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Since my arrival in Tampa almost two years ago, I’ve spent quite a bit of time searching for a great Tex-Mex restaurant, only to come up short time and time again.  I probably won’t return to Miguel’s and the food at Estella’s isn’t even close to acceptable.  I still haven’t found exactly what I am looking for, but on Saturday evening I came close with a great meal at Algusto ”Tortilla and Salsa” Mexican Restaurant.  While not the panacea of Tex-Mex cooking, the atmosphere was inviting and the food was fresh and tasty.

After a day at St. Pete Beach, I was shocked when my fiancée suggested Mexican food for dinner.  She’s normally not a fan, but is occasionally known to indulge in a platter of fajitas.  We joined some friends in the afternoon for a tasting of French wines at Beaune’s West Palm Wines in Ybor, then cruised down Kennedy for an early dinner at Algusto.  Though we didn’t have a reservation, the restaurant was fairly empty, which seemed reasonable for 6:30pm.  I was pleasantly surprised at the cleanliness and positive atmosphere of the restaurant, complete with brightly colored tile, high ceilings and an open kitchen.

As we were seated, the first thing we requested was an order of Algusto’s popular homemade guacamole ($4.95).  It was a little creamier than I prefer, but the flavor was perfect and I feel it is one of the better ones in the area.  The portion was large, so unless you have several people to split it, you may want to think twice about filling up on appetizers.  The assortment of salsas was also impressive, but the presentation was not.  We tried the mild salsa, a chunky pico de gallo and we also had some of the spiciest version, a smooth and spicy orange salsa, presumably made with with habanero peppers.  While both were fantastic, they were served in small, disposable plastic ramekins that made them difficult to eat.

Naturally, we chose to indulge in an order of chicken and beef combination fajitas ($10.95).  Instead of the sizzling platter cliché, the meat arrived on a plate, colorfully mixed with a variety of sauteed strips of bell pepper.  The chicken was juicy and the beef had a smoky, grilled flavor, but for a place with “tortilla” in the name, I had hoped for some that were homemade.  Instead we were served warm tortillas, right out of the bag.  On the side was a small plate of uninspired refried beans and rice, pico de gallo and a heap of guacamole. 

I decided to try out the tampaquena ($12.75), a marinated and grilled steak accompanied by a chicken mole enchilada, rice and a mound of colorful sautéed bell pepper strips (see a trend here?).  The thin piece of steak was cooked well done, a tad further than what it should have been, but it was still tender enough to enjoy.  The chicken enchilada was filled with shredded chicken and topped with a fantastic rich mole sauce.  I typically use the steak tampaquena as a benchmark to judge Mexican restaurants and though it was a good meal, I didn’t exactly wake up thinking about it the next morning.  Instead of the excessive number of bell pepper strips, I would have preferred something edible, such as refried beans; now I know for next time.

To cool off the spicy Mexican food, I had a couple of Mexican beers ($3) and we also tried a glass of red sangria ($4.75), which was a tad too sweet for my taste.  Unfortunately Algusto does not have a full liquor license and is not able to serve my drink of choice: the margarita.  Instead, they serve the fake wine-based margarita ($4.75) which is supposed to act as a substitute.  Call me crazy, but I have no desire to try a margarita that lacks tequila.  Though the list of desserts looked impressive, we didn’t have any room to indulge in any flan or tres leches.

My ideal Tex-Mex restaurant needs a great margarita, solid food, great chips and salsa and an inviting atmosphere.  Three out of four isn’t bad and I’ll definitely be back to Algusto Mexican Restaurant soon.  Although it is labeled as a “Mexican” restaurant with a menu that serves great mole and traditional favorites, there are plenty of Tex-Mex influences, such as fajitas, quesadillas and chips and salsa on the table.  Also, in some dishes, the “fresh” and “healthy” dishes go a bit far for my decadent tastes.  Regardless, if you are looking for a great restaurant serving fresh Mexican food alongside Tex-Mex favorites, I’d give Algusto a thumbs up.

Algusto Mexican Restaurant
912 West Kennedy Blvd.
Tampa, FL 33606
(813) 250-3500
http://www.algustomexicanrestaurant.com/

For some reason on Friday I was in the mood for Mexican. I didn’t cook anything the night before and didn’t bring anything for lunch, so I was wide open and quickly got in the mood for something spicy.  Fortunately there is a little Mexican taqueria and grocery only a few blocks from work, El Mezcalito, that serves some great tacos for only $1.25 each.  I’ve made it my default lunch spot when I want some good food, fast and cheap.

