had ordered a glass of wine, which took 10 minutes to receive. Â My meal was now cold, she had been waiting for her meal an not one minute after receiving it back, the bar back had come over once again to ask if we were finished. Â
We saw this as them rushing our meal, and ignored it, we took our time, finished our meal, ordered the great dessert, tried to order hre another drink, which failed since our waiter seemed to be the waiter for over a third of the restaurant. Â He was spread thin, we finished dessert, got our bill, and the rest is history.
All in all, great food, not so great service and terrible with the rushed meal, the meal coming out cold and not enough attention to patrons that tip you based on your attention to detail. Â
Only 2 stars, maybe I will try again, but doubtful since there are too many Mexican places in a city that is known to have many great restaurants.
This place has become a shell of what it used to be.
The food has gotten relatively mediocre, alongside questionable plating choices and combinations, and the manager for some reason has transformed from a nice guy to a seemingly total jerk. I do enjoy desert and the margaritas here but it's not enough to get me to come back anymore.
I won't be back again anytime soon. This place has issues to sort and there is a plethora of excellent upscale Mexican food in Chicago I'd rather go to these days than here.
Ahhhh...I ate too much and every bite on the plate of the 3-course dinner during Restaurant Week.
The oyster appetizer with cheese was the deciding dish. Â I was comparing it to my familiar baked mussels with cheese...but not the same. Â Nonetheless, it was tasty with a generous portion of 6-8 oysters.
The camarones al mojo de ajo (entree) literrally bathe in garlic! Â WARNING: Â No kissing needed after this dish. Â The garlic is addictive.
The crepa con cajeta (dessert) is part of the crepe trend adding Mango and cinnamon as a Mexican ingredient and raspberries is to USA.
The tortillas is homemade and fresh. Â It does have a different taste compared to the pre-made, store bought package.
We dined once before at Salpicon and returned two years later to find a newly renovated restaurant. Â It is small, but with beautiful ambience to eat wonderfully prepared Mexican inspired dishes. Â Our service was impeccable. Â The food from the salsa, to the shrimp was delicious. Â It is kind of romantic in a way,too. Â I would highly recommend this place to lovers of Mexican cuisine and tables of two to four people.
Desserts were also delicious. Â Loved the sponge cakes. Â This food was pretty
authentic and not greasy, at all. Â Portions were small but adequate.
I was not drinking that evening but my husband had a margarita that made me wish
I could! (I was taking an anti-biotic)  OMG, ¡delicioso!
I would return in a hear beat! Â Everything tasted so fresh!
This will go on record as one of the funniest dinner's i've ever had. Â Literally in tears half the time with my stomach hurting the next day, not from bad food being consumed but bc I had a full on ab work out t/o the two+ hour affair.
Me and gf met a buddy of mine who I hadn't seen in years and his gf (they incidentally were once best friends waaay back in the day, i know them well, so on the surface it was bit awkward)...b/t his inherent ability to be a comic genius, their totally inappropriate make out sessions (quite unsettling due to their history) and the noise level our table was generating, I'm sure everyone else in the place were regretting making Salpicon their dining destination that evening. Â
I honestly don't remember much about the food but the chips and guac were excellent and everything presented well. Â Me and another had the scallops which were decent maybe a bit above. Â Other two had the steak and lamb chops, the latter being three ginorm pieces of meat and that *is* what she said.
A meal to remember that's for sure.
This place has fantastic fresh food that you can taste and savor the quality in each bite. Â I am a recent vegan and the server was very knowledgeable as to what I could and could not have from their menu. Â It was quite delightful that I didn't have to explain any further than "vegan". Â In fact they whipped me up a very large salad (probably 2-3 times larger than salad size) to accommodate my vegan needs. Â
The server was very attentive and the finished plates were cleared immediately. Â I have been going here for several years and I will definitely return even though I will no longer be enjoying their great fish. Â A MUST is the guacamole. Â
The wine selection is impressive to say the least, as is the tequila selection. Â Great bar too!
