Jalisco's

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For my last Tex-Mex meal in Austin, my dad and I checked out Jalisco's in south Austin.  They offer pretty standard Tex-Mex dishes at very low prices.  I wish I came here earlier on.  This would've been my go-to place for comfort food and queso!

Chile con Queso

Chicken Quesadilla

Steak Taco

Spring 2011 Austin Restaurant Week: Sunday Brunch at Garrido's

I really enjoyed this year's Austin Restaurant Week.  Unfortunately, it had to end on a so-so note.  I checked out my very first Garrido's Sunday brunch and thought that the food didn't come close to the awesome ARW kick-off party.

First, when we were seated, the ARW brunch menu was no where to be found.  When I asked for it, the wait staff did not know about whether they were even serving an ARW brunch though it was clearly listed on the website.  Our kind waiter went on a search for the ARW brunch menu but could only find their ARW lunch menu.  He offered to look the menu up on the ARW website, but luckily, I did my homework and memorized what everyone wanted to order. 

Free Chips and Salsa

The most prominent difference between the ARW brunch at Garrido's from the meals I have had at other restaurants participating in ARW is that the portions of each course is cut down.  I ordered the queso because I enjoyed it tremendously at the kick-off party, but the queso came in a condiment cup that was smaller than the one containing the complimentary salsa!  Seriously?  The pork quesadilla was underwhelming.  The filling was a bit too mushy and bland.  In contrast, the mushroom quesadilla was quite tasty.

Pork Quesadilla with mango pico and tomatillo-habanero salsa

Mushroom Quesadilla with ancho crema and cilantro

Tiny cup of queso

The main course was a big improvement from the generally lackluster appetizers.  The snapper blt was light and fresh.  The bacon helped make this dish.  The lamb sausage omelette was a bit heavy on the cheese, but pretty good.  The lamb sausage tasted almost like chorizo.  The smoked salmon was pretty standard.

Snapper BLT Tacos with habanero aioli and pico de gallo

Lamb Sausage and Cheese Omelette with asadero cheese, caramelized onions

Smoked Salmon with cilantro cream cheese, capers, and cucumbers and toast 

Well, the meal got progressively better with dessert marking the high point.  The creme brulee would have benefitted from more mango flavor, perhaps if the creme brulee was infused with mango rather than using just diced mango as an accoutrement.  The Patron Cafe XO was powerful in the chocolate tres leches, which my mom enjoyed.  My favorite dish of the meal was the zucchini bread pudding.  Zucchini doesn't really have a strong smell or taste, but somehow, you can really pick out the fragrance of the zucchini in this dish!

Creme Brulee with habanero mango honey

Pastel de Calabaza (Zucchini Bread Pudding) with lemon crema

Patrón Café XO Chocolate Tres Leches with chocolate whipped cream

Chi'lantro

I've been following Closet Cooking's creative use of homemade kimchi in omelettes, quesadillas, pizzas, dips, and tacos, and I've been craving anything with kimchi since.  Then I read a timely post by Tasty Touring about the Korean-Mexican tacos served by the moving trailer, Chi'lanro.  Check their website for their location schedule.

I never thought about the possibilities of fusing Korean and Mexican and Tex-Mex cuisines, but I now realize that they share some common ground--spicy, tangy flavors and grilled marinated meats.  The two came together deliciously at Chi'lantro.  I ordered a spicy chicken taco and a beef taco.  At first I thought that the tacos were going to rely on the kimchi to make the fusion happen, but the beef was actually Korean marinated BBQ and not fajita beef, which made the taco a fusion success.  The chicken was good, but not as memorable. 

Beef Bulgogi Taco and Spicy Chicken Taco with Chi'lantro Salsa, Julienne Lettuce in Korean Chili Soy Vinaigrette, Cilantro, Onion, Green Onions, Sesame Seeds, and Lime Juice

I got a side of spicy fries.  The kimchi aioli was a hit.

Spicy Fries with Kimchi Aioli

Tacos at Cabo Bob's Burritos

Cabo Bob's Burritos

I avoided going to Cabo Bob's for a long time being a loyal Freebird's customer, but its location and variety lured me in. 

I was most excited about the different flavored tortillas made-to-order in front of you.  I checked out their menu online before going, and I was glad I took dorky notes on the 3 tacos I wanted.  It turned out I wasn't the only person in line with ingredient notes! 

