Charlatan

I’ve lived in the neighborhood for a few years and was a big fan of the fried chicken at West Town Tavern- the restaurant this spot used to house. In fact, I work with Chef Alonso Sotelo who was the head chef at WTT for 10 years! I am happy to report that Charlatan is an awesome restaurant and great addition to the neighborhood.

We walked over on a snowy January Monday night for the 6PM reservation we’d made online. It got pretty busy so I’m glad we made that reservation! Etta enjoyed her cocktail made with scotch, and the fact that two of the cocktails names begin with, “Don’t…” She also loved her glass of red.

For dinner we started with the beef carpaccio, which was excellently seasoned and complimented by crispy potatoes, and the grilled octopus, beautifully charred and given a hit of acid from romesco. The big hit of the night, for me, the boring one, was the spaghetti and meatballs. The spicy red sauce and especially the meatballs were delicious.

For dessert we had coffee, hot, and cold espresso poured over vanilla gelato- an affogato. We ordered just about everything except the pig’s head and everything was done very well- the coziness of the room, the flawless service, high levels of execution from the kitchen. I can’t wait to get back to Charlatan!