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wilmettebeacon.com dining out
the wilmette beacon | March 8, 2018 | 49
Javier’s brings authentic flavors of Mexico to Glenview
Martin Carlino
Contributing Editor
For most, the 11 miles
that separate the Villages
of Arlington Heights and
Glenview hold little significance.
But, for Javier
Villarreal, the length is the
embodiment of the fruits of
his labor.
A native of Durango,
Mexico, Villarreal,
who now calls Arlington
Heights home, is the proud
owner of Mexican restaurants
in both villages.
Villarreal’s background
in the restaurant industry
dates back to 1989, when
he first started working as a
bartender and waiter for La
Tejanita, a Mexican restaurant
in Arlington Heights.
Three short years later,
an opportunity to buy the
restaurant presented itself
— and Villarreal rolled the
dice and purchased it.
“I learned quite a bit
about the hospitality service
in that time,” Villarreal
said. “When the opportunity
came by to buy the
restaurant, I bought it.”
Once he became the
owner, Villarreal devoted
countless hours to renovating
the space and refining
his craft.
More than 15 years after
taking over the space in Arlington
Heights, Villarreal
expanded the restaurant
and changed the name to
Javier’s Sabor Mexicano.
The Arlington Heights
addition was far from the
last time expansion was on
Villarreal’s mind. In 2016,
after Villarreal got an offer
from a personal friend, he
decided to take his homestyle,
authentic Mexican
recipes 11 miles north to
Glenview.
Familiar with the process
of getting a restaurant going,
Villarreal got right to
work.
“We added our own personal
touch to it,” he said.
The ceviche de pescado ($8.50) at Javier’s Sabor Mexicano in Glenview features
marinated sea bass with cilantro, avocado, onions and tomatoes. Photos by Michal
Dwojak/22nd Century Media
“We replaced some equipment
in the kitchen, got rid
of some of the neon lightning
and added a new touch
of paint.”
To help ease the transition,
Villarreal transferred
over a near-identical menu
and several longtime employees
of his to the Glenview
location.
One area of the restaurant
that remained largely
unchanged was the space’s
bar. According to Villarreal,
Javier’s offers guests
a wide variety options, including
premium tequilas.
Although the startup was
slightly slower than hoped,
Villarreal is thankful for the
welcome he’s received.
“It started a little slow,
but it’s improved since,”
he said. “The people have
been very nice and we’re
lucky to have such great
customers. We get some
customers that use to go to
Arlington Heights and now
come to Glenview, which is
nice.”
As Javier’s two-year anniversary
in Glenview approaches,
he couldn’t be
more grateful for the early
feedback he’s received.
“It’s all been very positive,”
he said. “The best
The mole negro ($17.50) includes chicken breast with
Oaxacan black mole.
The alambres ($16.50) comes with grilled pieces of
steak, green peppers, onions, tomatoes, bacon and
guacamole.
thing about it is you can
tell when you have regular
customers. They come in at
least once a week ... and we
have customers that have
mentioned they’ve gone to
try other new places in the
area, but they still come
back here. ... I think that
shows we’re doing something
right.”
Villarreal knows that the
support he so cherishes
is something that doesn’t
come easy. And, to show
his gratitude to customers,
he and his staff often go the
extra mile.
“Our relationships with
customers are extremely
important to us,” he said.
“When [guests] come over
and ask for a change on an
item, most of the time, a
restaurant will tell you it’s
not on the menu. But, if we
have it, we’ll make it for
you. That is how you make
customers happy.”
As for its menu, Javier’s
offers patrons an array of
options.
Editors from 22nd Century
Media headed over to
the Glenview location to
experiences its authentic
flavors of Mexico.
With a vast menu full of
classic dishes, Javier’s of-
JAVIER’S SABOR MEXICANO
1829 Waukegan Road,
Glenview
(847) 834-0485
javiers.biz
11 a.m.-10 p.m.
Sunday-Thursday
11 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday
and Saturday
fers up something for everyone’s
tastes.
We started out with one
of Javier’s appetizer options,
ceviche de pescado.
The dish ($8.50) is an incredibly
fresh-tasting plentiful
serving of marinated
sea bass with cilantro, avocado,
onions and tomatoes.
The colorful plate is sure to
satisfy taste buds and provide
a pleasing start to your
meal.
We next sampled Javier’s
mole negro ($17.50), one
of the restaurant’s chicken
entrees. Per Villarreal,
the dish takes nearly four
hours from start to finish
because of the preparation
that goes into it. Villarreal
noted a technique based on
frequent movement, which
he credits as the method to
effectively maximize the
flavor potential of the dish.
And, Villarreal’s preparation
methods are undoubtably
effective. This dish
will leave you craving more
the moment after your first
bite. The Oaxacan black
mole serves as the perfect
compliment to the flavorful
chicken breast.
Our tastings of Javier’s
menu didn’t stop there, as
we next tried the Alambres
dish ($16.50), a traditional
Mexican dish that featured
grilled pieces of steak, bacon,
green peppers, onions
and tomatoes. We opted
for guacamole — which
paired nicely with the dish
— and rice on the side. The
portion was both plentiful
and saporous, as the steak
boasted a succulent taste.
We even saved room
for dessert — and Javier’s
surely didn’t disappoint.
We first sampled Javier’s
plantano frito ($4.95), a
serving of fried plantains
with ice cream centered
in the middle and topped
off with chocolate sauce.
After a delicious testing of
Javier’s sopapilla ($4.50),
a puffed pastry with cinnamon
and honey, we closed
out our visit with a taste
of the restaurant’s fried ice
cream (6.75), which was
quite possibly this writer’s
favorite dessert. The ice
cream is served on top of
a sopapilla, topped with
a choice of strawberry
or chocolate sauce and
whipped cream.
Villarreal knows his restaurant
offers guests a variety
of options, but small
tweaks to its menu are one
of the few changes he is
considering.
“We’re talking about
eliminating a few items and
adding new ones, but we’re
still in the planning stages,”
he said.