Category Archives: Mexican

Latinicity

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*** (3 stars)

Latinicity is a couple of concepts in one. It’s essentially a mall food court, except that you use a plastic card to keep track of your purchases at the various counters and then pay on the way out.

But the first thing you come to when you enter is a conventional sit down restaurant. Do not eat there! It offers a limited select of mediocre and over-priced Spanish tapas. You will do better at literally any other tapas restaurant in town.

Beyond it, the food counters offer some interesting selections, though, including ceviche (which is really more of a seafood cocktail) and even sushi.

The best choice is Machefe Taqueria, which serves tacos, burritos and cazuelas in a fashion similar to Chipotle, but with actually good ingredients. The corn tortillas are completely authentic, for example. The pastor was not the best in town, but was decent. And at $3 the tacos are certainly reasonable.

A better deal is the burrito, which is served in a flour tortilla the size of a manhole cover for $7.

An even better deal is the cazuela, which is basically an exploded burrito served with three corn tortillas. The attraction here is that it’s the only way to get the chicken mole, a nice slab of breast meat drenched in a very good dark mole sauce. It’s a lot of food for $8.

There’s plenty of seating in the back, but it’s nicer to set near the exit, which is much quieter.

You can get better Mexican food elsewhere, but if you’re in the area it’s a perfectly acceptable choice.

Latinicity
108 N State St
Chicago, IL 60602
(312) 795-4444
http://www.yelp.com/biz/latinicity-chicago-2

Sofrito Latin Cafe

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***** (5 stars)

This is a terrific pan-Latin restaurant that is a whole lot better than it needs to be in the tourist corridor. In fact, it’s probably the best Latin restaurant in town. (Just to clarify, it is NOT Latin fusion, which would combine the cuisines of different countries; instead, they offer different foods from many Latin countries.)

Although it’s a quick serve concept where you order at the counter and food is delivered to the table, the service is exceptional. The staff is clearly enthusiastic about their food, and is welcoming and anxious to explain the menu, and to promote their favorite items.

My favorite items were the Pandebono, a round, cheesy, and slightly sweet Colombian bread, and the Cachapa, a Venezuelan sweet corn pancake filled with white cheese and (in my case) beef. Both were a complex combination of savory and sweet flavors, with both crisp and chewy textures. I’ve never had a better Chachapa.

I also enjoyed the Venezuelan empanada, although it didn’t have a lot of filling. I was less enthusiastic about the Mini Cheese Tequeños, which were cheese filled pastry rolls without a lot of flavor.  

There are a number of interesting beers on tap, South American soft drinks, and excellent Cuban coffee.

If you’re visiting and looking for something non-touristy and a bit different, this is a great choice. And if you’re a local, it’s worth the drive to Lake Buena Vista to get your Latin food fix.

Sofrito Latin Cafe
8607 Palm Pkwy
Orlando, FL 32836
(407) 778-4205
http://www.yelp.com/biz/sofrito-latin-cafe-orlando

On The Border

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**** (4 stars)

This turned out to be a surprisingly good choice for breakfast before our flight. Located in a bright, open space with a nice view of the runway, they offer a short but tasty breakfast menu.

The breakfast burrito was stuffed with fluffy scrambled eggs (although there could have been more bacon). And the yogurt parfait was light and fruity.

We were in and out in thirty minutes.

On The Border
Orlando International Airport
One Jeff Fuqua Blvd
Orlando, FL 32827

http://www.yelp.com/biz/on-the-border-orlando

Tako Cheena

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***** (5 stars)

This tiny taco palace is soon moving four doors north to larger quarters, but for now competition for the few tables can be challenging. Fortunately, although it is a table-service restaurant, it also looks like and operates as a counter service place, and the food is just as good when you get it to go.

I tried two very different specials. The shredded pork taco was moist and tasty, with just the right spice level to the pork. But the curry beet arepa was an event. I’m not a huge beet fan, but it doesn’t matter; the delicate combination of flavors, and the creamy curry sauce (which tasted like it had just a touch of mayo) was out of this world. And the maize shell was perfectly crusted. I would definitely have this again. And again.

Service was friendly. Food preparation takes a bit longer than you’d expect for a counter service place, but that’s probably because of the cooking time of the arepa batter, and it was definitely worth it.

Tako Cheena
932 Mills Ave
Orlando, FL 32803
(321) 236-7457
http://www.yelp.com/biz/tako-cheena-orlando

Servando’s

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***** (5 stars)

If you were a fan of Taquitos Jalisco when they had three locations, you will love Servando’s. It’s run by the original owner, and has all the same dishes, prepared just the way you remember. As an added bonus, it’s much cleaner than the remaining Taquitos, and the space is light and airy. Service is friendly, and Servando is there to make sure everything is just right.

