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A while back, I stopped writing restaurant reviews every time I ate out. I felt like I was saying the same things, over and over; and since I most often go for the same things -- machacado or chilaquile tacos; lasagna; curry -- it felt entirely too repetitive.
And yet I have, still, this unquenchable urge to share my opinions with the world at large, even knowing that the world at large couldn't care less what I think. This is the curse endured by those of us who are always right, even when we're not. And so I present this post, a synopsis of restaurants close to where I live, places I patronize or avoid routinely.
The Right Stuff
(in alphabetical order)
The Armadillo
McCullough at Evergreen, by Metropolitan Hospital
Everybody
needs to have a favourite burger joint, and this is mine. It inhabits
the space made sacred by the much-loved but long-gone Little Hipps, and
as the years go by it more and more captures the same sort of eclectic
funky atmosphere that was one of the legendary restaurant's charms. More
importantly, after years of tweaking its preparation methods, it has --
now that it's stopped trying so hard to be Little Hipps 2.0 -- gotten
very close to the quality of food that made Hipps such a success for so
long. Nothing fancy (though there are some oddities on the back of the
menu that I never bother to look at -- taco salad, baked potatoes), just
burgers, fries, tots and beer: the essence of the good burger joint.
Sadly -- well, it makes me sad, and a little bit angry -- my review on Zomato has disappeared from the internet, since that website decided only to host reviews in India and the UAE.
My favourite meal: half-pound cheeseburger, tater tots and a draft beer.
Hildebrand between Blanco & San Pedro
This
taquería didn't start off as my top choice along the Hildebrand
Corridor; when I reviewed it, more than ten years ago, it was pretty ordinary. But now it's undeniably become my all-time favourite place for
breakfast tacos. For one thing, it has the best coffee and the best
service, and it at least matches the quality of Tex-Mex food I find
anywhere around here. The corn tortillas are as good as anybody's, and
quality of the taco fillings I've had (and I've had most of them, though
I've settled on a favourite) are, with one exception, the equal of
any. (If I were rating it now, I would add a chili pepper to the food rating, another to the value rating, and two chili peppers to the service rating. It's improved that much.
My favourite meal: tacos de machacado con huevo and coffee.
Main Avenue at Mistletoe
One
thing I'm sure about is that when Caparelli's is good, it's very good.
Another thing is that it's not always good. Depends, it seems, on who's
running the kitchen. Lately, though, and for the past few years, it's
been really good. And popular: where once we could just show up on a
Friday or Saturday and get a table, nowadays we need the forethought of a
reservation. Another thing is that, even when it wasn't at its best,
Caparelli's lasagna was still the best around, and the ambience in there
(or on the patio) is always pleasant. (Even when they had live music
that was almost always true.) Service may be hit or miss, depending
mostly on the experience of the individual server, but generally it's
clearly on the right side of pretty-good, and the value is also reliably
good. (They also have the best pizza in the immediate area, and when we
want one for take-out, they're who we call.) They have a good wine
list, too. If only they could tear the salad lettuce into smaller
pieces....
My
favourite meal: Lasagna! Lasagna, lasagna, lasagna. (But if they ever
put the Chilean sea bass back on the menu, I might have a decision to
make.) (No, it'd still be lasagna.) With a glass of Cavit pinot grigio.
North St Mary's at Mulberry
This one's on the very edge of my local area -- barely within walking
distance; it's on the other side of 281, which is a mostly mental
dividing line -- but it does have absolutely the best deshebrado
machacado tacos I've ever had. I'd go there all the time, except that
their coffee is abysmal and the service is ... well, let's call it
uninspired.
My favourite meal: deshebrado machacado tacos, to go.
Julia's
Blanco Road at Elsmere
Owned
by the same people that have Sohill Cafe (see below). It manages to
feel upscale and funky at the same time. The food is kind-of-French, and
very good. The menu changes from time to time, but the quality is
consistent. Service quality depends on the kitchen, though only once has
it been a real issue. (The waitstaff know their business, the kitchen
not always.) Ambience has mellowed over the last couple of years.
My favourite meal: can't say I have a favourite. Consistently good, though.
La Fonda On Main
Main Avenue below Woodlawn
When
I moved to this area, decades ago, La Fonda was already old; it's been
there more than 80 years now. Unfortunately, back then, it was
abominable. Then Cappy & Sue Lawton, owners of the
more-than-successful Cappy's restaurant on Broadway (Ground Zero for the
'09 set) came in and turned the place into one of the best upscale
Mexican restaurants in town, with a gorgeous patio and (now) another
dining room beyond. The ambience is unbeatable, whether you dine indoors
or out; the service is generally excellent (though sometimes you get a
new waiter, who's still feeling their way; though even then there's a
certain competence to their work) and the prices are quite reasonable.
Sadly, like at Caparelli's, the days when we could just walk over and
get a table are long gone: reservations are now a must.
My favourite meal: steak relleno, or spinach tacos. With a house margarita.
Outlaw Kitchen
Flores Street at Magnolia
This
place is unique. The menu is limited to two entrées, one of which is
always vegetarian; they grow a lot of their herbs & spices in the
garden beside the converted house. They're only open a few days a week.
They only have a few tables. (I assume there are a few more inside, but
I've never been inside.) Everything is excellent. Everything. Prices are
a little high but the value is excellent.