Food and service have PLUMMETED since we were last there.
We've been to Salpicon 3 times before, both with small and large groups, and have enjoyed good food, good service, and a GREAT wine list (plus an awesome sommelier).
My husband and I brought out of town guests there last night, expecting to have a great night at a restaurant that in the past has had a fun but totally professional vibe. We wanted to show off our city a little, but still enjoy oursleves and not be too stuffy.
We experienced food that ranged from good to puzzling to downright BAD, a much-diminished wine list, and service that was embarassingly appalling. Â All to the tune of $300 for a table of 4.
Our server took our order competently enough, but brought the wrong drink, and then delivered my husband's cold ceviche appetizer a full 10 minutes before delivering the warm apps the other 3 of us ordered, forcing him to sit there and ignore his food. Â The fact that his was cold but was sent out alone is BIZARRE, as OBVIOUSLY it could have waited in the fridge while our hot apps were prepared. Â But in any case, what kind of self-respecting restaurant sends out a table's food one guest at a time??
By the way - The place was empty, so it's not like the staff were harried or rushed. Â In fact, watching them from across the room, as they hung out joking and ambling around slowly and purposelessly, you'd have thought the place was closed.
My hot app was a queso fundido that was supposed to come with tortillas. Â My guests split an app that was also eaten with tortillas, and the server brought one little basket of 4 tortillas and put it between my guests on the far side of the table. I said, 'excuse me, I think I was meant to have tortillas also?' And he just POINTED TO THEIR TORTILLAS. Â So... Â I politely asked for one of their tortillas, which they gave me, and then none of us were able to finish our apps because we ran out of tortillas long before we ran out of toppings. Â Seriously, dude? You're charging me $10 for melted cheese, but I can't have some tortillas of my own??
Our mains were weird. My lamb shank was fork-tender but drowned in a sharp mole that didn't go well, and accompanied by three raw rings of onion spread on the plate (?). Â My side was a watery, bland soupy saucer of tepid beans, bacon fat and some limp pepper rings. Â Um... what?
At one point ( maybe to distract us from the weird food?), the bartender DRAGGED an open-top garbage can through the center of the dining room and right past us. Â Classy.
Later, our server leaned against a wall and chatted with the bartender  for 15 minutes as all four of us sat with dirty plates in front of us cutlery long-since laid down, waiting to have the table cleared.  Eventually he wandered past us and my husband caught his attention and said "I think we're done here.." and the server replied, almost quizically, "You want me to take this?.."
??!!!
No dude. I want to uncomfortably sit here and stare at the mole as it dries on my half-eaten lamb for ANOTHER quarter of an hour.
Seriously, this is NOT the Salpicon we know from the past - and it will be a LONG time before we risk going there again, especially with anyone we're trying to impress.
My wife and I dined here last night after the Colin Quinn one man show at Water Tower Place. Here are the pros and cons...
Pros
-Good margaritas
-Great salsa and very good guacamole (just not enough guac!)
-Tamalitos appetizer outstanding, we actually ordered two
Cons
-Felt very rushed even at 9pm, maybe it was becuase we didn't have a $100 bottle of wine, or just our server was a mover and shaker, who knows?
- My wife's veggie stuffed poblano peppers we very just so so, no real flare which is unusual for this place
We will be back
You can tell when people pour their heart and soul into their business - and the husband and wife duo behind Salpicon do just that. This restaurant is out of control. It's a gorgeous spot, first of all, and the atmosphere is really home-y, in spite of renovations. I'm sure that once the downstairs reopens it is going to be amazing too.
I drink margaritas maybe once or twice a year; I usually find them too sweet, too syrupy and just not really my thing. I tried a margarita here, made with tequila, lime juice, Cointreau and agave nectar. It was divine! Not too sweet, and the flavor of the tequila was really enhanced by how it was mixed.
