Verde.

 

I sit here, enjoying my leftovers from last night's dinner, thankful that I'm not eating spaghettiO's like BigBrother.  A few members of the dining crew got together last night to check out Verde on the line between East Liberty & Garfield.

The bright green building on the outside sure made it stand out.  Patio looks like it could be a great time when the weather is actually nice, which wasn't this night.  Dining room was busy, no wait for our table.  Our server was good, but a little slow.  There were signs up for brunch, so we asked, and it seemed like the entire staff was pushing brunch.  That and they kept mentioning what used to be on the menu, which I found strange.

We sampled some margaritas, the favorite being the Jalapina, I went with the Hibiscus, and there was a Blonde Ambition and a St. Basil.  All very good.


Ceviche

Appetizers - Huarache del dia, Ceviche, Guacamole
EasyD - Carne Asada
Onionhater - Brisket Tamale special
Vegahimsa - Enchilada Napoleon
CDO - Tacos de Pollo
Desserts - Tres Leches, Sopapilla



Tamale

The winner here was the Carne Asada, cooked perfectly, with excellent chimichurri.  EasyD raved about the sweet potato gratin that came with it.  Huarache del dia was basically a veggie flatbread of the day.  Ceviche was tasty and had some spice, but nothing remarkable.  Brisket Tamale had a sweet sauce and brought some modern American twist to the Mexican, but still not knocking me off my feet.  And my chicken tacos were good, had some serious heat, but again, nothing remarkable. 

Tacos de Pollo

So here's the deal.  I think if you want to grab some snacks and have some adult beverages on a cool patio, this might be your place.  I think if you're looking for "modern Mexican cuisine" - as their website states - eh, there's probably a Mad Mex closer to your house with more choices that cost less.  Everything about it was good, not great. I'll be at Picante.

~ CDO

Mexican Reruns

No, no telemundo today, but we do visit most of these establishments more than once.  Sometimes to give them a second chance (to Rey Azteca:  my coworkers and I will NOT be giving you a third chance), sometimes to ensure that they are as good as we thought they were after we had that 2nd glass of wine, and sometimes, we go just because its that good and we want to go again. 

Let's revisit Picante.  We go here frequently - its very close to our house and the food is always good and Mexicany.  I don't usually bring it up because of how often we grab quesadillas for BigBrother and I don't want you to know how often we're eating here because I'm not cooking, but this time I will because I discovered a new favorite - the California Burrito.  By their own description, its a BIG burrito - and that it is - stuffed with chicken, rice, & beans.  The salsa verde,guacamole, and cheese sauce on top are so tasty.  The whole thing is salty, cheesy, with some tang from the salsa verde.  I just really like this one.  Here's the lineup:

Where:  Picante
Who:  Me, IPA-hole, FrontloaderB, & Learning to Share
What:  Me:  California Burrito
      IPA-hole:  Chicken Fajitas
      FrontloaderB:  Steak Fajita
      Learning to Share:  Taco Salad


I don't feel like fighting the group here for the winner.  Everyone thought their own was.  I think the margaritas were the winner.  We had a few, then went to see Ted for IPA-hole's birthday.  Just a quick heads up to the dads that were in the theater with their 10-year-old sons, and to other dads thinking that they should take their sons:  This is not a kids' movie.  Not even close.  Hilarious, but just NO.  Go with your friends.

And now I feel I must elaborate on Rey Azteca.  We ordered it for lunch at work one time.  They screwed up the order: 4 lunches from the lunch menu.  When we opened the bags, there were 3 lunches from the lunch menu and a bunch of chips.  I wouldn't have been so bitter if it wasn't my lunch that was missing.  So I called them and had to drive all the way back down to the restaurant to pick up the missing food.  Boo.  So let's add insult to injury, no one - especially not my lovely Celiac-managing sister-in-law (who we'll refer to as SILiac from here on) - got out of that meal without reprecussions.  We were all sick to our stomaches for the rest of the day.  That was cool with a full day of public interaction.  Ha!  Well, someone thought it would be a great idea to give them a second chance.  Same problem, only worse this time. No thank you, Rey Azteca, I'll hit up the local Taco Bell if a need frijoles that badly - at least my food has always found its way into the bag before it left the restaurant.

