Mariscos San Pedro In Pilsen – Highly Recommend

Just moved back to Chicago after five years away and was looking for something new and interesting. Had several people recommend this Mexican seafood spot in Thalia Hall. This was probably the best meal I’ve had in Chicago since I first went to Girl And The Goat back when that place first opened. Really fresh, highly executed seafood is maybe my favorite thing so I was primed to enjoy, and it didn’t disappoint.

Atmosphere: Place has a fun, slightly trendy vibe without being douchey. Very “come as you are” but also a terrific date night spot. I sat at the bar where they do full service but there’s also counter seating in the back where you watch dishes be prepared.

Service: Bartender was super friendly and offered up a number of suggestions. He seemed to genuinely love the food there and was excited for me to try everything. Only knock against the entire meal is that the food was on the slow side despite it not being that full.

Food: Opted to just order one or two things at a time so I could try a lot of stuff without over committing. Here’s what I got-

1. Shrimp taco. Shrimp is wrapped in Monterey Jack that is fried right on the plancha. Along with some chimichurri, avocado and pickled red onion. I spent five years in LA and this is still one of the best seafood tacos I’ve ever had.

2. Hokkaido Scallop Aguachile. There’s few things in life I love more than a great aguachile and this is maybe my favorite I’ve ever tried. It’s sweet and sort of fruity on the front end with a lovely spice from the Serrano pepper, and the scallop flavor comes through clean and fresh on the end. Served with some lovely tostada on the side. I couldn’t eaten this for hours.

3. Oysters with Achiote Butter. They serve oysters four different ways, two hot preparations and two cold, and I opted for this one with the bartender’s recommendation. The only- and I mean only -thing wrong with this is that the oysters are on the small side. I literally picked the shells up and licked them clean like a dog. Smokey, rich, a little spicy, and with some acidity from the charred lime on the side to help cut through the fatty richness. Fantastic.

4. Octopus Sonoran Dog. Their play on a hot dog, this is a chargrilled octopus served in a fresh baked bun with bacon, pico, salsa macha and pickled jalapenos. There’s some sort of bean spread in there that reminded me very strongly of a chili dog. I liked this a hell of a lot but is the one thing I would probably not get again until I’d had everything else on the menu, whereas I’ll get at least one of the above items every time I go back in perpetuity.

5. Flan. I’ve really been trying to cut sweets out and basically asked for a dessert menu so they’d take the main menu away from me, otherwise I’d still be there. This flan is beautiful, exactly the right firmness with whah I am pretty sure was lovely passionfruit topping. Slightly salted, slightly sweet, slightly acidic, overall perfect. Terrific cap on a terrific meal.

Cost: I got all of the above plus two N/A cocktails for a grand total of $114 after tax but before tip. They do have a mandatory service fee of about 4% which I can find annoying if the meal hasn’t put me in a good mood, so I didn’t care at all about this one.

Overall: I have a new favorite restaurant. They also offer happy hour specials. Easy place to spend a long evening or just stop in for a small bite or two with a drink. I can’t wait to go back.