Bayan Ko

The story

Bayan Ko, North Center: Filipino-Cuban Tasting Menu in Chicago

Bayan Ko, a Michelin-recognized restaurant established in 2018, brings a singular vision to Chicago's North Center neighborhood. The name translates to "my country" in Tagalog, and the kitchen delivers on that promise with a tasting menu that draws equally from Filipino and Cuban cuisines.

The Tasting Experience

The current menu is a six-course surf and turf affair, priced at $129 per guest. Each plate is a deliberate fusion: lumpia filled with caviar and pork, finished with a garlic sauce the chef calls "mom's"; a croqueta of duck and lobster brightened by sour orange; pancit luglug topped with chicharron, uni, quail egg, and saffron. A tamale cubano combines crab and lamb with piquillo peppers, while kare kare—traditionally a Filipino peanut stew—appears here with oxtail and scallop. Dessert is chocoflan, a layered cake of passion fruit, white chocolate, truffle, and miso caramel.

The menu changes regularly, and the kitchen accommodates vegetarian, pescatarian, and vegan diets upon request. A vegetarian option is available at $109.

Neighborhood Roots

Bayan Ko operates as a reservations-only dinner spot, open Wednesday through Saturday from 5pm to 10pm. Walk-ins are considered case by case. The restaurant also has a sister location, Bayan Ko Diner, just a few steps west on Montrose Avenue, serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner seven days a week.

The space itself is intimate, a neighborhood restaurant that focuses entirely on the tasting experience. The Michelin recognition underscores the precision and ambition of the cooking, but the warmth of the room keeps it grounded. This is not a formal tasting room—it is a place where Filipino and Cuban flavors meet without pretense.