Chef’s Table at Latinicity

For quite some time I have had Latinicity on my foodie bucket list, so I was excited to get there for a Chef’s Table event organized by The Local Tourist. These events are held periodically at venues in and around Chicago. A ticket is typically $35 and covers several tasting courses and beverages. This event included six generous South American-inspired courses along with a welcome cocktail and a miniature cocktail paired with each course.

We started off with a white sangria as guests arrived and moved on to Taquitos de Papas paired with a cucumber margarita, followed by shrimp ceviche with habanero broth (probably my favorite dish of the evening) paired with a mojito.

The Ensalada Pueblo has some of my favorite things - pears, slow roasted beets and goat cheese paired wit a prickly pear chilcano (that was amazing). 

On our final three courses we got a taste of a chicken dish, a perfectly-grilled salmon and grilled skirt steak (with a chimichurri sauce that was on point!) 

While chatting with one of the other diners after we finished, we both agreed that every course was impressive. When you’re presented with that many dishes, there’s usually a couple that are mediocre, but there wasn’t one thing I tried that I wouldn’t go back and order again. They were all equally palate-pleasing. 

A fun feature of the dinner was the involvement of Chef Marco as he introduced each course along with one of the bartenders who gave us a bit of history and cultural background on each drink we sipped on.

We also got to hear about other offerings there, like cooking classes, happy hours and Sunday brunch. I was floored at the price of brunch at $19.99 for an all-you-can-eat brunch ($34.99 with alcoholic beverages).

The space is hip and festive and features 8 kitchens, a Mexican restaurant, full bar and lounge and a coffee cafe, all highlighting Latin street food. This food hall on the 3rd floor of Block 37 offers nice views of the theatre district through floor-to-ceiling windows in the back seating area and is a great place to mingle or to chill with a group or on your own. The variety of food ranges from sushi to Latin-inspired burgers to tacos and much more. For more info, visit Latinicity.com. For more on Chef’s Table events, visit TheLocalTourist.com. Be sure to sign up for the newsletter for information on future events.