Tango Sur
3763 N. Southport Avenue
Chicago
Open 5:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday
Open noon on Sunday

We went on a Sunday afternoon and the front dining room was packed with Spanish-speaking families. (There is another dining room in the back.)

We ordered three different kinds of empanandas (fried pies) - chicken, ham and cheese, and spinach and cheese. The traditional empanada is made with ground beef, but we opted to try the other ones since we knew that we would be ordering the parrillada.

The empanadas come with chimichurri, a oil based sauce with garlic and parsley. Of the three, the chicken empanada was definitely the best.

We also ordered a portion of matambre ("hunger killer"). Matambre is usually a piece of flank steak pounded thin and then spread with a mixture of vegetables. The meat is then rolled up like a jelly roll and baked. To serve, you slice the matambre into thin circular slices. I was not impressed with Tango Sur's matambre and frankly think my own home-made version is better.

We then had the parrillada for two ($27), which comes with two or three cuts of beef, sweet breads, blood sausage, and another type of sausage. The meat comes on a small grill, which can be a bit smokey. Although everything was flavorful, we found everything to be a bit too salty. Again, chimichurri comes with the parrillada.

For dessert, we had an excellent flan with a dollop of dulce de leche on top.

The restaurant is reasonably priced and one can BYOB. You can also order Inca Cola, a Peruvian soft drink that tastes similar to cream soda.