For starters, we had tostaditos, which were four mini corn tortilla, with a nice little mound of marinated pork on top and a touch of cream. So flavorful - absolutely delicious. We also tried the crabcake, which was served in an avocado puree. The crabcake was light and flaky, with just a touch of panko to hold it together.
For dinner I had the grilled shrimp, and my boyfriend had a halibut wrapped in strings of sweet potato. The seafood was super fresh, and moist. So many flavors, but all worked well together. Both were served with a small pyramid mound of rice. A very nice touch.
Salpicon also has one of the biggest wine books I've ever seen. A very impressive collection. We decided to take the chef's suggestion with our meal, which was an Oregon Pinot Noir. It went perfectly with the food and was a beautiful bold Pinot - not like some wimpy ones I've had in the past.
Dessert was a mango pear tart with caramel ice cream. Every bite was like a little taste of heaven.
This restaurant is a must for anyone looking for super high-end Mexican. We ended up leaving with their cookbook, and enjoyed just reading the recipes. I'm sure we'll try some of them out - but for now, I'm just savoring the memory of this delicious meal.
A few hours before going to see an absolutely dreadful performance at the iO, me and my spunky little lady worked up an appetite and pimp strutted into Salpicon to have our minds blown by Mexican fusion cuisine! At least that's how I arrived. "Fusion" Restaurants have always fascinated me. I'm unsure if it's entirely because of how fucking cool the word "fusion" sounds (not cool enough for me to ever drive a Ford), or that it gives me the feeling something exotic is coming my way. And i LOVE exotic things. Exotic lands, exotic women and that's right sucka, EXOTIC FARE.
We were immediately greeted and seated upon our arrival at Salpicon. It's a cozy place that's romantically lit and I was somewhat perplexed as to why we were placed next to an angry old man. An angry, old, crazy Frenchman to be exact. He looked like Larry David, if Larry David had AIDS and smelled like a French guy. Most would be put off by such a seating arrangement, but not I. I saw this as a great opportunity to be what some call "annoying." Being Frenchie was inches away from our conversation I decided to be a bit over the top for the night, even miming at one point. Even then the Frenchman did not flinch.
I ordered the tilapia with white rice and pico de gallo. It was amazing. I've never had such a perfectly cooked piece of seafood in my life. The pico de gallo was as fresh as a mint factory and the rice was splendid. I was also able to sample my lady's shrimp dish which was also mouthwateringly delicious. The staff were swift with the refills and great throughout the night. Thanks guys. Sorry Frenchie.
I'm looking at these reviews and I'm surprised by many of them! Our food was really really excellent.
I got the tilapia with rice and pico de gallo. The dish was so perfect, I was salivating. Loved loved loved it. The rice was perfect too. We also ordered guac and though it was too small, it was so delicioso and it came with salsa. Since we were starving we kept finishing off the chips, and they would bring more! :) yay!
I had two margaritas because they were spectacular and made me pretty tipsy. I could drink those every day. yummmmmmmmm.
My friend got the chile rellenos (and I had to teach her that it is not pronounced reLeno. She thought I was being silly, but come on. Who says reLeno?) They were good, too.
Then we got some kind of mango raspberry caramel crepe. Holy crap!! I mean, holy crepe!!!! It was uber tiny, so that was depressing. But the flavors were truly succulent. It was just so perfect.
I will definitely come back here. I took one star off only for the somewhat awkward layout of the restaurant, and the prices. Some dishes were certainly marked up too much.
Do you like the taste of charcoal bricks and hair? Â This is the one for you!!! Â It's only getting one star because there isn't a "zero" stars option. Â
At first glance, prior to dining here, it might look good.....PRICEY, it's in Old Town, extensive wine list, BUT DO NOT BE FOOLED. Â This was right up there with the top three worst dining experiences I have had in 4 years in Chicago. Â
My first dish, the "fresh" seasonal fish fillet of Tilapia tasted 100% like charcoal. Â My suspicion was confirmed by my boyfriend and the couple next to me, who agreed it tasted like sraight CHARCOAL. Â The waiter snobbily said "Oh no, that is how it's supposed to taste." Â HAHA. Â I said no, please take it back (for $18, I am not eating a charcoal brick).
