Mi Terra in Pilsen

On "Check, Please" the other day, they had a special program on restaurants with entertainment. One of these caught my eye: Mi Terra in Pilsen. It was touted as having great (and inexpensive) food, and a clientele that was almost completely Hispanic. It had a Mexican band playing great music, and lots of people were dancing. All in all, it looked like a nice place to go for a night out. Has anybody been there? I couldn't find any references to this place on this website OR on Google!

Two corrections: 1) the name of the place is "Mi Tierra"; 2) the restaurant is, I'm fairly certain, in La Villita and not near, much less in, Pilsen; I think it's in the further part of La Villita, out past the courts. I believe, however, that there is also a branch of same restaurant in Cicero or Berwyn (on Cermak, perhaps?). (Unless they opened a new branch in Pilsen??? But if so, and I'm in Pilsen on an almost daily basis, I haven't seen it.)

I haven't been there but, as you say, from the CP-bit and also from an old review in the Tribune (I think), the place has received praise and seems to be quite popular.

Antonius.

There's a Mi Tierra near approx Harlem and Cermak in Berwyn.

It's a mini-chain, though. There are quite a few of them:

MI Tierra
(773) 866-1334
4706 N Kedzie Ave
Chicago, IL 60625

MI Tierra Restaurant Mexicano
(773) 929-7955
1039 W Belmont Ave
Chicago, IL 60657

MI Tierra Restaurant Mexicano
(773) 254-7722
2528 S Kedzie Ave
Chicago, IL 60623

MI Tierra Restaurant Mexicano
(708) 795-1460
7134 Cermak Rd
Berwyn, IL 60402

there are also listings in google local for locations in Mundelein, IL and Griffith, IN. I don't know if these are affiliated with the four above.

FYI, from CP site:

Mi Tierra

Type of Cuisine
Authentic Mexican
Address
2528 S. Kedzie
Chicago
773-254-7722
Open
Open for lunch and dinner Monday through Thursday from 1100am to 1030pm
Fridays from 1100am to 200am, Saturdays from 1100am to 330am
And Sundays from 1100pm to 200am
Average dinner tab
$14 per person without drinks
Reservations are accepted
Credit Cards
All major credit cards; no Discover Card
What our reviewers said
Rick recommended Mi Tierra and said check it out for good food, fun times and great drinks.
Diane loved her experience and enjoyed her meal and the service.
Steve was impressed with the wonderful, fresh ingredients and the authentic margaritas.

--Zeeshan

Yep, that's the La Villita location.

I've only been to the Berwyn location, but it was pretty good. Not my favorite, but certainly well above average.

... but indeed, not in Pilsen...

Both Amata and I had the feeling that CP did a segment on Mi Tierra back in the Amanda Puck days, though I know they had a segment on just this past week (though it seemed to be a compilation of places with entertainment). We were wondering though whether they've now done it twice. If so, on both occasions it was the Further-Little-Village branch (on Kedzie), which was also the subject of a print review several years back. All the focus on the Kedzie branch tends to give the impression that that's the 'main' or original location, though concrete or direct evidence for that claim is unknown to me.

From the CP segment, it was clear the place is popular with the Mexican(-American) community (not surprising, either, given the locations) but I've yet to eat there or speak personally with anyone who has. And alas, the Mariachi hijinx are for me more a turn-ff than turn-on.

Antonius

I was interested to see that Mi Tierra does well in Little Village. It seems that Mi Tierra, like LaLo's, plays up or down to its audience somewhat. The LaLo's near Cermak Plaza in Berwyn is OK, and has a significantly Mexican American customer base. The LaLo's on the North Side are pretty awful, IME. Perhaps Mi Tierra is similar.

On a related note, on a lark and needing to get someone an emergency margarita, I visited Cesar's Home of the Killer Margarita at Clark and Belmont the other day. The menu is comically limited, but the food is better than it has to be. (This, I must emphasize, is faint praise at best.) I suppose the explanation is a modicum of pride held by the Mexican management and staff who mostly sell gallons of 'rita's to the boys and girls that just wanna have fun.

