PR's Taco Palace in College Park, FL

I visited PR's Taco Palace in College Park for lunch recently. This restaurant used to have a few locations, including one in Winter Park which was around forever and another in Longwood which was much shorter lived. As far as I know, their College Park location is the only PR's remaining.

I had the Lunch Combination, where you got to pick three items off the menu. I picked a tamale, something called a Truck Stop, and rice & beans. The Truck Stop was almost similar to a quesadilla, filled with cheese and beef pressed (and possibly fried) in a tortilla. The Tamale was smothered in cheese. Rice and beans were pretty standard. It was interesting that the normal sides counted as an item for the combination. I had the option of picking something which would be considered more of an entree in place of the rice and beans.

Pretty standard of what I'd expect from a Tex-Mex lunch special. Everything was good, but nothing ground breaking. It's good to know that there is still a PR's Taco Palace still around in Orlando...

4R Cantina Food Truck at Disney Springs

4R Cantina Food Truck recently opened at Disney Springs. Similar to the other 4 Rivers locations, smoked meats were served here but with a Mexican twist. They had standard items including tacos, quesadillas, and nachos, but the one item everyone was talking about was the taco cone.

I had the Brisket Barbacoa Taco Cone. The cone was made from a deep fried tortilla spiraled into a cone shape. This was filled with shredded brisket, lettuce, guacamole, sour cream, pico de gallo, queso, cilantro, jalapeno, and lime. It was all very tasty and the cone shape made it mobile with the food truck's lack of seating. My complaint about the whole thing was the shape of cone and getting to the bottom. There was plenty of good stuff like guacamole and sour cream at the top, but it was hard to mix up those ingredients to the bottom since the cone got narrower and narrower. Regardless, I very much enjoyed my taco cone!

Tijuana Flats Cheeseburger Tacos

Tijuana Flats invited me to one of their Orlando locations to sample some of their new menu items, specifically the new Cheeseburger Tacos and fries.

Tortilla chips, salsa, guacamole, and queso are always on the menu at Tijuana Flats.

The seasoned fries were good. They were crispy with a peppery flavor. Once they were dipped in queso, I'm sure the fries became healthier...

The Cheeseburger Taco was a tortilla filled with ground beef, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes plus pickles, ketchup and mustard. You get two tacos with seasoned fries for $7.89.

The Cheeseburger Tacos and fries are available at Tijuana Flats through the end of August. Go try them while you can!

Pepper's Mexican Grill & Cantina in Fernandina Beach, FL

I had dinner in the historic downtown section of Fernandina Beach. When I found out that my first choice for dinner was only open for lunch on Sunday, I explored and found Pepper's Mexican Grill & Cantina.

I had the Enchiladas De Camaron. These were corn tortillas stuffed with grilled shrimp, then topped with creamy tequila sauce. Rice and black beans were served on the side. It was interesting and unusual to see an enchilada that didn't contain cheese at a Mexican restaurant. The shrimp were larger than average and the creamy sauce was very tasty. The rice and beans were both unfortunately a little bland tasting.

Earls Kitchen + Bar in Orlando, FL

I had lunch at a newish restaurant called Earls Kitchen + Bar in the Mall at Millenia. They are one of the strange outer restaurants that are in the main mall building, but aren't accessible from inside the mall itself. I'm not sure what Earls replaced. I had never eaten at whatever it was.

I had the Chicken Pibil Tacos. The two tacos were served on corn tortillas with nicely marinated chicken, topped with cheese, radish slices, pickled onions, and cilantro. The tacos came with a side and I choose the caesar salad.

The tacos were pretty tasty, but a bit pricey at $14. I've been to plenty of other actual Mexican restaurants in town where I can equivalent, if not better tacos for under $3 each. The caesar salad didn't make up the value difference. I guess they have to make that money for expensive mall rent somehow...

Tijuana Flats Flat Outrageous Menu

Tijuana Flats has added a new section to their menu. They call it Flat Outrageous. This new Flat Outrageous menu features street tacos, flautas, and tostadas. I was recently invited to one of the newest Tijuana Flats locations in Orlando near Millenia to sample some of the items from the new menu.

