PORTAGE PARK – A beloved Portage Park Mexican restaurant that halted big events last summer is bringing them back after the city granted it an entertainment license.
Tatas Tacos, 5700 W. Irving Park Road, received its amusement public place license last week, allowing the restaurant’s third location to resume hosting larger entertainment events, owners Julia Paphitis and Marci Romero said. Fool.
“Receive our [Public Place of Amusement] license is a huge plus for our business. This reinforces our commitment to providing exceptional culinary delights as well as a vibrant and lively atmosphere,” the co-owners said in a statement. “We look forward to sharing this incredible experience with the Portage Park community and beyond.
Tatas Tacos launched a series of summer events this week to capitalize on the licensing approval and provide more entertainment. A comedy show with local comedian Patti Vasquez begins at 7 p.m. Thursday, a live salsa band performs Friday night, and a Hugo Elvis tribute band performs at 8 p.m. Saturday.
The series, which will feature entertainment Wednesday through Saturday nights on the first floor of the restaurant, will include open mic and storytelling nights, musical performances, trivia nights and more.
Credit: Colin Boyle/Block Club ChicagoSeating at the new Tatas Tacos location, 5700 W. Irving Park Rd., in Portage Park on March 1, 2022.
The special license is required for entertainment venues that may charge entrance fees and have a capacity of more than 100 people. When the owners opened the venue last year, they held several large-scale performance events, but were never told they needed the specific license and didn’t charge for admission, they said at a community meeting earlier this year.
After a complaint from a neighbor, Ald. Nick Sposato (38th) asked the owners to stop the events at the end of last year and to apply for the special license. To remain in good faith with the community, Paphitis and Romero Berner sought the support of neighbors to bring the events back before applying for the license, they previously said.
More than 30 people, many of whom live near the restaurant, attended the meeting to express their support for the business and get answers to concerns about noise, litter and parking.
The owners of Tatas told residents that they would not book rock bands for events and that music would only be played indoors on the first floor of the building. The owners have also previously said they are ‘more than willing’ to engage security when events exceed 100 people, but this will likely only be once a month for the restaurant’s Saturday musical series, which will feature local folk and independent musicians.
The restaurant seats 130 people, but its larger events are likely to only reach 90 people because the restaurant only has three servers. Reservations are required for live events, Romero Berner previously said.
“We need to be able to do these events so we can keep the business going,” she said.
While many Tatas customers don’t drive to the restaurant, Paphitis and Romero Berner strike a deal with the owners of the nearby Dollar Tree and E&J Auto Service to allow customers to park in their event parking lots. nocturnal.
Tatas Tacos also has locations at Six Corners and Lakeview.
The Portage Park restaurant is open from 11:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 11:00 a.m. to midnight on weekends.
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