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Looks like a very cool interior. Anyone tried the food yet?

Angels & Mariachis
1721 W. Division St.
Chicago, IL 60622-3213
773-227-7772

Haven't been there but I saw the write up in Time Out and have to agree with the little blurb about "what happened to this neighborhood?" I hate to be presumptuous but I'm not really looking forward to another mediocre, manufactured, theme type of bar ala Fifty/50, Boundary, and Moonshine.

Also, given the high Hispanic population, I'm not sure that this type of place wouldn't be considered a little insulting. Seriously though, who would go to this place to have a taco when there's La Pasadita right around the corner? Oh yeah, the same people that keep Moonshine, Boundary, and Fifty/50 in business.

Sorry for the rant but the reason I moved to this neighborhood was to get away from places like this. Oh well, I guess it's good for the property value.

I moved to Wicker Park for its fantastic location and proximity to ethnic foods. The quantity of Indiana and authentic Chinese food is incredible. LTH be damned, there's incredible chinese at Penny's Noodle House. And the incredible pizza styligns of Crust. And the ever so authentic taqueria next to Mirai- white boy tacos? I love getting those in Oaxaca!

Lots of pork tenderloin and persimmons in Wicker Park, eh?

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JiLS

You know it You know the irony is that in Bloomington there's just a ton of authentic or just slightly americanized food within like 6 blocks of our new house. I can't wait! That said, short of about a half dozen places, for those who didn't get the saracsm, wicker park is the suck for food.

I get the sarcasm and you're laying it on pretty thick. Fact is, the location is pretty good if you need to get downtown (20 min on bus or el) or out to the airport (el) or jump on the highway (1 min on Kennedy, 5 min to Eisenhower). I'd say it's better than most neighborhoods, actually. Ethnic food-wise: maybe you missed the train but this neighborhood was mostly Hispanic, Polish, and Russian (Ukrainian) so the food follows suit. No, you won't find Chinese or other Asian, because they don't live here.

The landscape has certainly changed in the past 12 years I've lived here. it used to be that I couldn't get the Midwestern transplants who moved to Lincoln Park to come over to "my side of the expressway." Now, I think they take tour buses.

There are still some great little spots - Pasadita, Irazu, Le Bouchon, Cafe Matou, Bin Cafe - not to mention some nice Hispanic grocery stores; but they're quickly being replaced by these new theme bars and a lot of it has to do with the mentality of the new inhabitants. That's fine, things change and you move on but I'd still like to see a little integrity. More Schwas and Honey 1s, less Boundarys and Fifty/50s.

Have fun in Indiana....

not to turn this into a merits of what the Wicker park/ukranian village/east village neighborhoods have (actually angels and mariachis is technically East Village, not Wicker Park... though these days few are going to argue that point), but based off of my one try of Thai Village (2053 W Division), i'd say it's some of the best i've had.. if they delivered i'd probably order it twice a month. anyway, if you look around, you can find just about any ethnic cuisine you seek.. in my opinion this area has some of the best restaurants in any one neighborhood area

Ahem, so has anyone been?

I have not been to Angels, but friends of mine went and loved it. Can't really tell you more about the experience...sorry; I guess it's just a preliminary "thumbs up." They are pretty food savy and I was sort of surprised they liked it...it's owned by the people who own English and Grand Central...two places that I don't consider having very good food.

I walked by yesterday and they were closed. I had to look inside. It looks like a Mexican-themed bar - plain and simple. There was a sign that read:
"Closed manana (tomorrow) for a siesta."

I thought, "wow."

Went there Fri night. Good food, atmosphere and drink. It definitely should not be compared to La Pasadita (different type of place altogether), but a good place to go with some friends for some authentic Mexican fare and scene. I like El Milagro, Los Comales (26th) and Mundial (18th) and this place holds up. I know the owner is from Mexico and has injected his knowledge and love of the culture into the menu and look.

The building, which was preexisting, reminds me of something I've see in Mexico City.

The people who brought us Grand Central and English are from Mexico? Macanudo! Wouldn't have guessed it. The name reminds me of Cobras & Matadors, which goes for the same crowd in LA, though the LA mini-chain is Spanish, and pretty good, not Tex-Mex. The Guns N Roses album art meets dia de los muertos graphics seem a little cynical, but I'm willing to give it the benefit. Presumably, those in the kitchen are Mexican, which should help if they are given some discretion.

