El Arriero, 2948 28th St - 6/11/10

The restaurant is located in a strip mall across from Woodland Mall. We’ve tried it once before and many people rave about it. From what we could find out, it’s not a national chain but it felt like one with its nondescript decor. The room is large; tables and booths wrap around and there are a couple of semi-private dining areas enclosed in the front and the rear of the restaurant. It was crowded but there was no waiting. We were brought to our table and hot on our heels was a server with chips and salsa; salsa was thin and without much flavor.

Another server appeared immediately to take our beverage order, and returned quickly to take our food order. We had barely scanned the menu and told him we needed a few more minutes. This was the first time we made this mistake. Twenty minutes later he came back to take our appetizer order. When that was delivered, he wanted to take our lunch order but we weren’t ready. Yes, our second mistake.  

Appetizer selections consisted mainly of nachos and dips, so we chose choriquesadillas, which ended up being our favorite part of the meal. Two soft tortillas stuffed with chorizo and cheese, served with lettuce (way too much), sour cream, and guacamole were not very spicy but were still nicely done.  

Besides appetizers, the menu offered kids’ plates, quesadillas, specials, favorites,  fajitas, seafood, twenty-five combination plates, vegetarian dishes, eight different burritos, and ten lunch specials. In addition, on most tables stood a paper menu with daily specials: each day of the week has a featured dish and drink.

The menu is too big, and having specials and favorites as separate categories is just confusing. We went with “favorite” items and the first was the “special dinner.” It seemed like a good choice since it offered five different items to taste, accompanied by rice and beans. First up, a chalupa - a lame tostada without meat. Second, a burrito, ordered with beef and beans that arrived without beans. Third, enchilada. Fourth, beef taco, and last, a tamale, the worst of the bunch. The cornmeal wrapping was bland and mushy, poor flavor and texture. Everything else was improved with some hot sauce (chile habanero).

Our second dish was fried chimichangas: two flour tortillas with chicken (recommended by our server), served with beans, lots of lettuce, one tasteless tomato, sour cream, and guacamole. Again, a huge serving but needing hot sauce.

So to summarize: tortillas are good, beans are heavily salted, food is otherwise bland, quantities are vast, prices are low, and service is intended to rush you in and out. If this is what you like, and you like Little Mexico, you’ll love El Arriero.  

          
                                       

Mi Tierra, 2300 Division Ave S - 5/11/10

Driving south down Division the week before, we spotted a couple of Mexican restaurants that we wanted to come back and try, and this was the first. We knew nothing about it and pulled into the rear parking lot. There was just one other vehicle in the lot, which is not something we like to see, on several levels. We walked in the back door and found a good-sized room with an empty lunch buffet on our right. On the left, upholstered booths lined the windows, tables filled the space in between, and on the far end of the room, very large booths take the middle space. The kitchen and counter were on the right, halfway into the room, with pictures of the food above the counter/kitchen opening.

We took a booth by the window far back into the restaurant and found ourselves seated near a Virgin Mary statue highlighted with colored lights, two booths on the right loaded with dirty dishes (must have been a busy lunch), a compact disc juke box, and very colorful artwork. Against the back wall was a large flat screen TV showing, with sound, soccer on ESPN de Portes. It’s not our idea of atmosphere but the decor may be culturally true, and unlike “Little Mexico” that tries to provide a Mexican food experience for Americans (Tex-Mex meets Aztec art), this is a restaurant serving Mexican food for Mexican people.

It was around 1:30 p.m. and the only other occupants were a couple with a small child. Sometime during our meal, they departed and two customers in hoodies arrived for take-out. From the looks we received, we knew we were an oddity here. Our server frequently lapsed into Spanish but was friendly and patient; chips and salsa were delivered promptly. The salsa was thinner than what we’re used to but the flavor was excellent with a nice spicy kick, and far above the average fare; no refills were brought (and we didn’t ask). Soda is served from cans - nothing on tap. Valentina Salsa Pi Cante is on the tables.

The lunch buffet was obviously over, and that was fine with us. The menu had four large pages (and a 5th page in mine that listed Chinese luncheon specials - really??) We bypassed the Chinese items and found a mole dish (enchilada mi tierra de mole), which consisted of four enchiladas with chicken, beef, or cheese, topped with cheese and sour cream, accompanied by rice, beans, and salad. Mole sauce creation is an art in itself and we couldn’t resist. We attempted to order it with beef but were twice told that it should be served with chicken.  Who were we to disagree? Our second selection was fajitas a la Mexicana (marinated grilled steak with tomatoes, onion, bell peppers, rice, beans, and salad, on flour tortillas). Both dishes were wonderful, made up of fresh ingredients and great Mexican flavors - and definitely homemade tortillas.  The small salad that accompanied our entrees was so much more than the token flavorless tomato slice on a piece of wilted lettuce that we’ve all experienced. This was fresh and crispy - chopped lettuce, tomato, avocado, and cilantro - a taste treat.

After we were served, our waitress disappeared. We helped ourselves to the takeout dishes that were stacked on the kitchen counter, and the cordial cook sent her back out with our bill. Well, not exactly. She went to the cash register, totaled up our meals, came back to our table, and told us what we owed. Entrees are under $10.00 for the most part, and the lunch buffet runs Monday - Friday for $5.99.

The restaurant has a drive-through window and that might be a good way to go for those that may be uncomfortable in this setting but want to enjoy an authentic Mexican meal.