Tijuana Trio: Chips, salsa, queso, and guac. Not from the new Flat Outrageous section of the menu, but chips and dips are always a standard.

Crispy Baja Fish Street Tacos: Crispy fish, chipotle crema, shaved cilantro cabbage, and pineapple salsa.

Jerk Chicken Street Tacos: Crispy jerk chicken, MoreFire! hot sauce, shaved cilantro cabbage, pineapple salsa, and cotija cheese. Of the street tacos, this one was my favorite. It had much more heat than I'd expect from tacos in a chain restaurant.

Lime Steak Street Tacos: Grilled garlic-lime steak, avocado crema, shaved cilantro cabbage, pico de gallo, and cotija cheese.

Philly Cheesesteak Flautas: Cripsy tortillas stuffed with shaved sirloin steak, mozzarella cheese, grilled onions & peppers served with queso.

Bangin' Chicken Tostadas: Cripsy corn tortillas with Smack My Asss Bangin' Chicken, refried beans, cheddar jack cheese, grilled onions & peppers, tomatoes, and ranch dressing. Another item that I really enjoyed. I think this is what I'll be ordering on my next visit to Tijuana Flats.

Cookie Dough Flautas: Chocolate chip cookie dough in a flour tortilla, lightly fried and topped with powdered sugar. Served with a side of chocolate syrup.

San Antonio Food: Casa Rio and Mangonadas

After a few days in Austin, I headed south in Texas to San Antonio for a day. Everyone who I spoke to in Austin told me I'd be terribly disappointed with the city and not to waste my time with the two hour drive to San Antonio. I'm not sure why San Antonio has a horrible reputation among Austin residents, but I throughly enjoyed my day exploring the city. I toured Spanish missions, I rented a bike and rode along the San Antonio river. When it was dinner time, I found myself in the San Antonio River Walk section of downtown. I took the canal tour boat ride and had a restaurant called Casa Rio pointed out...

Casa Rio:

Casa Rio is the oldest restaurant along the San Antonio River Walk. That little factoid made me decide to have dinner there. I ate outside along the river where there were nice views of passing boats, people strolling, and a gang of attack ducks that were going up to tables then biting diners if they weren't fed. It was very entertaining.

I ordered the Deluxe Dinner. This came with a cheese enchilada, tamale, crispy beef taco, chili con carne, chili con queso, mexican rice, refried beans, and a guacamole salad. It sounds like a lot of food, but I didn't realize how much it actually was until food started being delivered to my table. I got a basket of chips and salsa first. This was soon followed by the guacamole salad. Their guacamole salad was shredded lettuce and chopped tomatoes topped with a big scoop of guacamole. Tortilla chips covered in queso also came out with the salad.

The plate with the rest of the food soon followed. Standout items on the plate were the the tamale and the chili con carne. As with many Mexican restaurants, everything else was pretty standard and tasty enough.

At $11.25, all this food was pretty reasonable. Nice environment and good food. I'd return to Casa Rio.




Cathedral of San Fernando Food Stand:
Later that evening I went to the Cathedral of San Fernando where they had a projection mapped light show on the outside of the building. In the park outside the cathedral, there were a few food trucks and a couple permanent food stands feeding the tourists.

One of the permanent food stands had an interesting menu. They had corn in a cup, mangonadas, and funnel cakes. I had never heard of a mangonada before, so I decided to give it a try.

It turned out a mangonada was basically a Mexican version of an Italian ice. I had a mix of strawberry and lime. It was served in a large cup. The mangonada was sweet and refreshing!

Black Rooster Taqueria in Orlando, FL

I tried a new Mexican restaurant on Mills in Orlando called Black Rooster Taqueria. This was a quick service type place where you ordered at a counter, given a number, and had the food delivered to your table. I ordered two tacos: the Achiote Pork and the Chicken Tinga. The achiote pork taco consisted of a corn tortilla stuffed with slow roasted pork cooked in banana leaf, achiote, pickled onion, cilantro, and habanero salsa. The chicken tinga was also served on a corn tortilla filled with pulled roasted chicken, chipotle chile-tomato sauce, lettuce, and crema fresca.

