The best place to soak up the last month of summer

this little stand serves some of the best fried fish i've ever had

Hi, everyone!

Summer in Chicago is a marvelous thing. The citizens of Chicago are solar-powered, and this is how we store enough positive energy to get through the winter. August is one of my favorite months here, because we’ve gotten our summer bearings by now. Wherever you go, there’s music playing, people sitting on patios, and you can just feel the crackle in the air (and fireworks at night, how do people have this many fireworks all the time?).

I was reading my friend Titus’ blog, Smokin' Chokin' and Chowing with the King recently, and he’d posted about a place near our home on the edge of Logan Square that I’d been meaning to visit since last year.

That place is Omarcito’s Latin Cafe, on the corner of Fullerton and Hamlin.

It was a spur-of-the-moment decision. The weather was too nice to not sit outside for lunch, and I’d heard that Omarcito’s was basically just a trailer-type kitchen with a tiny patio. It’s one of those places that you’d easily miss, as the entrance is on Hamlin, where it’s quieter than noisy Fullerton.

When we walked in, we marveled at the space. Omarcito’s is situated in one of the smallest courtyards I’ve ever seen, which makes it immediately endearing. Everything is brightly colored, including the patio furniture, and it’s hard not to feel suddenly cheerful when you step into a little alcove like that. It sort of reminded us like a miniature version of the food cart situation in Portland.

And also, I’m a total asshole. I’ve known the owner, Omar Cadena, for years now, since he worked as the manager at BIG and Little’s in Wicker Park. I met him while I worked at Paulie Gee’s Logan Square, where I still moonlight occasionally (like I did last night), but since I’ve become a full-time food journalist, I never got the chance to make him pizza like I always promised I would.

Our introduction wasn’t industry related. I just really liked the tuna poke tacos at BIG and Little’s, so I’d come in on occasion. Omar was so friendly to me I felt like we’d been pals for a long time. I assumed that he’d all but forgotten me, but some months back, I received a selfie from Derrick Tung, owner of Paulie Gee’s, with Omar, who’d stopped in to pick up some pies.

Omar wasn’t around when we stopped by, since he was working a festival, but if he is there when you visit, don’t be surprised if you make a new friend.

One thing I really appreciate about Omarcito’s menu is that breakfast is available all day.

There’s six breakfast options, most of them sandwiches, along with café con leche to get your morning started. Half of them involve eggs and meat, but the namesake Omarcito ($9) is a toasted French roll with pureed black beans, tomatoes, and Muenster cheese, served with a side of sour cream.

The Omarcito is a great option for multiple reasons. It’s a reasonable size, not too dense, and it features Muenster cheese, which I’ve always found is one that’s underappreciated—while it has a subtle nutty and slightly funky flavor to it, my favorite part about it is how it melts so well.

I also think beans are a great breakfast ingredient because they’ve got plenty of substance to them, and in this case they function as a spread, which keeps the sandwich from being dry. I did not know I could possibly have this much to say about breakfast sandwiches, beans, and Muenster cheese.

In case you want a small, sweet, handheld pastry to go with your coffee instead, Omarcito’s serves empanadas filled with guava paste and cream cheese ($6 each).

That combination of flavors is Cuban in origin, and such a good one. There’s the sweet tartness of the guava, along with the round silky richness from the tangy cream cheese, which makes for a great pairing.

We also got an empanada filled with lechón (all the empanadas are $6), of which you will not be getting a photo of, because the one I took was fucking horrendous. I didn’t know it was possible to stuff an empanada with that much meat, but basically, imagine a pastry shell filled to the brim with meltingly fatty pork shoulder in it.

Then, of course, there’s the sandwiches.

There’s five varieties (pork, ropa vieja, steak, chicken, and fish), all of which you can have on a French roll, but you also have the option to turn them into jibaritos. I’ve always found jibaritos a fascinating Puerto Rican invention (and from Chicago, too!), because who would have thought to construct a sandwich out of flattened fried plantains? Genius!

I was particularly fascinated by the fish option, but we went with the tried-and-true steak version ($12, +$2 to add cheese), because Davida had never had a jibarito before, and I wanted her to try a classic. These come with thinly sliced marinated steak, tomatoes, onions, and garlic mojo sauce, which isn’t quite the same build as other jibarito sandwiches around town, but it’s definitely got the right spirit.

Overall, it’s a solid showing with generous portions of meat and filling, but what really stands out are the plantains. I’ve never had a jibarito where the plantains weren’t at least a little greasy, but by some miracle of culinary science, Omarcito’s are remarkably less oily than the other ones I’ve had.

One Omarcito’s invention is the quesa’ropa ($17), which is a play on quesabirria (the half-taco half-quesadilla hybrid), except these things are outfitted with ropa vieja, which is a fantastic move.

The quesa’ropa is assembled with handmade tortillas layered with ropa vieja (Cuban shredded braised beef), and Muenster cheese, along with the braising liquid from the meat. Then it’s topped with a fresh combo of spinach, tomato, garlic mayo, Salvadorean sour cream, and crumbly queso fresco, which adds freshness to a typically heavy dish.

This is a fun one. I love quesabirria, but the ropa vieja version’s just so intriguing. The fresh garnishes on top make a typically dense dish a lot more balanced, plus the garlic mayo adds a bit of pop at the end. Plus handmade tortillas are always a bonus.

You get the option of different versions of rice if you order platters, and if you’re a fan of rice and beans, the black beans at Omarcito’s are cooked perfectly. They somehow manage to be creamy without collapsing. I could easily house a cup of these beans by themselves.

But the real star of today’s show is the fried fish plate ($14).

I’m going to flat out say it: The fried fish might be one of the best things I’ve eaten this year. Davida and I were absolutely floored. My gripe about cornmeal-breaded anything is how gritty it can be sometimes, but Omarcito’s execution somehow pulls off a miracle. It looks like your typical fried catfish, but the crust on it is light, crisp, with no graininess to it. It’s unreal.

The fish is topped with a fresh Ecuadorian salsa criolla, which brings a fresh vinegary hit of tomatoes and onions, along with Omar’s garlic mayo. The yellow garlic rice and the maduros (sweet fried plantains) are also spot-on here—you can’t go wrong with any of the side options, it seems.

And a side note about the sauces: They’re also fantastic.

The photo above makes them look like they’re the same, but you might not want to get them mixed up. The spicy sauce has a fair amount of kick to it, which is good for things like the sandwiches. But the garlic mayo is the star—I’m not sure what the hell Omar puts in this stuff, but it’s good on everything. I may have to coax the recipe out of him someday. I particularly recommend you drizzle it on some tostones.

It could have also been that the weather was perfect, on the verge of hot but not unbearable, with just enough sun and breeze, but our lunch at Omarcito’s couldn’t have been better. It’s the kind of place you where you want to sit under one of the umbrellas, lounge around eating food borne of islands, and wish that summer in Chicago could go on forever. Charge up those summer batteries for as long as you possibly can, and when the seasons inevitably change, reach back and tug on that memory to keep you warm until next year.

Omarcito’s Latin Cafe
3801 W Fullerton Ave
Chicago, IL 60647
(773) 698-6955

Hours:
Wednesday - Saturday: 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Sunday: 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Closed Monday and Tuesday

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If you’d like to read more about Omarcito’s and its background, check out this piece by Louisa Chu at the Chicago Tribune.

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On that fun note—have a terrific week, everyone! It’s supposed to be a hot one. Summer’s not over quite yet.