“Columbian dining in Chicago!!!!

***** Always a trend setter, Las Tablas was the first Columbian restaurant in Chicago to introduce dishes that are now commonly by the other Columbian restaurants who have come here. The first was Matrimonio ( flame broiled steaks and chicken breast on the same plate. The Entrana is the Columbian style skirt steak. Las Tablas is the only Columbian restaurant in Chicago that works with special herbs brought in from the Andes called “guascas”. These herbs are a major part of the famous ajiaco soup from Bogata, thus Las Tablas is the ONLY dining spot in the Midwest that truly serves the authentic Ajiaco soup. We did not try tonight, but I have enjoyed in the past and it is quite flavorful.

I was first introduced to this charming dining spot when I was with LaRaza newspaper and became even more acquainted during my TeleGuia days. Working in the Hispanic market taught me a great deal about the differences in their food. Prior to those years, I assumed everything that was in Spanish was Mexican- wrong! Each country has their own specialties and flavors. Columbia is truly known for their steaks and that is what I first learned when visiting Las Tablas.

Frank, Cary and I met tonight at the Lakeview location at 2942 N. Lincoln Avenue. This is right by the Athenaeum Center for Thought and Culture on Southport, so if you are attending a play or cultural event there, you might want to make it a complete evening by adding a dinner from another culture as well. You will be in what I call “flavor heaven”!They have a very complete menu consisting of Cuban dishes as well as other South American specialties, but since we were doing the story about the Columbian style, we opted to do some very Columbian menu items.

As usual we began with cocktails. I chose a Columbian martini: absolute vodka, aguardinte antioqueno, fresh lime, simple syrup, splash of pineapple- strained into a dry vermouth coated martini glass- it was delicious and quenching.. Frank opted for the Paloma ( Central America): cazadores reposado, st. germain, freshly muddled lime, simple syrup, grapefruit juice served “on the rocks” with a tajin rim”., Cary enjoyed a Mezcal Old Fashioned: legal reposado oaxacan mezcal with a touch of grand marnier, muddled with sugar and bitters served on the rocks with an orange twist. It seems the drinks are a little sweeter than what we normally enjoy, but we all enjoyed our cocktails VERY MUCH!

Our serverIrene offered us an opportunity to truly tste the Columbian menu in a way that made a lot of sense. While they have numerous items to select from, they also offer an amazing platter to share options. One of them is for 3-4 people and is called the Picada Mar Y Tierra which includes the Picada Colmbiana platter: a combination of hte most popular Coumbian food- char-grilled angus entrana skirt steak, angus beef short ribs, grilled pork loin, and chicken breast all sliced and served on a platter with home made chorizo,  pork ribs, arepa, fried green plantains, sweet plantains, yuca and potatoes, PLUS the additions of char-grilled shrimp, calamari and baby octopus. This also comes with beans and salad.

We did start our evening with their fabulous Empendas ( they have chicken, beef and cheese filled) which are amazing. There are several ways to order these, but I am sure they will allow you to alter the plan. While meat is what you think of when dining Columbian, they also have several amazing seafood dishes, as well as chicken and vegetarian dishes and of course, they have a special kids menu so the entire family can enjoy a trip to Columbia while staying in Chicago.

For dessert we opted for Las Leches, a pure delight and of course Columbian coffee, truly the richest you will ever taste. Try it with no additions ( no sweetener or cream) and see how wonderful a cup of coffee can be.

They are located at 2942 N. Lincoln Avenue phone 773-871-2414   Monday-Thursday is BYOB Wine only!

hours: Monday-Thursday CLOSED TUESDAY    noon to 9 p.m.

Friday & Saturday  noon- 11 p.m.

Sunday       noon- 9 :00 p.m.

Portage Park at 4920 West Irving Park Road ( 6-Corners)

773-202-0999

The hours are the same except they are OPEN TUESDAYS with same hours as Monday-Thursday

more info www.lastablaschicago.com