In search of good Mexican - Life after Morelos Mexican Grill

Several weeks ago, J the BF and I were horrified to discover that our favorite Mexican place, Morelos Mexican Grill had closed. We shouldn't have been surprised. As they changed ownership and somewhere along the way lost their liquor license and started cheapening the dishes, we noticed that the dining room was increasingly empty over the last few months. It's a shame - their Tres Amigos Enchiladas (an enchi-trifecta of ranchera, green chile, and mole-covered heaven) was one of my favorite dishes in the Twin Cities.

Now we are Mexican cuisine refugees. Our over-priced haute-Mexican option, El Indio has apparently been evicted from their space (the place is fully furnished, but the windows are covered in no-trespassing signs). Little Tijuana, a block away from Morelos, is a total barf-fest. I find Pepitos over-rated. I even checked out El Paraiso on my own to see if it was an option as it had good ratings. There was so much cheese in my enchilada, I couldn't taste anything else and became instantly worried about my heart health.

I think I'll agree with the Citypages blog that our best option is Salsa a la Salsa now. We enjoyed their outpost in the Midtown Global Market, so we'll be giving their Eat Street location a visit as it's closer to our neighborhood. When we have an enchilada fix, it needs to be serviced stat! Send us some suggestions for other options if you got 'em - we are desparate.

Let 'er cook a little longer - Indio Mexican Cuisine

After much anticipation for Indio - the new Mexican place in Uptown, I failed to follow my own rules of avoiding new restaurants in their first week of being opened. The smells wafting out as I walked past and seeing the warmly candle-lit space that had been empty for months enticed me to give it a try about a week ago. J the BF and I walked over to check it out for a late Friday dinner.

The menu is a mix of usual suspects for appetizers with a Yucatan-inspired upscale portfolio for the main courses. They offer a decent happy hour menu and the cocktail list looks promising. The wine lists is limited, but acceptable. In terms of execution on all this . . . well?

We started with their Huasteco (guacamole) which was very chunky, fresh and flavorful, but served with a scant amount of freshly fried tortilla chips. J had the Flauto de Pato (Duck Flautas) while I veered toward the adobo marinated seared ahi tuna served over roasted mashed potatoes with tequila lime butter and pineapple relish. I found my dish very good, though basic with a slightly messy presentation, while J was not as impressed with his.

While we were relatively pleased with the food, we were victimized by the usual new restaurant blues. J's Diet Coke arrived as a flat metallic syrup over ice, while my cocktail, a Mojito A La Diabla (basically a mojito with chile de arbol) arrived flat and flavorless as well. Clearly, their fountain was not calibrated or working properly. The service was painfully slow, due in part to them having to hand-write and process orders, and our server was awkward, nervous and at one point locked herself out of the back door. Some patron sitting near the back took pity on her and let her back in.

All in all, Indio has promise and the makings of a good neighborhood place (if you don't mind dropping about $50 - $70 for dinner for 2), but we're going to let her simmer for a few weeks to work out the bugs before we go back.

Mexican in Uptown update

Got the scoop from Jesse, one of my trainers, on the new Mexican place going in the old Pizza Nea space. It is called El Indio and is run by the same folks that own El Meson and Cafe Ena.

Supposed to be in the tradition of what your Mexican grandma would cook for you, if she happened to be Mexican. They were hoping to open tonight, but they are still waiting for some permits (and they looked like they were trying to make some repairs to the door). Maybe this weekend, but I usually like to wait for a new place to sort itself out before becoming a test case for new staff.

Mexican coming to Uptown?!

As if watching Food Network during my cardio workouts wasn't enough to undue my body's war against gravity, it looks like a new Mexican restaurant is going in next door to the Fitness Together training studio where I pay overly pumped dudes to hurt me 2 - 3 times/week. The space was formally occupied by the tasty, but unremarkable Pizza Nea, who closed that location earlier this year. Though renovations are not yet complete, they were training staff tonight so an opening must be imminent.

