The New Food Review! Still Anonymous....To A Certain Extent!

Miller's Smokehouse - One of the top 50 BBQ Joints in Texas

2015-05-02T14:32:00.000-05:00

So this blog has been a long time coming. Back in my old life there was a song that expressed at least part of what has been going on in my life over the last couple of years as expressed by that hot drink cooler Ice Cube: "Where you been? On a little vacation. Oh by the way here's the situation . . ." and of course that's where I have to leave it and oh by the way HERE'S the situation: I've been on a hiatus from writing so to speak, a vacation if you will from exploring restaurants out in the Great State of Texas. Due to being stuck in San Angelo and not really being overly excited with a list of great choices to write about I just haven't. I know, I know. I can hear the cacophony of cackling choir members saying "but AFR what about The Grill, Cork and Pig, Concho Pearl, Zero One Ale House, and the other places here in San Angelo that have great food?" My answer is that I love a lot of the stuff at all these places but I've been hungry. Hungry for something that is other worldly amazing. I wanted all my wildest dreams to come true.

     I've been hoping to find some good BBQ in San Angelo to write about and living here most of my life I've come to realize that San Angelo isn't a BBQ mecca. We've got some BBQ joints that I would say are generic at best. Some of them have some enjoyable morsels but just aren't quite up to spec with some of the top 50 bastions of BBQ. I feel as if I've been in a BBQ desert the last couple of years here in my hometown. When the opportunity presented itself to get to one or more of the Top 50 BBQ Joints in Texas in Texas Monthly I took it. I used to subscribe to the magazine many moons ago before I started this quest for quality Q. Now I just buy the one issue with the Top 50 in it when it comes out. One of the joints on the list is Miller's Smokehouse and since we were in the Belton area I figured we'd have to go and test their BBQ mettle. Reviews ranked this place high and I was excited to try something deemed worthy of Texas Monthly's list. Let me just say that I wasn't able to get the full experience as they ran out of ribs by the time we got there. Ribs aren't really my bag but I try them to get the full experience. I'm a brisket man. I love to find those places that know what they're doing when it comes to the toughest of all meats to cook. If you can't BBQ a brisket then I don't really have much respect for your establishment. Pork is easy to cook. It doesn't take a whole lot of skill. Brisket on the other hand is a different story. I don't say this from a critical standpoint but from the many years of doing this for my family, friends, and for the parties I've catered. Many Q Joints have gotten into the habit of buying these electrical or propane smokers and most of the time turn out stuff that's pretty lacking in the taste department without drowning their meat in BBQ sauce. If you can't eat it without the sauce then you might as well feed it to the dog. They won't mind and you won't have to put up with tasteless meat. With that being said, I'll tell you that the king of all BBQ meats at Miller's did not disappoint. My family and I ordered a few different things. I had a combination plate with brisket and sausage (no ribs because the guy next to me took them all) with beans and potato salad. The brisket had just the right resistance as I pulled it apart. "Oh don't be coy with me little brisket," I thought to myself. "Come to papa!" As I put it into my mouth, I realized that I had made one of the best choices in the history of my life. Perfect smoke ring, perfect tug, perfect fat rendering, perfect tenderness, but yes I had a complaint. I'm not letting them off that easy. My $12 plate only had one slice of brisket on it. ONE. You ever heard that song? "One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do. Two can be as bad as one" NO, it can't! Not in this case. Portion size of this plate may be more along the line of true serving sizes. Is the BBQ industry caving to the first lady's food policing? Is there some Washington D.C. whiner telling folks that we're too fat so we have to cut portions back? Probably not. Brisket is so expensive (as beef is in general) nowadays and so I'm a little more understanding about the meat part of it. That brisket was so good I could have eaten 10 slices of it right then and there. No. Questions. Asked. Their homemade sausage was also very good and we tried the Jalapeno Cheddar and the Plain. Both very tasty with a very fine grind. I do prefer a coarser grind but it was very tasty. Potato salad was also very good. Textured with potato peel and a few other goodies like onions and pickles, it was the one thing on my plate I had plenty of but would have liked more. The one thing I can say that didn't compliment the rest of the plate was the beans. The beans had a very odd flavor and there were very few of them thank God. Not a lot of pepper or salt and a bit of a tangy taste. I'm glad it was the beans and not the brisket. I didn't go for the beans anyhow! My family grabbed a few different things and as is our custom we shared so we could all taste a little of everything. My wife had BBQ Chicken and it was very tasty. Caringly kissed with a light smokiness not in the least bit overwhelming. I'd buy that. My boys had sandwiches. JJ had the sausage and Jonah the brisket. Kandra had the lean brisket and the plain sausage, both also very good. One of the two other sides was buttered potatoes that reminded me of the hot potato salad at Salt Lick. My son JJ called them "nice" potatoes when describing them. The coleslaw was also a quality offering and my wife seemed to enjoy it very much. At this point I was very satisfied with the quality of the meats we had eaten and there were gold stars to go around for the pit masters and the kitchen staff.

     TANGENT TIME: One of the kitchen staff reminded me of my BBQ Brother Daniel Pool. Daniel and I talk about BBQ at work on a regular basis and I've come to trust his judgment in this area. The guy behind the line had a handlebar mustache so I knew we were in good hands. Daniel would have appreciated this guy's epic look. If you've ever seen the www.artofmanliness.com you'll know just what I mean. I'm tempted to grow one myself as a show of solidarity with my brethren.

     "Back to the lecture at hand" (quote lifted from the D R E): I totally agreed that this place should be in the top 50 and as this was no longer in question I had to make the meal complete. We typically try an appetizer, an entree, and dessert when we go out to do reviews. I missed the appetizer but we did get some of the most scrumptious dessert I've ever tasted. We had a moist chocolate cake that made me wanna get up and dance but alas my wife and children held me down as the people next to us looked on in horror. My wife ordered a Hurricane Cake that can only be described as next level dessert magic. Chocolate encasing coconut and cream cheese in perfect balance. I thought my cake was good. WOW. After I ordered some additional brisket and sausage for later in the evening I ran into Mama Miller as we were walking out and I told her how great the desserts were she touched my arm and said, "Thank you honey." I could tell she was a nurturing soul. I had a great experience there and I would highly recommend Miller's Smokehouse in Belton. This BBQ is the real deal. Like my friend Willie P. says, "Check it out fo yo ownself.! http://www.wildmillers.com/

Miller's Smokehouse - One of the top 50 BBQ Joints in Texas

2015-05-02T06:58:00.001-05:00

So this blog has been a long time coming. Back in my old life there was a song that expressed at least p

Miller's Smokehouse - One of the top 50 BBQ Joints in Texas

2015-05-02T06:57:00.001-05:00

Chef's Corner - San Angelo, TX

2013-06-02T17:56:00.001-05:00

After much hullabaloo on Facebook about Chef's Corner from lots of different people (not mentally challenged or psychotic people, but people with differing tastes) I decided it was time to take the proverbial plunge. I figured I would give them a good amount of time to get over opening jitters which usually causes a few issues when first opening a restaurant. Once a place gets in their groove you can get a good idea about how they are going to cook, serve, and generally wow the customer. Unfortunately, for Chef's Corner, there seem to be some major issues. Now if you don't mind trash on the floor, lack of atmosphere in the way of decorative pictures on the walls, slow service, and some unfriendly wait staff then Chef's Corner is definitely for you! I'm almost certain I've talked about this before but there is a stereotype in the restaurant business that Hispanics (namely Mexican Hispanics in my experience) don't tip well and I just wonder if maybe that is some of the reasoning behind the way we were being served. Who knows?!?! At any rate let’s start at the very beginning, a very good place to start . . . uh yeah.

We came in just after their Saturday lunch rush and there were at least 9 tables empty in the restaurant with 3 waitresses. Since there were 3 rooms I assumed that the waitresses were assigned 1 to a room. This restaurant had maybe 4-6 tables per room from what I could see. Another young lady (more than likely the owner's daughter or granddaughter) was dutifully cleaning tables and helping in whatever way she could which was a sign to me that this place is family owned and that this child was learning the ropes which I find really great. I am impressed with young kids working hard at their family restaurant. My daughter has helped me with catering jobs and parties on numerous occasions so I have a very soft spot in my heart for these young 'uns learning the trade. One of the things that struck me in the restaurant was the vibrant Southwestern style colors on the wall with white trim. This was nice but there were no pictures or decorative touches to distinguish this restaurant's style and I think I know why. When we received the menu I noticed they are serving 3 types of cuisine: Mexican, American, and Italian. One of the biggest mistakes you can make when opening up a restaurant or doing catering is to do too many things. Three types of cuisine (plus a breakfast service) give this place a multiple personality disorder. I wanted to give this a chance to see how they would pull it off. Our drink order was taken quickly but I sensed a bit of tension from the first waitress. She asked if we wanted an appetizer and as is our custom we ordered one to get the full experience of the restaurant. I noticed some chips and salsa on other tables so I assumed we would get some which we did not. Another one came over and asked if our drink order was taken and she seemed a bit friendlier than the first one although she did tell us the wrong special for the time of day we were there. Our drinks came out and we waited for our appetizer. We waited. Then we waited some more. In fact I'm still waiting for my appetizer. It never came out. The waitress that asked us if we wanted it never brought it out. Her attitude just plain stunk. No smile. No personality. In fact when she came back to refill drinks she was very curt and as I stated before no smile on her face, no kindness in her voice. She practically barked at us, "DO YOU WANT ANYTHING ELSE TO DRINK?" Uh, yeah. We had not had any refills yet so it was a definite yes. In stark contrast the friendly waitress smiled a lot and although she was inexperienced I could tell she was trying hard. Here's a professional hint for those people desiring to be wait staff though: don't make excuses about this being your 4th or 5th day on the job, don't tell me I didn't get my appetizer because you didn't know that we had ordered it, don't tell me every time I see you that your new. I don't care if you are new. A head waitress can train people to do the job that needs to be done unless you are just not meant to do this kind of work. You usually know that after 3 or 4 services though.

