La Licor Panamericana
La Licor Panamericana earns its rank by filling a genuine gap in Chicago’s bar landscape: serious Latin American spirits, drunk in a room that actually looks like it was designed by someone who cares.
Named for the highway that connects North to South America, La Licor opened in October 2024 at the corner of California and Armitage and announced itself quickly. The cocktail list is organized around regional Latin American spirits — mezcal, pisco, rhum agricole, cachaça — and the kitchen under chef Juan Jimenez sends out fried yucca, empanadas, and jalea alongside drinks that reference specific geographies. The Pisco Sour comes with a garnish drawn from Peru’s Rainbow Mountains.
The room is lush with art and greenery, and the crowd is a mix of Logan Square regulars and serious drinkers who’ve tracked it down for the mezcal program specifically. At this price point and this level of specificity, it’s the kind of bar that takes a neighborhood from good to interesting. Order the Puerto Paraíso and something small from the kitchen.
- The Puerto Paraíso
- A Peruvian Pisco Sour
- A mezcal from the Latin American spirits list