While my neighborhood (Uptown Minneapolis) is not hurting from loosing yet another pizza joint (we are also over represented with Thai restaurants, sushi places, hair salons and "glass shops"), Mexican Cuisine (and I'm not talking Burritos) has been a painful gap in our walking-distance choices for chow. My brain was too wiped post work-out to remember the name of the new establishment, but I'm intrigued and have high hopes. I'm curious about what they'll do with that Neapolitan wood-fired pizza oven left there by the pizza folks though.

More details to come (Update as of 3/20/08 available here).

A new recipe from my kitchen - Creamy Rice&Beans

Inspired by those burritos-as-big-as-your-head at Chipotle, I pulled together this dish to go with grilled chicken for a meal a few weeks ago. I always feel guilty for consuming those buggers, but this side dish gives me what I crave and I can just have a small 1/2 cup serving with a more respectable piece of lean grilled chicken and a nice green salad. I also have this recipe posted on Grouprecipes.com

• 1/2 cup white jasmine rice (uncooked)


• 3/4 cup chicken stock (or broth)


• 2 cloves of garlic - peeled and smashed


• Fresh Juice of 1 lime


• 1 can black beans - rinsed and drained


• 1/4 cup low fat sour cream


• 1/4 cup shredded mexican-blend cheese


• 1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro


• 1/2 tsp Chile Powder


• Salt to taste

1. Stir together rice, stock and garlic in medium saucepan


2. Heat on medium-high heat to boiling


3. Stir once, cover and reduce heat to low


4. Simmer rice on low heat for 20 minutes or until liquid is almost absorbed


5. Add lime juice to rice


6. Re-cover rice and continue to simmer for 2 additional minutes


7. Lightly fluff rice with fork and stir in black beans - re-cover and heat additional 3 minutes or until beans are heated


8. Remove rice from heat


9. Stir in sour cream, cheese, cilantro and chile powder until well blended


10. Add Salt to taste


11. Serve immediately!

Creamy Rice And Beans @ Group Recipes

NYC (3of5) Dos Caminos - Heavenly "Mexican" in Soho

Our agency partners in New York set up some "team development" time at a Mexican restaurant in Soho called Dos Caminos. When I arrived, folks were huddled around the bar looking out onto the impossibly glamorous patio enjoying their signature margaritas and south-of-the-border inspired cocktails. I sparked the curiosity of my business colleagues by ordering a "Cosmo del Diablo" which was as wickedly good as it sounds. Svedka Vodka infused with 5 Chiles, Pineapple, Passion Fruit all shaken and served on the rocks. It reminded me of my favorite margarita - the Mango Mariachi - at my neighborhood standard Bar Abilene. Sweet and spicy with a little kick-in-ass where it counts.

By the time we were seated for dinner, several of the group of 20 diners had followed me down the Diablo road. They went down a little too quickly and I certainly did not want to be "that guy" at the company function who drank too much, said too much and got way too comfortable in mixed professional company. Good thing I metered it out, otherwise, I would have missed the nuances of a fabulous meal.

Appetizers were pre-ordered for us and came out in bountiful quantities - a decadent cazuela de queso dip, crispy stuffed seafood empanadas and fresh colorful salads. I feared that I would be too stuffed to enjoy the main course - a gorgeously grilled skirt steak with this amazing sauce drizzled over the top - superb and melt-in-your-mouth tender. I ended the meal with the Oaxacan chocolate mousse cake, spiked with morita chile and accompanied by pistachio ice cream. Sounds almost over-the-top, but with the mousse foundation it was actually a lighter, well rounded end to the meal. My list of must-returns for NYC is definitely growing.

Papas del Sol (Potatoes of the sun)

I've been a bad blogger - but summer's here so time for new experiments in the kitchen.

Potatoes have crept back into my regular diet as a starch alternative to rice, so I'm trying to find new ways to eat them rather than mashed or baked (nuked in my case). I decided to take some cooked red potatoes and pair them with some nice sunny Mexican inspired flavors (thus - potatoes of the sun). The lime juice tames the heat of the peppers and adds a sunny flavor to boring old potatoes.