I ordered beef fajitas, Kandra and JJ ordered Chicken Alfredo Pasta, Jonah ordered a bean burrito (surprise surprise) and my wife ordered an enchilada plate. Service was VERY slow. There were more than 9 empty tables in the restaurant which should have meant that we would have our food or refills very quickly. At many points during the hour and a half we were there I didn't see either of the waitresses for 5-10 minutes at a time. When we did get out food I was pleasantly surprised by the presentation. Beef fajitas were served with grilled onions and bell peppers, beans and rice. My first bite was tasty but the meat was very rubbery. There were some pieces that were not cut very small which didn't make for a good taco as the meat was too stretchy to bite off. OH I see this fajita meat was not cut across the grain for maximum tenderness so there's part of the issue. Luckily I still have fairly good teeth and was able to chew it up with the tasty guacamole and slightly bland pico de gallo. Rice was tasty but had a few clumps in it. Beans were bland and dry. My son loved his bean burrito that benefited from a good amount of cheese and the fact that it was wrapped in a tortilla which helped his beans to retain their moisture. My wife stated that the enchiladas had a tomatoey type twang to them and that's not something she particularly cares for. My other 2 children decided on the Chicken Alfredo pasta and my daughter being the resident connoisseur of this particular dish was quick to praise the presentation and the flavor of the toasted bread that came along with it. The pasta sauce itself didn't look creamy but looked more like what would happen the day after you have this dish, where it sat in the refrigerator overnight, and then been reheated it in a microwave. She whispered in my ear that it had no flavor so basically the Alfredo sauce was more like a paste keeping the noodles together. My wife's enchiladas didn't come out til JJ was almost done with his pasta and after Jonah had been sitting there for a pretty long time. That is a kitchen issue. The food should come out at the same time and therein lies the multiple personality disorder problem that this place has. If anything the enchiladas should have been first out.

Prices here are very good (you get what you pay for in my estimation) and I think if they focused more on the Mexican food they could really be a better restaurant. I'm not even going to put down any of the regular ratings I normally put in my reviews because my own inclination is to stay away from this place for a while. I'm seriously hoping that they will hire a good head waitress to train the rookies. Here are some tips in case YOU are the one that is going to train them: 1) PERSONALITY - Smile, speak kindly, listen, I said LISTEN to the customer and what they want. 2) Promptness - greet your guests quickly. 3) Pop in regularly - don't be gone from any of your tables for more than 5 minutes at a time. 4) Pride - take pride in what you do i.e. don't make excuses for mistakes you are making, just make it right! 5) Privacy - The fact is that unless a person is generally interested in seeing you (waitress) on a personal basis we don't want to know your business, where you came from, how you came to work in this restaurant, or what you did last night with your boyfriend. 6) Proficiency - be proficient at knowing specials, be able to answer questions about the food, study the menu and know what the price is, the ingredients (to some extent), if substitutions can be made.

Until necessary changes are made in atmosphere, wait staff, and deciding on what cuisine they want to focus on I can't in good conscience recommend this place.

Casa Bella-San Angelo, Texas

2013-02-21T16:40:00.000-06:00

In the last few months I haven't eaten near as much Mexican food as I would like as I'm trying (rather unsuccessfully) to drop a few pounds in an effort to become more healthy. The one place that I frequent quite a bit is Casa Bella. Because I am at Angelo State on Tuesdays and Thursdays it is very convenient. AHHH but convenience isn't necessarily the only thing that draws me to this place. I genuinely enjoy the food and service. Lets face it this restaurant is new and it is growing. What it lacks in atmosphere it makes up for in some of the best food and service San Angelo, Texas has to offer. The gentlemen who own this place are slowly but surely adding the atmospheric touch but the food has been on point since day one. I've had a number of different plates including Mia's Plate which consists of a small Ribeye topped with grilled onions, bell peppers, tomatoes and jalapenos along with rice and beans. Rice is very aromatic and not dried out as many restaurants tend to do because of a long stay in the oven. Refried beans are also very tasty and complete that particular plate out very well. The appetizer chips come out to the table warm and with a very fruity red tomato salsa with a slight kick. Nothing overwhelmingly burning about this salsa so to each his own. They have daily lunch specials that are also very appealing. Will's plate is one that comes to mind but I haven't gotten to try it again because I'm not there during the time it is served. Fajitas are another solid entree here and again very tasty and tender. One of my favorite offerings of Casa Bella is the Caldo De Res. This translates to Beef Soup in case you didn't know. If I'm guessing the ingredients correctly of course you have some beef which seems to be chunks of tender roast along with cabbage, carrots, onions, cilantro, a little potato, and a small piece of corn on the cob with a little tomato sauce in the broth. It is one of the best things you can have on a cold day and it is lovingly served with a side of your choice of corn or flour tortillas, some lime wedges, and some rice. Although it needs no addition of anything to add to flavor I love to drop a little red salsa in for just a little more tomato and pepper flavor. Cheese enchiladas are also very solid here as my wife has attested to. A quote here from an old Cheech and Chong recording. Cheech on the phone with a prospective date asks the question: "OH you don't like Mexican food?" Apparently he gets a reply and then says, "OOHHHHH ju don't like Mexicans!" Well I love me some MexiCANS and Casa Bella has quite a few of those because they can and do many things quite well. Well if Mexican food isn't your thing then try the chicken strips. My daughter told me they are some of the best she has had and she particularly liked the gravy. Jared eats burgers everywhere and he was very satisfied. Jonah is the bean connoisseur of our family and maybe even in San Angelo in his age bracket. In speaking with one of the owners (as well as careful observance) it is very evident that the team concept prevails and is instilled in the staff here. I mentioned to him that everyone is very attentive and it all boils down to the teaming concept. Regardless of who you "belong" to as far as wait staff is concerned you will still be greeted, helped, and waited on by a slew of different people all trying to give you the best experience. I have yet to be mistreated here in any way. I asked the owner about their desserts and whether they were made in house because I had just consumed a delectable piece of Tres Leches cake and it was amazing. Although this dessert was not made in house it is prepared in a local bakery and brought to the restaurant on a daily basis. If you have a family and you are on a budget then obviously this place can meet your Mexican food craving and still keep your pocketbook intact. There's not really anything on the menu that is very expensive which makes this place even better in my book. If you are looking for a restaurant whose cuisine is just a little bit different than what's out there in San Angelo then stop by and see Will and the rest of the staff. I'm sure that they can prepare you something that you will enjoy.

Food: GREAT FOOD!

Atmosphere: Atmosphere not quite there yet but they are working on it.

Prices: Prices for what you get here are most excellent.

Service: From top to bottom service is some of the best ANYWHERE.

Overall: 1/2

For one of the newer places in town they are one of the shining examples of what hard work and determination can do.

Casa Bella On Facebook

Sideoats Cafe and Bakery

2012-06-21T19:07:00.000-05:00

I've known Chef Mike Hennessy for a number of years and have had the pleasure of working with him on a few occasions albeit briefly. I've always been impressed with Mike and his drive to succeed and his can-do-attitude. His Menard eatery Sideoats Cafe and Bakery is a testament to what Mike is able to do and just how well his team rallies around him to put out consistently good food and desserts. I've been to Sideoats a few times but this was the first time I have decided to do a review because I was able to sample their savory dishes as well as dessert.

We were on the road Monday night and rather than stopping at Junction for the ever familiar taste of Coopers BBQ I wanted a nice sit down meal with a few more choices along with some dessert. We drove the few extra miles and arrived in Menard about and hour and a half before closing time. We were happy to finally be getting near to home but we would have been eating at 9 had we waited. I prefer to have my dinner between 6-8 pm if at all possible and Sideoats was just the place I had a hankering for.

We were greeted promptly as we came in. It wasn't that busy but in a small town and on a Monday night you'd expect things to be a little more laid back and this was no exception. We ordered our drinks and after they were served we ordered our food. I had an opportunity to take a few pics to highlight the interesting atmosphere at Sideoats.

I decided to have a Chicken Fried steak while my wife opted for a grilled chicken sandwich on Rye. If you follow this blog you know my boys by now and that they usually eat the same thing when we travel and of course Jared had a cheeseburger. Jonah had a grilled cheese with some home made chips.

My meal started off with a beautiful salad. Doesn't everyone say that when they talk about salad? Well they might but I really mean it. Take a look:

This mixed greens salad had a few cucumbers and grape tomatoes strewn in. There were a couple of bites of celery and onions and as you can see it was garnished with some tasty home made croutons. Here's another view of this gorgeous salad:

Oh and did I mention the dressing was also home made? This creamy buttermilk ranch was the perfect lubricating agent for this wonderful salad. In fact this salad was so good and my wife so impressed by it that she had to get one herself. OH waitress? Another salad please......Thank yuh!

