The spot: The service couldn’t be friendlier Los Nopales, a quaint Lincoln Square Mexican spot; the accommodating staff brightens an already welcoming yellow-walled dining room. The restaurant’s namesake, los nopales, or cacti, appears in a few dishes, including a tasty Los Nopales skirt steak special ($13.95). The steak, chargrilled and sprinkled with cheese, is served with frijoles borrachos (drunken beans) and grilled cactus salad. More traditional dishes come with rice, beans and salad. Try the tilapa en salsa verde ($11.95), a tender grilled tilapia filet served over Spanish white rice and smothered in green tomatillo sauce.

The bottle: The only thing missing from the authentic Mexican menu at Los Nopales is a margarita—and luckily, you only have to stroll a block north to Westwood Food Shop (4634 N Western Ave. 773-561-0463) to find one. Pick up a bottle of ready-to-drink Jose Cuervo Authentic Cuervo Lime Margarita ($13.99 for 750 milliliters), with Cuervo Especial right in the bottle. If you only need tequila, grab a 750-milliliter bottle of Jose Cuervo Especial Gold ($17.99). Like your marg with salt? Snag a container for $1.99. Los Nopales charges a $1 corkage fee for each bottle or six-pack. -- Emily Hiser Lobdell, Metromix special contributor.

The spot: Claustrophobes need not fear Adesso, a corner Italian restaurant with a spacious, airy dining room and even more expansive outdoor seating along Broadway and Buckingham Place. Sit along the bustling sidewalk, and you’ll never lack for topics of conversation (though if you’re looking for a bit more intimacy, ask for a seat on the Buckingham side). Inside, the industrial chic decor sets a sleek backdrop for the regional Italian cuisine. On the menu, you’ll find traditional pasta favorites such as lasagne Barese ($15) and spicy spaghetti arrabiata ($11; $14 with shrimp), as well as some unique options such as the hamburger con rucula, an arugula-pesto burger smothered in provolone and served on a pretzel roll with a side of rosemary-sea salt fries ($11).

The bottle: Wander up the street to Treasure Island (3460 N. Broadway. 773-327-3880) for a bottle of Italian wine to complete your meal. Tracy Liang, director of wine and spirits for Treasure Island Foods, makes it easy for you to select the perfect vino with shelf notes on several wines. She recommends a medium-bodied 2004 Villa Calcinaia Chianti Classico “Piegaia” ($13.99) to go with heavier lasagna or cream-based dishes, or a crisp 2006 Villa del Borgo Pinot Grigio ($9.99) to complement seafood. The 2005 Dievole “Pinocchio” Nero d’Avola ($10.99), a popular red choice due to the sketch of the famous puppet on the label, is best served with stick-to-your-ribs pasta or meat dishes.

[ Emily Hiser Lobdell is a Metromix special contributor. ] metromix@tribune.com

The spot: South Coast, the South Side sister to Bucktown’s popular (and also BYOB) Coast, is livening up an otherwise desolate strip of Michigan Avenue. But until they get permanent signage, keep your eyes peeled, or you might miss the place. Inside, a sleek, dark interior contrasts with stark white chandeliers made from small tree branches. Fans of the original Coast will find a lot of the same signature maki, nigiri and cooked entrees here, as well as several new items. Try the signature South Scallop maki ($13), pan fried scallops in garlic wasabi sauce in a dynamite roll with black tobiko (flying fish roe), or the cold hamachi carpaccio appetizer ($13), which combines hamachi, garlic oil, lime, cilantro, jalapeno and a mesclun salad.

The bottle: You won’t find a decent liquor store nearby, so it’s a good idea to buy your booze in advance—especially if you’re looking for more than the usual suspects. We advise a quick stop at Binny’s Beverage Depot (213 W. Grand Ave. 312-332-0012) for some sake. Binny’s wine manager Kevin Biegler recommends Rihaku Wandering Poet ($34.99 for 720 milliliters), a junmai ginjo sake, in which, as Biegler says, “the rice is milled down to the heart.” Less than five percent of sakes are of this quality. For a less expensive option, go for a cloudier nigori sake such as Voices in the Mist by Tozai ($19.99 for 720 milliliters). South Coast charges a $5 per bottle corkage fee and only permits beer, wine and sake. --By Emily Hiser Lobdell, metromix special contributor

The spot: From the outside, Irazu may not look too promising, a small, green-roofed building surrounded by a well-worn asphalt parking lot. But to pass it by is a mistake. Costa Rican natives Miriam and Gerardo Cerdas opened Irazu, the city’s first Costa Rican restaurant, in 1990, naming it after one of the country’s many volcanoes. In the cozy, 30-seat room with a bright mural on one wall (outdoor seating is also available) you can enjoy a taco tico, a crispy tortilla filled with skirt steak and dressed with cabbage, mayo, ketchup and spicy-sweet Costa Rican Lizano Sauce ($1.90). Or, go for a full entree such as the casado—your choice of thin ribeye steak or chicken breast caramelized with onions and served with white rice, black beans, sweet plantains, an over-easy egg and cabbage salad ($9.95).

