243096 Mon May 24 13:44:46 -0700 2004 6 19 Outer Boroughs 0 1291114 I'm a sucker for nice, inviting restaurant decor and when this new restaurant opened up right by the 74th Street station, with its loud mango colored exterior and pseudo-rustic Mexican interior, I knew I had to try it. My husband and I chose to go this past Sunday for lunch. It was about 12:30pm and completely empty. This made us pause a bit (is there something about this place that we should know about?) We bravely ploughed ahead, thinking, "maybe it's just new and undiscovered." I'm so glad we did! We both had a delicious meal here that I would say is hands-down the best Mexican in this neighborhood. We started with the complimentary tortilla chips and dip. The chips were kind of salty but the gaucamole dip you could tell was home-made and tasty. We ordered a guacamole appetizer just to see what they would come up with. It was a good portion (for two) with chips embedded in the guacamole, edges up. I don't eat guacamole too often so I'm not an expert but I have to say it was wonderful! My husband, who's from Texas, said it could have been spicier. My husband ordered the chicken enchilada suiza and it came out piping hot on a huge plate- three enchiladas in a row over a green sauce. His dish came with plain rice and beans. I ordered the pork chop dish (forgot the actual name) and the huge plate included two pork chops with seasoned rice, beans, guacamole, and tortilla wraps on the side. Aside from the guacamole, the sides were forgettable, but the pork chops themselves were done perfectly! Charred black on the edges and juicy throughout! I couldn't make out the seasoning but it made it really delicious. I sampled my husband's dish and it was the best enchilada I ever tasted (I've had my share of them)- the green sauce was a little overpowering (it was a sour sauce) but he was able to scoop some of it to the side. All in all, the meal was pretty delicious. We were there for about an hour and during that time, the restaurant filled up some. Everyone who came in spoke Spanish and to me, that says something about the place- this is definitely not some gentrified version of a Mexican place that is trying to cater to non-Hispanics (you know what I mean, the Indian equivalent would be Jackson Diner). Given that we found great grub there, I wonder why it isn't more packed on a weekend (it's possible it is packed on a Sat night- haven't checked yet.) It does charge much higher prices than some of the other Mexican places in the nabe but it is offering better quality cooking. Our tab, by the way, came out to $25 total for lunch, which would make it less attractive to the average folk wanting a cheap bite. The menu could also be a little longer but they had tempting dishes listed that I would love to try out some other time, like the red snapper dish. I encourage all of you to try it out- I can't believe I'm the first to post about it! I would hate to have this place go out of business when we have so few really good Mexican restaurants here. Mon May 24 13:44:46 -0700 2004 0 judibean 1 1291119 Friends of mine dined there recently and also raved about it. It's on my short list of restaurants to try especially since I like good Mexican food. They gave me a copy of the menu and the pork chop dish you had is called Chuletas De Puerco Adobadas which is pork chops marinated with a paste of ground chiles and spices. Thanks for posting. Mon May 24 14:55:43 -0700 2004 1291114 0 Bill C 1 1291228 This place has only very recently opened and not yet found it's clientele. Glad you like it so much, I've been meaning to try it. This is the 2nd place in the neighborhood to try to provide slightly upscale from diner prices and decor. The proof will be whether on not that translated into better food as well. The other place on Roosevelt near 61st I've tried and enjoyed but not enough to make it my 1st choice for mexican food in the 'hood. Gotta try this place, particularly since they recently were sporting a small sign saying that they have the best posole in town. I need to see what I think about that. cheers. Wed May 26 17:05:01 -0700 2004 1291114 0 wrayb 2 1291250 wrayb, what is the place you are referring to ? Thanks, Andrew Thu May 27 10:16:03 -0700 2004 1291228 0 EV Andrew 2 1291263 We got delivery recently. The food had cooled off slightly by the time it reached our home, but not enough to warrant reheating. Forgive me for not remembering the names of the actual menu items....we had the enchilada mole, chicken cooked in parchment, and a slightly shredded pork dish. Flavors on all, while good, seemed tentative. Though the mole and chicken could have been more assertive, we still enjoyed it. And the pork was on the dry side so we have leftovers on it which I may repurpose for another dish. The delivery came with a bag of chips and a container of thin guacamole. It was fine. This place is very new, so I hope it finds its legs. Thu May 27 14:47:35 -0700 2004 1291228 0 Hellkatte 1 1292678 I've now been to this place 4-5 times, and have found the food to be consistently interesting and delicious. I'm relatively new in town, so I can't vouch for the claim that the Posole is the "best in town." But it's certainly the best Posole I've had. It is served like a Vietnamese soup, with the vegetables on the side so they don't get overcooked before you can enjoy them. Mon Aug 02 16:28:17 -0700 2004 1291114 0 tg 2 1292679 tried this place tonight after reading your post. liked it a good deal. we had pozole which was very good though kind of "cleaned up" (low fat pork, etc) and chicken enchiladas (yummy) another big plus of this place is that they have big windows onto both 75th and roosevelt through which you can watch people waiting for buses and walking down the street. good people watching... Wed Aug 04 20:49:23 -0700 2004 1292678 0 babar ganesh