I've had many chicken fried steaks on many occasions. In San Angelo there are many Mexican food places that serve them with chicken gravy on them and they are all fine. The real way to serve a CFS is to cover it in cream gravy. Chef Mike knows how to put a good plate together and this CFS was tender, tasty, and perfectly seasoned. To the right of the CFS you will see some grilled or what I've also heard called "scorched" green beans. These fresh green beans are tossed with some caramelize onions and allowed to scorch a bit on the grill bringing out their natural sugars. WOW. This is one of my new favorites. The french fries were also very good and the yeast roll went perfectly with a pat of butter dipped in the gravy. I was most impressed with it.

My wife had a Monterrey Jack Chicken Sandwich with mushrooms, lettuce, tomatoes and mayo on Rye along with some fries. It looked good and it was also very tasty. It also retained its moisture and you could see the tasty breast meat glistening under the bread. Here's a pic:

My son's burger was equally appetizing as you can see here:

This mushroom Swiss burger looked to be juicy but of course in the hands of my 13 year old it didn't last long enough for me to get a bite of it! I wasn't able to get a pic of Jonah's Grilled Cheese Sandwich but I know he liked it because it was also gone.

We also elected to have some dessert. Jared had Tuxedo Cake, while Elizabeth and Jonah had Cherry Pie. I decided on Apple Pie ala mode and I don't think any of us was disappointed. Here are the pictures:

I topped it all off with a glass of Texas Iced tea. It was an excellent meal.

Food:

Everything we had was perfect.

Atmosphere was great:

Atmosphere at Sideoats keeps with the theme. Laid back.

Excellent Prices:

Prices for the quality you get can't be beat.

Service Excellent:

Our waitress was experienced and it showed. She did an excellent job and took care of us. If a doctorate was ever issued for being a waitress she would have graduated with honors. Can't say enough about just how good she was.

Overall:

Mike Hennessy knows what he's doing and I'm so glad he's found his niche with this place. This place is highly recommended with no reservations whatsoever. Get to Menard, Texas and give it a try. You won't be disappointed.

Miguelito's Mexican Grill

2012-06-21T17:52:00.001-05:00

My recent forays into south Texas’ oil boom areas searching for sustenance have until last weekend been very unfruitful in the areas of quality and flavor not to mention cleanliness. I happened to be in the Carrizo Springs/Crystal City area due to a death in our family but it was also Father’s Day and so I would be eating out as is our usual tradition. I was in need of something new and unfamiliar. I had eaten at Lee’s Steakhouse, The Balia Inn, The Royal Palace, Yolie’s Steakhouse, Rosita’s, in addition to all the fast food staples like McDonald’s, Sonic, Subway, Pizza Hut, and Dairy Queen. I have thus far been unimpressed with the food in this area, as far as full service restaurants are concerned. That these fast food joints are even in these small towns is a testament to their consistency and their overall quality at the national level. You can go anywhere and basically get the same food, and I’m not particularly into eating at a national chain when I go out of town. Especially not for Father’s Day. Having said all that I am pleased to report that Crystal City, Texas has helped me. It has helped me to maintain my hope that even in a small town you can find a good quality local restaurant that does things right. Miguelito’s is a place that I had passed by many a time and usually because they were closed on the days that I happened to be in the area. Now that they are open on Sundays there was no reason not to try their cuisine. The restaurant is located on Veterans Ave. in what I would deem to be the middle of town. The building outside is built up with stone and with all of its colorful signage would seem to be a festive place. The inside of the building turns the atmosphere up even more with bright colored walls, Piñatas, Latino and Chicano art and festive streamers.

When you first walk in the building looks deceivingly small. Once you get around the corner though you do see another dining area with quite a few tables that will seat at least 4 people each and a few that seat 6-8. As we stood waiting for a place to sit the first thing I noticed was that the plates coming out of the window played on the theme of festivity. Lots of colorful veggies and nice bright sauces adorned the plates as they came out. My first thought was: well at least it looks good!

For it being Father’s Day we had a very short wait of not more than 10 minutes so I was pleased with that. After we were seated, I perused the menu and was glad to see they had some of my favorites there. Beef Fajitas, Steaks, Mexican Plates, and even Catfish. Then I saw Menudo on the menu. I like to try Menudo at places just to see if they have done their due diligence which in this case means 1) thoroughly cleansing the meat of hair and unsavory smells, 2) correctly seasoning the dish, and 3) making it look appetizing. So I ordered a small bowl of that along with another Texas stand by beef fajitas. I’m looking for something in a Mexican restaurant with these two dishes obviously. Can they pull off 2 of the hardest dishes to make? Are
they able to put out a consistently good product? Fajita plates usually have the standard Beef, Chicken, or Shrimp (Chicken and Shrimp aren’t really fajitas but that’s another story) along with some beans, rice, tortillas and either some guacamole, pico de gallo or some other hot concoction and sometimes sour cream and shredded cheese depending where you are. Miguelito’s fajita plate comes with pico de gallo and a lime right on top of the meat as the top layer with sautéed onions and bell peppers mixed in. This is served (as is customary in many places) on a sizzling cast iron comál or hot plate. My personal preference is to have the pico on the side but this particular set up works well also. The beef had great flavor with a tinge of lime. If I had a complaint about this it’s that the meat was slightly overcooked for my tastes. I prefer medium rare to medium on any steak that I’m eating. The Borracho beans served with the fajitas were the best part of the combo. They were perfectly cooked and were garnished with a small bit of cilantro. The rice was notable in that it had authentic flavor and was moist but just a bit overcooked.
My wife had a green chicken enchilada plate and I did get a small taste of that and the chicken inside was very moist. The green sauce was mildly piquant and very tasty.This was a good plate. She really enjoyed it. We shared a bowl of menudo just to see what it tasted like and the flavor was great. I would have preferred less fat on a lot of the meat and there was very little hominy. Had those two things been remedied it would have been an excellent bowl of soup. It came with the standard accoutrements of lemon wedges, fresh jalapeños, and onions along with a few tortillas. Jared has his standard Cheeseburger with everything on it….lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pickles, mustard and mayonnaise. He seemed to thoroughly enjoy it. One of the most remarkable flavors I tasted at Miguelito’s was that of my daughter’s grilled Catfish. Being a person raised in Texas and having had Catfish at home and at many restaurants I must say it has always been deep fried in a cornmeal batter and usually served with some French fries and hush puppies. Miguelito’s gives you a choice of having it fried or grilled and my daughter opted for their grilled version. The fish tasted very fresh and light and was grilled perfectly. It was served with the traditional fries but no hush puppies. She made an excellent choice and I think between my wife’s chicken enchiladas and her plate I would have to say those were probably the best 2 meals on the table. My fajitas were a close second. On this trip to south Texas my faith was restored. I really didn’t think that would happen in Crystal City but I’m so glad that I gave it a chance.

Food:

But for the slightly overcooked meat and rice and a bit of fat on the tripe this meal would have been excellent all the way around

Atmosphere was great:

The piñatas and streamers really added to the festive atmosphere at Miguelito's. The colors pop and it is an upbeat type of place.

Excellent Prices:

Prices are what you’d expect in just about any Tex-Mex restaurant but I’d have to say getting a fajita plate for $8.99 is really a good deal.

Service Good:

Service was good but the waiter seemed green. Being so new he seemed a bit apprehensive and nervous about serving. He just needs some more time doing it and he’ll become a pro. I do have to say that although it took him some time he did bring everything extra we asked for.

Overall:

I’d definitely eat at Miguelito’s again. In fact I may have to stop there the next time I’m in town on the way to my Mother In Law’s place.

Check out the website for more info: www.miguelitosmexicangrill.com

Royal Palace - Carrizo Springs, TX

2012-03-24T18:54:00.007-05:00

With a name like Royal Palace you'd expect a meal fit for a king. At first glance this restaurant seems like it is ready for some action and that they have got their stuff together. Either I'm having some really bad luck or Carrizo Springs is a culinary wasteland. In a part of the country that is making people rich with shale oil, this booming town is unfortunately not on the mountaintop when it comes to restaurants with excellent food or service. If there is one thing I learned from my Dad it is that you can learn a lot from other people's mistakes and if I may say it was a mistake to go to the Royal Palace. Let me provide my observations and you can be the judge.

Taking a short trip down to pick up my wife after her week long stay while she was assisting her mom it is always a goal of mine to eat somewhere I've never eaten before. Although it doesn't happen every time I try to seek out places that may be worth a trip. Coming to a restaurant in the early afternoon between the hours of 2-5 pm in a small town is a little bit of a gamble. Royal Palace to me is an idea that is good. The concept is sound and I think the folks who own and run this place have their hearts in the right place. Unfortunately, execution is not one of their strong points. I should have known better when I read the menu. There were quite a few spelling errors even on foods that were Mexican.