MAYBE MORE IMPORTANTLY, the waiter said "Oh, let me get you something else", so I accepted. Â My boyfriend was about done by the time I got the other dish, the grilled shrimp. Â IT HAD A HAIR IN IT!! Â I didn't find it until I was almost finished eating, so, exhausted with this place, I didn't say anything. Â It even still kind of tasted like Charcoal, was covered in oil, AND they charged us for the shrimp, which was more expensive, instead of just replacing my Tilapia. Â The whole bill was almost $100 and we were both disgusted and upset for the next few hours.
Please take my advice and DO NOT GO HERE. Â Heck, they don't even give you chips and salsa, haha, which I would have needed to be full.
DO NOT EVER EVER GO HERE. Â AWFUL FOOD....BAD SERVICE.
Quite possibly, the worst dining experience I've had in Chicago. Â I've had better service at a taco bell, and I've had better food from the frozen section of Jewel. If there was an option for zero stars, I would have given zero!
I arrived to find an okay decor, colorful but yellow and sterile. Â The restaurant is small so the guy behind me kept ramming his chair against the back of mine. Â That's always a treat.
A friend took the liberty of ordering the appetizers and I ordered a margarita. Â The margarita was also just okay - I've had better from a pre-made mixture. Â The appetizers were tasteless. Â There was this green colored crepe thing with mushrooms in it that I couldn't even tell what it was because it lacked all flavor whatsoever. Â Then there were these fancy tiny "duck" tamales. Also void of any flavor.
Big gaps denote time going by...
The waitress comes up and asks my friend next to me what he ordered again, because I guess she forgot. Â He told her the pork chops.
After waiting at least 30 minutes for the main course, I notice everyone's food coming out. Â Looks pretty good, a little on the smallish side, but it was in Old Town so I figured it was acceptable. Â Well, they end up bringing me the pork chop, and I told the server, that's not what I ordered. Â The waitress comes over and asks what I ordered - I said the Chiles Rellenos (stuffed chiles) - she remembered, and said it would be out in 2 minutes. Â
About 15 minutes later, it came. Â I was able to eat the Chile that was stuffed with cheese, but the one stuffed with pork was just horrible. I wanted to spit it out. Â Any chance that the waitress came over and asked if everything was okay...NO, because she was chatting to this guy at the bar for the whole time. No offer for a free drink or at least asking what they could do to make my experience better.
After dinner, most ordered desserts, but I was so repulsed by my food that I couldn't imagine eating anything else from there. The desserts looked fancy (and small), but everyone said they were pretty good, but not amazing. Â
Oh! and get this - with mostly all of the entrees being $20 plus, they wouldn't allow one person in our group a free refill of diet coke. To me, that is just unbelievable.
When the waitress finally brought the checks, the bill came to $371 for 7 people. Â Gratuity was already included, even though she deserved none. My portion of the $371 tab was $53, that I basically flushed down the toilet for a tiny inedible cheese Chile Relleno that probably cost all of $1.25 to make.
I highly recommend against eating here.
When it's really nasty cold outside, their yellow walls, good music and fancy tequila flights are heaven sent.
Service was fast and friendly, but got brusque as they got busier.
It's their goat cheese stuffed squash blossoms that haunt me. They were lightly batter fried and atop a pool of poblano cream sauce. They do different styles of them as an appetizer and I suggest you hurry up and get any squash blossoms  they offer.  If I could afford it, I'd eat here once a week and get squash blossoms every single time.
Someone else had a pork chop that looked like something out of Bedrock - a giant piece of meat on a bone, alone, on a plate. Â I did creep me out a bit (trichinosis...) when the waiter asked how he'd like his pork cooked (trichinosis...) and he answered "medium" (trichinosis...) but I had some of it (trichinosis???) and it was delicious (no trichinosis! I'd know it if I got the trichinosis, right?).
