Food Blog:
Cook In.
Eat Out.
Miss Tenacity.
New Mexico.
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Sunday, July 24
No Silly Play on Words for Topolobampo
Many of my titles are rather frivolous, and I might have done the same thing for this post.... "Toppled by Topolo", "Topolo Twitterpations", etc, etc.
But I owe more respect to Rick Bayless than that. After all, he did just feed me the best Mexican I have ever had, landing a solid entry near the top of my "best meals EVER" list.
My third meal in Chicago, at lunch time, was to be either at Frontera or at 'Topolo', depending on the crowds and the seating hours. As it happened, we were able to reserve a table near the end of the lunch seating at 2pm for Topolobampo, the more upscale of the two dining establishments.
We continued to walk around downtown, beating the heat with some iced coffee and ducking into stores when the opportunity arose. Thankfully we were in between heat waves - it was only in the high 80's, compared to the high 90's just a few days earlier (and low 100's right now, from what I hear) - so it was not really too bad.
When the magic hour rolled around, we were 10 blocks away and had taken one wrong stop on the El, so to make our reservation on time we made like New Yorkers and hailed a cab. At least that lessened my stress level slightly!
We were seated immediately and comfortably at a round booth inside the darkened dining room. Thirty feet to my left was the expediting counter for the kitchen, so I could see some action but not a ton.
Immediately I was stymied by the menu - I mean, how on earth does one choose? I bounced between the crepes with corn smut, the tamale sampler, and over to the salads, and back.... Finally I decided on the Ensaladas Surtidas, a trio of salads so I could sample the most flavors on a single plate.
While we waited for the appetizer, our waiter brought out a bowl of guacamole and chips, and we started realizing just what kind of food we were in for. I have had good guac before - hell, I've made some damn fine guac, but this defied my experience. If I didn't know any better I'd guess they had added cream or lard to it - it was that rich and smooth. Perhaps it was just outstanding avocados.
Next, my salads arrived:
The plate consisted of: shredded chayote salad with pasilla chile; shiitake-cactus salad with poblanos and lime; and roasted vegetable “ensalada rusa” with homemade chipotle mayonnaise (not seen in the photo - hidden by the leafy greens in the middle). All three were great flavor combinations, but my favorite was the shiitake-cactus one. Tart with the lime juice and a wee bit spicy from the poblanos, it was light and perfect. Only the roasted veggie salad failed to make me swoon - perhaps it was the heavy mayo-based dressing. I was happy I didn't order this as my only salad, as the thought had crossed my mind.
After that warm-up, we were watching the rest of the dining room (and sub-rooms), as business was slowing down for the afternoon. A few power business lunches were wrapping up, and there was also a photo shoot of some platings happening a few tables over, but I didn't work up the gumption to go ask them what it was for.
Our wait was soon over and we were about to enter mole heaven:
Carne Asada en Mole Poblano
This was my companion's dish, dry rubbed steak served with the classic mole poblano, as well as plantian tortas and garlic wilted greens. The mole was exquisite. There's really no other word for it. Rich and complex with the chocolate notes present but not overpowering like practically every other single restaurant mole I've tried, this elixir was wonderful.
Cuatro Cositas Oaxaqueñas
For me, another sampler. I practically felt the waiter's eyes roll when I placed my order for the 2 sampler plates on the menu, but hey - I want to try everything!
Here's what I got: empanada filled with chicken, yellow mole and hoja santa; grilled Oaxacan chorizo; roasted cactus salad with lime and green chile (more of my favorite salad! woohoo!); grill-roasted Maple Creek Farm pork loin with red mole. Not mentioned on the list but nevertheless present was black bean refritos to round out the plate. First I tried the chorizo, a dark link filled with meat, chile, and flavor but suprisingly little of the usual grease. Bravo, Chef Bayless! My mole was distinctly different from the steak dish - slightly less complex but just as rich and earthy - and I didn't leave much of it on the plate when I was done. The pork was tender and done well, but in retrospect it did not stand out. That little baby empanada was quite good with delicate flavors to complement the bigness of the chorizo I was just eating. Oh, and the refritos? Best I've ever had. Soon my plate was all but empty and its a good thing they serve reasonable portions at Topolo - I was ready to tackle some dessert.
Mango - Brown Butter Tart with Prickly Pear Reduction and homemade ice cream
Tarts usually reel me in, and this was no exception. I passed up the extremely dark chocolate cake on the list, no doubt flavored by chile and cinnamon and other great spices. But a mango tart with brown butter? Prickly pear sauce? Sign me up! Crisp on the top, mildly sweet throughout, the tart was a perfect foil for that rich little scoop of ice cream on the plate. Unfortunately I cannot remember the flavor of the ice cream - it was not vanilla, and it was definitely subtle. It might have been something like persimmon, but in any case it was wonderful.
Sated, we paid the bill (a bargain at this level of expert cuisine: 1 appetizer, 2 entrees, a glass of wine and a dessert for $80 including tax & tip) and stumbled out into the heat, bound to catch our train so that we could catch our plane back to the land with dry air.
Time posted: 22:01 [permalink]
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CONTACT ME: tenacity -at- gmail.com
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