When we walked in we were greeted by a young lady who told us we could sit at any booth we wanted to and being the lovey dovey couple we are we were fine with that. The decor here is an interesting choice and I must say not very original considering that just a few miles up the road at another restaurant they have many stuffed deer, wildcats, and other wild game. I'm going to assume that since this restaurant is in south Texas that the folks who own it are quite proud of their big game kills and that they display them to show they are great hunters and also as an attractant to hunters who may stop by. A little etched glass and some fairly generic decor weren't the worst part of this restaurant and I would say are at least somewhat inviting. I was amazed at the level of technology here. POS systems with touch screen capability right at the front not to mention a few flat screen TVs strewn about the restaurant. This place seems to be a "money-is-no-object" type of place. There's plenty of dining space in here with big tables and separate sections that can be enclosed behind glass doors.

After we were seated, I took a look at the menu and there was nothing out of the ordinary except a parillada platter with tripas on it. Otherwise the menu contained a few other Mexican plates, steak entrees, seafood, and "American" fare. Our waitress asked if we'd like some chips and we looked at each other and had to make a decision. We've been trying to eat healthier but egg white sandwiches for breakfast and turkey burgers for lunch left us a little more open for a bit more caloric content than what we have been having so we said: "YES!" When I saw what she brought out I was excited. I saw 3 different types of salsas. Usually when a place takes salsa seriously you can expect to get some pretty good if not excellent food. I must say that the salsas were the highlight of the meal. A red sauce, a green sauce with a aqueous consistency (yes, words with friends buddies, I'm going to use that word on you sooner or later) and a more coarse type Pico de Gallo salsa that was mostly onion with very few peppers. The green sauce was very tasty even if it was being served on cold chips. The red was very close behind. I have to say, Alfalfa from the Little Rascals would have loved the coarse salsa as it contained enough onions in it to make even an ogre cry!
Here's a pic:
This seemed appetizing to both of us. My wife and I enjoyed this part of our meal for the most part. The meal did take a quick trip down hill though.

I ordered a Tampiquena Platter which consisted of Beef fajitas, beans, rice, enchiladas, beef taco and some flour tortillas. Having worked in Mexican restaurants and kitchens in the past I'm well aware of certain procedures that are employed when getting food ready to serve. Refried beans, rice, taco meat and even enchiladas are put on a plate and normally put in an oven to heat up. This doesn't bother me in the least bit because if you are watching your food, its not too old, and you are rotating your food out as it gets to a preset time limit you won't have any problems. The problem I have is when you put beans on a plate that have rancid bacon grease in them. Another problem is not cooking fajita meat when the customer comes in. Yes you can do some precooking of the meat but when your meat is tenderized with a blade tenderizer (which tends to speed the drying process) it is not going to be long before you have meat that is more of a consistency of a dried out caterpillar than a savory piece of beef. Although the meat was chewable it would not have been palatable without the liquid salsa or the viscous guacamole they provided. I normally eat fajitas slathered with a little bit of guacamole, some salsa, a few of the sauteed onions, on a WARM, SOFT, FLUFFY tortilla. These tortillas were a Sonoran style flour tortilla but the cook didn't know when to stop heating them. Crispy flour tortillas don't do it for me. As the meal progressed I tried the Enchiladas and I'm almost certain they got a generic can of Chili, dipped their tortillas and wrapped a little cheese in an voila you have a great El Patio style frozen dinner type enchilada. If I had a record book I would have to put their Spanish rice at the top of a few lists including but not limited to: OMG what did they put in this?, TLV Rice (tasted like vomit), Not just Chunky but Funky AND Clumpy. The taco wasn't half bad. I left at least half of my food on my plate and I'm thankful I did. I don't know if I could have stomached the rest of it.
My wife had a Mahi Mahi fish dinner with steamed vegetables. She said it was OK but not at the price we paid for it. I'd have to agree with her except that I'd apply it to the whole meal.

On to the ratings:

Atmosphere:

This is simply because there has been some thought put into the decor and this place seems nice enough but there seems to be a split personality here: is this place a sports bar or an elegant restaurant? If the drive through window outside is any indicator I'd say multiple personality disorder is definitely a part of this restaurants psyche.

Service: I honestly think our server wanted to do a good job. I find fault with management. If you are going to serve something be prepared for questions. Know your menu. Know what scampi means. Know what a Chardonnay is (no I weren't drinkin' peeples but the couple at the table next to us were "NOT AMUSED" at our mutual waitress' lack of knowledge in the restaurant biz.) After we had taken a good bit of salsa in we drained our drinks and we had not yet had any refills. She came over and asked us if we needed any more drinks before we even had gotten our meals. REALLY? Immaturity, lack of training, and poor management didn't really give this poor girl a chance. I have to put a 3 on this simply because she tried really hard.

Price: Prices are WAY too high for the quality of food they serve. There are restaurants in this little town that are much cheaper, have much better service, and much better cuisine than the Royal Palace. I can't say names but DQ, McD, oh what the heck even Sonic, Stars, Subway, and Churches have better food than this place at prices that are much easier to stomach.

Overall: I can't bring myself to give it anymore than one blue ribbon and this is all based on the fact that we got 2 salsas that were very tasty. Other than that our meal wasn't very good.
I usually like to try places a couple of times before I pass judgment on them but this place didn't have enough good things to make me want to come back to. If you are dum. . . .er, uh brave enough to go eat here then I recommend that you go during a busy time. When a restaurant is busy they tend to put out fresher food and some cooks rise to the occasion when they are put under pressure. Perhaps this place is one of those places.

Blog Changes

2012-02-19T07:57:00.000-06:00

There are some upcoming changes that I think you will find refreshing. As I go out and find new places I'll be taking more pictures, giving more details, perhaps talking to/interviewing some of the people that work in the restaurants we dine in, and starting a ratings system of some sort. In short, I'm hoping to make some fresh new changes to the blog not the least of which is the format. I hope the changes are to your liking and I am hoping to post a lot more than I usually do.

M.

Abuelos - Abilene Texas

2012-02-19T07:40:00.006-06:00

Abuelo's in Abilene, Texas has been a standby for us for a few years and yet I've never done a full review on the restaurant. Today we had an opportunity to enjoy some food and fellowship with the rest of the Rockies. My initial issue with today's visit is that we called a good while before we went out because they don't take reservations. We had 30+ people to go with us and when we got there the restaurant was packed and yet they had no tables set up or anywhere near ready for us when we got there. One of my friends talked to a manager about the long wait because we had already notified them with plenty of time for them to make preparations. By the time we were seated we ended up at 3 different tables in the big, back room with some families being separated (mine included) and sitting far apart. I wasn't particularly happy with this. With that being said, however, the normal wait time here usually isn't very long. Most times you can get in very quickly if you are in a small group.

Atmosphere at Abuelo's is festive. There are murals on the majority of the walls and there are fountains and statues in the restaurant. In fact my son got on top of one of the top-hatted statues and stated: "I'm sitting on abuelo's lap!" The statue looked like an older gentleman with the aformentioned top hat, spectacles and an old style suit. The colors in the murals are very vibrant and play in stark contrast with the base sand-colored walls. Most of the murals contain different caricatures of many different types of Latinos in various types of dress and doing a number of activities. The ambiance of the restaurant was thrown off a bit because if I'm not mistaken this is a Mexican restaurant and yet I heard top 40 pop music blaring throughout the place. Not exactly authentic. Scenery great. Music not so much.

My first experience with the food today was staring at some neatly placed bowls and jiggers and bowls of 2 different salsas. The containers of salsa sat on the table a good while before any chips were placed in front of us. I was tempted to stick my finger in for a taste of the salsa but I held back for the sake of my friends and because I had no idea how much capsacin was contained therein. They finally got some chips out there that were sort of lukewarm but were light and crisp. I personally love this style of chip. Thin, light, and crispy are really great attributes for a chip. If they had been totally warm they would have been phenomenal. Both salsas had interesting flavors. I challenged my buddy across the table to try the orange-colored salsa in the jigger and he had a little taste. He didn't want to at first but once he did he had a hard time stopping. He double dog dared me to drink a jigger full of it down and to that I said: "For 20 bucks I will!" He wasn't going to fork over any cash. I had already had a bit and it wasn't terribly scorching and I was surprised to find out that it was a Habanero pepper salsa. It was balanced and not over powering in the least bit, in my opinion. The other salsa was an unremarkable tomato based sauce with very little bite to it and more akin to a spaghetti sauce than a true Mexican hot sauce. It was very pleasing to the eyes but didn't do much in my taste bud department. This standard appetizer of chips and salsa went over well for the most part. I think I personally ate at least 3 0r 4 jiggers full of the Habanero salsa. After those jiggers were downed the waiter brought this out to me:

A few different plates were ordered around me. Here are a few of them:

Cheese Enchiladas w/Green Chile Sauce Pescado Guerrero

Beef and Shrimp "Fajitas"

Fajita Fixin's

Quesadilla Al Horno

My fajitas came out on a cast iron skillet but it wasn't sizzling in fact the fajitas were not very hot at all. The meat flavor was good at best but with the addition of some Pico de Gallo, Guacamole, and shredded cheese it was much better. These fajitas alone are not much to write home about but with the addition of the condiments they do end up being a bit more palatable. The shrimp eye candy on my plate was begging to be eaten but these shrimp were in fact more like candy (sickly sweet flavor) and had less of the authentic wood smoke/wood grilled flavor I was expecting. Put either one of these on the poor quality tortillas and the only thing that really saved them was the guacamole and the pico. The star of the Fajita plate is actually the Charro beans. Loaded with bits of thick pork (possibly bacon) and onions, a little tomato, and jalapenos these Frijoles were worthy of a second helping. Why yes, yes I did get a second helping.