Ancho Chili, Smokey Cheddar, and Cilantro Tomatillo Tortillas

Here's what I ordered:

1) Chicken fajita with lettuce, cheese, and chipotle crema on ancho chili tortilla

2) Fish with chipotle crema, mango and cucumber pico, and lettuce on cilantro tomatillo tortilla

3) Beef fajita with pico de gallo, cheese, and ancho rancho on smokey cheddar tortilla

The veggie ingredients were fresh and the mango cucumber pico won me over.  However, the only meat filling worth ordering is the beef fajita.  The chicken was dry and overcooked, and the fried fish tasted like school cafeteria fish sticks.  I had the shredded pork once before this visit, and it was bland.  The beef on the other hand was tender and flavorful. 

Next time I come here, I'll order beef for all three tacos and continue experimenting with topping and tortilla flavors!

Maudie's Tex Mex: How I Found Comfort in an Office Lunch Disaster

Another office (not the cookie swap office) inflicted a hilariously awkward lunch onto my friend and me.  I won't go into details here, but it really was as awkward as it could get, though I wouldn't put it past this office to throw another curve ball at me in the future.

The setting was at Maudie's, a restaurant I've been wanting to try since Jennifer H. of the cookie swap office told me about their Diablo Sol Food queso.  And boy, even though my friend and I had to endure through a certain degree of humiliation, I took comfort in food like any forlorn maiden.  The prices were awesome too.  I'm almost willing to forget this office ridiculousness.

Free Chips and Salsa

Diablo Sol Food-melted cheese seasoned with garlic, onions, peppers, taco beef, and pico de gallo.

Yes, Jennifer, this queso just bursts with flavor!  I will be coming to Maudie's regularly for this.  As much as I love Torchy's queso, I'm more of a carnivorous queso eater.  Hula Hut's queso compuesto is still my favorite, but I'm no fan of the price.  My credit card whimpers everytime I head there for just queso.  So until Hula Hut changes their price, I'll be heading to Maudie's for my bowl of melty cheese.

Soft Tacos with Taco Beef, Lettuce, Tomatoes, and Guacamole

Besides loving the queso, I was shocked to eat a plate of satisfying soft tacos for only $5.95!  By the end of the meal, I was laughing away my work-related troubles.

Chuy's and Hula Hut...I just don't get it

Chuy's and Hula Hut need no introduction to Austinites, but I really don't understand their excessive popularity! It's like the popular kids in high school who are revered for whatever reputation deemed valuable in high school and have no substantive character attributes.

I'm bracing myself for some hate mail.

My two best friends like these two restaurants and so I tag along for reunions. My strongest impression at Chuy's was the ridiculous fish-shaped sopapillas. Seriously. Why the heck would anyone make fish-shaped sopapillas?!?!?! If they were any good, I wouldn't complain, but they were half-ass attempts at sopapillas. The dough was tough and tasteless. I don't care if Tex-Mex is supposed to be different from Mexican. If you call something a sopapilla, it better be a sopapilla and not a gigantic gold fish. I didn't bother taking a photo of it.

Let's start with the good at Chuy's and the little sister, Hula Hut (instead of Tex-Mex, it's Mexonesian). The queso compuesto and jalepeno ranch dip are addictive. If I order anything again at either places, these will be it. Chuy's serves the queso compuesto with ground beef while Hula Hut serves it with fajita meat. It's good enough to lure me back as much as I oppose the establishments.

Chuy's Queso Compuesto and Jalepeno Ranch Dip; Hula Hut Queso Compuesto

On to the bad. Nothing on the menu ever appeals to me so I order what everyone else at the table orders-Chuy's Chuychanga and Hula Hut's Pipeline Enchilada. Gigantic portions of just stuff. I get tired of putting one forkful after another of the same Tex-Mex flavor and texture in my mouth. Here's the glob of melted cheese and sauce, there's the chunk of meat and sauce, ah here's the glob of cheese and sauce again, and the meat and sauce, ah some rice and beans to mix things up a bit...oh wait...here's the sauce again. Boy I barely made a dent on that Chuychanga/Pipeline Enchilada.

Chuychanga-fried tortilla with chicken, cheese, cilantro and green chiles; Beef Fajita Pipeline Enchilada-fajita steak with monterey jack and cheddar cheese in a guajillo sauce

Torchy's Revisited

After a long time abstaining from Torchy's due to successive bad experiences with grease overdose, I went back for the Brushfire taco (Jamaican jerk chicken, grilled jalapenos, mango, Sour cream, and cilantro with Diablo sauce) that I always wanted to try. I also ordered the daily special fish taco. Both are "damn good tacos" like Torchy's signage claims. The tacos are not as oily as the last few times I've had them, but it might just be these 2 might be the exceptions. The chips are still quite greasy, but better than I remembered. The queso is still outstanding. Just look at it!

Chips & Queso; Brushfire Taco and Fish Taco