180275 Fri Apr 04 17:27:33 -0800 2003 3 15 Pennsylvania 0 969096 Per Stan's recommendation from last month, I finally made it to La Esperanza. The restaurant is friendly, with a family feel, and nicely lit and very clean. It is in an older part of town, on Northampton St north of Main, next to the Catholic Services Center. The menu is basic; 4 tacos, or 4 enchiladas, or gorditas, sopas, tostadas, etc. They offer a choice of fillings; beef, spicy beef, chicken, pork, Mexican steak, or goat meat. 4 tacos is $5.00. I think the most expensive entree is maybe $8. Complimentary chips were excellent, not corn chips but a slightly sweet and thick flour tortilla. The salsa was nice and spicy, maybe too hot for some but really just about right for those not afraid of a little bite. It has no tomatoes, just pepper, onion, cilantro, and a little garlic, and maybe a touch of adobo or something to give it an orangey color. I ordered 4 tacos, one each of chicken, beef, spicy beef, and pork. They came double wrapped in corn tortillas, and were very basic, with spiced filling, onion, and cilantro. The tortillas were absolutely first rate, sweet and crunchy and soft all at the same time. The fillings were also really just the way they should be, soft shredded spiced meat. My favorite was the pork, muy least favorite was the chicken; the bird didn't go as well with the onion and cilantro. Total, with soda & tax, $7.20. I left a $2 tip and felt like a got a bargain. Also; the folks here are really nice. They ask patrons if it's their first time in, and also where they heard about La Esperanza. I wish you could have seen the guy's eyes widen when I explained to him that I'd read about his restaurant on an internet site called "Chowhounds", where people direct other people to good authentic food! When I was leaving, and saying goodbye to the waitress, she smiled, invited me back, and said, "Lots better than Taco Bell, right?", with a little pride in her voice. And of course she is right! I stopped in the groceria next door and poked around. There are lots of imported peppers and spices and dried peppers. I didn't see much that I needed, but then my eyes lit on... La Morena Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce, the ones with the sultry senorita on the label! Doggone, those are good! I picked up a couple cans. It's nice to have a direct line to good chipotles in adobo. Highly recommended. Hispanic soul food done right. I'm going back a few more times over the next few days to try the rest of the menu. Geez, I hope there's people in NEPA reading this. Mosca Fri Apr 04 17:27:33 -0800 2003 0 Mosca 1 969099 I've been remiss in not posting about this place myself. Agreed it is a nice, family-run, authentic-seeming Mexican joint that is far better than anything else you can find in its genre in Wilkes-Barre. For that reason alone it is worth recommending. However I fear for their future, they're in a cursed location (preceded there by a soul-food/Caribbean restaurant which lasted a few months) in a particularly hard-luck corner of a depressed city. The menu is very (perhaps too?) limited, and I've had hit-or-miss experiences. Tacos with the various incarnations of beef invariably contained leathery, almost un-chewable chunks of meat. I've had much better luck with chicken enchiladas (with nicely spicy green sauce), cheese enchiladas (with similarly spicy red sauce) and pork enchiladas (with nice mole). I agree with your positive reaction to the salsa. They also have an amazing assortment of fruit-flavored sodas imported from Mexico. I also bought a can of the chipotles in adobo sauce (what do you do with them other than pluck them out and eat them straight-up?), also some great salsa verde, hot sauce, and a few other goodies from the grocery next door. All in all, a nice, quirky place that already has an unfortunate whiff of desperation about it. The few times I've been, there were no other customers. I hope they do well, I'll continue to patronize them. Fri Apr 04 23:45:02 -0800 2003 969096 0 Guy 2 969100 I eat 'em right out of the can, too! The taste is really so strong and distinctive you can't do much else with them. Roll them up in a flour tortilla with a little cheese and onion, or chop them and scoop them up with corn chips. I can see where, if a place is struggling, the quality of the taco fillings would suffer. When I was there, this afternoon at 1PM, there were 5 other customers, and the waitress said that they'd been really busy the day before. But, I still didn't want to try the goat. The guys next to me had enchilada platters that looked really good. Wilkes-Barre itself is cursed, but that's a diatribe for a different forum. I'll try the enchiladas next, and hopefully I'll make it through the menu before the place shuts down. Mosca Sat Apr 05 00:52:16 -0800 2003 969099 0 Mosca 2 969106 Guy and Mosca, Glad you enjoyed it! I've been there about six times so far and have been the only customer(s) a couple of times, and one of many several other times. The location sure does stink. Hopefully, the adjoining grocery does well enough to keep the establishment going, but it's going to be tough. Just a few notes since my last post. The full dinners are solid (authentic rice and beans). Service is sketchy, especially when business is slow (I know that doesn't make much sense). I had some tough chicken once in my tacos (had to put aside) and last time a handful of chips were burnt. Still though, while it lasts..."better than Taco Bell"! :) Sat Apr 05 15:21:40 -0800 2003 969099 0 Stan