My wife ordered the Cheese Enchiladas with the Green Chile Sauce. These were simply to die for. The flavor was well balanced with a slight tinge of heat. The combination of the cheese and the green chiles was excellent. Her rice was also moist and flavorful. I think this place was a better choice than what I had.

My daughter was not the least big impressed with their Mojo de Ajo, according to their website is: "Angel hair pasta topped with your choice of chicken, shrimp or a combination, sautéed in a Mexican-style garlic sauce and tossed with steamed vegetables." Apparently the combination of Mexican flavors with Italian Pasta wasn't her ideal combination.

My children's Godmother had a fish plate called Pescado Guerrero. This fish is native to Asia and is called the Barramundi. She let me try a little taste of it and it was very rich. The fish was grilled perfectly and the spinach along with the white wine sauce was very tasty. This is more of a Mexican adaptation of an Italian style dish. This is one of the lighter fare dishes that were on the menu.

Another thing I tried that I thought was very tasty was Papas Con Chile TM. For all of our Caucasian brethren this is Potatoes with Peppers. These mashed potatoes contain a little Jalapeno, some red and green bell peppers and four cheeses. One of the best things I had here today.

Normally $14.99 for a combo fajita plate is not bad but the amount of food you get for what you pay is very little. I've had $12.99 fajita plate and gotten a lot more meat for the money and tortillas that weren't straight out of a bag from the grocery store. A friend's son asked for one and I was all too happy to part with it. The rest of the food was priced off the lunch menu and was fairly priced in my opinion. All in all prices were in the medium range. So the rating is:

out of

Food was good (except the tortillas, they should invest in making tortillas in house.) Best things I had today at Abuelo's were the sides: Charro Beans and Papas Con Chile TM. As far as Tex Mex is concerned this is a great place for food geared toward the Caucasian palate. Those of us who have grown up on true Tex-Mex aren't very impressed with the majority of this food. Authenticity of this cuisine is also lacking. Presentation on some of the food is also lacking. So the rating on the food is:

out of

As far as atmosphere this is a beautiful place and aside from the pop music which throws this place out of whack Abuelo's would have received the highest rating possible:

out of

The one thing that stood out to me today was service. The waitstaff we had (in my opinion) was top notch. They kept my tea filled. They constantly asked if we needed anything else. They knew exactly where the food was supposed to go and they brought more chips out constantly. I have more of a problem with their management than I do with them because of our initial delay.
So the rating for the waitstaff is:

out of

I'd eat here again but I'd steer clear of the fajitas and maybe go for something else. I've had better food than we had during today's visit in the past here. It may be an anomaly due to being with a large group but regardless of that the food should be good no matter what.

The best part of today was spending time with my good friends and family. Regardless of the circumstances there's no place I'd rather be than with them.

The Eagle - San Angelo

2011-08-15T18:31:00.000-05:00

There's an old song by the Steve Miller Band called Fly Like An Eagle. Needless to say it is a cool song that has lyrics that say: "I want to fly like an eagle to the sea, fly like an eagle, let my spirit carry me." The song links two things that (considering my present circumstances) I believe go hand in hand. The majestic eagle flying high, summoning his eagle powers, using his acute visual perception to search for and draw out the best of the best of the sea's bounty. In many ways this is exactly what The Eagle on Howard is doing. The Eagle is yet another one of San Angelo's restaurants housed in an old Dairy Queen location (the others being Corner Stop #2, Wok and Rice, Cozy Kitchen, and D-Rays.) The Eagle has murals painted on the walls but sitting here (and maybe because I used to frequent this DQ as a child) I can't seem to forget it was an old DQ. This fact makes also more astonishing that this place is a legitimate seafood surprise. I also relish the chance I have to use these research opportunities to practice a bit on my Espanol (Spanish for the "Gringos") in a friendly environment. I like to eat at an establishment a couple of times before I pass judgement either way on it and it was highly recommended by my Pastor and friend, Jehu Hernandez. My first trip out we had a beef fajita and Camaron Con Ajo (Shrimp with Garlic) plate. I was really impressed by the Shrimp but the fajitas were not my favorite. The garlicky shrimp were sauteed nicely and had loads of flavor. They were perfect with a bit of the thin salsa and some guacamole on a corn tortilla. The Fajitas although visually pleasing, and tasty on the palate were very chewy and weren't really cut through all the way. A marinade would do these fajitas some justice in the way of breaking down the spongy fibers. I was impressed enough with the seafood side of this surf n turf meal that I decided to make another trip out today to focus my attention on what their true strengths were and I wasn't disappointed. This time out I gravitated towards the Shrimp Diabla (Devil's Shrimp.) This shrimp is cooked in a spicy red sauce that you get a salsa buzz from but is not overstated in the least. The sauce starts off light and ends with a slight heat at the end. It looked to be about 10 to 12 medium shrimp along with some rice and beans and a little lettuce and tomato. Here it is:
Since I WAS doing research, far be it from me to stop at just this plate. I also ordered a Ceviche Tostada appetizer. I have to say that on a hot summer day this Ceviche Tostada is refreshingly light fare. The fish was marinated in lemon and/or lime juice and was mixed with tomato, onion, lettuce, cilantro, avocado, and peppers served on a flat deep fried corn tortilla and drizzled with a white sour cream sauce. Ceviche is "cooked" through a process of marinating raw fish in an acidic juice for up to 24 hours before it is served. The acid kills all bacteria and "cooks" the fish so that it is safe to eat. Sounds like Mexican Sushi to me so AriGracias to The Eagle for that. It was a beautiful dish as you can see:

My wife also sampled the shrimp fajitas today and seemed to be impressed with them.
They were served (as many are) on a cast iron skillet and brought to the table sizzling for maximum effect. These shrimp were tossed with garlic, green bell peppers, some small bits of onion and something I haven't seen before with this Tex-Mex staple: mushrooms. My wife practically begged me to taste one and I protested for a bit but after I had tasted them I wish that I had taken her up on her offer sooner and had a bigger bite. Totally delicious. Here is some video with the little "sizzlers" making some noise (along with my son singing in the background.)

Service here is very good and the standard appetizer of chips and salsa comes to the table piping hot. That is a real plus in this day and age of getting cold stale chips. The rice and beans are nice compliments to the seafood and balance these plates out. Sooner or later I will go back and get breakfast burritos and menudo and maybe even the Caldo De Res but that is for another time. I won't lie and say this is a place that is very romantic or that it has great atmosphere. It doesn't, but one thing it does have is great seafood. This is an out of the way hole in the wall joint but well worth your time and money as long as you stick to the seafood.

Taqueria y Tamaleria San Juan

2011-08-14T15:37:00.000-05:00

Let me preface what I'm about to say with a huge smile and full belly. There's a new place in town that hasn't been around very long but it is obvious that the cooks/chefs here take food seriously and they are excellent at what they do. On or about August 13, 2011 (the rainiest birthday I've ever had by the way) a GerMexican American male standing 6 ft. 1 and a half inches tall was seen entering the premises located at 1034 E. 19th. Said male had every intention of buying 1 dozen tamales and getting on his way. Unfortunately for him the tamales were sold out. He wasn't happy. Needless to say He uh I mean I was on my way out but the owner stopped me and said, "Please don't go let me make you a taquito for free so you can taste it." I tried to explain, "My family is in the car. . . ." He said, "How many in your car." Was he really going to give me free samples for everyone in the car? Why yes, yes he was. I stopped in my tracks as he brought out a cute little taquito. Now this PERFECT little taquito was built on a home made fresh corn tortilla. It was loaded with tender carne asada (beef), onions, tomatos, and chopped cilantro. They also brought out a small container of a beautifully blended red salsa. This tomato based bowl of liquid love was seasoned to perfection and had tiny colorful flecks of spices in hues of red, green, and gold. I didn't know it but I was about to have an otherworldly taste experience. The salsa starts off very smooth and ends with a mild burn. Very nice. The owner apparently gives out a lot of samples and I can totally understand why: once you have a taste you are hooked! I took one bite and I knew then and there that I was going to become a regular patron of this place. After I had tasted this incredible food I asked the owner to give me 10 of the same tacos so I could share some with my family and that I'd pay for it. He said, "I want you to try the barbacoa taquitos too. You will like." I'm all for trying new things so he put the other taquitos in and I was on my way. Here's what they looked like:
This is what they looked like after I almost dropped them when I was walking out of the restaurant. Still very scrumptious if you ask me. Now I was sold on what they had given me so far but I wanted to do a little more research. After church this morning I stopped by with my family. Today I had yet another chance to taste a few things so I had the pork carnitas served in the same style as above, a barbacoa burrito with Pico De Gallo, and beans and rice. Everything here seems to yell out: home made goodness. The orange hued rice is aromatic and slightly moist. The beans are seasoned perfectly. After we finished all that we were offered another free sample. A piping hot bowl of Caldo De Res (Beef Soup) was brought out and it was another heavenly experience. This soup was loaded with veggies like zucchini, carrots, onion, and corn on the cob, along with some cross-cut beef rib meat. Excellent flavor was improved by a small dash of the hot sauce. This soup was perfect on a rainy weekend. I won't lie to you and tell you service is great here - today it was horrible. The waitress explained that they had someone call in today and they were very short staffed. The staff was running around like crazy people and doing their best but the food more than made up for the bad service today. They run specials here and today it was a guiso plate (Yes Pedro carne guizada. Ha Ha) They also serve Tortas and early in the morning they serve breakfast burritos. This is a hole in the wall joint and I still haven't tasted the tamales but from what I've tasted so far I'm of the opinion that this place is on the must taste list. Take a drive to the other side of town for a taste experience that will remind you of some of the best street food in Mexico.