Of the two tacos, I preferred the Achiote Pork. The meat was nice and tender and pickled onions were a nice touch. I wasn't a big fan of the chicken tinga. The chicken was a bit chewy and the lettuce and sour cream were spilling out of the tortilla before I even tried picking up the taco. The tacos also could have been improved if they used double layered tortillas. The single corn tortilla got soggy and was starting to rip as I was eating the tacos. A second tortilla would have helped. Another improvement for Black Rooster in general would have been to put orders on the correct plates. We had ordered multiple achiote pork tacos. They all were served together with other wrong taco combinations on other plates. Actually putting tacos together as they were ordered would have saved some messy rearranging.

Overall, Black Rooster Taqueria was okay. Not the best tacos I've had, but not the worst. I think I'd prefer a Mexican restaurant serving a little more authentic tacos for a lower price point over Back Rooster, but I still might return here eventually...


 

Tacos Norteno in Winter Garden, FL

Tacos Norteno is a Mexican restaurant in Winter Garden which I've visited several times now. It just might even be one of my favorite Mexican restaurants in Orlando at the moment.

You order at a counter, then find a seat. While you're waiting, they have complementary chips to go with your meal. The best part about these chips is the salsa bar. This has all sorts of sauces along with other toppings to go with your food. I'm particularly fond of the creamy avocado sauce...

Chicken Salsa Verde Enchiladas were tasty. The chicken filled tortillas were topped with cheese and tomatillo sauce, served alongside rice and refried beans.

Chicken Big Floured Enchilada. This was my least favorite thing I've tried here. It was like a giant burrito topped with a queso sauce. The fillings in here were pretty monotonous and I wasn't a big fan of the queso. It got a bit of a slimy consistency as the enchilada cooled.

I've noticed that who takes your order determines how customizable they are willing to be here. I've tried the Three Taco Plate which comes with rice and beans a few times. Sometimes they will let you mix and match taco fillings. Other times they tell you all three tacos must contain the same meat. On one of the occasions where they wouldn't mix, I had three of their Al Pastor Tacos. The marinated roast pork was topped with cheese. I dressed the tacos up with toppings from the salsa bar.

On one of the visits when Tacos Norteno would customize, I had the three tacos filled with Asada y Chorizo, Pollo, and Al Pastor. They're pictured here after they were dressed up with cilantro, pickled onions, and sour cream from the Salsa Bar. I think the Al Pastor is my favorite of the types of tacos I've tried here. The pork was tender and has a nice, slightly sweet flavor. Chicken was pretty good, but the steak in the asada y chorizo was a little chewy. Otherwise, these were good tacos!

Tacos Norteno is one of those restaurants that I seem to return to whenever I'm in the west Orlando area. I mean to try new places out here, but the tacos and salsa bar here keep on calling my name...

 

Tortilleria La Mexicana #11 in Longwood, FL

I had lunch one afternoon from Tortilleria La Mexicana #11 in Longwood. They are located in a small strip mall near the intersection of 434 and 427. The restaurant is attached to a convenience store, selling various products. The Mexican convenience store has been in this location for as long as I remember, but the food is a relatively new addition. I'm assuming by the #11 that this is part of a Tortilleria La Mexicana chain.

I ordered three tacos. I tried the Pollo, Chorizo, and Al Pastor. Each taco was served in a corn tortilla. These were interesting. They weren't completely soft, but they didn't have the consistency of hard shelled fried tortillas either. They were still soft and pliable, but had a bit more character. I am guessing the tortillas were pan fried. Each of the tacos was topped with onions and cilantro, with lime slices to squeeze over top and salsas on the side. As for the meats, the pollo was a little plain. The chicken was shredded into fine strips and was good enough. Similar to my experience at El Taco Amigo in Deland, I was unable to tell which meat was the al pastor and which was chorizo. Both were good, but in terms of taste, texture, and appearance, both meats were very similar.

I enjoyed my visit to Tortilleria La Mexicana. The tacos were good, the prices were very affordable, and I now know where to get good tacos in Longwood. I'll be back...

