Ohio City Burrito - Funky Mexican

Over the weekend I headed out to the IX Center to check out the Motorcycle Show, overall not bad, but was a bit disappointed that there was no BMW display. On the way home figured I would stop in Ohio City and check out the new Tanqueria. I have a soft spot for good cheap Mexican and ever since Que Tal folded, I have had to head out to Oberlin when I got the urge (see Agave Review here). Ohio City Burrito is located at 1844 W. 25th Street, Cleveland, Ohio 44113 (map is here). Just a small storefront with a small patio area out front, but the skeleton holding a burrito certainly seems promising in an offbeat manner. Inside is a narrow shop set up with tables up front, with the counter in the middle and a walled off prep kitchen in the back. The decor is funky Mexican with warm golden brown walls, a white tin pressed ceiling and just enough decor to make the place look inviting. The large front windows let in a lot of light and the promise continues. The menu is quite simple and straight forward, even for this type of place, a meat burrito, a veggie burrito, tacos, taco salad, nachos, chips and salsas. The meat items come with a choice of chicken, beef or pork, but I of course went for the veggie burrito. I ended up with a big burrito stuffed with both black and refried beans, rice, veggies, sour cream, guacamole, lettuce, cheese and salsas. A nice touch is that items such as the fajita veggies and the guacamole are included in the price, where some places charge extra. The burrito was very tasty and well balanced, although a bit milder then I would have expected based on the medium salsa, although I was of course able to spice it up with hot sauce. The guacamole was fresh and had the right mild taste and umami feel. The refried beans were especially good, with a warm earthy taste without being overpowering. The rice was moist and mild to allow a nice base to the burrito. About the only thing disappointing were the fajita vegetables, which were OK, but could have used some more carmelization and probably a bit more salt. What I ended up with was a very good meal at a reasonable price. While not quite as memorable as the burritos from Agave or Que Tal, OTC provides a very good product at a good price. This is a major upgrade over what you would get at Chipotle or any of the other Mexican Chains and hopefully OTC will do well.

El Charrito - Wickliffe Mexican

It is with some regret that I write this review of El Charrito Mexican Restaurant. El Charrito has been around for quite a long time and while never my favorite Mexican restaurant it has been a place I could count on to get good food when I was in the area. Now I am not so sure. Located in a small rather nondescript building at 30560 Euclid Avenue in Wickliffe, Ohio, El Charrito has a small parking lot infront that at times could offer a challenge to find a place to park. Once through the doors you find a small but friendly restaurant. A little bit dark, but in a comforting way, the dining room is clean and tight. The menu contains most of the usual items, but the chips and salsa give you a clue right from the start that things are a little different here. The chips are a white corn chip with a spice dusting, lighter and a bit more flavorful then the chips at most places. The salsa is a very mild red sauce with some flavor and crunch from the celery pieces in it. Although very mild, it is good if a little different then most Mexican Restaurants. El Charrito has updated its menu since the last time I was there and prices have gone up, still not too expensive, but more then I remember. There were also Leten seafood specials and here is where I made a real mistake. I was going to go with the fish tacos, until I found out that the fish was the same fried fish in the all you can eat fish fry; so I decided to go with the fish fry. They happily substitued rice and beans for the fries and coleslaw and I figured it was worth trying; I was wrong. The fish was a mild white fish which they were batter dipping and frying; points for using fresh fish and preparing it in house, unfortunately the batter was coming out a bit heavy and seemed overcooked, with a dark brown color and extra crisp exterior. While not bad, if you cann't get the fish right you need to take it off the menu. If it was just the fish I might have put this up to just an off night or a bad choice, but I found the refried beans and spanish rice to be bland and flavorless. About the only thing that I got that was flavorful and spicey was the side of the red hot sauce to put on the meal; this was nicely chuncky, fresh and just the right amount of heat, if only the rest of the food could have been somewhere close to this. It seems that El Charrito is not doing well, I was there early on a Friday night and the small place was only sparcely filled when I left after 7:00pm. Service was ok, although the one waitress seemed a bit behind, despite the low number of customers. It seems that El Charrito may have lost its way a bit. They need to concentrate on making the food better and more flavorful. Here's hoping they realize the problem and can address it.

