Macarena Tapas was opened by Executive Chef John Borras in 2007. Whith an emphasis on traditional yet creative Spanish tapas cuisine, the menu incorporates both classic favorites and original new dishes. Macarena has a contemporary flare, but encompasses a welcoming, traditional Spanish tapas atmosphere.
"I love returning to this restaurant. The food is very vibrant and beautiful. It is tapas delightful. The strength of this particular place had been reasonable prices and super pleasant staff. The prices were very high compared to last visit and staff not so cheery though still professional and accommodating. It was sticker shock that 3 tapas, 2 desserts and a carafe of sangria was $81.Previously we would have spent about 55. Considering it'd a strip mall restaurant and had lot of unique competition in the area e.g. sushi, japaneses grill, Indian bistro...its tough to think of nacarrna as a frequent stop at the higher price points. Remember this is the suburbs not the city. Still love this place. Love the tasty bites. Everything is a delight"
Dined on 6/08/2013
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem
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"A group of six women went here for a girls night and none of us had really experienced tapas before. The service was excellent and the food was amazing. Definitely a great time. The waiter who I think was also the owner gave us a free dessert."
Dined on 5/10/2013
Special Features: fit for foodies, good for groups, romantic, neighborhood gem, notable wine list, special occasion
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"As always, everything at the restaurant was WONDERFUL!!! OpenTable however, did not book my reservation with the restaurant, which was handled wonderfully by the restaurant, but from now on, I will call the restaurant directly."
Dined on 5/04/2013
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem, hot spot, special occasion
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"I had a groupon so I tried it, the service was fantastic and the food was very good. Its a small place and where we were sitting was kind of cramped and we couldn't really see anything. Overall I would reccomend Macarena Tapas."
Dined on 04/25/2013
2013
Special Features: great for lunch
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"My wife and I come here about 1 month as always the menu changes sometimes a lot sometimes a little, but it is always evolving. Great Tapa's and not like to the same as the usual Tapas places in Naperville."
Dined on 04/12/2013
2006
Special Features: fit for foodies
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"Food is always excellent but the quaint and small surroundings magnify all sounds that somewhat reduces the experience. I will go back but hopefully find a time where eating is enjoyed more than shouting."
Dined on 04/06/2013
2006
Special Features: fit for foodies
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"The food, the flavor and the variety of the tapas were all over-the-top delicious. The service was outstanding! We were treated as those we were regulars. Macarena Tapas has risen to the top of our favorite tapas restaurant."
Dined on 04/06/2013
2008
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"Food is incredible, but this place doesn't seem to have enough patrons to keep it open. Each time I've been there the place was empty. Go for the food, keep expectations low on the ambience."
Dined on 03/22/2013
2011
Special Features: fit for foodies, good for groups, neighborhood gem, great for lunch
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"This was our first vist to Macarenas but certainly not our last. John the owner waited on us and made us feel right at home. The food was delicious and the selections were plentiful. My other family members also enjoyed Macarenas later that same night and they enjoyed their food also. We eill definately be back."
Dined on 03/29/2013
2009
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem, special occasion
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"The tapas are excellent, but I especially love the red sangria. We ordered the Patatas Bravas (spicey potatoes), the Queso de Cabra, the albondigas (meatballs), and the blue cheese macaroni. The blue cheese macaroni took the longest, but it was the best. This is definitely a grown up version of mac and cheese. We have been going to Marcarena's since they first opened. They've changed the menu over the years and played around with pricing, but I think they finally hit their sweet spot. We stopped going for a while because the food quality didn't seem to be as good as when they first opened. I don't know what changed, but it's as good, if not better than we remembered. The waiter, who I think was one of the owners, was awesome!"
Dined on 03/29/2013
2008
Special Features: neighborhood gem, romantic, special occasion
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"This is a great little tapas place! We just discovered it while looking through a brochure, but we will definitely return. The staff was very friendly, and the food was delicious! They were wonderful about checking on food allergies, too! They make absolutely everything on their menu except the bread! I would definitely recommend this place!"
Dined on 03/29/2013
2013
Special Features: fit for foodies, notable wine list, romantic
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"We enjoyed the tapas at Macarena quite a bit. The bacon wrapped dates in honey were excellent as was the fried goat cheese. My wife had salmon with avocado that she enjoyed. The sangria was also good.
This place is in a strip mall and was a bit hard to find especially following our GPS. The ambiance was nothing special but it was fine. The service was OK at best. The place wasn't particularly busy and we waited at least 10 minutes for someone to stop by after being seated. It got a little better from there but not much.
Overall, a place with good food that I would give another shot."