My Super Scientific Burrito Experiment. Uh, Not Really.

2011-04-13T21:43:00.000-05:00

Over the last month I've conducted a bit of an experiment. I have tried burritos (tacos for you hardcore Tex-Mexicans) from a few different places to discover maybe some new and awesome flavors or maybe something that I missed before. My recent endeavors into this breakfast burrito bombardment have taken me to some new places and some of my old favorites and let me say I've enjoyed the adventure sometimes even more than the food.

Right after I posted my last blog about The Hut I thought it would be fun to compare some places regarding specific burritos. My favorite burritos are filled with Chorizo and Eggs (Chorizo Con Huevo, and u didn't think I could speak Spanish ;-) or Barbacoa (for you gringos, half-breeds, and non-Spanish speaking population this is Beef cheek meat....NO NOT THOSE CHEEKS sickos!) In the old days you would get an entire beef head and season it, wrap it in wet burlap sacks and bury it in the ground with hot coals all around it and a few hours later zip bang boom a lovely cabeza de vaca complete with a beef tongue, cheek meat, eyes (not always) and lots of tasty little bits Andrew Zimmern from Bizzare Foods likes to call "mucilage". Sounds a lot like mucus but hey it sure does taste good in a burrito or taco.

So my quest was on to taste test the best places' burritos. And so it began, I had breakfast burritos at Julio's, Mendez Cafe, Cornerstop, The UC at Angelo State, Diego's Burritos on Ave. N and at Lorena's next to the Roxy.

Lets begin with The UC and work our way up the quality chain shall we? If there ever was a Taco Bell type breakfast burrito I'd have to say the UC is producing it. The tortillas taste like preservatives and the filling was lukewarm. One good thing is the Chile, Salsa, or Hot Sauce. They have a couple of choices in the familiar green and red that actually have some flavor but basically the hot sauce won't make up for bad tortillas and filling that has sat too long. 1 star for the awesome Salsas. There is no barbacoa option at the University. Go figure. With as many Mexicanos as they have on their management team and working behind the grills you'd think they might try to bring some authentic cuisine out. Lets face it it's not about quality food it's about quantity. Onward my friends.

Lorena's is a new place in town that has gone into a drive through location that has housed in the last 2 years another burrito barn, a BBQ Stand, A Soul Food drive thru, and now this. Location is right in the heart of the barrio at an intersection that gets tons of traffic daily. AFB traffic goes by as well as many others but the place has never been that appealing for some reason. Nothing that goes in there stays for long. I didn't see barbacoa on this menu either but I did get the Chorizo and Egg again for a taste test. Also grabbed a couple of Bacon and Egg burritos for my lovely wife. The first thing I noticed about these burritos is that they dripped a lot of grease and it was definitely not appetizing. A plus for these was that they were plenty hot and you got a lot of filling. The hot sauce was pretty good too. The Burritos weren't overwhelmingly flavorful but weren't the worst I've ever had either. 2 Stars for Lorena's.

Mendez Cafe is another place that has decided to break into the early morning burrito wars. This restaurant is now located in what has been another location with many tenants. Catfish Haven, Catfish Corner, Barney's Burgers, and most recently Little Gil's have been at this ever changing hole in the wall joint. Mendez doesn't have barbacoa either. Aw snap! Aw snap! They are concerned about you being out speedily so they have a small canopy with a roaster on a table connected to a long orange extension cord running inside the building right in the front of the cafe. They said they were burritos but these were definitely breakfast tacos the way that they were folded. Tortillas were OK but not home made and filling was somewhat bland. Chile was tasty but didn't have a lot of punch to it. They did have plenty of filling though. 2.5 stars for this one.

Julio's, Diego's, and Cornerstop are my all time favorites. Diego's is a stand by that I enjoy from time to time and both their Chorizo and barbacoa are excellent. Tortillas are great and the chile is good too. They do however rank behind Julio's and Cornerstop because they have my second favorite chorizo and egg and second favorite barbacoa burritos. Diego's does have one drive through location on Main St.. The other two locations are walk in only. They are solid on just about everything they make there so they get 4 stars!

Julio's Chorizo and Egg burrito with the homemade tortillas from next door can't be beat on flavor. They add some of the secret spice and the burrito filling is moist, hot and flavorful even before the salsa hits it. They have everything down to a science and you can drive through at all their locations except on South Chadbourne. 5 stars to Julio's for being my favorite Chorizo and Egg burrito spot.

As good as Julio's is at C&E, Cornerstop is unbeatable when they put their prize fighter barbacoa in the ring against the competition. Homemade tortillas are done on site. 2 different green and red salsas made on site. Barbacoa slow cooked on site. You get a tortilla stuffed with meat that's hot and juicy. The flavors are just phenomenal. To me this is the best barbacoa burrito in town bar none. The staff is quick and there is usually a line here. They have plenty of menu choices besides burritos too. They have two locations where you can get corn of flour tortillas too. The one on North Chadbourne has a drive thru but my preferred location is on Ben Ficklin. 5 stars for my favorite barbacoa burrito in San Angelo.

If you are passing by one of these places give them a try and let me know what your favorite burrito is. I'd love to hear about it.

*btw Julio's and Cornerstop also have menudo sometimes. Ask for it. Menudo will put hair on yer chest!

The Hut Burritos Y Mas CLOSED

2011-02-15T07:32:00.000-06:00

The Hut Burritos y Mas is a new Burrito hot spot in San Angelo. For those in South Texas Burrito = Taco. Tacos up here a lot of times if they are in a flour tortilla are called soft tacos. Yes, soft corn tortilla tacos are called the same thing. Now that we've had that little lesson can we start another one? Can you say, "LEGIT'"? Try it. Yeah that's good. Once more. You've got it. The Hut is truly legit' and makes some of the best home style food anywhere in San Angelo.

Housed in the previous Steak Express location the dining area is small and unassuming with about 8 tables and white walls decorated with black and white pictures of many local historical sites as well as others statewide. One of the important things I always look for when I sit down to eat somewhere is whether or not the dining area is clean even after a lunch rush. I visited twice and both times the restaurant was very clean.

People from all walks of life gather here to enjoy Chef Chapo's creations as evidenced by the Mercedes Benz and the Chevy Silverados out front. The menu contains quite a few options for breakfast and lunch. If you want to go the simple route you can B.Y.O.B. Build your own burrito that is. Tortilla, and eggs are the foundation and you can add two of these ingredients to complete your burrito: Cheese, Bacon, Sausage, Ham, Chorizo, Potatoes, or Refried beans. You can have your burrito in a 12 inch flour tortilla or SURPRISE SURPRISE in a corn tortilla. You can even make it a “Roadie” which is a burrito with your choice of ingredients chopped up into bite sized bits and put into a cup. I haven't tried this yet but I guess if you are going to eat while you drive its better to keep your clothes clean unless you don't mind eggs and cheese in your lap. The Hut also has some specialty burritos that range in price from $2.00 - $5.00. The Vaquero has guiso, refried beans, and cheddar cheese all for 2 buckaroonis. The Hut is the signature house burrito for $2.75 and is loaded with eggs chorizo, potatoes and cheese. Add a little salsa and you are good to go. The then there is the monstrous “Big Al” burrito. The Big all is a 2 pound burrito fill with Ham, Potatoes, and cheese wrapped in 2 flour tortillas for 5 bucks. One of the burritos I enjoyed for breakfast a few weeks back was the “Ave. N.” which is a combination of eggs, potatoes, bacon and cheddar cheese for $2.75. I decided after having the breakfast I would like to try out the lunch plates. Lunch has a few options and for a great price. I had the #8 Soft Taco plate. You have a choice of beef taco meat, Guiso, or beef or chicken fajita meat. Here's the great part: ALL FOR 5 Bucks and it includes rice and beans. I don't know where you can get a deal that good with those options. Also had a brisket burrito that was very delicious. I had their salsa and pico de gallo and both were solid. The one thing that really stuck out to me is that everything tastes like it was made at home. That's a big plus in my book. Home style cooking for a great price is just something that you don't find very often. The food is scrumptious and affordable. With that being said don't get any ideas about eating on fine china or that atmosphere will be the best. It's a burrito place after all. You can have soft drinks, bottled water or iced tea to drink. They do have free Wi-Fi there and that is a great way to have lunch and get a little work done too. Their staff is extremely attentive. I was checked on and asked many times if everything was good. Anything I needed, they were all too happy to pass on.

I definitely recommend The Hut for its low prices and home style cooking. You can't get a better deal in San Angelo on food this good. Great for a struggling college student like me.

LOCATION: Ave. N in San Angelo.

Prices: Cheap
Quality: High
Atmosphere: Bland
Service: Above and Beyond
Menu Selection: Adequate
Authenticity: Good

2010-12-07T15:46:00.000-06:00

Rare Bits: Unusual Origins Of Popular Recipes by Patricia Bunning Stevens

Interesting..........

