As a chef and foodie, I couldn’t let my first summer in the Windy City end without experiencing Taste of Chicago. Luckily, I was able to attend the final installment last weekend, and it was everything I could have hoped for. The smells, the music, all of the different flavors… I already can’t wait for next summer!
I wanted to try as many things as possible, but I also had to make sure I didn’t overspend because, let’s be real, that can happen very easily at a festival like this. So I decided to challenge myself: I would try as many bites as I could while staying under $50. To get the most for my money, I decided to limit myself to all of the cheap Taste Of options, which averaged about $6 each.
How did I manage to choose between nearly three blocks’ worth of vendors while staying under $50, you ask? Simple: I chose vendors that featured cuisines I had never tried, dishes I had never heard of, or both. That meant I had to skip over some bites that I would normally have loved to sample… which was hard, but so worth it in the end! I ended up sampling dishes from seven different restaurants and only spent about $47. There was nothing I tasted that I didn’t enjoy, but there were four samples in particular that absolutely blew me away. Read on to find out the name of those four dishes, which restaurant serves them, and what countries they hail from!
Pav Bhaji - Cumin Indian Eats (Indian)
First up we have pav bhaji, an Indian street food dish originating from Mumbai. As a lover of Indian food I had to try this one, and it exceeded my expectations! The vegetable curry (bhaji) is made from simmering potatoes, cauliflower, carrots, and other vegetables in a tomato gravy, then blending it with bhaji masala, a spice blend similar to chaat masala. The curry is served with a soft bread roll (pav) on the side.
This dish was both spicy and packed with flavor. By the time I got around to trying this one I was starting to get full, but I still ate it all because I couldn’t bring myself to waste it! The rolls that came with the dish made it extra filling, and they were a perfect complement to the slight acidity and sweetness of the curry. I already have a list of favorite Indian dishes, but pav bhaji may have crept its way to the top.
Chicken Pastel - Badou Senegalese Cuisine (Senegalese)
A pastel is a savory stuffed pastry that is deep fried, similar to an empanada. The pastry itself is flakier and thinner than that of an empanada, creating a texture that’s both unique and satisfying. If you think you’ve heard of pastels before, you’re right! They’re also a common street food in Brazil.
In Senegal, pastels are typically stuffed with a tomato-y filling of meat or fish. I regret not asking the staff how Badou makes their filling, but based on the flavor I would guess it was made by simmering chicken in tomatoes, onions, peppers, and various spices. I wish I knew what the spices were, because I would totally make these at home.
The employee who served me also gave me a bit of their new sweet and tangy jerk sauce to try on the side, but in my opinion the pastels already had so much flavor that the sauce wasn’t even necessary!
Steak Jibarito - Ponce Restaurant (Puerto Rican)
Okay, so I might be cheating a bit with this dish since it specifically originated from the Puerto Rican community in Chicago, but I was just so blown away that I had to include it in this list. If you haven’t yet had the pleasure of trying a jibarito (fried plantain sandwich) — do yourself a favor and fix that immediately.
I don’t even know where to begin with this one. For starters, the plantains used for this dish are green, or underripe. This ensures the “bread” doesn’t come out too soft or too sweet. The sauce was (after doing a bit of research) a simple combination of ketchup and mayo, and the additional toppings were lettuce and tomato. Sounds pretty simple overall, but the flavor was anything but. The Ponce stand offered other meat options besides steak, but I’m glad I went with the steak because it went so well with the plantains that I was rambling about it for ten minutes after I took my last bite. Once again, I regret not asking the staff how that meat was prepared.
Carimañolas - Arepa’ George (Colombian)
Last, but certainly not least, we have carimañolas (and arepas, which are what my fiancée had) hailing from Colombia. (Shoutout to the staff who were sporting their “It’s Colombia, not Columbia” shirts!)
These things were so good, we ended up going back for seconds. Well, my fiancée did because I was too full at this point, but I still stole a couple bites. Carimañolas are small fritters made from yuca (a starchy root vegetable similar to a potato) that are stuffed with meat or cheese. I had one with beef and one with cheese, and they were both phenomenal. Next to the jibarito, they were my favorite bites from the entire festival. The soft, fluffy texture of the deep fried yuca was addictively satisfying and went so well with the melted cheese inside. The beef inside the other piece was, once again, unexpectedly flavorful. I will be ordering from Arepa’ George again in the near future, and I will be ordering a basket of carimañolas and nothing else.
Though Taste of Chicago 2025 has officially come to an end, I can say I’ve racked up a good starting list of restaurants to try that otherwise might have taken years for me to discover. When I go back next year, I’ll stuff my face even more, and rack up an even bigger list! Overall, I would rate my experience as a 7 out of 10. One point off because I was only able to attend for one day, another because there were just too many vendors to choose from, and one more because my appetite and bank account were both too small to be able to try everything.
If you’re looking to try (and cook!) some dishes hailing from other cuisines around the world, check out some of our upcoming classes at The Chopping Block:
- Indian Vegetarian - Friday, September 19 11am
- Italian Surf & Turf on the Patio - Friday, September 19 6pm
- Sushi Workshop - Thursday, September 25 6pm
- Date Night: Havana Nights - Saturday, September 27 6pm
