Laura and I have been to XOCO for lunch before, right when it opened and the lines were spanning entire city blocks. So it was nice that there was only a reasonable line inside the actual cafe when we arrived. However, even though the lines seem to be a bit more manageable these days, it should be noted that XOCO's system of ordering food and being seated is a little... different. You walk in, get in line, place an order at the counter. Standard fare, except for one twist. While you're in line, a hostess approaches to ask about your seating preferences (aka tell you what's available -- "Counter service okay?"). After you've placed your food order, you reconnect with said hostess so that she can lead you to your seats.
The XOCO menu is divided into parts: tortas from the wood-burning oven, tortas from the griddle, caldos, salads and sides, pastries and bean-to-cup chocolate. (FYI, tortas are sandwiches -- or paninis in the case of those from the griddle -- which are served anytime after 11:00 a.m. and caldos are hearty soups that are served only after 3:00 p.m.)
The tortas from the wood-burning oven are served on big, hearty rolls that are a little too robust for my liking. The bread is fresh and tasty, but the rolls are so big that they get in the way of managing to incorporate every delicious element of the sandwich in each bite. Also, when you bite into the torta, it's easy to lose a lot of the filling, which tends to spill out over the sides. (This is especially true for tortas like the Gunthorp Chicken Breast torta since the pieces of chicken aren't uniformly shaped and don't really lie flat.)
The tortas from the griddle are like delicious paninis with what is, in my opinion, a much better bread-to-other-ingredients ratio since they're made with thinner bread.
All right, that's enough of the overview. Time to get down to business. Between the two of us, Laura and I ordered the chips and guacamole, the Choriqueso torta, the Milanesa torta, the Mexican chocolate hazelnut cookie and the Polvoron.
The guacamole is solid at XOCO. Nothing crazy or crazy creative, just good solid guacamole. They do stick a couple of radishes in it though, so that's a little something different. But other than that, it's pretty straight forward guacamole served with chips that are perfectly crispy without being overly greasy.
The Choriqueso torta is one that's prepared in the wood-burning oven on the hearty rolls. I know I just talked about how the bread on these tortas is too much, but the choriqueso works much better with this bread than the Gunthorp chicken breast did. Here's why: the ingredients themselves don't add as much volume in addition to the bread. You've got Rick Bayless' delicious homemade chorizo, roasted poblano peppers, artisan Jack cheese and a delicious tomatillo salsa. All of these ingredients lie flat -- and therefore, manage to stay in the sandwich when you take a bite. It's a fabulous blend of spicy, smokey and savory. Great sandwich.
However, I have to say that the Milanesa is my favorite sandwich I've had at XOCO thus far. This little panini-like sandwich is one of those "from the griddle" tortas, composed of crispy Gunthorp chicken breast (nothing but the best for Rick) that's been pounded out so it's thin and manageable in panini form, coated in breading and all kinds of amazing spices then fried, black beans that have been coarsely combined so that they're really more of a spread than actual beans, artisan Jack cheese, pickled jalapenos and the amazing XOCO tomatillo salsa. The sandwich is also supposed to come with cilantro crema, but due to my hatred of creamy condiments that interfere with my heat, I took a pass on that. This sandwich is phenomenal. When I first saw it, I thought "wow, this looks like something a little too fried for my liking" -- as somehow I'd missed the "crispy" description of the chicken in the menu. But it was love at first bite. Every element was in perfect balance and all of the ingredients played off of one another in perfect harmony. I could eat this sandwich every day of my life. For real.
Laura and I closed the meal down with two perfect, albeit very unnecessary, cookies. We had the Mexican chocolate hazelnut cookie and the Polvoron, a Mexican shortbread creation that reminded me of a big Mexican wedding cookie. (People with nut allergies beware -- they're ground up and sneakily incorporated into this cookie.) Both were extremely tasty. I'm glad that Laura suggested making a diversion from our usual chocolate and churros selection. I thought I'd regret it, but I have to say that the pastries do represent at XOCO as well.
Speaking of chocolate and churros, definitely try them. The churros are a level above anything I've had anywhere else in the U.S. They're served warm, crisp on the outside, soft on the inside... and the flavor is perfect. To supplement the churros, Rick also turns out traditional thick, high quality chocolate served hot and in a cup (like hot chocolate, but thicker, richer and infinitely better). There are four options: authentic (freshly ground chocolate and water), Aztec (freshly ground chocolate, chilis, allspice and water), chocolate (a chocolate shot and 2% milk) and Barcelona, which I've never had and which is described only as "thick and rich." My favorite of the options is the Aztec, as I love spiced Mexican chocolate. (Well, really, I love anything spicy.) But I have yet to meet a chocolate at XOCO that I don't like.
Next on my list of things to try there: the seafood caldo, which was recently written up in Chicago Magazine's list of the 30 Best Mexican Dishes in the city. Have you had the seafood caldo? Is there something I haven't mentioned that you think is an absolute must-try? Let me know.
XOCO is located at 449 N. Clark Street (right next to Topolobampo and Frontera Grill), on the corner of Clark and Illinois. (The entrance is on Illinois.)
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