I had some kind of fantastic cheesy thingy (I think it was some kind of fancified relleno) covered in some of the best dark mole I've ever had. Â Margaritas were slamming and I was slamming them back - if two can count as "slamming", because this stuff is pricey.
The owner also came by and asked us how our meal was and chatted us up (us and pretty much everybody else in the restaurant) more than once, which I'm always a sucker for. Â And they participate in the dining nights where money goes to AIDS and hunger charities - we ate there once and a whole 50% of our bill went to an AIDS charity, so I ordered another margarita.
Salpicon- why oh why did it take me so long to try your wonderful food and experience your great service? Â I know I've been busy but geez! Â After my visit last night- I'm kinda crushing on you.
If you love tequila- then this place is for you. Â I got a little education on tequila last night from my well versed friend and between him and the bartender got to taste several different kinds (from "white" to aged")
Once seated (I love that the owner and chef personally greets you and welcomes you to her restaurant) we began to explore the menu. Â Our server Samara was great. Â She got us started with some of the best guacamole I have ever had. Â Big delicious chunks of avocado and tomatoes and onion with just the right blend of cilantro and lime.
For our appetizers we split the grilled tiger prawns offered with two sauces (delicious) and a special of the day which were soft shell crabs with an amazing garlic sauce that prompted me to warn anyone I came in contact with later than night not to sit too close to me!!
Finally- the entrees. Â I had the lamb chops which were medium rare and delicious served with a polenta vegetable roll. Â My friend had the pork and it was probably the only hiccup of the evening as it came out a little more done than requested. Â Oh well- it was still tasty.
Service was impeccable. Â Our server was attentive, learning our names and calling us by them, bringing us complimentary muscato to go with our dessert and inviting us back. Â Love all that personal attention!!
Salpicon- it may have taken me a long time to find you- but now that I have- you just might get sick of seeing me sitting on your patio or indoors at the bar or at one of your cute tables. Â I'm kinda of crushing on you!
I want to give this restaurant NO stars but yelp won't let me. Yes, the food was tasty but I will NEVER go back after they way my friends and I were treated.
We got there on a Friday right around 5:15 pm. There were three of us and we were SO excited to go there for happy hour drinks and appetizers. We sat down outside and ordered drinks. After the waiter came by a third time in about 10-15 minutes asking to take our order, we finally ordered several appetizers. The waiter then also tells us that we have a time limit on our table and we can't stay longer than 2 hours. By now, the manager was standing at the host stand inside just glaring at us. After our waiter went inside, we saw him get grabbed by the manager and we could tell he was telling him to get our order and get us out.
At this point, about 6:00, I would say there were maybe 2 or 3 tables of diners INSIDE the restaurant and still no one other than us outside. Well, our food came and it was good but it was so unbearably unpleasant having the manager watching us through the window. We asked the waited why he was doing that and he was just mortified and didn't have an answer. Needless to say, we ate slowly just to piss them off even more. I could understand (sort of) if the place was packed and they were 3 deep at the bar waiting for tables but it was kind of a rainy day and the place was almost EMPTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The best part though?? A bunch of women came outside and asked us if we were told we had to leave by a certain time. Apparently they spent a fortune (in a nearly empty restaurant mind you) and their waiter basically kicked them out while they were drinking their coffee.
I found the management appallingly rude and not only would I NEVER go back, I am telling everyone I know to spend their valuable time and hard earned money elsewhere.
As I write this review, I must note that I have just been notified by email that I am a winner of the U.K. Lottery, and now have 17 million pounds waiting for me to claim it. Â When I first ate at Salpicon, I was not nearly this rich. Â I suppose this type of food will soon be commonplace and boring to my rich and sophisticated palate.
Back when I was poor, I was not a big fan of desserts. Â I don't like chocolate, I don't like custard, and I won't eat ice cream. Â Very few restaurants in Chicago are equipped to handle that. Â I usually spend the end of the meal watching my wife and friends pass around something enormous and brown. Â They ooze and gush over it while I pick at breadcrumbs and chew my ice.
