Chicago

Food brings everyone together; for evidence watch the movie Soul Food. Or don't, and take our word for it. Keeping said comestible peace, Eivissa.

A two-level, brick/dark wood beamed loft style space brightened by overhanging maroon wire lamps, red mosaics, and splatter color murals, Eivissa seamlessly blends Basque pintxos with modern takes on classic Spanish tapas, ensuring that the only separatism occurs during a garlicky goodnight French on your date. For the pintxos, which are served atop toasted bread, they're doing combos like ricotta/roasted tomato/sardines, lomo (cured pork loin) with grilled eggplant & zucchini spread, and octopus w/ passion fruit caviar, which'll never know the joy of helping get a college lass sauced on 'rita Tuesdays. On the Spanish side they've got shot-glass-served “chupitos” (shrimp in gazpacho, octopus in romesco sauce), and tapas favorites like tortilla (Spanish omelette w/serrano ham, saffron aioli), garlic-glazed shrimp with spicy paprika, and a selection of aged sherry-soaked Spanish sausages, which just rip butts and yammer on about Real Madrid.

To wash it all down they're doing signature tropical libations like the “roiz” (cachaca, lime, blood orange puree, agave nectar), “sola” (gin, pear liqueur, coconut-lime-mint puree), and a secret kick embedded red sangria dubbed “amnesia”, exactly what you'll wish you had if you foolishly watched even a minute of Soul Food.