Sergio's Place passes Mexico's mole sauce test
CHICAGO -- The kitchen's not much, but it sure accomplishes a lot. Sergio's Place isn't Chicago's best Mexican restaurant, but it's great for a neighborhood that sees more Italian beef and pizza than ceviche.
"Something I grew up eating at home. All the flautas, enchiladas, chilaquiles, carne asada," said Sergio Sanchez, the owner.
The home cooking extends to the tortillas, all made in-house, sometimes using blue corn, to serve as a base for the tacos al pastor or fish versions.
But the real test of his kitchen comes in the form of mole, that complex, regional sauce made up of some two dozen ingredients, including dried chiles, nuts, seeds and in the case of the mole negro, chocolate and cinnamon.
"Everybody has their own version of it, which means a 'mix.' Why do we do it? Because it's really good. It's really good and it's part of Mexico," said Sanchez.
Sanchez cooks everything in a shallow bit of oil, releasing their flavors - pasilla and ancho chiles; pecans, almonds and pumpkin seeds; he blends everything then strains it, adding the sweeter chocolate and piloncillo - an unrefined sugar, to balance it out. It's draped over chicken enchiladas that are eventually dusted in sesame seeds, for a truly unique flavor.
"Earthiness; It's a savory, sweet sauce, it's spicy and it brings all the flavors, every bite you can taste," he said.
Sergio says occasionally he'll have other moles on the menu like ones that feature just peanuts for example. But typically he'll have one mole, and it's always going to be the negro.
The restaurant also has live music on the weekends.
Sergio's Place
6966 W. North Ave.
773-622-5555
