Chicago Restaurant Week #5 💎 Hidden Gem Latin Restaurant — Cariño

What a delightful surprise! Every dish here is thoughtfully composed with multiple components, showcasing the chef’s creativity — and the flavor combinations are truly eye-opening 🤩 🦪 Oysters: Incredibly tender and smooth, no fishy taste at all. Paired with a Mexican-style spicy sauce — so refreshing and appetizing! 🌶️ 🥒 Cucumber Salmon: Salted and lightly spiced cured salmon meets sweet-and-sour cucumber — a bright, clean starter 🥒🐟. 🌽 Black Truffle Corn Ravioli: I loved this one! Sweet-and-savory corn broth infused with rich black truffle flavor, topped with crispy sweet corn kernels — an absolute winner 🥟✨. 🦐 Grilled Shrimp: Placed over crispy fried sausage bits, with lemon gelée and garlic butter sauce on the side — each bite was packed with layered flavors 🧈🍋. 🥩 Lamb: You can tell a lot went into this — three different sauces, plus beets and onion crisps. The lamb was tender, though overall it didn’t leave a strong impression 😌. 🥭 Mango Sorbet: Bright, tangy, and super refreshing, with tender mango cubes underneath. I didn’t catch the strawberry note, but there was a subtle hint of chili — and mango + 🌶️ works surprisingly well! 🍫 Chocolate Ganache with Gelato: The gelato had a subtle tea and spice flavor — not too sweet. Chocolate and caramel? Always a safe and satisfying combo 😋. 🌟 In summary: $65 for 7 courses (with tax + mandatory 25% tip ≈ $91 per person) — and three of the dishes are from their regular menu, so it’s pretty good value 💰. The vibe here is also fantastic — Latin music in the background that makes you sway while you eat 💃🎶. For Restaurant Week offerings, this was way more impressive than Michelin-starred Boka or even two-star Moody Tongue! #HiddenGem #RestaurantRecommendation #VibeDining #ChicagoFood #ChicagoRestaurantWeek