1492 Tapas Bar

CLOSED FOR BUSINESS more

I'm a native Chicagoan, very familiar with Spanish cuisine and I love 1492. For one of these ""reviewers"" to call it fake is just patently absurd. Simply put, I have never had a bad experience at this restaurant. Everything is fresh, the space is cozy and the service is knowledgable. Granted, Cafe Iberico offers more variety than 1492 but it's also a much different ambiance. Even though I haven't lived in Chicago for 10 years, I return regularly to 1492 to meet with friends over lovely, well-priced wines and tapas. Ignore the other reviews- they obviously have some sort of ax to grind or else don't understand the nuances of ethnic dining. Pros: authentic Spanish cuisine, nice wine list and reasonable prices Cons: service can sometimes be eratic more

I went there with my coworkers during a conference trip and we were totally disappointed by this FAKE Spanish restaurant. Pros: Ambience Cons: food, service more

Even after reading the horrific reviews of this place, I decided to go try it with some friends. The building itself is lovely, and it still has the feel of an old house. The food and service, however, really didn't measure up. The drinks were good, but it took the waiter 20 minutes to bring me a glass of sangria after I asked for it twice, and my friends already had their drinks, with no apology. We ordered five different tapas, and I couldn't actually say that any of them were good. The potatoes in the patatas bravas were undercooked, the croquettas de pollo and the goat cheese were bland, and the pinchos de pollo and camerones were overcooked, and had an overwhelmingly charred taste. On top of all that, all the food was luke-warm. For far better versions of these tapas and better service, I'll be sticking with Cafe Iberico, which is right nearby. Pros: Nice building Cons: Food and service more

We don't usually write reviews, much less negative ones but our experience in 1492 definitely merits one. We'll keep it simple: bland/tacky ambiance, watered down sangria, terrible patatas bravas (one of our usual favorites), slow, rude and confused servers...and to top it all off we were overcharged; we were just looking at our bank statement online and they charged us $78. We signed for $70 after tip. Very shady. Just avoid the experience altogether, I wish we would have. Cons: everything more

Big Lie! more

My wife and I went today for an early dinner with our handicapped daughter, her boyfriend and our youngest daughter. The wheelchair lift was still out of order after a year, and they even had a table blocking it. The wine list had a selection of good Spanish wines, that we would recommend. We selected a Rioja wine with a particular vintage that was on the menu, and they brought a different vintage and tried to pass it off as the one we had ordered. They never brought one of our tapas orders but they did charge us for it. Some of the food was very good, but other items were mediocre. The paella, although with plenty of seafood and tasty was a small portion for the price and the rice was very mushy -not at all like a paella should be-. Altough the service was friendly it was very dissorganized, and the waiters were unfamiliar with the dishes and their own menu. Several food items are not real Spanish cuisine although they were very good. For example, the ""boquerones"" were served as an italian ""bruschetta"" and the stuffed mussels were prepared with Parmesan cheese. Finally, the ""crema catalana"" the Spanish version for a creme brulee was too runny and bland. Chicago needs a good and consistent Spanish restaurant. Pros: Wine selection, tapas variety Cons: Inconsistent food quality and disorganized service more

After careful consideration of several tapas spots, I decided on The 1492 for dinner last Tuesday. I called ahead for reservations, and I also asked if the Tuesday night bar special was still going on. The gentleman responded yes, and confirmed my reservation. First off, the restaurant has valet parking, which is wonderful considering it's location (very difficult parking street). The outdoor is beautiful, very festive. Our waitress was great, actually way above average as servers go. My date had a peach sangria, and I ordered the traditional, mine was wonderful, according to my date, her?s tasted a little bit watery . The tapas were very good. The bacon wrapped dates were excellent. The mussels came in a delicious marinara sauce, soooo good. The cheese plate was average, but very well presented. For the entree we shared the paella. The rice was cooked perfectly, infused with savory broth. The seafood was not over-cooked,and good quality. When the bill came, I noticed that the half price sangria?s special advertised on the website was not applied, I asked the server about it, explaining that I called in advance and was told that the special was still going strong, and she kindly explained to us that Sangria special is on Monday?s ? I checked it out later and she was right- although mistake was mine, the manager came to our table and honor the Monday?s special on a Tuesday!, well in my opinion this is WONDERFUL service. I'll be back! Pros: wonderful food, great service, gorgeous outdoor Cons: any more

The food was mediocre or really bad and the service was worse than incompetent. After bringing us the wrong items, the waitress argued with us that she had brought the right thing because her order pad and what she brought matched, never mind that she wrote down the wrong things. Mercifully, two dishes we ordered never arrived even after reviewing the order so we could cut the night short. And, here's the kicker: The watiress didn't know what I meant when I ordered ""a fino"" -- in Spanish restaurant! -- and when it came it was served in a cordial glass (and for $12). DO NOT GO! We certainly will not. Pros: Easy to walk to from Michigan Ave Cons: Food was not good, service was imcompetent and rude more