Personal favorites include Servando’s Nachos (without any meat or beans is the way I like them), and either tacos or gorditas with their amazing Pastor. The Plato Botanas appetizer is a nice way to sample many things. Margaritas are also quite good.

If you’re looking for REAL Mexican food on the west side of town, this is the place.

Servando’s
14107 W Colonial Dr
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(407) 654-6866
http://www.yelp.com/biz/servandos-winter-garden-2

Harold€’s Restaurant

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***** (5 stars)

If there is a better omelette on the face of the planet, I have yet to find it. I’ve been going here for thirty years, and even through a change in ownership and expansion into the space next door, the omelettes have remained transcendental.

My favorite is the Special Omelette, which contains bacon, green chilis and sour cream. A mound of hash browns form the base, then come the ingredients, and then a fluffy egg disc the size of a frisbee. Ask for your hash browns well done for the ultimate omelette enjoyment experience.

Harold’s Restaurant
2440 E Thousand Oaks Blvd
Thousand Oaks, CA 91362
(805) 230-3147
http://www.yelp.com/biz/harolds-restaurant-thousand-oaks

Pepe’s Bosque Mexican Grill

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**** (4 stars)

This popular place offers good Tex Mex cuisine (on the simpler side, such as upscale fast food) at very reasonable prices. I had the number 7 lunch, which includes a beef taco, enchilada and burrito, plus a chalupa (like a tostada). That’s a lot of food for not much money. There’s little difference between the beef items except for the wrapper, but they were tasty.

Chips and salsa are good, and the guacamole was a bargain. Sangria is very sweet, but a bowl of lime wedges fixed it.

Service is attentive and food delivery was almost instantaneous.

Pepe’s Bosque Mexican Grill
10027 Central Ave
Diberville, MS 39540
(228) 396-0044
http://www.yelp.com/biz/pepes-bosque-mexican-grill-diberville

Xoco

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*** (3 stars)

I don’t really understand the hype about this place. I realize that the desire is to try to take Mexican food and do something new and original with it.

The problem here is that everything “original” is not an improvement on the original version. When you eschew  the traditional bread from a Mexican torta and replace it with a baguette-even a tasty one-it turns into something other than a torta. And when you make churros really skinny they get tough. And when you cover them with sauce they get tough and soggy.

That said, most of the flavors I had were very good ones. And the habanero salsa that came with the sandwich had a wonderful flavor, although it was really too hot to eat, as I was warned.

So if you want something different, you might try it, but if you want a tasty Mexican lunch, look for the little food counter at the back of most Mexican grocery stores. You’ll get better stuff there.

Xoco
449 N Clark St
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 661-1434
http://www.yelp.com/biz/xoco-chicago

Taco Joint

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*** (3 stars)

Taco Joint offers small but inexpensive tacos was tasty fillings. Standouts are the Pastor and the Barbacoa. Unlike authentic Mexican tacos there aren’t two tortillas, and there aren’t much in the way of extra ingredients such as cilantro or raw onions.

The guacamole sampler is a good way to try two or three different types of guacamole. They’re severed with both corn and plantain chips. The plantain chips work best with the mango guacamole, but I preferred the conventional and “red” sauce covered guacs with the corn chips.

There’s an extensive tequila list, and they’re served in very small sampling glasses, so you can try several. The standard margarita, which is served on the rocks with salt, is also very good.

Sidewalk dining is available. Service was friendly.

Taco Joint
158 W Ontario St
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 337-8226
http://www.yelp.com/biz/taco-joint-chicago-3

Azteca D’ Oro

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***** (5 stars)

Azteca d’ Oro is a great addition to the westside Tex Mex dining scene. I’d been to the OBT location many times, but it’s great that there is now one on West Colonial.

This former Steak and Ale has been completely remodeled so that it looks like a Mexican restaurant on the outside, and the inside is considerably nicer than it was. They resisted the shabby Mexico look and instead went with a nice upscale feel, with a neat bar full of backlit bottles, and very cool glittery gold star lights throughout.

The food is well-prepared Tex Mex, with all the favorites, and many different fillings available in each item. They also offer Molcajete bowls, which are filled with an authentic sort of stew.

Service is fast and friendly, and lunch pricing is very reasonable.

Azteca D’ Oro
7320 W Colonial Dr
Orlando, FL 32818
(407) 270-9687
http://www.yelp.com/biz/azteca-d-oro-orlando-4