City Girl from the Burbs in the City - Part 1

Soooooo somebody à la me had a birthday recently and it was off to meet friends and try out some new restaurants in the City of Chicago I went.  Since my husband was behind the wheel I was OK with making the trip out of the burbs and into the city for some good food and drinks (emphasis on the drinks)!! The kids were excited for a night with their grandparents and I was ready to get obliterated, well not really, but the mom version which is equivalent to a few glasses of wine and a cocktail.  Damn things have changed, in my twenties I could go out hit up night clubs all night long, drink ridiculous amounts of alcohol, and just cab it back home.  Times have changed, but I digress, let's get to my reviews of the recently opened Tanta and The Dawson.

Someone was Excited

Pre-Gamed at Tanta:
Did someone say Peruvian? Not to mention right down the street from The Dawson!  Yes please:

The hubs and I arrived at Tanta about 1.5 hours prior to our reservation at The Dawson found an awesome (non-valet) parking spot on the next block and walked right in hoping for a couple of seats at the bar.   Luckily the birthday Gods were shining down on me and we only had to wait about 10 minutes before bar seats opened up, the place was packed.  So far so good, we sat down and took a look at the bar menu.

I figured when you are in a Peruvian place you do as the Peruvians do and I ordered a pisco sour.  As the bartender was shaking up my pisco drink, another gentleman placed bar snacks in front of us and I almost 'hit my dougie' when I saw my favorite snack of plantain chips and dip sitting in front of me.  Served alongside the plantain chips was a roasted corn snack, think unpopped popcorn that you can actually chew. While chowing down on the plantain chips and dip, my hubs ordered the Chicharrónes special for us to share and a coffee for himself.

Best Damn Bar Snacks 

Can I tell you that the Chicharrónes confit was damn near the best bite I've had all year.  The pork belly was so tender and the fat had been rendered perfectly, the sauce was deliciously sticky and it was served with a slaw that balanced the sweet of the sauce and cut through the fat of the pork belly.  The executive chef must be part chef and part wizard because that shit was MAGICAL.  Since this was just a pre-game before meeting up with friends we kept it to one drink, coffee, kick ass bar snacks, and the Chicharrónes confit.  Since I am currently obsessed with all things Tanta we will definitely be going back once we score another date night.

Chicharones Confit

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