The bottle: Located just a block up Milwaukee Avenue from Irazu, M W Food & Liquor (1950 N Milwaukee Ave. 773-772-5228) also might not be the most inviting spirits store you’ve ever seen, but it gets the job done. Buy a bottle of Absolut vodka ($13.99 for 375 milliliters; $23.99 for 750 milliliters) to mix with one of Irazu’s water-based shakes. The folks at Irazu recommend a passionfruit shake blended with lemonade for vodka-based concoctions. A strawberry or pineapple shake goes well with Bacardi rum ($6.99 for 375 milliliters). If you’d rather stick with beer, pick up a six-pack of Imperial, a pale Costa Rican lager, for $7.99. Irazu does not charge a corkage fee. -- By Emily Hiser Lobdell

The spot: Inspired by coal-oven pizza joints like Frank Pepe’s (New Haven, Conn.) and Lombardi’s (New York City), Chicago bar industry vets Bill Carroll and J. Spillane opened Coalfire, a one-room West Town pizzeria in May. They’ve got the only coal-fired pizza oven in town, and because coal tends to heat more evenly than wood, it turns out near-perfect thin crusts. Coalfire’s top-selling 14-inchers include an Italian sausage pie ($13.99) and a pizza margherita ($12.99), with the traditional fresh mozzarella, basil and tomato. We like the pesto pizza ($13.99), its crisp crust topped with a dash of olive oil, pesto, black olives, ricotta and a bit of mozzarella.

The bottle: It’s a long walk to the closest liquor store, a CVS near the intersection of Ogden and Milwaukee Avenues, so Coalfire servers often steer customers across the street to Cafe Fresco. The Italian cafe is licensed to sell liquor to-go, so you can pick up a bottle for the road. Try the Gravity Hills Tumbling Tractor Zinfindel ($15), a juicy red with hints of currant and chocolate and enough acidity to stand up to tomato sauce. Coalfire doesn’t charge a corkage fee, and if you’re drinking beer or a lighter wine, they’ll ice down your stash in a giant tomato can. (The containers double as pizza stands.) Carroll says he’ll eventually apply for a liquor license and start serving beer and wine, but Coalfire will remain BYOB until at least the end of the year. --M. Kathleen Pratt, Metromix print editor

The spot: Sabor a Cuba, a quaint, two-room operation in Ravenswood, serves up authentic Cuban cuisine near the Brown Line “L” tracks over Wilson Avenue. The Famous Sandwich Cubano, with tender pork loin, ham, Swiss cheese and pickles resting on toasted French bread ($4.75; $8.75 as a dinner plate, which includes white rice and black bean soup), is a bestseller. Skip the bread altogether with a jibarito, a steak sandwich served between two large, fried plantains ($5.25; dinner plate $9.25). Seafood lovers will dig the enchilado de camarone, shrimp served in a Cuban-style Creole sauce ($11.95).

The bottle: What goes better with hearty roasted Cuban meats than sweet, minty mojitos? Pretty much nothing. The U.S. trade embargo has made it impossible to purchase authentic Cuban rum (legally) in the States, so unless you’ve recently been to Canada and smuggled back a bottle of Havana Club, the Puerto Rican variety is your best bet. Pick up a 750-milliliter bottle of Bacardi light rum ($11.99) just a few blocks from Sabor a Cuba at Rayan’s Discount Liquors (1532 W Montrose Ave. 773-728-7765). BYOM— as in, bring your own mixers: sugar, limes, crushed mint leaves and club soda; the restaurant does not supply them for you.  --Emily Hiser Lobdell, Metromix special contributor

The spot: Walking into Sticky Rice is like stumbling into the dream-like world of Willy Wonka; the crayon-yellow walls are adorned with brightly colored giant flowers and paper umbrellas. A couple of the Northern Thai menu items seem just as whimsical, such as the deep-fried silk worm ($4.95; available seasonally) or the khai jiaw khai Mod, an omelet packed with ant eggs ($5.75). If you’re on an insect-free diet, not to worry—you’ll find all of the expected Thai noodle and rice dishes at reasonable prices. For a spicy kick, try the Northern Thai sausage, house-made with ground pork, pork skin, Thai herbs and red curry paste ($2); it’s served with jasmine rice, or for $1 more, you can get the restaurant’s namesake sticky rice.