Salpicon has a dessert that brought me back a second time! Â The pineapple trio, or whatever it's called, is fantastic. Â It has three types of pineapple. Â There's a big thick slab of pineapple, hot off the grill. Â On top of it sits a lump of pineapple sorbet. Â Holding up the rear is a beautiful and delicious flakey pineapple lattice. Â It's fantastic. Â No dairy or chocolate to be found! Â And it's coated in some sort of non-chocolate sauce. Â Tequila, maybe?
The food is okay. Â The portions are very small, the prices are pretty high, but everything is very pretty. Â For what you pay, you're given a very fine dining experience. Â The wait staff is very knowledgeable about tequila, and all 10,000 varieties served at the bar. Â They can describe each by name, list their favorites, and describe their qualities. Â I can only imagine that the staff is treated to some pretty hard core tequila parties at closing time.
Friendly service and accommodating and innovative fusion kitchen (even if they charge extra). Â The margaritas were really tasty and the salsa and guacamole had a good kicks to them.
I got the Chiles Rellenos (and asked both be stuffed with pork since I don't like cheese) and it was absolutely delicious. Â We also got the Seviche and a stuffed shell crab special and were delighted with both. Â The second time, we got the chicken mole and tiger shrimp and they're still making me hungry!
Even though they had no open tables when we went, they managed to seat us at the bar, no problem.
Salpicon is a great restaurant. Really, really beautiful food and clientele.
Last night, we took guests to Salpicon and had a great time. WIth 6 people, we were stuffed onto a four top despite our reservations. Elbow room was not to be had. The positive is that I could steal others food with minimal effort.
While there was no sweating when I stole a bit of my wifes beautiful pork or her cousin's chicken in poblano mole (both were very good). There was plenty of sweating with my chile en nogada which was fantastic. Chile en nogada is roasted poblano chiles stuffed with pork picadillo, raisins, Manzanilla olives, almonds, capers, peaches, apples and plantains; cool fresh walnut cream sauce. All this is topped with pomegranate seeds. It was tremendously flavorful and had a lot of heat despite the creamy sauce. I shared with my sister in law as she shared the chiles stuffed with stuffed with huitlacoche, fresh corn and zucchini. While I got the better end of the deal, I lurve me some huitlachoche.
Presentation was the star of the show. Creative plating and vibrant colors.
Desert and wine list were both top notch. I suggest the Nebbiolo. It was very good.
Four stars as the tequila selection is vast, and hits all the right targets! Â Did not plan my visit to Chicago early enough to plan for dining activity in advance, so rather than hitting all the typical dining hot spots, I wound up hitting spots in my friend's neighborhood - this being a favorite. Â The menu is great; very diverse, with interesting twists on Mexican food.
I completely enjoyed the Tinga Poblana - perfectly cooked pork tenderloin with with both a warm, spicy roasted tomato chipotle sauce, and an avocado tomatillo sauce. The only thing I would have changed, was a bit more chorizo and potatoes. Â Yes, chorizo. (yum!) Â My friend enjoyed the double pork chop with the ancho chile mole. Â Also great, but I prefer tenderloin.
Slightly pricey, but worth it.
BTW - has anyone else noticed that 'chorizo' is not accepted by the Yelp spellcheck? travesty! =)
I AM SO ANGRY.......that I have to give it 3 starts instead of a very strong 4. Â Let me explain. Â We went there last night for my birthday. Figured we would add a little Cinco de Mayo flavor to my event. Â We chose Salpicon based on the Yelp reviewers, and, well. here is my review.
The food was EXCELLENT. The waitress was phenomenal, There tequila menu was just .. intimidating. We asked our waitress to chose her favorites for margaritas. Were really amazed at how different the taste was with each drink. Â She described the tequilas perfectly, and her descriptions were spot on. Â I had the filet, it was perfect. The appetizers were great, etc. Â So, as far as food, etc., I agreed with my fellow Yelpers completely...
