STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

You totally need to check out Iggy's on North Ave and Wood in Bucktown.  The food is fantastic, not too steep in price and they have a killer outdoor seating area.  Oh and the best part...they actually take reservations.

There is always Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba too, reasonable, yummy and takes rez as well.

shopgirl82 wrote:

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  my girlfriends and i always go to Cafe Iberico for tapas (the basement is better for crowds).  When I go there it usually costs $20-$30 including pitchers and pitchers of sangria.  In my opinion it far surpasses Ba Ba reeba as far as food.  I also like Mambo Grill the food is good and they have amazing mojitos.     Also, if you want a good place for Mexican and great margaritas, Fernando's is amazing.   The ambiance isn't the best (as in it's not really a place to see and be seen), but  it does seem like everytime I go, there's a large group having a good time.  -- Edited by shopgirl82 at 17:56, 2005-08-30

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Hmm Cafe Iberico is a good idea, though this group has done tapas twice, but never there.

What's Mambo Grill?  Where is it and what do they serve?

 Mambo Grill

"Busy River North spot bursting with salsa music and pan-Latin specialties. Not all Raters fall under its spicy spell, but I go often and am never disappointed. The menu includes traditional Cuban and South American dishes—two winners are a pan-seared chicken breast and sublime chiles rellenos smothered in rich cheese and black beans. Start with a smooth gazpacho spiked with habanero, or succulent portobellos with a fiery tomato sauce. For dessert try the flourless chocolate cake covered with chipotle sauce."

from chireader

it's at 412 N. Clark.  It's right by Maggianos.  

i *think* they take reservations and i think that Iberico takes reservations for larger groups.  it doesn't surprise me that you have already done tapas, as it's the first thing that i think of when i think of group dining. 

i wanted to add my other favorite group dining place...Tizi Melloul 531 N. Wells

Named for a mountain in Morocco, this lavishly decorated restaurant serves up sophisticated Mediterranean cuisine. The main dining room features a giant communal table for family-style sharing; the exotic dome-shaped Crescent Room can be rented for private parties of up to 25 people, with a prix-fixe menu. Diners looking for a lighter meal or something to nibble as they sip a Rockin' Moroccan (vodka, lime juice, sugar, mint and soda) can order dishes like duck confit salad off the tapas menu, served in the restaurant's lounge. Belly dancers perform on Sunday nights, and hookahs packed with flavored tobacco provide Mediterranean atmosphere. (from metromix.com)

you can go to one of their private rooms (we did this with just 4 people), and do a prix-fixe meal (which i suggest).  the guy who designed the Chicago Real World house, also designed this restaurant (just and fyi). 

HTH.