The reason I mention Ceasar's at all is this: the whole room is dominated by a beautiful, scathing mural depicting a group of noble, angry looking Mestizo militiamen eagerly pressing past some kind of security detail toward a group of debauched gueros and/or gringos sipping margaritas, obliviously. On the other wall is a mural representing hard working masa-mamas making tortillas out of sight of the profligate upper-caste.

I would call it subversive, but it is way too obvious to be that. It was one of the nicest ironies I've seen in a while, though.

JeffB wrote:The reason I mention Ceasar's at all is this: the whole room is dominated by a beautiful, scathing mural depicting a group of noble, angry looking Mestizo militiamen eagerly pressing past some kind of security detail toward a group of debauched gueros and/or gringos sipping margaritas, obliviously. On the other wall is a mural representing hard working masa-mamas making tortillas out of sight of the profligate upper-caste.

I would call it subversive, but it is way too obvious to be that. It was one of the nicest ironies I've seen in a while, though.

I love that. I might even visit the place just to see the artwork.

That reminds me of the murals that used to decorate the walls of one of the most insipid Mexican restaurants that has ever existed, Lindas Margueritas, which stood in the northeast corner of Dearborn Station, in the space now occupied by the equally uninteresting Printers' Row branch of Bar Lodovicus. Lelas Margueritas tried, I guess, to compensate for the lack of taste in the food with an impressive set of murals which depicted all manner of aspects of Mexican history and culture. Nothing overtly anti-gringo of the manner you describe that I remember but in those sorts of Mexican murals there commonly or even typically are elements that are socialist and quasi-anti-güero if not directly anti-gabacho.

In any event, the murals were as entertaining as the food was dull... I wonder what happened to them...

Antonius

We've been to both the Mi Tierra on Kedzie and the one in Berwyn. The one on Kedzie is very festive. Dual Mariachi bands, so one can take over while the other takes a break, and in a big room with tile floors you don't have to worry about making conversation when they're on the bandstand. A big favorite for birthday parties and other celebrations. Once an hour the staff comes by and places big black sombreros on all the guests of honor and then leads them all (probably 20 of them on the night we were there) in a dance line weaving through the whole restaurant. The clientele, as noted, is probably 90% Hispanic.

But the food, you ask, how's the food?

Their claim to fame is their Parrillada de Lujo a tabletop grill of mixed meats and shellfish. It's fun, but probably not a reason to go there in and of itself. I liked the "Huachinango Mi Tierra," a fried snapper, better.

We were at the Berwyn location on a weeknight, so if it has the same party energy on weekend we missed it. The food was fine, but not better than the food at dozens of other Mexican restaurants within a 2 mile radius.

Consider it for a party. Fun and safe enough for a mixed group that includes people who don't like anything too exotic or spicy. I wouldn't go there just for a meal.

We've been to Mi Tierra on Kedzie often, and I would generally agree with the review above. Better Mexican food can be had elsewhere, but it's a great place to go for a party. We've always gone on Sunday afternoons with our kids, and there are always big tables full of Mexican families there -- not too many gringos around. We've always had a wonderful time, and it's nice being surrounded by other folks who are also really enjoying festive time with their families. The restaurant's staff is helpful and friendly. Kids are welcome to make as much noise as they'd like, as the bands will drown anything out (actually, that can be a problem for kids who are averse to loud noises, and conversation is pretty impossible, to be sure, in the main room while the band's playing.) One thing I like about the entertainment is that there's no effort to pitch it to the few NorteAmericanos in the audience -- everything is in Spanish, including the interlude in which a young man (really young, like 10 years old) comes out and tells jokes. I do think that the "Check Please" segment is old, as we first went after seeing that several years ago, I believe.