So, you ask, why with all these compliments, does it only get 3 stars. Those of you who know me and my reviews, understand that I rarely give out 5 stars. Â But I was really ready to give it a strong 4... here is why it slipped all the way to a 3....
It lost one star because of two reasons. One, the tables were jammed in just a bit too close. Along with the combination of, of all things, a busboy that didnt show up often. Â When I am paying $170 for dinner, with Mexican food of all things, I expect everything to be spot on, it wasnt.
BUT HERE IS WHY I AM MAD.... the men's room, at the end of the meal, was FILTHY! Â I mean, the floor and the walls looked like it was out of a gas station! Â I brought it up to the owner/manager and he said... they were just to busy to clean it! Â Seriously, this is what I was told. Now, it is freeking Cinco de Mayo at an upscale Mexican restaurant. Guess what, you are going to be busy.. STAFF APPROPRIATELY! Â If, in the front of the house, the bathroom is dirty, what the hell does the kitchen look like on a busy night?
So, that is why I am mad. Sorry, I know I went on a bit. Â But seriously owners and managers. If you know you are going to be busy, staff the restaurant correctly! Â OK... I am better now....
Another great find thanks to Yelp. Â Fabulous service, everyone was beyond attentive. Â I made reservations via phone and twenty minutes before our scheduled time, I called to inform them we would be approx. 15 min late. Â They had no trouble accommodating us. Â Valet in front is wonderful as finding parking in the area can be difficult.
The menu is just right and has a little bit of everything. Â Our server could not stop raving about the halibut that half our table ended up ordering it. Â I had a bit of sticker shock after looking at the prices, but once I received my entree, it was money well spent. Â My lamb chop entree w/ mole and spinach tamales covered in a white cream sauce was excellent and I received three thick chops cooked to the specific doneness I had requested.
This isn't an everyday type of destination for me but I will definitely return should I crave upscale Mexican cuisine.
My only gripe from the evening: small space. Â It would have been nice if we had some more elbow room and weren't seated directly in front of the door leading to the kitchen. Â Several times I had to push my chair in so somebody could pass behind me.
Chicago's best Mexican restaurant--yes! Salpicon get's overshadowed by another Mexican restaurant. Â The Mexican inspired seafood was fresh, creative and absolutely delish. Â The tequila list made me happy. Â That is very hard to do because I am VERY particular about tequila. Â Salpicon has a wonderful assortment. Â Their wine list also got my attention. Â The margaritas were fanastic and to cap off your meal order a tequila not to be drunk as a shot but to be savoured like a fine cognac.
Buen Provecho!
Dining with the Satkoff family here at Salpicon always makes me feel so privileged to be a guest. Â They put so much love and care into the menu, food preparation, wines, service and ambiance providing a wonderful opportunity to share such an exquisite Mexican culinary experience. Â Quite simply this is the best Mexican dining experience available in Chicago; honestly I can't imagine a better place on earth.
The small dining room size ensures a superior level of service for everyone, and the wonderfully vibrant color scheme with beautiful Mexican art is peaceful, entertaining and uplifting. Â The staff is extremely knowledgeable, experienced and friendly but never overbearing. Â The owners are almost always present and working and ensuring every detail is attended to for your meal. (their labor of love)
The wine list is guaranteed to have something for every wine connoisseur; Victor has a 9,000 bottle capacity custom built wine storage room hidden in the back. Â Fine wines from nearly every major grape growing region of the world. Â The wine list is available on their website so you can peruse it's depth in advance. Â
Everything I've eaten from the menu here was amazing and the presentation professional and artsy. Â For desert be sure to try the Tequila Lime Sorbet, which features just the right amount of finely grated Serrano Chile, my favorite dessert in the entire world. Â Savor the cool spicy contrast along with a cup of fine Illy tea.
Like a fine dinner, some things in life must come to an end, but one thing is for sure, I'll be back to Salpicon to dine with the Satkoff family at every chance I get.
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