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Categories: Ethnic Food, Mexican [Edit]
Neighborhood: Rogers ParkHoward (Purple, Red, Yellow, Evanston Express)
Muy bueno! Thats the extent of my Spanish, but luckily the only two words I needed to describe this find.
Tried this place for a colleagues birthday and boy am I glad I did. We scored the guacamole appetizer which was mildly pushed on to our table by the waitress. After tasting this guacamole, she could have pushed anything on to my table. The guacamole was seasoned well and full of fresh chunks of avocados! I feel like most places I go into now have it pureed like its baby food so this was a refreshing change.
I got the steak burrito dinner for lunch. With dinner you get an extra rice and beans, all for $7.50 (beans were liquidy, but tasty). This was potentially one of the larger burritos I have ever eaten. The burrito has lettuce, beans, rice, sour cream and steak. It was great! My friends got the enchiladas verde which looked tasty as well.
The only downside of Cuetzala Gro is that you can expect an immediate food coma. Like, as you are walking out of the restaurant.
Dont wait. ..head out to Rogers Park for this unassuming great find!
This place is delicious. I've been eating here pretty regularly for months, and there is exactly one thing I've eaten there that I haven't enjoyed thoroughly (the fish taco). Oh, it still wasn't bad, just a little weak; I'm used to Baja-style. Everything else? Wonderful!
They have probably the best burrito with pork al pastor that I've had. I'll occasionally skip salsa, just to focus on that remarkable pork. The horchata is really delicious, and the large is about the size of your head. I've never needed a refill. The flautas were really remarkable, perfectly cooked and covered with just the right amount of guacamole, cheese, and probably a couple things I'm forgetting, but they were fried to perfect crisp, and made me wonder whether I'd been missing something elsewhere by rarely ordering them. Just tasting them, though, I have a feeling I haven't. They're ridiculous. The tacos (besides the fish) are simple quality, as they should be.
The salsa: They have excellent salsa, both tomato (chipotle-style) and tomatilla, just the right spice to allow you to vary it easily with the quantity. It doesn't look like most of the good salsas I've had before, but it is. Just a dab still gets a good bit of flavor without too much kick, but pouring it on will burn your mouth like it's supposed to.
I had a chicken mole here once, and it was very unusual, sweeter than I've had mole before, but still quite tasty.
Anyway! The girlfriend and I still haven't done the meal for two, but at ~$20, and with the quality of the rest of the food, I've been meaning to for months, if I can drag myself away from everything else!
So far this is some of the best Mexican food I've had in the city. I live just around the corner and Cuetzala has spoiled us for the many other Mexican restaurants on Clark St.
What keeps us coming back is their mole' sauce. We just keep ordering the cheese enchiladas mole' and it never disappoints -- absolutely fantastic. My wife and I are vegetarian so we haven't tried to get around the menu too much because the mole' is so darned great.
We've also been in for a tasty breakfast of chilaquiles and been quite satisfied. As other reviewers have noted their salsa and horchata are great as well, and the staff is very friendly. I can't recommend Cuetzala enough.
After my roommate and I moved all of our stuff out of our apartment, I came back to clean it up. Since cleaning is exhausting work, I got a chicken burrito to go from Cuetzala (I ate in once and wasn't too impressed with the service. No chips and salsa) and sat huddled against a wall chowing down on this glorious burrito as my apartment was being shown, but I was like a dog gnawing on a bone. The burrito is one of the best to be found in Rogers Park. The chicken was moist and I liked that they grilled the tortilla a bit to give it a little crispness without making it hard and crumbly. The salsa verde was pretty tasty too.
After first being told the delivery driver was out for the next two hours, i was going to give up, but after an hour and half of calling places who either didnt deliver...or didnt deliver to ME, i called them back w/ success.
i got the steak taco dinner, which is two tacos, rice,beans and i got a bag of chips total was about $10 not sure if there is a delivery charge, but still not TOO bad. It even came w/ lettuce, tomato, lime, and avocado on the side...no charge!
the steak was pretty good, no fatty nasty-ness. Unlike some ive had at places who CALL what ever they serve you "steak"
the Rice was awesome! im a big fan of rice. And the chips were light and tasty!