Zona Fresca in Winter Park, FL

Zona Fresca is a new restaurant which has recently opened in Ravaudage near the intersection of Lee Road and 17-92. This fast-casual restaurant serves fresh, healthy, Baja-Style Mexican food. They are based out of South Florida and this is Zona Fresca's first Central Florida location. I was invited to give Zona Fresca a try, and I did enjoy what I sampled!

I started out with the Pozole Soup. In all my experience eating in Mexican restaurants, I don't think I have ever ordered soup. This soup had braised chicken, hominy, onions, cilantro, and radishes in a guajillo chili broth. I very much enjoyed the soup, and may be my favorite dish out of everything I sampled at Zona Fresca.

I had a sampling of tacos on the Three Street Taco Plate. I tried the Chicken Breast, Machaca, and Baja Fish tacos. Each was served on a double layer of corn tortillas. Of the three, the Chicken Breast taco was my favorite, exceeding my expectations. The chicken was topped with cactus, avocado, cilantro, onions, and a lemony dressing. With a meat that had the potential to be bland, the combinations of toppings on the chicken taco made it burst with flavor. The Machaca was my second favorite. I don't think I've ever ordered machaca at a Mexican restaurant before. This was slowly braised shredded beef, topped with poblanos, tomato, and queso fresco. It reminded me a bit of ropa vieja with the shredded beef being tender and flavorful. The Baja Fish Taco was my least favorite of the three. Nothing wrong with the taco, but the fried fish topped with cabbage, pico, and tangy dressing really didn't have anything that stood out.

I also tried the Chili Rellenos. Two charbroiled poblano peppers stuffed with jack and cheddar cheese, served with black beans, cilantro rice, and pico de gallo. The peppers had a nice charred flavor and were very tasty.

I had the Flan for dessert. Can't go wrong with custard-like desserts topped with honey.

I liked everything I sampled at Zona Fresca. When it comes to Mexican fast food chains in the area, I enjoyed Zona Fresca more than some of their competition. The menu provided interesting flavors not typically found at non-sit down Mexican restaurants. I'll be returning...

Casa Bonita in Denver, CO

I had never heard of Casa Bonita in Denver. Before going, I was discussing my upcoming trip with someone who had just returned from Colorado. I was told that Casa Bonita is a horrible restaurant that I must visit. Horrible and must visit aren't two phrases that often go together with restaurants, so I made up my mind that I must go!

Located in the corner of a strip mall, you enter and order your food at a counter. It is handed to you almost immediately, which I'm assuming means everything is pretty much pre-made. You are then brought to your table. This leads you into an open area overlooking cliffs, waterfalls filling a pool down below, a town, and more. I see some definite inspiration for Epcot's Mexico Pavilion in Casa Bonita.

Chips and salsa were included in the meal, like most Mexican restaurants.

I had the Chile Rellenos Platter for my main course. I was honestly expecting crazy priced bad food, but the prices here were equivalent to other Mexican restaurants and the food was tasty enough. The platter came with two chile rellenos, rice, refried beans, guacamole, and sour cream. The serving size was very large and definitely filled me up.

Two Sapodillas were served for dessert with a bottle of honey for a topping. I was stuffed at this point, but I ate them along with my other food very slowly to stall. Stalling is important here because those cliffs and waterfalls in the center of Casa Bonita aren't just pretty decorations. Corny shows happen every fifteen minutes on the cliffs.

While I was eating, there was fire juggling, a cowboy gunfight, and a show with a guy in a gorilla suit. Every one of these bits ended in somebody diving off a cliff into the pool below. It was all extremely corny, but much more enjoyable to watch than some other themed restaurants like this that I've visited (like the Jeckyll and Hyde Club).

After I was done eating, I wandered around the restaurant for a while. I ventured into El Mercado, which was Casa Bonita's gift shop.

I also ventured into Black Bart's Cave. This dark, winding cave took me past pirates, paper mache monsters, buried treasure, and all sorts of cool stuff. It reminded me of something from Orlando's old Mystery Fun House.

I am totally glad I listened to the advise to visit Casa Bonita. This was probably the best Mexican restaurant I've visited that was described to me as horrible!