View all my reviews

2010-12-07T15:44:00.001-06:00

The Illustrated Step-by-Step Cook by DK Publishing

great pictures of some classic recipes that will be sure to enhance your repertoire

View all my reviews

Manuel's Steakhouse - Del Rio, Texas

2010-11-28T19:17:00.001-06:00

Wrapping up a few days on the road with one workday sandwiched in between I finally got a chance to get to a place to blog about. We stopped at Don Marcelino's first but, my wife wasn't feelin' it so we took off and then we stopped at Manuel's Steakhouse. Well as far as blogging is concerned and when it comes to food 1) I am all about taking chances 2) hoping for surprises, and 3) ready for an adventure whether it's good or bad. From the street Manuel's doesn't look like a whole lotta anything until you slow down and smell the roses, er fajitas. When you do get a chance to stop and take it all in you notice they have a beautiful stained glass door. The facade of the restaurant is rock and definitely all the rage in Texas as you see many homes and businesses "rocked out" as Manuel's is.

We were greeted promptly as we came in and were seated very quickly. They had just had a bit of a rush and we were whisked away to a table that had just been cleaned and wasn't quite set up yet. A waitress came by and placed appetizer plates on the table but didn't say anything until I gave her a big smile and a hardy, "HELLO!" She obviously wasn't our waitress and it took a while for us to get our menus and I was starting to get a bit concerned that maybe we had made a mistake by coming here. Here are a few pics of the inside:

Rock Wall and Candle Chandelier

Colorful Crumples Ceramic Plates on a Rock Wall.

Beautiful bottles along a dividing wall.

Candle Chandelier.

Well, I noticed an old school Mexican waiter sweating up a storm and taking care of quite a few tables. He had just dropped off a ticket to one table and was preparing a flaming dessert (more about that later) for another table. He was extremely busy so as a fellow food service worker I cut him a little slack. Salvador, our waiter was about to save us from our hunger as he brought out two big baskets of hot, fresh out of the fryer chips, with salsa. He then brought out the menus and we looked at them for a bit while we munched on the chips and salsa. First impressions on the food were good. Chips hot, corny, a little thicker than
usual, and very tasty. The salsa was more fruity than fiery but had just enough heat to keep me coming back for more. Our waiter was what I would call an "old school Mexicano". He spoke with an exotic Spanish accent and he gesticulated when he asked us what we wanted to drink and when he took our food order. When I received the menu and looked it over he came over and moved his hand from his chest with palms facing up and fingertips towards me as he asked, "What can I get for you, sir?" Of course he gesticulated in this way to all of my family and this reminded me of an era gone by when waiters were more elegant and refined.

The menu was full of Angus steaks cooked Mexican and American style. 10, 14, and 16 oz. Ribeyes along with various T-bones, a Chicken Fried Steak and other types of Angus Beef. They had some Mexican plates including Enchiladas, Fajitas, Quesadillas, and a Naked Chile Relleno (I tried not to be risque on this blog but sometimes it's just too hard!) They had some other offerings that you don't see everyday like Frog's Legs and Quail. The kid's menu has 3 items on it which was a bit disheartening for Jonah. Chicken Strips, Quesadilla, and a Beef Burrito Plate. Appetizers and Desserts had much more to choose from including Flan, Cheesecake, The Flaming Dessert (more on that later I promise) and my favorite dessert of all time: Creme Brulee. Prices seemed very comparable to other local steak houses. For the food we got I would say they were definitely reasonable and made me confident that we had chosen well.

I ordered a 14 oz. Ribeye and it came with a Baked Potato, a Salad of Mixed Greens, and a bowl of Borracho Beans. Elizabeth and Jonah ordered Enchilada Plates that came with beans and rice and 4 red, cheesy enchiladas per plate. Jared and Kandra ordered Cheeseburgers that came with the standard french fries. We gave our customary thanksgiving for the meal and we dug in.
Lets just say at the first bite into my steak I had an other worldly experience. It was afternoon so the only song that I can say would describe this first bite is "Afternoon Delight"! Sky Rockets in flight had nothing on this steak. This was a flavor that was meant to be savored all day long. To look at the steak you wouldn't have thought it was any better than any other steak I had eaten in the past but that first bite almost made me fall out of my chair. Here's a pic:
I wouldn't say the presentation was phenomenal but what it lacked in eye appeal it more than made up for in flavor. I would have expected to see some greenery on the plate but in this economy there isn't a lot of room for extra greens that aren't going to be eaten anyway.
Here are a couple of pics of the other food at my table.

Salad of Mixed Greens w/Ranch.

Everything here was very fresh and the dressing was tasty albeit a bit overwhelming for the amount of greens that were on the plate.

I tasted the Enchiladas, rice and beans and they were solidly home style. Notice the peas and carrots in the rice. Nice touch.

Enchilada Plate

Here's Kandra (with Jared in mid bite) having,"oneof the best burgers ever!" She apparently was very impressed with it.

We thoroughly enjoyed our entrees and then it was time for dessert. I ordered Creme Brulee but unfortunately they were out. As my mother in law likes to say: "Rats, Rats, and Double Rats!" Well they also offered Flan, Cheesecake, and the previously parenthetically mentioned Flaming Dessert. We decide to share some Cheesecake and a Flaming Dessert. The Flaming Dessert is Vanilla Ice Cream topped with pecans, flambeed in Brandy. After being wowed by the presentation we tasted both the desserts and they were undeniably scrumptious!

Here are the pics:

Well, as the cup was about to runneth over I must say we were completely satisfied with the food. On the basis of food flavor alone I would definitely recommend this place. Service was lax in the beginning but the appropriately named Salvador definitely acted as a savior for Manuel's as far as my blog is concerned. I don't know how much he's getting paid but I am sure he could use a raise. Atmosphere was definitely more adultish and as such I'm recommending this as a date place more than a family eatery. There is a fully stocked bar right as you walk in. This place is beautifully furnished with black wood grain tables and chairs. Walls are a dark chocolate brown below the chair rail with a salmonish orange color above it. This place is dark inside almost like a cave with much candle light and low electric light emanating from around the restaurant. One thing that I didn't care for in the atmosphere is the huge TV at the bar. Manuel's is trying to serve to sets of clientele here. The Sports Bar Crowd and The Romance Rendezvous folks. If that's the case I definitely think they should have a little bit better division of the two so that there can be a more intimate meal for those that desire the romantic setting.
Expect to spend no more than $25 a plate for the steaks and not more than 10-12 bucks for the Mexican plates. For 2 people you will definitely get out of here for less than $70 including your appetizer, main courses and desserts (barring any major drowning of alcohol.) Next time you are in Del Rio stop by and ask for Salvador. Manuel's is lucky to have him and the great food they provided.

Here's a video of Salvador preparing the Flaming Dessert.

Thanksgiving Minds Want To Know!

2010-11-22T16:01:00.000-06:00

Let me just say Happy Thanksgiving to you all my friends. All two of you! LOL. Anyway, I was wondering about Thanksgiving and what it means to you. Here's a few things to think about and maybe discuss here.

What is/are your favorite Thanksgiving.....

memory?

dessert or dessert recipe?

foods you can no longer have because someone that made it, is now gone?

activities?

traditions?

TV shows?

Movies?

Let me know what you are thinking! I'd love to hear from you! Feel free to share any recipes or stories you'd like here!

AFR

new blog buddy

2010-10-21T22:17:00.000-05:00

Friends, Mexicans, Countrymen, loan me a dollar! Well if you can't do that at least check out my cousin's new blog. He will be so thankful you did.

http://mykitchenandyou.wordpress.com/

Macario

Saving Money and Eating At Home

2009-12-15T09:30:00.000-06:00

In the course of having to learn to be in better control of our family budget as well as trying to help people in the world I would like to make a recommendation. A Treasury of Top Secret Recipes by Todd Wilbur takes many of your favorite chain restaurant foods and approximates them for you. I've tried a couple of the recipes in this book and have found them to be very, very close to the originals.

One in particular that I have found to be EXCELLENT is for the number one chicken sandwich in the world being sold by cows. I won't mention the name of it but lets try a word puzzle, shall we.

Well I think it's all pretty obvious now isn't it?

I first found this book in the library and after checking it out a few times I decided that I'd buy it. It's one of my favorites. I've got numerous cook books and I've bought some for just one recipe. If this one only had the recipe for the "World's Greatest Chicken Sandwich" it would be worth it.

find it here: http://www.topsecretrecipes.com /

or here: Amazon

*No chicks or sneakers were injured, harmed, or used for food in preparing this blog. All representations are owned by their respective namesakes and I'm sure that the companies that own them would love for you to buy them.

El Paisano Restaurante - San Angelo

2009-10-25T17:00:00.000-05:00

There's been a rash of new restaurants in San Angelo recently and El Paisano is one of the newbies on the block that I've had my sights set on. EPR has set up shop in the same location that has brought you Las Dos Hermanas, and Chilangos right on South Chadbourne in the heart of San Angelo's Barrio. The name sounds kind of "eye tal yin" like a lot of our friends around here but sure enough it's definitely a Mexican eatery.