Went last Thursday, 5/1. I thought the place is pretty good and wouldn't necessarily lump it with the Moonshine/50-50 crowd. First, I'd say with those places most of the food comes frozen or out of cans. Here, I believe you're more likely to get food that was actually cooked and assembled.

That said, I had chicken enchiladas with Roja sauce because I was pretty hungry and it came with sides of rice and beans. I would hazard a lot of Hispanics probably would be embarrassed to serve these particular enchiladas. I don't think they passed through any oil before being put together. Overall they were a soggy mess covered in cheese. Sides were better, but rice and beans is pretty straightforward. Rice was verde, not mexican red rice.

Wife got a steak quesadilla. Aside from the attempt at the cheesecake factory gourmet chipotle sour cream, it was decent and the steak had a nice char on it.

Friends of ours actually had gone the night before and returned on Thursday and generally seemed to much prefer the tacos, and from the looks of them that's what I'll try next time. There are maybe 6-7 filling choices and it's assemble your own fajita-style.

The place is actually very reasonably priced. Tacos run $6-8 with enough fillings and tortillas (choice of either flour or corn) for 3-4 tacos easy. I hazard that there's probably a slight value advantage here over La Pasadita, my standard measure. Drinks too are very reasonable. $6 for well margaritas (Sauza Blanco) or $18 for a pitcher. Mix, sans liquor, comes out of big machine (one of those fruit-drink type ones), so I'm not sure if it was a concentrate at some point or not. I didn't find them too sweet, so I'll have to ask next time.

I'll definitely go back. Outdoor space is large and will make for a good alternative on Division, where, as other posters have noted, there's way too much mediocrity. Much different vibe from La Pasadita, obviously, and sometimes it's more what we're in the mood for. (Unfortunately, Adobo Grill is so overpriced that we never go there even though it's closer to home.) Inside is very well put together, obviously a good amount of money went into it, and while commercial I can still appreciate something well executed as it is. There's some genuinely interesting pieces of mexican folk art and the collection of lucha libre masks is a fun touch.

For additional reference, when we really want a good sit-down mexican meal and some ambiance somewhere in the neighborhood, we hit Maiz.

I’d like to say was pleasantly surprised when I saw pastor on the menu at what I too thought was a reasonable price. While I doubt it's authentically cooked (I’m sure they don’t have a spit set up), it does sound good "topped with pineapple and caramelized onions”.

On the down side my wife and I promptly turned around at the door, I think there must have been a fraternity reunion going on or something. We headed to Tierra Caliente for some pastor we could count on. We plan to go back on a less… masculine night.

Funny you should mention the al pastor... more on that ... here's my dreadful take on Angels and Mariachis...

Let me preface this by saying I'm not anti-gentrification in Wicker Park/East Village/Ukranian Village... it's hard to get a fair take on new restaurants there because so many are against change, but I'm more than willing to give any place a fair shake...

Pluses: Margaritas were good. Not Frontera good, but decent enough. They had a few variations to pick, we kept ordering ones they referred to as the Angel margaritas, which were made with mint as well.

Minuses:
-The menu was mostly some form of meat served with tortillas. I had the al pastor. It was served in a tiny platter mixed with way too much pineapple and carmelized onions. It was pretty forgettable. If I had to guess, their kitchen probably looks like a giant buffet table of roasting pans that they scoop crap onto plates from.
-Had to wait about 30 mins for a table for two, was given one of those chain restaurant beeper things. A place that's in a 13' wide storefront shouldn't need buzzers to remember who is who. There wasn't anyone standing waiting, everyone was sitting at the bar waiting.
-The bartender looked like she had never eaten and was dressed like a cheap hooker.
-Our waitress was really drab, service was below average at best... (A table next to us had a bus boy spill food all over a guys shirt, the waitress came out and said "i heard you got food spilled all over you? yah sorry about that" in a really insincere voice ..and kept walking to deliver something to the next table...)
-I don't understand why they call this is called a "rock cantina" .. There wasn't even any music playing, let alone any rockin'... Judging by the workers, the crowd, and look of the place, this probably was a plus actually.

I have been twice for an early lunch. First time I had the pastor tacos, which were not bad, and the pineapple and pickled onions were quite tasty. The tortillas were fresh, and there was more than enough filling to satisfy. Second lunch I had the fish tacos and my wife had one of the chicken offerings. I thought mine were very good, with tasty chunks of not-overcooked tilapia and tangy onions and tomatoes. The chicken was mostly ok. Again the tortillas were nice and fresh and the servings were more than adequate for the price-- we left satisfied.

Beer was cold, limes were juicy, music was inoffensive and not too loud to hear across your table.

