Mexico Taqueria

Mexico Taqueria is a fun little restaurant on SW Boulevard.  They had a wide variety of dishes to try, some fairly authentic, others very Tex-Mex and of course the always popular cow tongue.  Now I was not brave enough order the cow tongue, but Josh did and I had a bit.  Not a bad flavor, but very much like sweet breads, I just couldn't get past the idea, the texture and the freaky little taste buds, kinda like the little sucker things on squid....creepy.

Though I don't remember  the name of what I ordered, it was a nice combination of beef and shrimp with melted cheese.  It was pleasant dish and little different than that I normally order.  However, for me, Mexican food is not about the food it is about the chips, salsa and the margaritas.  Now on my scale of 1 to 10, I would rate the chips and salsa a 7.75.  Not the best, but not too shabby.  Now the margarita's are definitely in my top 3, on any given day they could be number 1.  I would rate the margaritas a 9.5.

My overall rating during the review was a 3.9, however, before we left a traveling mariachi band from Spain stopped in and played.  It was such a delightful surprise and so much fun, I raise my overall rating to a 4.1

Mr. Ref here, this month we went to Taqueria Mexico.  It was Grandpa's choice, he always picks Mexican food, he really likes the refreshments they have there.  Especially the ones "on the rocks" or "frozen" with salt on the rim of the glass.  I ordered a burrito, I usually get this when I go to Mexican restaurants, it was the Grande Burrito and it was not so Grande.  I thought it was rather small compared to other restaurants.  Probably because instead of filling it in across the middle, side to side, and rolling it around the filling, they put the fillings in the middle, folded it on both ends and then rolled it into a burrito.  This meant there was a lot less filling.  It tasted fine but it was nothing to write home about.

I did taste a few other items including the cow tongue that Josh ordered, and the cow tongue was better than I thought it might be.  That doesn't mean is was really good, I just did not expect it to be very good and it was fine, more tender than I thought it would be.

The chip and salsa were really good and I eat plenty of that, plus we ordered the cheese dip and it was very tasty.  The service was outstanding, they always keep the chips and salsa on the table and the glasses filled, without being a bother.  Overall I would have to say it was not on my top ten list for Mexican food, but it is worth a try if you like to try different places to see what you think.  I gave it a 3.25 out of 5.

Did anyone mention the salsa?

Authentic Mexican on the Boulevard!  Well, I don't know about authentic-- but it was authentic enough for this North American.  The chips and salsa were freely flowing at this Taqueria, and very tasty too!  Add a frozen margarita and Wallah!  Who needs an entrée?  There were so many potentially tasty delights that I settled on my Go To Mexican Entrée--quesadilla.  This time I ordered the shrimp quesadilla, just to change it up a bit.  Our waitress vouched for the shrimp and she was right--big, fresh, perfect textured shrimp nestled in a VERY generous portion of melted cheese, had a fine flavor but I definitely missed the peppers and onions.  The spicy salsa helped, but for me the cheese overwhelmed the dish a bit.
I really enjoyed Justin's crevich(sp?)  Never heard of it, never tried it, but I will definitely look for it next time.  What a treat!
Bottom line--this is one Mexican Restaurant that didn't disappoint!  Excellent service--bottomless chips and salsa--solid entrees.  Margarita's are "worth the calories" and after sipping on one or two....or three the Rating Points just keep adding up!
Final Score 4 of 5

Uncle Josh ate what?

Hi everybody. It's me, Luke, back to review another restaurant.

I liked Taqueria Mexico. I ate my carried-in dinner of cheese crackers and lima beans, but enjoyed eating a big portion of my mom's refried beans and rice. I loved the musicians. There were lots of other children and babies in the restaurant, so I felt right at home in my high chair.

Now I'm learning a lot these days, especially the names of body parts. I know nose, hand, foot, belly and mouth. Now I know another body part: tongue. It seems Uncle Josh ordered cow tongue for his dinner. Cows say "moo." Any kid can tell you that. It was a very educational outing.