We were greeted quickly and seated the same way. The ambience here has changed from the quirky and silly (Chilangos) to a more home style approach.
Our waitress got our drinks out quickly and was really attentive to all of our needs. She giggled a bit when she saw Jonah dancing around when some Banda music came on. We were pleasantly surprised to find out that we got a couple of free appetizers with before our lunch came out. Of course Jared asked for: __________ Fill in the blank. Didn't know you were getting a test huh? Hint we are from San Angelo and Jared asked for his usual San Angelo staple appetizer. Anyway, our waitress brought out a couple of bean dips that were simply out of this world. One of them had a lower layer of beans with a warm chile sauce on top that was very tasty and packed in some good heat. Here it is:
It's companion appetizer was also beans with a little picadillo and cheese on top. I think this was our waitresses nice way of getting something for our kids that they could eat. Looks good huh?
I ordered some Menudo and everyone pretty much knows what it looks like so I won't post it here but I do have to say it had a thick, dark orange broth that was very tasty. Only one issue with it was that I didn't get enough hominy. OH and the good thing was that on the weekends it's all you can eat for $6.50. It was served with the traditional accompaniments of lemon, jalapeno, and onions with some very warm and toasty corn tortillas. MMM MMM MMM Menudo Menudo Menudo. Jonah had a plate called the "El Nino" plate and I was sure hoping that it wasn't going to cause any warm, southern wind to come blowing out of him! It consisted of an enchilada, beans and rice. He seemed to like it very much.

My wife had an enchilada plate which looked very nice and the enchiladas were great. Yes I had a taste. She was impressed with it.

Kandra had chicken strips. Kandra said, "Wow, these are juicy!"
Jared had the usual, "Cheeseburger with everything: mustard, mayonnaise, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, onions, and no jalapenos."
The fries are fresh and not frozen and tasted home made.

Prices are all very reasonable and are great for trying to save a bit of money.

Service, food, prices, and atmosphere make this a place that could be on your list for at least a visit every two weeks. We enjoyed it very much!

La Playa Restaurant And Cantina

2009-10-16T18:21:00.000-05:00

We'd been planning a trip to Corpus Christi for a few months for our friends' wedding and we decided we'd take advantage of an opportunity to also enjoy some time with our children and some of the local cuisine there. My oldest son Jared just so happened to turn 11 on October 9th which is the day we took off. So we did the obligatory stop at Chuck E. Cheese's in San Antonio and spent some time overnight there. The kids got to really enjoy the games and also Krispy Kreme Donuts, Taco Cabana and an overnight stay in a hotel. I was really hoping for a couple of more chances to sample some local cuisine but that didn't really happen until Sunday after we enjoyed some early morning time at the beach. We took a little drive to Padre Island National Seashore Sunday morning after the wedding festivities of the day before. After that we came back to the hotel and packed up and headed for La Playa Restaurant and Cantina.

We arrived early Sunday morning feeling a bit guilty because we didn't go to church, but we were out of town so we just spent some family time together enjoying God's creation but I digress. What I mean by early is that we arrived at around 11:00 am at La Playa. This place came highly recommended by the newlyweds and as we arrived I could see this was a place that was on top of it's game. The atmosphere is very nice and as you can see since we came early we didn't have to wait to get a table. Normally an almost empty place like this would concern me but I knew things would pick up quickly and it was good to see the restaurant almost 3/4 full by the time we left.As we came in we were greeted promptly and seated at a table with ample room and of course being from San Angelo, Jared had to ask for white sauce. San Angelo is the only city where cole slaw and white sauce are part of most Tex Mex restaurant menus. Of course they didn't have white sauce here but they did have some very tasty salsas. As you can see a green and red salsa were provided and neither one disappointed. My wife said, "M, I can't stop eating this. It's so good!" Of course she was right! We went through quite a few chips but not before we ordered our meals.
I wasn't that adventurous on this trip and I had some excellent beef fajitas that came out to the table sizzling. This came with AWESOME, borracho, beans, guacamole, pico de gallo, and some of the moistest, most flavorful rice I've had in a while. The fajitas were nicely garnished with some caramelized onions, a slice of tomato and a slice of bell pepper. Excellent presentation and flavor. Tortillas were thin and a little too crispy for my taste. Grandma used to make tortillas really thick and fluffy so I guess it's just a personal bias.
My wife was the most adventurous of us all on this trip. She has heard about a plate that had a deep fried avocado, tortilla soup, two fish tacos, rice and beans so that's what she got. The avocado looked like a big fried ball with a crispy crust. She cut it open and it was wrapped in the breading then a layer of cheese, avocado, and then stuffed with shrimp. She really enjoyed it. Her tortilla soup had onions, cheese, and mushrooms in it and tasted wonderful. Fish tacos were also a hit. They were garnished with some lettuce and tomatoes and a lemony cream sauce. WOW! The bite I had was very tasty. This plate kind of helped both of us meet our seafood craving and from what I could see she really enjoyed it even though she was getting very full because of all those chips and green salsa!

Kandra had the fish and shrimp platter as you can see below. I didn't try it but she was very satisfied.

Jared had a burger as usual and Jonah had some enchiladas from the kid's menu. They both enjoyed their meals very much. Kids menu has a least 8 different things to offer.

This restaurant had moderate pricing, great atmosphere, excellent food choices, and super excellent service so I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is down in Corpus. They open at 11 on Sundays and I'm sure they fill up fast. I couldn't find a website but you can find La Playa at 4201 S. Padre Island Drive in Corpus Christi. I have no doubt that when you are on the road in this area you will love eating here.

GUEST REVIEWS

2009-10-13T21:59:00.000-05:00

Please take a look at a couple of great reviews by my secret friend, the mysterious Red Headed Stranger. She really knows food, baking, cooking, and quite a few other great things. She won't steer you wrong pardner. Her husband is a great cook too!

Enjoy!

Pasta Bella Guest Review by The Red Headed Stranger

2009-10-13T21:57:00.000-05:00

So I have to be honest, when we go to Fredericksburg we eat somewhere else because I am not a fan of German food and there is really nothing else there to eat. But on my last trip I discovered the town secret. Pasta Bella, is an Italian restaurant on Llano Street off of the main strip and it has to be the town’s best kept secret. My cousin and I were in town for a much needed girls weekend when we pulled a Rachel Ray and asked some of the locals where to eat, one of them mentioned Pasta Bella. We had seen this little restaurant before but never paid it much attention but hey, no one can mess up Italian food, really have you ever had bad Italian? We went to dinner before we took in the show at the Rock Box Theater, which everyone should go to, it’s awesome, but anyway the food at Pasta Bella is wonderful, great and super yummy! I cannot tell you what I had because to be honest I cannot remember its name, but nothing you order will be bad. My cousin had the shrimp fettuccini and she said it was really good. They serve bread with olive oil of course and the salads were good but the entrée’s were really just superb and I guarantee I will be going back next time we’re in town. The prices are moderate at about $8 to $12 dollars and the service was really good, hey the waiter called me young and kept my tea glass full so I was a happy camper! So next time you are in Fredericksburg for a day of shopping take time out and eat at Pasta Bella. I guarantee you will be glad you did.
When you go, just know:
The address is 103 South Llano and the telephone number is 830-990-9778. The hours of operation are Monday-Friday 11:30 to 2:30 and 5:30 to 9:00 and Saturdays from 11:30 to 3:00 and 5:30 to 9:00.

GUEST REVIEW Menard Bakery & Deli - By the Red Headed Stranger

2009-10-13T21:53:00.000-05:00

So in your travels anywhere south to southeast in Texas you will probably go through Menard. Most of the time we cruise on through because hey, there is nothing to see or do there so why slow down. But one day this summer we decided we had nowhere to be soon so we stopped to browse an old drugstore on Main Street. After spending a whopping 5 minutes in the drugstore we spot the Menard Bakery & Deli across the street. Our plan to picnic quickly thrown out the window, we decided to have some lunch. Stepping inside we immediately spotted the fresh baked goodies and of course Carlos quickly honed in the “surprise brownies.” If there is a brownie anywhere within a 5 mile radius Carlos will spot it! We were seated and we thought for a minute we would just indulge in something sweet from the goodie case but after perusing the menu we found, of course, something yummy and ordered lunch. I ordered the Chicken Cado Salad which is a salad with avocado stuffed with chicken salad. I am telling you this is a super salad!!! Served with ranch dressing and all the crackers you could want, this tasty salad had carrots, lettuce, avocado, and chicken salad. It was super yummy! Carlos also had the pigs-n-a-blanket and he said they were great. Fresh baked pigs in a warm blanket…yum!!! He finished with, of course, the brownie which he raved about to the owner who came by to chat with us and after which the owner’s mom, the baker, came over to give him the recipe. I love small town friendly people who are willing to share instead of keep the great recipes to themselves. I also had the buttermilk pie which was delicious! The owners Vickie and her mom Jerry were the nicest people and they have great plans for the bakery and deli and hope to be open longer once deer season gets here. Everyone was so nice and it was a treat to just visit with such accommodating people. A town that was once a place most of us breeze through now should be a place you stop in on purpose just to eat at the Menard Bakery & Deli.

When you go, just know:
The hours are currently 7am-5 pm Monday to Friday and 8am-3pm Saturday. The number is 325-396-3333 and the address is 114 San Saba Street in Menard (just turn left off the main drag onto San Saba and you will see it on the left).