My
favourite meal: they've never had the same thing twice, as far as I
know. But everything I've ever had has been better than good.
Pesto
On McCullough, in the Yard
This
place is another that's a little out of the local area (meaning, it's
not within walking distance of my house) but since it opened a few years
back, it's become my favourite for Italian food. The menu isn't as
extensive as Caparelli's On Main, but everything they do, they do very well.
The service has been much improved the last few times I've been, too --
before that it had been ... well, not bad, but inconsistent. My only
complaint is that they've changed their bread from a cheese-laced
foccacia to a more run-of-the-mill product. Still good, but hey, I used
to go there just for the bread, which could help you understand Les Misérables.
My favourite meal: a toss-up between the scallops and the stuffed shells. Either one with a glass of pinot grigio.
McCullough, between Myrtle & Locust
Okay,
this place is as much about location as food. When I'm down in that
part of town (it's near my doctor's office, and the post office) I go
here because it's (a) convenient, and (b) better than any of the other Tex-Mex places in that area.
The service is generally good, the prices are always good, the food is
always a cut above and the atmosphere is unpretentious and welcoming.
My favourite meal: machacado tacos and coffee.
Scratch Kitchen
San Pedro at Russell Street
This
place is new to my mental list of local favourites. At this point, in
fact, it's really more on my wife's mental list than mine. It's very
small, with no table service, a varying menu, and kind of a kitschy feel
to it. Excellent baked goods. A place to meet your neighbours and their
dogs. Limited parking. A place to kick back and let other people stare
holes in the back of your head because they want your table. Only
drawback: the disposable utensils & dishes. I hate those.
My favourite meal: haven't tried enough things here to say.
Sohill Cafe
Blanco Road at Elsmere
The first time I went to Sohill, right after it opened, I was struck
by the ambience of the place. It felt like a purely local place, just a
bunch of neighbours getting together for a glass of wine and a bite. The
food was just okay, but the attraction of the place was absolutely
palpable. Apparently not just to me, as the next 4 or 5 times I went
there, the wait for a table was so long that I gave up and went
elsewhere. Then the pandemic hit.
Fortunately,
they've re-opened now, and the food is much better than before (thanks,
I guess, to a new chef). And the atmosphere remains. I almost hate to
say anything about it, for fear that other people will go there &
it'll once again be impossible to get a table.
My favourite meal: fried pizza, just about any kind.
On McCullough, in the Yard
There are many
good Thai places in town, but only two that are better than YaYa's; but
neither one is as conveniently located. And frankly, only one of those
two is really better; the other is now living on reputation (though it's the only one of the three that has pad wun sen, my
favourite Thai dish). Surprisingly, I've never seen YaYa's crowded,
though the ambience is excellent, the prices are reasonable, and the
service and food are both top-notch. Still, it's managed to survive for a
number of years now, despite being nearly invisible from the street.
(Personally, that's one of the things I like about it.) They do a pretty
good take-out business, though, especially since the start of the
Pandemic.
My favourite meal: Curry; green or Panang. With pork or chicken, and shrimp fresh rolls.
The Wrong Stuff
(places you won't find me eating)
in alphabetical order
Blanco Cafe
Blanco Road at Elsmere
Good
value and ambience, along with a good menu, don't make up for so-so
food of the greasy-spoon variety and really lousy service.
Chris Madrid's
Blanco Road at Hollywood
Undeniably
the most popular burger joint in town, but to me it's a grease-pit with
an uncomfortable feel (indoors; the patio is more welcoming) and
mediocre service.
El Jarrito Cafe
Blanco Road at Rosewood
Just another mom-&-pop taquería, but with really loud a/c, mediocre food, mediocre service, and no real charm.
Mama's Kitchen
Hildebrand at Breeden Street
Borderline.
I almost decided not to list this place, because the owner (or, at
least, the guy who ran the place) is such a friendly, conscientious,
helpful guy. The prices are okay, the food is okay, the ambience is
close-to-okay (as long as you don't sit by the air conditioner), and the
service is pretty good. When the pandemic hit, I made up my mind to go
there regularly, just to do what I could to keep it going through the
tough times. But I was thwarted by the unreliability of their hours.
That's probably no longer an issue, but after two years I'm just out of
the habit of even trying it. Plus their corn tortillas aren't as good as
at other places.
Panchito's
McCullough at Annie Street
Used
to be good. Now: the food is still alright, the prices aren't bad, and
the ambience of the place is sort of bourgeois-Tex-Mex; a family feel to
it. The service, though, has gotten really erratic. The last three or
four times I've been, I've felt like I was imposing.
Salsa
San Pedro at Mistletoe
What
can I say good about this place? Sadly, only that it's not horrible.
The chips and salsa are, but the rest of the food is just mediocre. The
service, likewise. Prices are reasonable, but the ambience has sort of a
Great Depression vibe to it. (I've noticed that they advertise music on
certain days now; I admit I'm curious about that, but not enough to
actually go check it out.)
Taco Taco
Hildebrand between McCullough and Howard
I object on principle to this place because of its designation by two supposedly reputable sources (not, I assure you, Yelp! and TravelAdvisor, which are the antithesis of reputable sources -- does anyplace
earn less than four stars?) as having "the best tacos in America" when I
know from personal experience that it doesn't even have the best tacos
on that street. By a very wide margin.