Not authentic I suppose, but easy enough for me to walk to for a weekend afternoon snack. ymmv.

I went with five friends to Angels and Mariachis about a month ago. These are my impressions.
The wait staff is hot, both men and women.
The interior is fun and lively.
We were there in the afternoon, so I dont know how raucus it gets in the evening.

The food is very good. I ordered the chicken soup, and had fresh chiles on the side. It was excellent




We got several pitchers of margaritas and they were good.

My only complaint is the salsa containers they are tiny.

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Food Rules!

Yes, the Rock Cantina threw me off a bit too. Before they opened I happened to catch the one of the management and asked them what kind of bands would play there. He just stared at me for a bit till I said “well, the sign says rock cantina”. He was like “oh, yeah we aren’t going to have live music here.”

I'm in the camp of truly meh...

The only reason I am glad we went, was the tequilla, fresca and lime drink, that I am now recreating at home. The waiter tried to get us to change our order, because he thinks girls think it's too strong...

We had the fish tacos, which were blah. Little pieces of steamed fish, no flavor whatsoever, and the chinken tinga, also flavorless. We asked for tomatillo salsa and habanero salsa, both of which they didn't have. The waiter just brought us tabasco for heat... Our food was devoid of any flavor. The tortillas were good, but when the filling isn't , what's the point.

The tiny salsa they serve was straight from a jar. It was remarkably sweet, and there was no way to dip the chip in the ramekin.

I was hoping this was going to replace Mas, but sadly I will not return. How can they have a restaurant this size and serve such lousy food? Really, chips and salsa aren't hard.

Went there last night for a networking dinner. It was a decent space - nice and open (with the big windows) and a big table with a booth on one side that made me feel like I was a Lilliputian.

On to the drinks - I started with the Paloma (previously mentioned as "the one with Fresca") and didn't find it strong at all. It was decent, but I don't think they use fresh Key lime juice as advertised. We ended up getting a pitcher of the house margarita which, again, wasn't very strong and could have use a little more real lime flavor. But, still, I've had a lot worse.

And food...we had the guacamole which was serviceable, but could have used more heat. I thought the salsas were okay, but again echo the sentiment that the ramekins they serve them in are laughably small. I had the fish (tilapia) tacos and agree with the past sentiment that they're probably in a roasting pan - it was more like a fish stew without much liquid that a fish taco which I like to be fresh and brightly flavored. Regardless, they weren't bad for what they were and I liked the tomatillo salsa (eventhough it too could have used some heat).

This place is obviously not aiming for authentic, but it's okay for a place to hang out and get some reasonably priced food/drink.

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I forgot, we had the guacomole too. This could have been decent, since the chips are good, and it came in a nice big bowl. However, once again, no seasoning. We tried to figure out what it was missing. Salt,peppers,acid, it was flavorless. Those fresh chilis in the photo above, would have been great in all the dishes we had.

I went a few weeks ago and met disastrous ends.
It was crowded, so we put our name in and had a drink at the bar upstairs. After an hour wait, I checked on the progress of our seating time. They had LOST OUR NAME. They apologized and seated us.
We ordered food and waited an hour. We asked about our food. They had LOST THE ORDER. Food finally came...NOT THE FOOD WE ORDERED. It was eventually corrected. They offered drinks which we declined.
I went to pay to find that my wallet had been stolen from my purse off the back of the chair in which I was seated. I told the manger to which his first reply was, "That's not our responsibility."
So for lower than average food, terrible service, deplorable customer service, I spent a week coping with having identification, credit cards, etc. stolen.
Devils and thieves is more appropriate.

Taking advantage of yesterday's beautiful weather, my fiancee and I took a 10-mile walk through many Chicago neighborhoods, stopping whenever hungry or thirsty at whatever outdoor-seating options called to us. A&M was one of the stops. Thankfully, the sun and the company had put me in such a good mood that even the inedible, undrinkable crap we had could only slightly temper my spirits.

Service was good. The bus boy brought us chips and salsa almost immediately after we sat. He should have kept them. The salsa tasted like ketchup with a few jalapenos chopped in.

Next up: guacamole. Disgusting. Guacamole is not supposed to taste like 7-up. This one did. Way over-pureed avocado blended with some sort of artificial-lime flavored sugary concoction.

Margaritas: guacamole in a glass. Same artificial, super-sweet garbage. One sip was all I could muster.

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...defended from strong temptations to social ambition by a still stronger taste for tripe and onions." Screwtape in The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis

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