BIG STAR = BIG WINNER

I have been dying to go to Big Star since it opened, but hadn't made it over since I just haven't been around Bucktown much lately. However, I couldn't wait any longer and some friends and I made plans to go for a late lunch/early happy hour.

For those who haven't heard, Big Star is the latest "street food" venture by well-known gourmet chefs. The main man behind Big Star is Chef Paul Kahan of Blackbird, Avec and Publican acclaim. Let me tell you, the man knows what he's doing with this honkey tonk taco stand in the former Pontiac Cafe space on Damen -- and he's gotta be bringing home big money. The place is crowded at all times.

My friends and I snagged seats on their patio. Big Star specializes in whiskey and is supposed to have some pretty amazing cocktails, as the man running the libations part of this show is the same mastermind behind Big Star's famous neighbor, The Violet Hour. Though it was tempting, we felt that 2:00 p.m. was a little too early to start hitting the hard stuff. Instead, we decided on some Tecate (and Miller High Life). And then we concentrated on the menu.

Naturally, I ordered pretty much everything on it. Literally. We ordered some chips and guacamole and some queso fundido to start. The guacamole was delicious. It may rival Adobo in terms of delicious gauc in Chicago. The chips were a little bit hit or miss in terms of uniform crispiness, but the guac absolutely made up for them.

The queso fundido was absolutely the best queso fundido I've had in a long time. It was layers of deliciousness -- a layer of roasted poblano peppers, followed by chorizo, followed by delicious melted cheese. It was savory and spicy and a little bit sweet mixed with gooey cheesy goodness. I need to eat it again soon.

Then I ordered four tacos... for myself. But most importantly, between the three of us, here's what we had:

Tacos Al Pastor (traditional pork shoulder with grilled pineapple)
Tacos de Borrego (lamb shoulder)
Tacos de Panza (pork belly)
Tacos de Raza de Poblano (poblano chilis)
Tostada de Pollo (chicken tostada)

The Tacos al Pastor were awesome. The sweetness of the grilled pineapple is the perfect complement to the savory pork shoulder. A classic favorite done well.

The Tacos de Panza, with pork belly and a fabulous tomato-guajillo sauce, topped off with onions, cilantro and queso fresco, were probably my favorite of the tacos I tried. The savory richness of the pork belly was tempered by the sauce and the onions. The cilantro added some freshness and the queso fresco balanced everything out. This was probably my favorite menu item. Definitely give it a try.

The Tacos de Raza de Poblano were also tasty -- a nice combination of roasted sweetness from the poblanos, along with some cheesy, creamy goodness and a hint of spice. Well done.

The Tacos de Borrego were the low point of my meal for the simple reason that it lacked the complexity I found in the rest of the dishes I tried. I love lamb and think it's great that more and more chefs are doing interesting things with it. However, it's a tricky meat since it is so rich (read: fatty) and can have a flavor that may be too gamey for some people's taste. The Tacos de Borrego fell victim to lamb's richness. It was overwhelming -- even thought the taco also featured radishes (interesting!) and queso fresco. Maybe I just got a taco that didn't have enough radish because that flavor should do the trick to cut into the richness and balance it out. Instead, it just tasted like I was eating flour tortilla, lamb and queso fresco. Disappointing.

The Tostada de Pollo was fabulous -- and I even went ahead and got it with the poblano crema (big step since I absolutely abhor sour cream -- and all creamy condiments really)! It was so well done. The flavors combined perfectly -- and there were many layers of them. The tostada was crispy, the chicken thigh was perfectly cooked, the black beans added depth, the crema was not overwhelming and added a cool creaminess. The spices and red onions added a pop of fresh flavor that rounded the whole thing out impeccably.

The service was great -- everyone from the hostess to the servers were super friendly and attentive. I'm happy to report that I didn't experience any attitude here, despite the fact that it's on everyone's hot list. And with good reason, since the food's delicious and it is home to one of the absolute best patios in the city. The people-watching is incredible. Such a fun place to spend an afternoon. (And by the way, our tab only came out to a total of $63 for food and drink for three people, all of whom had between 3-4 beers each. Awesome.)

I can't wait to get back to Big Star to try everything else on the menu -- and I'll definitely be ordering up some more Tacos Al Pastor, Tacos de Panza and Tostadas de Pollo. Since I didn't try any whiskey or cocktails during this visit, I absolutely plan to do so next time around.

Way to live up to the hype, Big Star. See you again soon.