A Northwest Side pop-up is putting its twist on the Chicago classic pizza puff.
Smash Jibarito is filling the puff with muenster cheese and picadillo, a type of savory ground beef popular across Latin America.
The pizza puff is one of Chicago’s most iconic food items, and owner and chef Josean Irizarry of Smash Jibarito, 30, wanted to put something on the restaurant’s menu that spoke to the robust Chicago food scene.
Already well-known for their jibarito smash burgers, Irizarry and his small team of six, including chefs David Matulac and Tony Torres-Nevarez, have been operating out of Desert Hawk’s kitchen space at 2029 W. Division in Wicker Park.
The picadillo puff starts with a nicely seared portion of ground beef (the beef purchased from Chicago food distributor Greco and Sons). It’s complemented with a vegetable medley that includes peas and potatoes and some sazón (seasoning). It’s all wrapped up in a flour tortilla with shredded Muenster cheese and then deep-fried for eight minutes.
“We wanted to make another item that kind of represented Chicago the same way that [our] smash jibarito does,” Irizarry said, referencing the restaurant’s main entree, which combines fried, slightly overripe, plantains with cheese, housemade pickles and aioli all on top with your choice of one or two crispy, smash burger patties. It’s a delectable combination of savory and sweet flavors.
Irizarry said he and his team use the foods they grew up eating as some of the inspiration for Smash Jibarito’s menu. That includes not only classic street foods, but what was found at home, too. Irizarry grew up on the Northwest Side of Chicago and enjoyed his Mexican mother’s cooking, and later in life explored his father’s side with Puerto Rican cuisine.
“We’re just trying to bring a little bit more light to that part of the food scene because Chicago … [has] other foods from different cultures that are just as popular, that are just as memorable, that are just as iconic,” he said.
Growing up, Irizarry’s mother would cook for him and his younger brother and use ground beef to make picadillo “a million different ways” so it could last the week. Sometimes, she’d put it into spaghetti or on tostadas with beans.
“And that’s where that comes from, you know?” Irizarry said. “We’re making something that’s close to home, but at the same time, represents a lot more.”
Irizarry and his staff only use fresh, locally sourced ingredients for their food. He even has a trusted plug for plantains, so they’re provided to the restaurant with the perfect texture and ripeness.
He started his career in hospitality as a dishwasher at the now-closed Father and Son’s in Logan Square. He restaurant-hopped for a couple of years before he eventually began working in the kitchen, where he developed a passion for the fast-paced, competitive environment. With the help of a trusted mentor, Irizarry began working to launch his own business when he was 28 years old.
He was experimenting in a mentor’s kitchen one day when he was tasked with creating a new type of burger. That night he went on Instagram and saw a friend cooking jibarito sliders for his family, which immediately sparked some creative thinking for Irizarry.
The next day he went to the store, purchased some ground beef and plantains, and created the beta version of the smash jibarito burger.
“The very first idea of it was not what it is today. It was very, very beginner when we first started doing it. But that’s how the product was made,” Irizarry said.
Irizarry’s concept was one of the pop-up restaurants that Desert Hawk’s owner, Ray Garcia, came across on Reddit while searching for a team to partner with and occupy the bar’s kitchen space. He saw positive reviews and TikToks made by server and social media manager Sophia Silva and decided to reach out.
Not even 24 hours after receiving a message from Garcia, Irizarry remembers, he met with him at Desert Hawk to talk business. Now Smash Jibarito is open for business every weeknight and for brunch and late-night eats on the weekends.
“We’ve been able to curate a little bit of an interesting culture here, surrounded by love, surrounded by people who want to come in … and celebrate with us, and experience us as a bar, as a food concept,” Irizarry said. “We’re definitely grateful for the partnership.”
Smash Jibarito inside of Desert Hawk, 2049 N. Division St. The picadillo puff is $8. Visit deserthawkbar.com.