The bottle: What wine goes with ant eggs? Good question. Cool the palate with some Thai beer from nearby West Lakeview Liquors. Family-owned and -operated since 1988, this charming corner shop sells Singha Lager and Phuket six-packs for $8.99 each. If sipping wine with your silk worms is more your style, store owner Kristina Bozic recommends pairing Thai food with a 2005 gewurztraminer from northern Sonoma County’s Alexander Valley Vineyards for $8.99. -- Emily Hiser Lobdell is a Metromix special contributor.

The spot:  A charming and well-loved but oh-so-tiny sushi spot on Clark Street, Green Tea draws in Lincoln Parkers nearly every night of the week (save Monday, when it’s closed). Walls the color of—well, milky green tea—surround five small tables and a sushi bar. Try reasonably priced maki such as the Chicago Spicy Crazy ($11.95), a combo of tuna, salmon, whitefish, cucumber and masago; the Spicy Tuna ($3.95), with tuna, scallion and Kaiware Dijon; or numerous maki and sashimi combos. We love the presumptuous sign that reads: “Thank you—see you tomorrow.”

The bottle: Green tea is all well and good, but in this heat, we’re looking for something a bit more pink, like a rosé. The restaurant’s proximity to Frances W. Parker School means there’s not a liquor store immediately nearby, but you can head a couple of blocks north to Miska’s Liquors (2353 N. Clark St. 773-472-4242). Most of the chilled wines are chardonnays, pinot grigios and sauvignon blancs, but look to the bottom row for the 2004 Cortijo III Rosé ($7.99), a crisp, grenache-based wine with slight acidity, perfect to match anything the folks at Green Tea whip up. --Alison Knab, metromix special contributor.

The spot: Locals have been flocking to Dodo, a small, friendly Ukrainian Village spot for months for brunch and lunch. Now a new dinner menu is bringing them in during the p.m. hours. New chef Jeremy Brewington, brought in to handle dinner service, offers a limited selection of dishes that change weekly; he typically features chicken, fish and vegetarian options, plus salads and soup. Dinners so far have come in the form of butter chicken (a version of Indian classic murg makhani)  with naan; pan-seared tilapia with tea-smoked tomato sauce, corn and fried plantains; and eggplant Neapolitan with asparagus, artichoke and tomato. The spiced-up Dodo Burger ($9.95), dressed with cheese and dijon mustard and served on a toasted brioche bun with a side of roasted red and sweet potatoes, will be a regular feature. 

The bottle: Rotating specials put us in mind of Wine Discount Center, which swaps out about 50 featured wines each month, all available for tasting on Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m. For a light, summery pairing, try the Domaine Sainte-Eugenie Corbieres Rosé 2006 ($8.69), a French wine with strawberry and cherry notes, or the Nino Franco “Rustico” Prosecco di Valdobbiadene ($9.99), an incredibly refresing Italian sparkler. Dodo charges corkage fees of $2 per person for wine and $1.50 per person for beer.  --Allison Knab is a Metromix special contributor.

The spot: Peach and turquoise walls, exposed brick, well-worn wood floors, high ceilings and strings of tiny white lights overhead define Caffe Florian, a cozy Hyde Park restaurant where a crowd of mostly students and neighborhood folks tucks into an extensive menu. The long list of lunch and dinner options includes salads, wraps, sandwiches, burgers, pastas, pizza and even entrees. Get your bearings with the cafe’s signature Florian spinach pizza ($5.95-$18.75), which combines spinach, onions, feta cheese and garlic on your choice of a Chicago pan-style crust or a thin and crispy crust. Wraps, including the buffalo wrap, a spicy grilled chicken breast in a southwestern chili-flavored tortilla ($7.75), and the pesto wrap, chicken in a spinach-flavored tortilla ($7.75) are also popular.

The bottle: Caffe Florian’s Italian fare is a perfect excuse to get familiar with wines from Italy’s Chianti region, most made with the sangiovese grape. Head to nearby Binny’s Express, where store associate Nkenge Mawusi recommends the affordable Chianti Lucigano 2005 ($9.99), which works well with red sauces—think pizza and pastas—or the Banfi 2003 Chianti Classico ($15.99), a good match for grilled meats, eggplants and portabella mushrooms. --Allison Knab is a Metromix special contributor.