Tortas Frontera ~ Chicago, Illinois

O'Hare airport (Terminals 1, 3, & 5)

First visit: Mar 2023

Well of course there isn't a Greenville to Colorado Springs direct flight. In fact most require two stops, but United has a one stop option through Chicago, which is by far the quickest as well. You'll recall we were just here back in November. You'll also recall me lamenting the lack of dinner options, other than the great Publican Tavern. But for breakfast/lunch, that opens up all sorts of opportunities. Not far from my departing gate is Tortas Frontera. If you're a foodie of any sort, the name Rick Bayless is likely to come up quickly. He popularized Mexican cooking in a genre - and era - when it was still relatively unknown. Frontera is his most famous brand name.

Tortas Frontera is his walk up option that only exists at O'Hare airport (I think they were once also in downtown) in 3 different terminals. Tortas are the main offering but they have other sandwich plates (like a Cubano!). And a pretty good looking bar as well. Of course it's too early for that, so I just want a fast torta to take back to the gate and devour.

One of my pet peeves is menus that don't tell you everything they put in a dish. I ordered a bacon, egg, and cheese torta. I knew it would come with a red salsa, and that's all I wanted. But they also add avocado. For many that can only be seen as a plus. But I never liked avocado, not even in my salsas. So I had to pull those out later. Not a big deal, but I hate to waste food like that. It's also sloppy, unlike a tomato that can be removed far more easily. The other issue is it took them forever and a day to prepare my meal. And there was no excuse for it. I saw it being made and it was delivered to the counter to be boxed up. And there's where the breakdown occurred. The lady there just took her sweet time - making coffee - or other duties (slowly) and then eventually getting to wrapping up the sandwiches. So what happens? It gets cold sitting there. C'mon! And it's a very expensive torta. You would pay about $3 for something like it on the streets, but it's $11+ at the aeropuerto. 

Was it good? Yes, I particularly liked the bread. Crispy and flavorful. The red salsa was excellent, but one cup isn't enough for me. Could have used another. Would I go back? Maybe - certainly the service issues can be random. Maybe makes for a better late afternoon layover snack - with a craft beer.

3/18/23 (new entry)