**** (4 stars)
Good Mexican food and a delightful outside dining area. The bartender seemed overwhelmed, but was turning out good stuff. Ceviche was huge and delicious.
Dos Carlitos
3544 Sagunto St
Santa Ynez, CA
93460
(805) 688-0033
https://www.yelp.com/biz/dos-carlitos-santa-ynez
**** (4 stars)
Only tried the breakfast burrito, which is all they serve until about 10:30. Chorizo or veggie options. Nicely stuffed, and nice crispy potatoes in it.
Centro Mexican Kitchen
950 Pearl St
Boulder, CO
80302
(303) 442-7771
https://www.yelp.com/biz/centro-mexican-kitchen-boulder
**** (4 stars)
Competently executed Mexican food in a pleasant environment. Where else can you have enchiladas while watching skiers (although we were there in July). Well-stuffed chalupa, very tasty Chile relleno, so-so cheese enchiladas. HUGE margaritas!
Good service and nice ambiance.
El Abuelito Family Mexican Restaurant
385 W Broadway
Jackson, WY
83001
(307) 733-1207
https://www.yelp.com/biz/el-abuelito-family-mexican-restaurant-jackson
**** (4 stars)
A delightful outdoor patio is the highlight of this neighborhood Mexican restaurant. Chips and salsa are complimentary. Queso fundido was and interesting, complex recipe that included mushrooms. The cilantro rice is particularly as rly good. Margaritas are potent! Service was attentive and friendly.
Julio’s Agave Grill
2809 Agoura Rd
Westlake Village, CA
91361
(805) 370-0145
https://www.yelp.com/biz/julios-agave-grill-westlake-village
*** (3 stars)
Back when there weren’t many Tex Mex restaurants in town, we used to go here all the time. (Actually, our history goes back far longer, because back in the 80s this was our Sun Bank!) But somehow it fell off our radar, and we hadn’t been in years. We were surprised to discover the extensive remodel, which involved moving the door and making the bar area much larger and better than it used to be.
Unfortunately, the food hasn’t improved along with the decor. We shared an appetizer sampler, and it was pretty ho-hum. To give you an idea of how far this place has strayed from Mexican or Tex-Mex, the best thing on the platter was Buffalo wings. And, oddly, every single item included chicken, so that’s not really much of a sampler, is it?
The highlight was the house margarita, which was an excellent blend of balanced ingredients. Service was friendly and professional.
Chevys Fresh Mex
12547 State Rd 535
Lake Buena Vista, FL
32836
(407) 827-1052
https://www.yelp.com/biz/chevys-fresh-mex-lake-buena-vista
Tuna ceviche
Chilaquiles
Interior
*** (3.5 stars)
This interesting concept mixes Chinese and Mexican food, but not on the same plate. That is, it’s not fusion cuisine, just two cuisines in the same room.
We like the Mexican items we tried better than the Chinese. Tableside guacamole was very good, and although pricey it was a generous serving. The chilaquiles appetizer was also good and quite authentic.
Tuna tartare was just okay; it suffered from too many ingredients, and ended up a bit muddled. Dan Dan Mien tasted okay, but the noodles were unusually large and sticky.
My favorite item was the four cocktail sampler, which featured four different cocktails in reduced portions for the reasonable price of $32. All four were interesting, and several were quite good.
The room is fairly high energy, but we has a table in the back corner which had much more reasonable noise levels.
China Poblano
3708 Las Vegas Blvd SLevel 2Boulevard Tower
Las Vegas, NV
89109
(702) 698-7900
https://www.yelp.com/biz/china-poblano-las-vegas-2
Chips salsa and margarita
Beef nachos
Chicken empanada
**** (4 stars)
I’ve been hesitating to go here because the reviews have been so mixed, but I’m glad I did.
Service was excellent (of course it was early Sunday and I was alone) and so was the margarita, which was obviously made with fresh lime.
Because it was Sunday it was “happy hour” all day, and there are some deals. I had a chicken empanada, which had a nice flakey crust, and a huge plate of beef nachos. The nachos were made with an unusal combination of squirt cheese and unmelted cotija cheese, but they were good. And they were just $5. My whole bill was under $16. Definitely a great deal for a nice experience.
Casa Jimenez
15493 Stoneybrook W Pkwy
Ste 120
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 614-1438
https://www.yelp.com/biz/casa-jimenez-winter-garden
Interior
Exterior
Tacos Al pastor
Vegetable fajitas
**** (4 stars)
This I-Drive Tex-Mex restaurant is certainly an improvement on the counter-serve concept that was here before. Now there is full table service. While the menu seems to be a bit tourist priced, there are some excellent lunch deals.
The best deal of all is the house margarita, which is very well made, generous, and is about half price during the day. Plus, it comes with free queso which was quite tasty.
We enjoyed all the menu items we tried, and the service was pleasant.
Pepe’s Cantina
5415 International Dr
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 317-6649
https://www.yelp.com/biz/pepe-s-cantina-orlando
Interior
Cantina bowl
Quesadilla
Frijol torta
*** (3 stars)
If Currito were a Mexican restaurant in my neighborhood I probably wouldn’t be a regular visitor. But on the other hand, I’m not a regular visitor to places like Chipotle or Tijuana Flats, and frankly the food is better at Currito.
The atmosphere isn’t bad–considering the time-worn condition of this terminal at La Guardia, they’ve carved out a cozy niche.
We tried a quesadilla, some chips and salsa, a bowl and a wrap. All of them were just fine. The salsa was better than at half the Mexican restaurants I go to, and the chips were nice and crisp.
The house margarita is excellent, and a decent value and size serving for an airport drink.
Service was polite and reasonably attentive.
Currito
Newark International Airport
Terminal A
Newark, NJ 07114
(973) 547-7938
https://www.yelp.com/biz/currito-newark-3
Exterior
Interior
While enchilada player
**** (4 stars)
This is essentially a boozy version of Tijuana Flats. In addition to counter ordering there is also a full bar. You can order at the counter and they bring the food to your table, or you can sit at the bar or a few booths facing it for full service.
The Whole Enchilada platter I tried was very good, with two enchiladas, rice and choice of black or pinto beans. I had one ground beef enchilada, one shredded pork, and both were good. There’s a salsa bar to spice thing up, but not the array of hot sauces you’ll find elsewhere. Most of the rest of the menu is different burritos with various stuffings.
The house margarita was made to order and very good.
The employees are all enthusiastic, and prices are reasonable.
The interior decor is nice, and they have an upstairs with outdoor seating overlooking charming Winter Garden.
The Whole Enchilada
129 W Plant St
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 347-9699
https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-whole-enchilada-winter-garden-2