Agave - Oberlin Tanqueria

With the good weather this last weekend a little road trip on the motorcycle to try to find some good food sounded like a good idea, so I headed West to Oberlin, Ohio to see what a nice liberal college town would have to offer. On the main square at 19 W College St, Oberlin, OH 44074 I found Agave Burrito Bar and Tanqueria. For those familar with Chipolte or the late lamented Que Tal, you know the basic set up, you order a burrito, plate or salad and then tell the person what items you want off the steam table, however Agave presents some very good and very high quality choices. I had a vegetarian burrito in a spinach tortilla. For $6.50 I got a giant burrito stuffed with rice, beans, roast veggies, sweet potato puree, lettuce, cheese, guacamole, salsa and a couple of their sauces. In addition to the usual items, you will have choices like the sweet potato puree and a couple of home made sauces. I believe they had a tomatillo cream, a red pepper sauce and another one. Overall, this was one of the more tasty burritos I have had in a while and well worth the price. All of the items were excellent and the salsas had some real zing to them and contrasted nicely with the velvety guacamole. It was also nice to get distinctive flavors from each item. I wanted to try the Chipolte Pecan Brownie for desert, but they were out. Maybe next time. Decor is nice, with a number of Mexican masks on the wall and cacti and succulents in the front window with some warm earthtone walls. A very nice, relaxed place with food made from scratch and seasoned well. Agave also has beer and a small bar selection, so you can wet your whistle. If you are out Oberlin way and looking for a good quick meal, give Agave a try.

El Tango Tanquira - Another Lakewood Find

So after a rough start I am finally having some success on quest for good inexpensive Mexican food in Cleveland. My latest find is El Tango Tanquira at 14224 Madison Avenue in Lakewood. This place has built a nice reputation and has gotten some great writeups online so I figured I would give it a try. The outside is nothing special, but easy enough to find. Once inside I was struck by the decor, kind of a funky Southwest feel, with a nice tile floor, wooden tables and wrought iron chairs and plenty of colorful decoration. A really fun place and kind of has the feel of the places I find in Western ski towns, funky but clean. Instead of heading to a table in the small dining room on the left, you head over to the counter in front of the kitchen on the right and place your order. Once you have picked your food and paid you sit down and from there you get table service with full plates and silverware. The menu is not overly long, but the items on it appear to be very good. I ordered the Green Chili Stew with Vegetables and the Burrito with fish added to it. All items were fresh and made to order. The stew came out first and it was exceptional. A thick bright green chili stew was studded with vegetables including onions, squash, broccoli and beans; and to add a suprise and extra flavor note there was a wedge of fresh pineapple as well. The flavors were excellent, well seasoned and complex with just enough heat. I would highly recommend this. The fish burrito was next, good sized and filled with Spanish Rice and beans; the fish were very nicely grilled pieces of a Snapper. All of the ingredients were very good, but as a whole the burrito didn't come together. It needed a sauce or salsa to get everything to combine. It also seemed a little too simple in the food combination, I would like to see some vegetation (onions, peppers, tomatoes and/or lettuce) and some cheese to make the burrito complete. Now for my mini rant, El Tango does not put out the chips and salsa, it is $4.95 for them and they looked good on a nearby table. They do not have water by the glass and they do not have hot sauce, at least not in a bottle, they were willing to sell me some of the salsa for $1 extra. While the food here is very high quality, well prepared and reasonably priced ($4.50 for the chili stew, $6.95 for the Burrito plus $1.00 to add the fish) I start to feel like I am less a customer and more of a income source when I have to pay an extra charge to make the meal suit me. I can understand the chips and salsa, but not serving water or having any sauce included in the burrito does not seem right to me. Now that is just me, I generally don't like to pay the high price for drinks when eating out, unless I am having something alcoholic and I like to be able to doctor the flavor of my food, but that is me, your mileage may vary. Overall a very good place, fun decor, good service, high quality food, some of which is exceptional (try the Green Chili Stew), at what should be reasonable prices until you start having to pay for all the extras. If this was closer I probably would visit again and try the Fish Tacos, but I am just bugged enough by the extras issue to not make a special trip across town.

Fat Taco - Bainbridge Mexican

UPDATED 6/24/2010 - I was by Fat Taco and apparently they are out of business.

Well I finally had a partial success in my inexpensive Mexican food quest. I think part of my ongoing hunt involves the loss of Que Tal on Coventry. Before it closed I could count on it for good, tasty, big and reasonably priced burritos. Well I may have found a pretty good substitute. Fat Taco at 8564 E. Washington Street in Bainbridge (the corner of E. Washington and Route 306 in the same little strip as Cowboy Food) is a very nice little Mexican fast food place. I have been here before, but it has been a while so I figured it was time to give them another try. Fat Taco is clean and simply but nicely decorated. You order at the front counter and you can eat inside or there are a couple of tables out front. The menu is not extensive; basically Burritos, Tacos, Nachos and Enchiladas, but the food is good and the portions are generous. I had the Fat Burrito; a vegetarian option which includes sweet potatoes, onions and peppers along with the rice, bean, lettuce, pica di gallo and cheese. The burrito was well made with generous fillings. I would note that while the menu described the onion and peppers as grilled, they seemed almost raw and the peppers were quite hot jalapeño slices. The overall taste was good, with a nice contrast between the sweet soft yams and the crunchy and hot peppers. I did need to add a combination of some hot sauce and taco sauce, but that is not unusual for me. Since it was Tuesday, I got the special, which is if you buy a burrito and a large drink, you get the chips and salsa free. The chips were obviously made in house, and while they may have sat for a day or two, they were good. The salsa was a nice fresh dice, with good flavor and texture, but it needed more heat. Overall, Fat Taco delivers high quality Mexican food at a reasonable price. While it may not knock your socks off, it will fill you up and satisfy your taste buds. If it were a sit down restaurant with a full menu my hunt might be over, but for now it continues.

