Ibiza Cafe offers great food, room to move
New owners have taken over the space formerly occupied by Accent Café and totally redone the interior and menu. The massive newly opened Ibiza Cafe offers plenty of room to dance, dine and sip drinks themed for the club's namesake, a Spanish island and renowned party destination.
Motif: From the outside, Ibiza is a large pagoda-like building surrounded by plants, with the boundaries of the parking lot giving in to forest. Inside, the club utilizes its tall, arching ceiling by spreading out in vertical layers. The dining room has five tiers, sporting long tables with red tablecloths and candles and dark wood high-backed chairs. When the tables are cleared away after dinner service, the wood floors become another place to dance. TVs throughout the space are tuned to sports during the day, including soccer and UFC matches, and give way to music videos at night.
Walk left after entering and you'll find the main bar. Set at a right angle along the dance floor, it features a granite top and another bank of TVs. An adjacent corner is a private party area with couches and small black leather tables. There are two more bars with lounge-style space on the lower levels. The first offers bench seating and a smaller dance floor illuminated by bright-colored moving lights. The other bar is decorated by blue tiles and serves as a sitting area with white couches and leather chairs.
On a nice night, head to the patio and grab a space at one of the small umbrella-topped, black candlelit tables surrounded by potted trees.
Service: The staff still seemed to be getting the hang of things so service was a little slow on the night we visited and they weren't able to provide much in the way of recommendations.
Liquid consumption: Tropical cocktails and $8 martinis dominate the drink menu. The sangria, which is $5 a glass or $14 a pitcher, is served without ice, giving it a mellow red wine taste that's not too fruity or watery. The $5 piña colada was fantastic, the frozen mix tasting almost dessert-level sweet without coming off as sugary. The bubble gum martini tasted just like its name, but didn't offer anything beyond novelty. You can also ask the bartenders to surprise you as they all have signature concoctions like the bright blue and fizzy ocean martini.
Food: Ibiza offers a full dinner menu, with entrees including corn-crusted tilapia with chopped avocado and grilled chicken kebabs. Accent's clientele was largely Polish, so the new spot has kept on some traditional favorites like Polish-style breaded pork chops. Food is served right up until closing time, but as the night wears on they switch over to a bar menu featuring sandwiches, salads and a huge appetizer list.
The Russian-style pirogies were a great value at $6.95 for a huge plate of crispy potato dumplings topped with minced red pepper and caramelized onions. The $10.95 sampler platter is piled with crispy calamari, fried mushrooms, onion rings and French fries. The greasy bites were solid but much less memorable than the European cuisine.
Crowd: The place was pretty empty when we were there from about 8 to 10 p.m. on a Saturday night, with just us and one large dining party with family connections to the club. We were assured things pick up around 1 a.m., drawing in Accent's old crowd plus a more mixed group of young locals including MGM Lounge regulars that have followed the Des Plaines pool hall's manager to his new home behind the bar at Ibiza. The club also hopes to appeal to private parties since they have enough space to give a group their own dance floor and bar.
Sounds: Along with a set of house DJs, the bar brings in guest DJs every weekend and plans on having local bands perform. With different DJs on each of the four dance floors, you can choose from a mix of Top 40, house, Euro beats and '90s music.
Parking: Valet parking is available for a fee in the lot in front of the bar, plus there is plenty of free parking nearby.
Overall: Ibiza's impressive space is ready to be explored.
Ibiza Cafe700 N. River Road, Mount Prospect, (847) 298-2233Hours: 4 p.m. to midnight Sunday through Thursday; 4 p.m. to 3 a.m. Friday and SaturdayTrue20001223The VIP lounge is one of many separate areas at Ibiza.Mark Welsh | Staff PhotographerTrue