Taqueria Mexico: Good service, great food and more

The Brothers Ski like Taqueria Mexico!

A few weeks back, the club met up for dinner at Taqueria Mexico on Southwest Boulevard. It was terrific.

We talked in and had the restaurant to ourselves. We were immediately greeted with smiles, followed by chips and salsa, which were tasty and generously refilled. We ordered a few pitchers of margaritas: one frozen, one on the rocks. Both were really delicious: just the right balance of sweet, tart and boozy.

The menu offered lots of options. I tried the Chile Rellenos: stuffed, battered and fried poblano peppers, served with rice and beans. They were very delicious and made for even tastier leftovers the next day. I enjoyed Justin's ceviche very much.

I think we all enjoyed our meals, so the restaurant received high marks. Esmeralda, our server, was very attentive. I gave it a 4/5 stars.

After kicking back after a huge meal, in walked in a band of roving musicians from Spain. They played and sang, which delighted all, especially the children in the restaurant. I hope to go back very soon.

A whole new meaning to the word "tasty"

This evening we gathered at Taqueria Mexico on Southwest Boulevard. My official review will come later. I just wanted to offer a little sample of the evening. Josh, this is for you:

Westside Local

July was a perfect month to visit Westside Local.   We were able to dine outside at picnic tables.  The area had grapevines growing and gardens in the back.   I ordered the BLT.  The sandwich was served on my favorite bread Farm to Market Grains galore, with a delicious tomato jam.  The bacon was also, quite good.   We had a couple of appetizers, mussels which I did not try, but the sauce they were in was delightful and another very good cheese plate.

I tried a couple of other items, Luke's hummus and Justin's lavender infused carrots.  The carrots were by far the best carrots I have ever eaten.  I have even tried to recreate them, with no success.

I give Westside Local 4.1/5.0

Happy Two Year Anniversary, GAS Club!!!

This month is the 2 year anniversary!  So, I did what all engineers do when they want to celebrate: I made a statistical analysis using Excel!!! PARTY!!!!

We have had 22 dinner outings. Here are the superlatives for the core All-Stars (excluding Grandpa):

Favorite Restaurant: Grunauer (4.950 Avg.)
Least Favorite Restaurant: Oklahoma Joe's (3.000 Avg.)
Note: Ratings of guest All-Stars included in this category.  Not all restaurants received the same number of reviews, perhaps to the their detriment or benefit.

Restaurant	Average
Grunauer	4.950
Farmhouse	4.767
Blue Nile	4.500
Anna's Oven	4.457
Pizza Bella	4.200
The Westside Local	4.025
Martin City Brewing Co.	3.950
Happy Gillis	3.950
Osteria Il Centro	3.944
Korma Sutra	3.850
Marakech	3.850
Louie's Wine Dive	3.750
BRGR	3.720
Blue Koi	3.664
Thai Place	3.650
Marco Polo	3.410
Coal Vines	3.340
G's Jamaican Quisine	3.317
BBs Lawnside	3.217
Guadalajara	3.071
Oklahoma Joe's	3.000
Sung Son	No Rating Given

Restaurant Most in Agreement About: Blue Nile (0.000 Review Standard Deviation)
Restaurant Least in Agreement About: BB's Lawnside (1.030 Review Standard Deviations)
Note: Oklahoma Joe's and Sung Son did not have enough reviews to calculate a standard deviation. Ratings of guest All-Stars included in this category.

