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8142 Broadway
(just north of Sunset Avenue)
Friends are always telling me that I'm the smartest person they know. Luckily for me, they don't know my wife, who is the smartest person I know. Last night's dinner at Beto's provided further evidence to support that judgment.
I had been to Beto's once before. It was so long ago, it might have been in the last century. (At that time, they had abandoned its Southtown roots for a location near the current one, but on the other side of the street.) I didn't like it. I don't recall now what, exactly, had displeased me about the place back then, but whatever it was, it was sufficient to keep me away for years. But my wife loves the place, and has continually championed it (gently and subtly) until, with an eye toward some kind of future trade-off, I at last agreed to go.
And wouldn't you know it? I have to admit it's a great place.
There's a small dining room on the front end, and a larger patio area out back. Both had live music being performed last night (a Friday): a guitar duo on the patio, a guy with a keyboard in the dining room. Had musical styles been the only consideration, the patio would have been the preferred venue, but the dining room is air conditioned. Shucks.
Anyway. So we take a table in the dining room, and even though we were close to the kitchen and the bar, we were undisturbed by the proximity. Noise wasn't excessive; a great relief in this era of concrete walls and floors. There was, in fact, nothing about the ambience of the place to disparage. I'm choking back tears, can you tell? It was clean, comfortable and pleasant.
I had read a number of reviews on Zomato.com dissing Beto's service as the only failing of an otherwise-outstanding restaurant. Sadly, though, I can't join that chorus of grousing: our server, Luis, was exceptional: perfectly attentive, informative, straightforward, and pleasantly engaging without being intrusive. I may have had better table service in my life, but no such occasion comes immediately to mind.
I ordered a three-item combination, with a chicken-poblano empanada, a fish taco, and a sweet empanada of banana, leche quemada and pecans for afters. I also asked for a sample of something called chalupa cabra. My wife chose a two-item combo of fish taco and spinach-mushroom quesadilla. Both combinations come with soft drinks, but I had a margarita and she had a vodka concoction called Beto's breeze. (We had our soft drinks put in go-cups, because I'm not one to pass up horchata.)
The margarita was gold instead of the usual green; I don't know why and don't care. It was a little sweeter, a little less tart than is common, but it was very good. And it was only $4. (Note to self: happy hour goes until 7 on Fridays at Beto's.) I tried the Breeze, too, but after a sip of the margarita there was nothing there.
The chalupa cabra sample came first. It's small chunks of goat meat in a curry sauce, topped with shredded vegetables, a little coconut, and a sprinkle of cotija cheese. In its full version it's served on a flatbread made from the same dough as the empanadas, which I suspect will make it completely irresistible. I made a mental note to include this dish in my order next time I come.
The combination plates are served with rice and beans. Not the kind of rice and beans in Tex-Mex cooking, but fluffy white rice in the Caribbean style, with savoury borracho beans. You can substitute roasted vegetables for the rice and beans, but that strikes me as a mistake, depending somewhat on which veggies are being served; last night's included yellow squash, and that made up my mind for me.
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| fish taco, empanada, beans & rice |
This was actually my very first fish taco; and while it was good, it had a strong fishy taste that I have avoided for many years. Don't get me wrong: I love fish. But some fish has that peculiar flavour, and I don't much like it. I don't know if it comes from having been frozen, or if it's just the type of fish used. Both possibilities seem unlikely, and it's not a question that raises in me the desire to investigate. It's most noticeable with catfish that's been frozen, but I haven't encountered it in other previously-frozen types. In any case, Beto's uses grilled Alaska pollock, a type of cod (and I often cook previously-frozen cod at home and don't get that fishy taste). It had a good texture, was on an excellent tortilla with slaw and cilantro (but not too much) and topped with a creamy poblano sauce. It's served with a small ramekin of chimichurri, in case you think the lily needs gilding. I see from this meal why people get so excited about fish tacos. Yes, even with that fishy taste.
And then there's that empanada: diced chicken with onion and poblano peppers, laced with a little cheese (I'm guessing cotija, but I could be wrong) and a light tomatillo sauce all wrapped up in an exquisitely made pastry. Writing that sentence made me want to go back for another.
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| What's that mean? Last city inspection: July 2017 score: 96 |
But no need! The three-item combo, plus the sample of chalupa cabra and a taste of my wife's quesadilla (which was good but not on the same elevated level as other things) proved to be too much food for one sitting, so that banana empanada with the leche quemada is sitting in my refrigerator right now. Having thought of that, I have nothing more to say before going downstairs to eat it, except that the prices at Beto's were pretty damned good, too. We got out of there for less than fifty bucks, including drinks, tax and tip, and that's better than what we normally spend on a date-night dinner.