Good Mexican, Bad Mexican,  stay tuned for something new.

~ CDO

Mexican - American Shorty

Last night, BigBrother wanted quesadillas for dinner.  I'm all about it, so we hopped in the car and headed down the road to our local Picante for dinner.  Well, turns out that grumpy waiter that we had at Patron is working at my beloved Picante.  Although, this time, he's pleasant, upbeat, and keeps pinching BabyGray's cheeks...

Where:  Picante
Who:  me, IPA-hole, & the kids
What:  me - Camarones al mojo de ajo
           IPA-hole - Shrimp Fajitas
           The Kids - Quesadilla

I find it funny that they call mine Camarones al mojo de ajo (basically shrimp in a garlic sauce) and IPA-hole's Shrimp fajitas are all English.  All are good; I might eat mine for breakfast.



So that was the Mexican part, this is the American part - its a 2-fer.  The other day, after a GREAT Penguins win, IPA-hole wants to take PickyMIL & FIL to BRGR to eat.  Long story short, he gets on the HOV lane heading north out of the city instead of Bigelow Blvd to go to Penn Circle. We quickly regroup and decide instead of trying to go back into the city, we'll just head to the BRGR in Cranberry.

This one is nice.  Its much bigger than the one in Penn Circle, and open.  So its easier to get a table, but the overall feel isn't quite as cool.  (Don't worry, I'm going to the Penn Circle one soon).

Where: BRGR Cranberry
Who: me, IPA-hole, PickyMIL & FIL, & the kids.
What:  me - Cease & Desist
            IPA-hole - Fire in the Hole
            PickyMIL - King Salmon
            FIL - Average Joe
            The Kids - Mac & Cheese
            Appetizer - BRGR Perogies *winner

I also got a Toasted Almond spiked shake, that I shared with PickyMIL.  Delish! 

Stay tuned for BRGR Pittsburgh!

Aguafiesta

Well this whole evening was not as expected.  We were definitely trying to go out to the new tapas place in Greensburg, and I was so looking forward to it.  Well, Nonsense & Onion-hater get there first (a half hour early b/c somebody thought the wrong time) only to find that the new place of choice isn't open on Mondays or Tuesdays.  So plan B - El Patron.

I read some of the reviews on urbanspoon, and seriously - the best Mexican food?  What Mexican joints have you been tolerating???  Overall, I was disappointed at best.  Our main server acted like we were bothering him by being there.  I mean, he finally warmed up at the end, but by then we weren't interested. 
The margaritas were good, sangria was good, chips, salsa & guacamole were good, food came fast; that was positive. Mine was decent, but  unrecognizable for what it was supposed to be, and generally I can identify my Mexican staples - in this case, supposedly a chimichanga & a queso relleno.  Tierra Firme's looked good too - taco, enchilada, & rice.  Nonsense & Onion-hater both went with the tortilla soup.  Yes, here we go with these two again - the soup has chicken in it, Nonsense! (which she gave to Onion-hater). There are onions in it, Onion-hater! (which she decided were big enough eat around). I still don't get it, and they both agreed that, after spooning the oil off the top (which is what this picture is), the soup was good - had a TON of avocado in it, YUM!  Onion-hater didn't touch the tamale, and there were no onions in it.  We think it exploded, but we're not sure.  You can look at the picture and judge for yourself.

Who:  Onion-hater, Nonsense, Tierra Firme, & Me
Where:  El Patron
What: Me - Special Texas (Chimichanga & Queso Relleno)
          Onion-hater - Tortilla Soup & a  Tamale
          Nonsense - Tortilla Soup *winner
          Tierra Firme - Combo 1 (Taco, Enchilada, & rice)

So for what its worth,  don't bother.  If you're looking for some good authentic Mexican food, head over to Picante in Delmont.  We do go there more often than I think I'd like to admit.  The guys know what me & the kids want as soon as we sit down, speak Spanish to us, and make some great food.  Hmm, I guess I'll have to write about them one of these days. 

Yeah, bummer, El Patron was a bust.  Wish the tapas place would have been open.  Stay tuned...

~ CDO