You may think you know whiskey highballs, but then you visit the new cocktail lounge Culebra. “When you go to Puerto Rico, everyone has Malta in their fridge,” says owner Diego Garcia-Gonzalez. To complement that earthy soda, his team adds Japanese whisky and buckwheat tea to its highball: “We’re taking inspiration from around the world, but not deviating too far from our roots.”
At Culebra, which opened in April below Lonesome Rose, those roots are firmly planted in Puerto Rico. Consider some of its offerings: a piña colada inspired by a quesito, the Puerto Rican cream cheese and guava pastry; shots of rum infused with banana; and $3 cans of Medalla Light, a Puerto Rican lager. Snacks from Daniel Maysonet Rivera (owner of the San Juan bar Jungle Bird) include traditional pinchitos (pork and chicken thigh skewers).
Garcia-Gonzalez, who previously worked at Land and Sea Dept. joints, launched Culebra as a pop-up in 2024. In the early 2020s, he was regularly visiting the island to bartend and came back eager to open his own spot. “I felt like an elevated Puerto Rican bar was something that didn’t exist in Chicago or even in the mainland United States,” he says.
The team uses that focus as a jumping-off point, like with the Culebra Manhattan, made with rooibos-tea-infused rye and an amaro blend enhanced with cacao and cinnamon. That drink may nod to Mexico but feels right at home here. 2101 N. California Ave., Logan Square
Amy Cavanaugh is the dining editor for Chicago magazine.