Restaurant	Std. Dev.
Blue Nile	0.000
Grunauer	0.071
Korma Sutra	0.132
Thai Place	0.212
Louie's Wine Dive	0.238
Farmhouse	0.252
Pizza Bella	0.265
Martin City Brewing Co.	0.283
BRGR	0.303
Marco Polo	0.305
Anna's Oven	0.310
Osteria Il Centro	0.347
Coal Vines	0.383
Guadalajara	0.402
Marakech	0.495
Happy Gillis	0.514
G's Jamaican Quisine	0.609
The Westside Local	0.691
Blue Koi	0.834
BBs Lawnside	1.030
Oklahoma Joe's	N/A
Sung Son	N/A

Most reviews: Sara (20)
Least reviews: Erin (9)
Note: Some reviews did not have ratings.  This category is the total number of reviews, not ratings.  Sara and Beth tied for the most number ratings (17 each), and Justin and Erin tied for the least number of ratings (9 each).

Reviewer	Reviews
Sara	20
Beth	17
Josh	15
Becky	13
Richard	13
Justin	10
Erin	9

We also had 1 review each from guest All-Stars Michael and Porsia.

 

Most Generous Reviewer: Sara (4.153 Avg.)

Harshest Reviewer: Richard (3.404 Avg.)

 

Reviewer	Average Review
Sara	4.153
Erin	3.911
Becky	3.827
Justin	3.756
Beth	3.706
Josh	3.687
Richard	3.404

Most Consistent Reviewer: Becky (0.3903 Review Standard Deviation)

Least Consistent Reviewer: Richard (0.8632 Review Standard Deviation)

 

Reviewer	Review Std. Dev.
Becky	0.3903
Josh	0.4423
Erin	0.5183
Sara	0.5719
Justin	0.7333
Beth	0.7717
Richard	0.8632

 

 

Pre- Appetizer-of-Shame Review Rate: 30.4%

Post- Appetizer-of-Shame Review Rate: 77.6%

Pre- Bernie-of-Shame Review Rate: 60.4% (Overall Review Rate to date)

Post- Bernie-of-Shame Review Rate: ???

Note: The above rates assume each person has attended each outing, which is not the case. 

Westsiiiiiiiiiiide

Last month was my pick, and I chose The Westside Local, at 17th and Summit. This part of town is great with its rolling hills, hidden parks, and great restaurants. So I called for reservations, and when asked if I wanted to sit inside or out, I quickly checked the weather, saw a break in the heat, said a prayer to Gary Lezak (and a few Our Stormys and Hail Breezys), and picked the beer garden.

We brought Luke, and I was grateful that the restaurant was accommodating for our little dude. Happily they sat us at the far end of the garden, where we had a little room for Luke to wander when he got squirmy, and a large fan to drown out his cute squeals as a learns how to cope with impatience, the little stinker (read: annoying screaming, if he wasn't my kid). The restaurants garden was also just through the doorway at our end, so we could take a look and be jealous of how much better their garden is doing than ours - show-offs. Most importantly our corner gave plenty of room for Mom to show us all how to Bernie.

Under the comfort of the pergola, where a huge grape vine -- vine? -- where a huge grape tree roamed with full bunches of grapes, so fantastic in shape and color that I didn't believe they were real until Sara ate one, we started with cheese and mussels from our forgetful (but still dedicated) All-Stars. Great cheese, perfectly cut (heh, heh). Solid on the cheese. Mussels were also terrific, a little kick to them, if I remember, and the broth they were served in was perfect for bread sopping.

The menu selection was satisfactory, especially with it all being local, which I imagine gets some artistic license, because I got the trout, and I am not sure where the nearest trout farm is to KC. But maybe there is one close by. Maybe. The trout was great, very crispy on the outside, not overcooked on the inside, well seasoned. But the best part of my meal was the carrots. The lavender carrots: just-north-of-subtle lavender flavor on these perfectly tender, sweet carrots.

I also had some of mom's BLT, which was great. Good thick bacon, tomato jelly. Lettuce.

I had some of Sara's also, but I don't remember what it was. I think it was good, but I forgot. It was a month ago.

Luke had the hummus plate, which was great. And there were these like-pita crackers that were very good.

