Tortas Frontera (O'Hare)

As I was at the airport a little early yesterday and it was lunchtime, I thought it would be a perfect chance to try out Rick Bayless' new spot in Terminal 1 (Gate B11): Torta's Frontera.

The items on the menu are very close to the tortas offered at XOCO (I even saw one of my favorites, the Cubana). You can order and take it with you, or sit down at one of 4 tables or the bar. I ordered the beer braised short rib sandwich with picked peppers, cilantro and cheese for $11. I was told it would take about 10 min to make, so I made my way over to the bar to have a beer. I ordered a Goose Island Mirisol beer (made just for Rick Bayless...but I think it's just Sofie under a different name) the waitress asked for my credit card without telling me how much it was, swiped it, and showed me a recipe for $9.50 for a 8oz. beer. Yikes. I told her I wasn't paying that much for a beer you can get for almost half that at the real Frontera and she told me she already poured it and swiped the card. Alrighty then...

The positive? The sandwich was fantastic, made even better as it was in the airport...the land of sub-par food. The shirt rib was tender, moist, and very tasty. Unlike at XOCO, where the torta bread can be overcooked and hard, this bread was soft and easily eaten. Very very good.

I would order the sandwich again, but be careful at the bar...the service is not up to XOCO/Frontera standards!