Jalapeno Loco - Mentor the Hunt Continues

In my ongoing hunt to satisfy my inexpensive Mexican food craving, I headed out to Jalapeno Loco in Mentor. Located at the end of the shopping center at the intersection of Route 306 and Mentor Avenue, Jalapeno Loco was one of my reliable stops for good, cheap Mexican food; the food was good if not terribly innovative and the prices and portions were right. The trip this time was made with some trepidation, as I had heard that the restaurant had been raided in April by Immigration for having illegal workers (see the PD story here: http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/120842112261840.xml&coll=2). I liked the place, but didn't want to support a business that is using illegal immigrants, plus losing a sizable portion of your employees will usually hurt the food. Walking in, the decor remains the same, standard Mexican Restaurant/faux Cantina style. Nothing wrong and the place is kept clean and in good shape. Well the raids have certainly had an effect. The wait staff has changed radically with most of the current servers being cute young American girls; my server was very nice and seemed aware that the food is not what it once was. We start with the chips and salsa, overall good, the chips if not fresh made are at least served warm and are crisp with a good taste; the salsa is ok, if a bit mild, but has a nice flavor. I ordered my usual favorite, the Chili Rellenos (although they are called something else on the menu) which are Poblano Peppers stuffed with cheese, battered and fried. The plate comes out with 2 nice looking peppers with rice and beans. The first hint of change is that while I am warned that the plate is hot, it is at best warm and everything on it is just warm. In addition, while the peppers are nice sized, the batter barely covers them and there is a dab of the red sauce that is suppose to cover them completely. The peppers are very mild, which happens from time to time, the cheese is good, but the overall balance of the dish is thrown way off without the proper covering and sauce. The rice is ok, if a bit bland; the refried beans have a decent flavor, but nothing special. My overall impression is a major step down from past visits. So once again I remain disappointed. The decor is nice, the service is good and the prices are right; but the food is a major disappointment, especially for a place that used to be a reliable, if unspectacular kitchen. Clearly some of those who were deported or arrested were key hands in the kitchen. The quest will continue, if you have a place you think has good affordable Mexican food, let me know so I can give it a try. Thanks for reading.

Lopez - the Mexican Food Hunt Continues

OK, so my hunt for good inexpensive Mexican food continues. I had a coupon for 20% off food on Mondays so I decided to give Lopez on Lee Road in Cleveland Heights a try. First off I have to tell you that I am a little confused about the name. On the web I have seen this restaurant referred to as Lopez on Lee, Lopez Bar & Grill and Lopez Southwestern Food Club; for ease I will just refer to as Lopez. It is located at 2196 Lee Road in Cleveland Heights, near the Cedar intersection and the Cedar-Lee Theaters. Walking in one knows right away that this is not your typical Mexican restaurant. The room is done in warm tones and feels classy and southwestern. The feeling is inviting and upscale, but fun. The chips and salsa are good, the chips come in a small paper bag, the salsa is good with a nice flavor. The menu is also upscale, so I decide to go for a couple of smaller items. I picked the Puffy Fish Taco and the Calamari. The taco was good, although the shell was not very puffy. The walleye on the Taco was excellent, well cooked and flavorful. I had trouble finding the lime cilantro yogurt sauce. The portion size was a little off balance, there seemed too much fish for the small taco shell and vegetables. Make this in a larger shell with more sauce and they would have a clear winner. The Calamari was excellent, lightly fried and served over shredded cabbage with a senstional red pepper dipping sauce. Really well done and a nice if not huge portion. Overall Lopez does not disappoint, the food is very good reinterpretations of Mexican and Southwest food. Unfortunately, this is a bit more upscale; the prices and portion sizes mean that while a place I would recommend, this is not the place for inexpensive Mexican dining. Of course if I am going to be disappointed, this is the way to go; keep Lopez in mind for when you want to go a bit fancy or to impress that certain significant other.