For dessert, we had bread pudding, and then we ate Josh's/Erin's/Mallory's bread pudding. It was delightful, especially Josh's/Erin's/Mallory's, suckers.

The service was good, our waitress was attentive and friendly, and didn't make us feel ostracized for bringing a toddler to a nice restaurant. Beer selection was good - like most decent KC restaurants, a healthy line-up of Boulevard, and some other crafts for good measure. Prices were reasonable for a nice restaurant.

Company was great as always. Sad that Grandpa couldn't join us, but special guest Mallory restored the balance. And mom ended the pleasant evening with another Bernie lesson on the street. 

Bonus: the market next door has huge piñatas!!!

I give The Westside Local a 4.7 out of 5. I mean, I wrote about the carrots - the carrots!!!  Justin, you nailed it again... you always do.

I leave you with this from the sage American artist, and apparent Westside Local aficionado, Tupac Shakur:

Throw it up y'all, throw it up, throw it up
Let's show these fools how we do this on that west side
Cause you and I know it's tha best side

Perfect Evening for Dinner on the West Side

July in Kansas City means heat and humidity and dinner is definitely an in-door activity this time of year.  But a brave (or insane) member of the Gas Club made OUTDOOR dinner reservations and couldn't have scored a better evening for it.  I don't have that kind of luck -- the Luck of the Irish -- or is it Polish luck? -- or maybe only people with Uni-brows have that kind of luck.  At any rate, we had a beautiful evening at Westside Local and when I think about it, I believe that really Kansas City was just shining very bright for our out of town guest from North Carolina.  Take THAT Tarheels!  You may have a basketball team that's in the Final Four every year, you may even have the beach; but when KC wants to show off, she has a few stars of her own!
There is much to enjoy at Westside Local.  The menu is brief, but nearly everything sounded good to me, so it was difficult to choose.  I decided upon the pasta special, but it did not rise up to that status.  The camponelli pasta itself was perfectly cooked and had a nice flavor, but the braised veggies and sauce made no impact on the dish.  While my main dish was forgettable, the cheese plate and mussels supplied by our blog-free June members puts Westside in the unforgettable category.
If you like outdoor picnic tables with grape laden vines for a roof, roll the dice and make your outdoor reservation.  If you prefer the cool, funky vibe of a smart, local scene--stick with the AC.  Either way--don't miss Westside Local!  Final score 4 of 5.

Westside Local

Mr. Ref here, last month we went to Westside Local and we had a new visitor to our group, Erin's younger sister attended the monthly family gathering, and what a gathering it was.  We chose to sit outside and enjoy the scenic plant life that was abundant and the temperature was not to bad.  I am not big on the heat and always prefer the AC, but even I had to say it was comfortable.  I had the "Local Pig Burger" which was actually a hamburger with some unusual fix-ins.  I enjoyed the burger and the unique flavors it presented with every bite.  Some of the Gasses had to splurge and provide the before dinner eats, we had the cheese plate and mussels, both were very good and there was plenty for all.  My meal was good but nothing spectacular, I gave it a 3.25 out of 5.

Beer Garden with Grape Vines

I was so glad that my little sister got to join us for GAS Club! We ventured down to a cute part of town to find a neat little place to dine. We sat outside, which was so neat! The grape vines that were growing along the lattice was such a neat touch. I ordered a very nice Free State Wheat beer that went great with the warm weather. The cheese platter was delicious. There was some great tastes on that platter. We also ordered a main course of muscles as an appetizer. I thought the muscles were a little tough, but the sauce was DELICIOUS! It was superb with the bread dipped into it. For dinner I ordered a pasta dish. It sounded wonderful, with veggies and a light sauce. I thought it would be a good summer dish. However, I was quite disappointed. I thought it was very bland and did not have much flavor. I did get to taste some things that I enjoyed: the carrots and French fries. I really enjoyed the atmosphere and enjoyed some of the other things I tried, but feel I made a poor choice. I give it a 3.5/5