Dined on 03/22/2013
2007
Special Features: fit for foodies
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"Food came quickly and server was fine. The food was not as interesting as we have had at other tapas locations. Portions were great to share with one other person but we did a lot of chopping up to accomodate our third person in the group. The portions were certainly ample even we divided them between the three of us. The sangria was so so sweet and I am just not used to the overwhelming sweetness. We will give it another try and this time will not order any sangira."
Dined on 03/08/2013
2008
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"This was our 4th time at the restaurant and each time we have had a little bit better experience. The food is excellent (bacon wrapped dates with honey is awesome) The sangria was a little to sweet for my liking. I know that everybody has a different taste when it comes to sangraia, wine etc... I prefer a bolder and and less sweet version.
Overall, a great little restaurant in Naperville."
Dined on 03/09/2013
2006
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem, romantic
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"A small, attrative restaurant with a unique menu, Macarena Tapas has been consistently delicious. Their menu has unique hot or cold choices and the selection changes periodically. A favorite might slip off the menu, but it gives you a chance to try something new. They have several seafood options and a number of vegetarian options, too. Goat cheese fritters are delecate balls of warm, melted cheese drizzeled with honey and balsamic vinegar. Citrus cured octopus, shrimp and scallops is a colorful blend of flavors. Their sangria is a weak link - rather overpriced for only an average tasting drink. Reservations are recommended for weekends."
Dined on 03/09/2013
2005
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem
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"Macarena Tapas is our favorite restaurant in the Naperville area. The food is wonderful and the staff very friendly. It is a treat for us anytime we dine here. Our faces are the bacon wrapped dates, solomillo en tostada, and Mac and blue cheese."
Dined on 02/14/2013
2012
Special Features: fit for foodies, kid-friendly, neighborhood gem, romantic, special occasion
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"We were there early so it was very quiet, so that may not be the same later in the evening. The food was very good, the service was great and we enjoy having time to enjoy the dish and talk before the next dish came out. We will be back again soon."
Dined on 02/18/2013
2013
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"My wife is a Spainish teacher and we have traveled to Spain together experiancing fantastic authentic tapas. This is a close as we could find in the suburbs and we are very much lookikng forward to their new resturant in St. Charles this year. Amazing and very friendly staff both times we have dined."
Dined on 02/14/2013
2010
Special Features: romantic, special occasion, hot spot
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"Small place located in a strip mall but it still had a nice atmosphere inside and the service was great. We especially enjoyed the bacon wrapped dates, bistec tapas with the mushroom sauce, and my daughter loved the flan. Saw that they are opening another restaurant in St. Charles which is great since it is closer for us. We will definitely go there once it opens."
Dined on 02/16/2013
2013
Special Features: fit for foodies, good for groups
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"The food was delicious as well as beautiful. We ordered many cold items from the cold menu to start and loved all of them! The Salmon that we had from the cold tapas menu was really good! We had many items off the hot menu and my favorite was the filet with roasted red peppers, manchego cheese and a balsamic drizzle! All of our hot tapas came out fresh from the kitchen! You will definitely enjoy this restaurant if you love food, but be ready to spend some time there. This is not your typical dine quick place! We had a ton of fun!"
Dined on 02/17/2013
2011
Special Features: fit for foodies, good for groups, late-night find, romantic, special occasion
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"What a wonderful experience. The food was delicious and the staff was amazing. It truly is a treasure! Since we had reservations, we were seated right away. The sangria's were great. The tapas were awesome. We ordered over 9 different tapas and all were spectacular. The prices weren't bad either. The place is family owned, and they take pride in their food, their restaurant, and their staff. I felt like family there. I will definitely be going back!"
Dined on 02/14/2013
2009
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem, notable wine list, romantic, special occasion, hot spot
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"Love the food and people at Macarena! I am disappointed that they changed two major things since the last time I was there. They discontinued the "all you can eat for $40/person" and made the servings larger. Macarena has so many outstanding dishes that I would rather have smaller portions so I can sample more of the menu and, of course, the "all you can eat" was perfect for ordering a nice variety of dishes. With the larger portions, we only ordered four dishes."
Dined on 02/14/2013
2008
Special Features: fit for foodies, good for groups, kid-friendly, neighborhood gem
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"The food was outstanding. The service was a little slow at times, but since it was Valentine's Day, it was understandable. When the waiter realized we had been sitting for a while waiting to order the next round of tapas, he ran over and apologized. The garlic potato salad was good, but I like the one at Meson Sebika better. Other than that, everything we tried was fantastic. We will definitely be back."
Dined on 02/14/2013
2002
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem, special occasion
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