The tacos at El Mezcalito are pretty good, available in the common varieties of chicken, steak, pork and tongue.  All of the meats are cooked fresh and on site and the tacos are served in warm corn tortillas, but you are out of luck if you are looking for homemade, as they use the packaged tortillas.  A regular guy like me can walk into El Mescalito and get a chicken taco complete with lettuce, tomato cheese and sour cream; that’s how I had the tacos my first time there.  However, on my second visit I wondered why the Hispanic guys got their tacos with only cilantro and white onion.  Maybe it was because I am a gringo and that’s what the market demands, but I now request mine as the Mexicans do, with only cilantro and onion.  I suggest you do the same.

On weekends, you can stop in for homemade tamales or medudo, though I haven’t tried much there.  They also have a great selection of beer and Jarrito’s, but again, I can’t indulge during lunchtime.  El Mezcalito makes some great tacos and I frequent them often, but I was unimpressed the one time I strayed from the norm.  A chile relleno I had a while back may have been fresh that morning, but by the time I went for lunch, she microwaved it before pairing it with rice and beans.  I am a pretty adventurous diner, but for lunch, I tend to play it safe with the tacos.  You may not want to go out of your way to travel to El Mezcalito, but if you are in the area, I recommend you make a stop.

After some happy hour time at Courtside Grill, I realized my lunch tacos didn’t completely satisfy my craving.  When I got home, I mixed up a homemade margarita and pulled out the menu for Taqueria Cantina.  For dinner, I chose a mini steak burrito and an order or chips with their spiciest salsa.  The food from Taqueria doesn’t knock my socks off, but it is good; I enjoyed it as usual.  After having real Mexican tacos, I can’t stomach the food from Chipotle, so Taqueria is a good substitute for Cali/Tex-Mex style tacos and burritos.

Since my girlfriend is not a huge fan of Mexican food, I often feel the need to “cheat” when she is not around.  I am extremely fortunate that she understands my needs.  It had been a couple weeks since I had any spicy Mexican food, so Friday was my day.  Some people crave ice cream or cookies, I crave salsa…. what about you?

el Mezcalito
2908 Roosevelt Blvd
Clearwater, FL 33760
727-535-0149

Taqueria Cantina and Burrito Joint
(formerly Taqueria Quetzalcoatl)
402 S Howard Ave
Tampa, FL 33606-2036
813-259-9982

Margarita Recipes - The NolaFoodie Margarita Page

I love tacos.  I’ve had them all, Mexican tacos, Baja Fish tacos, Indian tacos and even the American-ized variety, straight from Taco Bell.  I will eat just about any kind of meat, fish or vegetable in a taco and thought I had heard it all.  That is, until a recent Saturday in Ybor City when I stumbled upon a little roadside joint serving Alaskan Tacos.  What the hell is an Alaskan Taco, you ask?  Don’t worry, it was my first experience with them and I asked the same question.  Fortunately for you, the Tampa Bay area is the ONLY place to get an Alaskan Taco.  According to Sean Godin, proprietor of Mema’s Alaskan Tacos, the tacos are Southwestern in nature but perfected by his mother in Alaska.  Good enough for me.

We were on our way from La Creperia in Ybor when I spotted the sign for Tacos and it was calling my name.  We made a couple stops with the group for drinks, so it wasn’t until later that my curiosity got the best of me.  Even though we had just eaten dinner, it was a light one and I had room in my stomach to fit a couple tacos.  Being a newbie to Alaskan Tacos, I figured I would play it safe and order one fish taco and one beef taco.  It only took about five minutes for me to get my food; a white corn tortilla stuffed with a filling, then deep fried and topped with lettuce, tomato, cheese and sour cream with a side of salsa (it was Pace Picante Sauce).  The taco was very similar to the Americanized version derived from the traditional Indian taco served on fry bread, but the golden fried tortilla at Mema’s added a new twist.   What I discovered later is that I could have enjoyed the same taco, tucked into a soft flour tortilla with a layer of Mema’s famous refried beans for only a dollar more.  It’s on the list for my next visit.  The tacos were really good, but paying $5 for two tacos felt a bit steep, especially after visiting many of the Mexican owned Taquerias in town.  But it was money well spent for the convenience and the novelty.

I didn’t try out all of the options on the menu at Meme’s, but I figure that will be your job.  Besides the unique tacos, the menu consists of the ordinary Tex-Mex and Cali-Mex favorites like burritos, quesadillas, soft tacos and nachos.  It’s not enough incentive for me to drive to Ybor, but I’m happy to have found a little joint for good food fast that is open late and open every day.  I suspect much of the clientele consists of Ybor foot traffic, so put this place on your mental restaurant card-file next time you are in the area.  Many people have already discovered Meme’s Alaskan Tacos and love them, so I guess it is time for you to jump on the bandwagon. 

