de Leon Moves to Spokane -- You lucky SOBs....
Just caught this article in the Columbian. There's a hilarious bit of spin:
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The departure of a Mexican food store and tortilla "factory" [Tortilleria y Tienda de Leon] on Vancouver's Fourth Plain Boulevard might be viewed as a setback for development of the area as an international shopping district.
"Businesses seem to be turning over at a clip that allows new business to replace the old ones, and that's a dynamic climate," said Kurt Creager, executive director of the Vancouver Housing Authority, the city's lead urban renewal agency, of a strategy planned to revitalize the area.
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Err..."dynamic"...yeah not "volatile".
But then we learn this bit:
[quote]
De Leon, who closed his store in January, said he struggled to keep the Mexican grocery afloat, despite the area's diverse population, which includes a large percentage of people from Mexico. The store sold handmade tortillas and groceries and had a Mexican deli in a 7,450-square-foot space at 2519-20 N.E. Fourth Plain Blvd.
"There just wasn't enough business," said De Leon, an affable businessman who opened the store in 2003. De Leon co-owned the store with his sister, Lucy De Leon, and their parents, Anselmo and Francisca De Leon of Portland.
He is relocating the business to Spokane, transferring merchandise, fixtures and $16,000 worth of tortilla-making equipment to the new location 343 miles away.
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I highly recommend that those of you in Spokane watch for its opening. I love this place and they make great guisados (Mexican stews) and wonderful salsas, tamales, carnitas, and beans. Search here on Chowhound PNW or on extramsg.com for descriptions and pictures of their stuff.
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carne asada at Rancho Vejio in( spokane valley) at evergreen& sprague is tender, succulant, flavorful delite. The rice is so good I googled a recipe for mexican rice as I was intrigued by the balance of fat and flavor that set there rice apart, the beans creamy & tasty. All the classics are terrific, I don't venture into the seafood side of the menu, as most people order standards, i.e. enchiladas etc.and I want fresh when it comes to seafood. Hands down Rancho Viejio also in Post Falls east of Spokane.
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My husband works nearby and was terribly upset that de Leon was closing, so he stopped by and got the real scoop from the owner. The guy said he couldn't compete with some nearby Mexican grocery that could sell beer, cigarettes, Mexican foodstuffs, etc, at below-cost prices because they were actually a front for a meth-making operation. Oh well. My poor husband is heart-broken over the de Leon closure -- any ideas where he can go now for decent Mexican in Vancouver? He's been eating at Muchas Gracias, because he can't figure out where else to go.
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re: Juliarls
Taqueria Colima isn't too far away on Fourth Plain and they make their tortillas by hand. Also, Don Paco (formerly La Michoacana) is pretty good and often has interesting specials. (Not Don Pedro, which is only okay.) Muchas Gracias is probably the worst taqueria on that street. Actually, that's not true. There's one in the square over by the other Mexican grocer (perhaps the alleged meth-maker) that makes absolutely horrid Mexican food. Check the link below.
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re: extramsg
Thanks, MSG! I've passed the link onto my husband. You've done your good deed for the day, saving him from Muchas Gracias. Meantime, we may have to venture to the wilds of Gresham for the original de Leon. At least it's closer than Spokane. (And believe me, we used to live in Spokane. de Leon will instantly become the city's best restaurant, unless things have vastly improved from four years ago.)
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re: Juliarls
Just remember that de Leon is a breakfast/lunch place, so don't go too late. I think they start cleaning up pretty early in the evening. They make all those stews and beans early in the morning around 5am or so. The flavors do well to sit, like with most stews, but stuff may be gone later in the afternoon. Also, the tortillas are usually fresher earlier.
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re: mike
Beka
Nov 22, 2006 05:02 PM
So you all must know by now but De Leon Foods is in full swing!
I wanted to check out the new store and tortilleria this past weekend. What a nice clean store. They have a nice meat section in the back even carrying marinated flank steak.
There's a fruit and vegetable section including Key Limes, Cactus Fruit, Tomatillos, tamarind, etc. A refreshing decanter of Orchata nearby....a small pastry section - I tried one that had toasted coconut on top.....wow yummy! Inside was a filling reminiscent of pecan pie but with a few chopped walnuts instead. They were handing out warm tortilla samples.....yummmmm! Looks like they're still adding new things too.
Of course there where lots of tortillas. The ones labeled 'Mario's' are from the owners father in Portland. One of the owners told me Portland is still open, it's Vancouver that bit the dust.
A large spice section, and even a aisle of Mexican collectibles.
They are friendly, clean and reasonably priced. I hope they are here to stay.-
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re: Beka
extramsg
Dec 4, 2006 05:33 PM
de Leon makes Mexico City/South Texas/Northern Mexico style barbacoa. They steam the head of a cow overnight and shred it in the morning. I'm surprised it was too greasy since there's no grease involved in the cooking process. But I've always found this style of barbacoa too gamey tasting.
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re: Beka
extramsg
Dec 4, 2006 06:32 PM
Chipotle's barbacoa is much more like what is done in western Mexico with lamb and goat. Chipotle uses beef, however. If you got lots of beef cheek in your barbacoa, it could definitely have a lot of fat. That's usually what taco trucks sell as cabeza. I always ask, though, if it's cachete or not because I love beef cheek, but not much else from the head of the cow. But I also ask for the fatty side of the brisket when I get BBQ and love pork belly. Me likey the lipids.
If de Leon there is making the same dishes as they have here, look for a dark brick/maroon colored stew with chunks and shredded pork. It has a very complex flavor with an undertone of sweetness. It's definitely one of my favorites and most people I take to de Leon love it. Also, I don't know if they'll have the same salsas since Leonora who makes them is down here, not up there, but look for a fluorescent orange looking salsa. It'll melt your teeth, but it's creamy and has the wonderful fruity/floral aroma of habeneros.
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re: extramsg
Beka
Dec 4, 2006 06:39 PM
Interesting background info....the dish you mention sounds like the one we tried with the cactus. It looks like chunks of meat with bell pepper but we learned ahead of time that it's really 'Cactus' leaves. It had almost a tanginess to it. Very Spicy but good. Maybe we're referencing the same dish.
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re: Beka
extramsg
Dec 4, 2006 06:57 PM
No, the dish I'm talking about doesn't have cactus. They probably have two cactus dishes, one in a tomato-based stew and another in a tomatillo-based stew. I usually prefer the tomatillo.
If you look at this picture, it's one in the middle:
The one at the left is the tomatillo and pork with cactus, though the cactus is sitting under the pork so you can't see it. Here's a closeup of the one I'm talking about:
And here's the tomatillo-pork-cactus:
Here's a picture of all their stews in the deli case. The one in the middle is the pork in red sauce that I really like:
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re: Beka
Beka
Jan 1, 2007 10:40 PM
As an update to my last comment: La Milpa is still good but I recently noticed something was different and not liking it as well. I asked and the cook and ownership has changed. So beware. We still go because it's convenient but the Carne Asada has lots it's wow factor. Good but not wow...missing something. Happy hour is 5-7pm daily I think now and there's half-price Appetizers.
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