I will def. be ordering from here again.
Oh noes! It looks like everybody has discovered this place. I remember when I first looked this place up on Yelp there was one review... I've been thinking of writing one but honestly, I didn't want one of my gems to be overrun all of the sudden.
Oh well.
It used to be that we ordered from this place so much that the woman behind the counter knew me by my voice. I've moved out of the neighborhood and I'm going back for dinner tomorrow because I have yet to find chicken fajitas or a chorizo taco that touches Cuetzala's. Oh yeah, the grilled jalapenos are supremely kick-ass, and the nachos are unlike any I've ever had and incredibly yummy.
It is incredibly clean in the restaurant, and the last time I checked it was BYOB. This place is worth the trek to Rogers Park, and while you're at it stop at the Rogers Park Fruit Market across the street for fresh produce & pork.
Four stars for the incredible burrito al pastor...haven't tried anything else yet but can't wait to go back and try everything else!
We've been back to Cuetzala several times since our first trip, and have enjoyed it every time. I've ordered the Taco Dinner with chorizo tacos and chili rellenos. The chorizo is very flavorful, but a little greasy. The chili rellenos were really good, too.
This place is definitely worth a stop on the Tour de Taqueria along Clark.
I did a Yelp search for Chilaquiles, and Cuetzala is the first place that popped up. Thankfully, it… Read more »
So, the adopted brother of a friend who lives in the neighborhood was consulted by the Rogers Park newbie who, hoping to sort out the bevy of Clark Street Mexi-yummy options, sought guidance. And guide he did, stating in no uncertain terms that his favorite was Cuetzala. Who was I to argue with such decisiveness? It's BYOB, but also within walking distance, so, accompanied by my partner in crime, our ingenious plan was take out, repair to the lair, consume mass quantities, and sit in judgment.
Mission accomplished? Yes, although Cuetzala's rough-edged in a way that lets you know they're making a no-frills go of it. No printed takeout menu, bilingual overhead listing of what they've got, and solidly good grub. Generally speaking, I prefer to cook my own Mexi-dishes, particularly with an eye towards keeping the meat moist where too many spots like Cuetzala might deliver something a bit more dried up, but I was pleased by what we got. For takeout on this end of town, I think I've found a keeper.
Any place that makes chiles rellenos to order from scratch gets 5 stars. This is a wonderful little gem. Big flavors, small prices.
Yummmmm....I just moved a few blocks from here and have eaten their tacos several times already. I have lived in Texas and San Diego, both places with great Mexican food, and I have to say that this place is comparably delicious. So far, I have had the fish tacos and a burrito. When I get tired of those (maybe never) I'll try out some other things on their extensive menu.
Cheap prices, fresh, flavorful food with great portions and great service.
YUM YUM YUM! This place is a hidden gem. I love authentic Mexican food, and this place provides delicious fresh products. I loved the cheesy quesadilla for an appetizer topped with their homemade salsa. For an entree I ordered tacos (I know I'm boring) but they were fantastic! Next time I am there I am going try this delicious looking shrimp dish the table next to us had. With this restaurant being BYOB this makes for a very inexpensive and satisfying meal.
I stopped in here today for the first time. My tacos were very yummy, especially the vegetarian taco. Solid chips and salsa too. The restaurant was packed with people, but the servers were cool with me occupying a table on my own. I'll definitely be back-- I can't wait to try the rest of their menu.
On the north end of Clark Street is this Mexican restaurant that offers well prepared and presented food. Food brought out was above standard taqueria fare, but at cheap prices. Huaraches are available as are tamales nejos, pozole, and licuados.