Mema’s Alaskan Tacos
1604 N 17th St (Ybor City)
Tampa, FL 33605
(813) 514-8226

 A couple of weeks ago I met some friends for dinner at the soft opening of Chipotle on Howard Avenue just to revisit the food and get acquainted with my new neighbor.  Although there are a couple other locations in the Tampa Bay area, the growing popularity of burrito joints leads me to predict a Chipotle in every neighborhood.  So if you are still in the dark about the place, here is the lowdown.  The atmosphere of the restaurant is clean and industrial with lots of granite and chrome. The food is served cafeteria style in a manner popularized by Subway; sort of a build your own burrito bar.  The menu is simple; your choice of ingredients that can be made into soft tacos, hard tacos, burritos or my friend Linda’s favorite: the Burrito Bol, all of the ingredients of a burrito in a bowl, sans the tortilla.  The meats include chicken, steak, carnitas and barbacoa, a spicy shredded beef in a chipotle adobo sauce. For the vegetarians, all of the items can be made without the meat.  After picking the meat, you can select rice, pinto or black beans and your choice of salsas to complete your creation.  To round out the meal, you can get salsa or guacamole with chips, and even an ice-cold beer.   

My steak burrito turned out pretty good, stuffed with rice, black beans and spicy salsa.  The one ingredient that turned me off was the cilantro Jasmine-style rice used for the burrito.  The sticky rice had a bland flavor and only served as a filler for the medium sized burrito; next time I’ll skip it.  For a chain restaurant, the salsas are pretty good, but I found the chips to be a bit thick for my taste.  The Tomatillo-Green (Medium) chili salsa was my favorite, just the right amount of heat. The Tomatillo-Red (HOT) salsa reminded me of a chile pepper puree and the excruciating heat contributed to my excess consumption of tortilla chips to cool my flaming tongue.  The size of the burrito was just right, but bordered on excess when factoring in a bag of chips and a side of their surprisingly good guacamole.  While it may be a bit pricey for fast food, my burrito with chips and salsa and one Corona ended up at about $11; not too bad for a meal with friends.

Back in the day, Chipotle was a lone burrito stand that caught the eye of the McDonalds Corporation, and the rest is history.  They have a winning formula for success: clean restaurants, consistent food and a cuisine that is growing in popularity.  Unfortunately that lone burrito stand called Chipotle has lost all of its character and is now a corporate cash cow.  I really do enjoy Chipotle and appreciate the fact that they do provide consistently good food, but the opening of the Howard avenue location caddy-corner from an existing burrito place has me worried about the viability of the local guy.  You heard it here first, this is the beginning of the “SoHo Burrito Wars.” 

Unfortunately for me, it took several months living in SoHo before stepping foot into Taqueria Cantina & Burrito Joint (formerly named Taqueria Quetzalcoatl).  My room-mate mentioned that he disliked the food there, but it turns out he just had a bad meal there four years back, at a different location!  On a Saturday afternoon recently, I was craving a good fish taco and several recommendations from Chowhound led me to an oasis of great Cali-Mex food right in my backyard.  The recommendations were warranted, and I enjoyed an outstanding baja fish taco in a flour tortilla filled with crispy fried cod, Mexi-Slaw and mango sour cream.  One fish taco paired with an order of their chips and salsa was more than filling for an big eater (me).

With the anticipation of the opening of Chipotle, I paid another visit to Taqueria Cantina to try out the burritos.  To stay on a level playing field, I chose a “regular” sized grilled steak burrito, stuffed with rice, salsa and black beans.  Sour cream, guacamole and cheese can all be added for an additional charge, and you have a choice of black beans or pinto beans, but I was keeping it simple for my trial run.  I found the end result to be outstanding; steak that was grilled to order and ingredients that worked well together.  I’m also happy that I only ordered a “regular” size, instead of the “super;”it was more than I really needed to eat on a Friday evening.  Last night I tried a “mini” sized steak burrito, this time with guacomole.  It turns out that the mini burrito with chips and salsa was the perfect size for me; it went quite well with a Corona and lime. 

Despite the recent opening of Chipotle, it appeared last night that Taqueria was doing a brisk business.  When asked about the competition, Chad, behind the counter didn’t appear worried.  “We’ve been here 14 years, and people will continue to come back here after they taste the food over there (Chipotle).”  I have to agree.  Though I generally shy away from chain restaurants, I think the food at Chipotle is above average, but the food at Taqueria Cantina & Burrito joint is better.  Try them both and make your own informed decision, but I’ll continue to favor Taqueria; not because they are local, but because the food is just so damn good.

Taqueria Cantina and Burrito Joint
(formerly Taqueria Quetzalcoatl)
402 S Howard Ave
Tampa, FL 33606-2036 
813-259-9982

Chipotle - South Tampa
533 S. Howard Avenue
Tampa, FL 33606
813-254-6450
www.Chipotle.com