Best tapas place in the city. The restaurant has three floors so there's plenty of seating. The menu is... more

Best tapas place in the city. The restaurant has three floors so there's plenty of seating. The menu is quite large and the prices are very reasona... more

We had a fabulous meal last night, table for six. Excellent service for our waiter, a charming owner who made sure the restaurant was happy and offered to buy us a round of beers. But mostly, what is really going to bring me back is the authentic and delicious Spanish tapas. I was excited to see all the classics, like croquetas, albondigas and jamon serrano, and they didn't disappoint. I especially recommend the cheese plate and the....I forget the name....but it's a mixed of chicken, meat and spanish sausages with potatoes and alioli sauce. If you like Spanish food, GO, GO, GO! more

This is the perfect place to go out for drinks and tapas, with friends or on a date. It has a beautiful outdoor seating area that gives it a cozy atmosphere, along with good music playing in the background. The food is exquisite and the service is great. One of the owners, Jesus is a sweetheart and the place has a great vibe over all. We loved the sangria, this time we tried the cava, but can't wait to try the peach flavor, or maybe the apple. All in all it was a great way to spend my best friend's last night in Chicago (she just moved back to Hawaii) and I would recommend this place to friends, for special occations or just to go relax and enjoy the atmosphere after a long day or before a night of partying. It does get busy, so I would recommend making reservations. Pros: Great ambience, great food and mixed drinks. Cons: None but if it's a weekend get a reservation as it gets very crowded. more

I WENT THERE THIS FATHERSDAY "" Pros: MOJITO WAS PERFECT Cons: BAD BAD FOOD AND SERVICE !!! more

Pros: good wine list Cons: everything else more

My husband and I ate here last night and I would say that the food was average at best. The staff seemed really confused and disorganized. We started by ordering two Tapas plates and out came one we had ordered and one we did not order. When we told the waitress I almost felt like she thought we were lying or something and had ordered it. About 20 minutes later I saw the same thing happen and the table across from ours...so clearly the waitress was a bit confused in general. Pros: Good Sangria! Cons: Service was disorganized and food only average. more

This restaurant itself is beautifull, an old victorian mansion with mahogany and others beautifull woods. I liked the decor and ambiance, very ""spanish"" and romantic. The sangria was superb . The portions of the Tapas are very appropriate to the prices. The atmosphere is comfortable and classy - albeit a little bright and sometimes a little jazzy. Everyone is very friendly and the service is fast, professional and efficient. The food is wonderful - especially the crab stuffed mushroons and the shrimps in garlic oil. The entrees like paella, filet mignon and stuffed chicken were nice as well. Excellent wine list with nice and affordable prices, I can always find a nice Spanish Rioja by the glass. I will definitely go back again. Pros: Romantic and cozzy ambiance! warm, reliable and attentive service. Excellent tapas and Spanish wines! Cons: Not late Dinning more

Food and Love are what makes me smile. These guys and this Tapas Bar not only have great food and awesome desserts, the people are so warm, beautiful and friendly The food was one of the best meals we've had. Its about time to see good restaurant has it all with out having to pay an arm and legs for a GOOD MEAL. We will be back for as long as we live in Chicago, and you 1492 Tapas keep up the good work!!!! Pros: Great ambiance, romantic, awesone wine list, flawless service. Best Sangria. Cons: They don't accept Dinners Clubs more

Visiting from Seattle - we went on the recommendation of the Marriot desk - wasn't impressed with 1492. The food was average at best - one thing was actually good - the dates wrapped in bacon - I know, it sounds weird, but was fantastic. The rest of the food was average at best. more

Everything about this place was a huge disappointment, especially the food. I ordered the lamb chops with mashed potatoes and stuffed mushrooms. The lamb chops were charred, had no flavor, and tough. The mashed potatoes were FAKE! We love dining in Chicago and couldn't believe that a place in a city with so much competition actually served fake potatoes. My husband had the salmon entree and it also had no flavor. When we ordered drinks our scatterbrained waiter said they had no ""well"" drinks, so I ordered Absolut and my husband Tanqueray, and they came in tiny, no more than 8 oz. glasses, which was fine until we got our bill. I was so mad about the service and food that I didn't order another drink and just wanted to get out of there. Our waiter practically threw the dessert and drink menu on our table without a word and walked away. When he finally brought our bill, I almost lost it. My little drink was $11 and my husband's $12!!! I know it's expensive to drink in Chicago, but I can go to the top of the John Hancock, have a great view, a bigger drink, and pay that much! My experience was so bad that it prompted me to write my first review! Do not waste your time or money on this place! Pros: No wait Cons: Food, service, price more