I love this place!!! The food is always beatifully presented and the portions are generous and inexpensive. They are generous also with guacamole and avocado slices, which is such a treat. The waitresses are all pleasant, attentive, and sunshiney, which makes eating there so nice. The carne al pastor tacos are divine -- some of the best I have had. This is very authentic food and you will find unusual items on the menu. There is always parking nearby.
Cuetzala
7360 n clark
Cuetzala is the 18th taqueria we've visited on Clark, between Devon and Howard.
And it was well worth the wait.
The first time we ate at Cuetzala it was a week night, and was kind-of dead.
The interior is typical, small, unremarkable. Except that the music they were pumping that night was pretty awesome. It was some sort of Spanish pop that sounded, at the same time, like 80s movie music (I'm thinking karate kid and Rocky), karaoke, and a mentos commercial. Excellent.
As was, I gotta tell you, the food.
We started with complimentary chips and salsa (always). The green was really limey and flavorful. Not too spicy for me.
The horchada was awesome, sweet and ricey, cinnamony.
I really like that on their menu their 'meals' were called 'exquisite dishes.'
They had some lovely specials. I thought about the tamal nejo, but didn't go there.
Husband did try the special soup that night, a tortilla soup served with sour cream and avocado. That soup was sexy. Creamy. Hot. Spicy. Thick. Gorgeous.
Husband, for his main course, got the tampiqeno (a dish that includes a skirt steak and a cheese enchilada). Husband has ordered tampiqeno at least 4-5 times on our discovery of Clark and this is the first time he was asked for a temperature on the steak. Nice. Ultimately he thought it solid, not exceptional. Served with some grilled onions and a grilled jalapeno.
Julie got enchiladas with verde sauce. She got one chicken, one cheese, and one picadillo enchilada. The verde was pretty spicy. The meats were good, but she felt the verde went best with the chicken. She wasn't impressed with the verde/picadillo combo.
I also got enchiladas, but I got them with mole. YUMMY. Spicy, but not too spicy. Not burnt tasting or grainy. Just dark with chocolate and coffee flavors. I was mopping the mole up at the end. I, too, tried one each, chicken, cheese and picadillo. The chicken was really good. Pulled, no gristle. The picadillo was my least favorite, with chunks of carrots and potato. Kind-of like a mole burger. But the cheese was right on.
For dessert they had a choice of orange or coffee flan. We shared a coffee. Not bad. A little overcooked on the bottom (top) but it was tasty.
Cuetzala's not the cheapest taqueria on the block. For three of us, with big horchadas, a soup starter, and a dessert, the bill came out to about $50. Not awful. Not dirt cheap. Just saying.
But the food was good enough to try again.
So today we stopped in for Saturday brunch.
The restaurant was kicking. We had to wait for a table to be cleared. Note: the clientel was pretty mixed, ethnically.
And there was only one waitress. The poor thing was running. So, it took a bit to order and get our drinks/chips and salsa. But the waitress was sweet and kept apologizing. She was trying. Not her fault.
Again, the food was great.
The chips were warm and well salted.
This time we got the regular (excellent) verde salsa, and in addition a salsa mixed with avocado. Green and creamy and hot like fire. Husband dubbed this a 'little bit of heaven.'
Husband got the chilaquiles with verde sauce and scrambled eggs. (you had a choice of salsa, egg or steak, and choice of egg prep.) The came out beautifully. Lots of food. Creamy and spicy and just really tasty. Husband decided it was worth the wait.
I couldn't help myself. I wanted that mole again. And it was just as good as I remembered it.
Another note: there were a lot of posoles coming out of that kitchen. They only serve posole on the weekend. I wonder if it's super awesome? Lots of folks eating it. Maybe I should try it next time?
In conclusion, a great place across the board. Nice service (if a bit slow at times). Great food. Varied menu. Reasonable prices.
We will visit here again. Cuetzala, along with Dona Lolis, Rocky's Tacos and El pueblito have proved to be our faves.
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Clark Street is the mecca of taqueria's; they…
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