One of my favorite restaurants is right here in Chicago, located near the corner of Ashland Avenue and Augusta Boulevard. Mariscos el Veneno is a small Mexican seafood restaurant that serves up delicious prawns, shrimp, oysters, crab legs, red snapper, octopus, and more, at reasonable prices and generous portions. The restaurant is a small blue building on Ashland Avenue (not to be mistaken with El Barco, another Mexican seafood restaurant located across the street). If it’s the every day tacos/quesadillas/burritos that you’re looking for, then this may not be your kind of place, as they are strictly seafood.
I love the atmosphere of this place, very casual and laid back. The restaurant has two levels and an outdoor seating area, but is still fairly small. The walls are decorated with old sea fare (blow fish, nets, chincy pictures of sailboats, you get the idea). A little divey, but I think that adds to the appeal.
A friend and I ate here last week and, as usual, I was not disappointed. We sat down and right away our server handed us crab tostadas to snack on before we ordered. She also brought out salsa that is so ridiculously spicy, I thought I might die the first time I tasted it. I warned my friend about how much heat the salsa packed, but he didn’t believe me as he doused his tostada in this unsuspecting pink-hued concoction. Luckily, we brought some cervesas to put the heat out (oh yes, they’re BYOB– at no charge).
We shared three plates of food (a ridiculous amount of food, I might add, but I can’t help myself). We ordered the prawns, Nayarit style (prawns in a spicy, buttery sauce), camarones a la diabla (shrimps in a spicy guajillo sauce), and an order of the fresh oysters on the half shell. The prawns are my go-to dish when I go there, but it was the first time I had the spicy shrimp and they were fantastic. They keep the shrimp whole and saute them in a garlicky, chile butter sauce. I have this thing about eating whole shrimp, tearing the heads off and sucking out the shrimp head juices (I think it’s sacrilege if you don’t eat shrimp like this). This dish was off the hook and I can’t wait until next time to order it. The oysters were tasty also, nice and fresh. I ate them with a shot of hot sauce and a little lime juice.
I’m already planning on my order for the next time that I go. I’m thinking crab legs (a huge portion of crab for $39.99), Chapuzon del Mar (oysters, shrimp, and octopus), and shrimp ceviche. Sounds like a lot of food, but trust me, I can finish it like a champ.
If you love seafood and Mexican cuisine as much as I do, I suggest that you give this place a shot. They’re BYOB, don’t take reservations, great for small or medium groups of diners, and easy to get to (#9 bus, Augusta stop / Blue Line Division stop).
Do you have a favorite seafood restaurant in Chicago? Share here.