Ingredients:

1lb small red potatoes, quartered
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 medium jalapeño chili, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
1/2 cup green onions, thinly sliced
Juice of one lime
1/4 cup coarse chopped cilantro
1 tsp Smoked Spanish Paprika
2 tbls Olive Oil
Salt to taste

Method:

1) Boil potato for 10 minutes or until cooked, but still al dente firm - drain
2) Heat large saute pan over med-high heat - add oil when hot
3) Add Garlic and Jalapeño - saute until chilis soften and garlic starts to brown
4) Add small amount of green onion and drained potato quarters
5) Gently toss the potatoes to coat with oil.
6) Sprinkle with salt and paprika and toss until well blended
7) Heat for 3 -4 minutes until potatoes are lightly browned
8) Sprinkle with Lime juice to tame the heat of the peppers
9) Pour into serving bowl - top with cilantro and green onions

I served this with shrimp sauted with ancho chili powder, garlic, salt and olive oil finished with a splash of silver Tequila. To get something green on the plate, I roasted some asparagus - I'll be smelling that tomorrow! Overall, a small risk in the kitchen from my curiosity that did not kill the cat.

3 days of Mexican

This was not planned, but I've just completed a three day Mexican series - sort-of . . .

Friday:
After the Of Montreal concert at First Avenue, my companions and I dropped in at the Chevy's "Fresh Mex"; downtown for Margaritas and snacks before braving the "Y'all Come Back Saloon" - a local institution that never ceases to be popular with the boys. I had eaten dinner earlier in the evening, so I ordered the "Guac My Way" which was promised to be a table-side fresh preparation of Guacamole just as I wanted it. The cheerfully flirtatious server bounded over with a tray of fresh avocados and various accoutrements so that he could try to match my taste preferences. I asked for it chunky, spicy, a touch garlicky and a some salt for good measure. To my horror, his bowls contained garlic powder, very sad looking chopped tomotoes and no salt to speak of. In the end, it ended up bland and tasteless despite his best intentions. After sucking down the 12oz "Blue Agave" margarita, I decided to forgive him and Chevy's for their transgressions. It was just confirmation that if I want a good bowl of Guac - My way - I have to make it myself.

Saturday:
In preparation for my Sunday dinner, we decided to drop by the Midtown Global Market to pick up some things that I didn't trust my local grocery store to carry in good quality (ripe plantains, Mexican queso fresco, and fresh tomatillos). We were pleasantly surprised to see how busy the stalls and shops were on a Saturday night. We opted to cap off our shopping with dinner at "A la Salsa"; - one of the few sit-down establishments in the market that has been getting rave reviews. I started the meal with the first of my 2for1 Mojitos which tasted much like the kind I get when I'm in Mexico or the Caribbean - light on the lime, balanced on the mint and sugar, and just enough rum to make it worth the while. We moved on to the first course of Tostones con Camarones where they took thick fried planks of plantains and topped them with perfectly grilled shrimp topped with this delicious spicy mango salsa. My main course, a Pollo en Mole Poblano - a delicious quarter chicken covered in a rich, ever so slightly sweet mole sauce with two savory tamales on the side - was a delicious exercise in simple complexity. I love a good mole poblano that can balance out the sweet, the chocolate, and the various spices to make it a brain-tingling experience. The A la Salsa folks did not disappoint.

Sunday:
I cooked for us tonight and reached for my friend Rick Bayless for inspiration. I live and die by his "Mexican Everyday"; cookbook so I picked two recipes for this meal: Gulf Coast Rice Pilaf with black beans and plantains supporting Spinach/Mushroom Enchiladas in Salsa Verde. While the pilaf was very good, the enchiladas again stole the show. The sauce is a simple mixture of fresh tomatillos, garlic and jalapeno chilies reduced and then balanced with some stock and crème fraiche. Although the assembly is messy (you dip the tortillas in the sauce, roll in the filling and serve, rather than rolling in the fillings, saucing and baking before serving) the result is fresh, fragrant and intoxicating. I paired this meal with a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon that I opened yesterday, but kept fresh in my newly refurbished "Pek Supremo" wine preservation system. More on that in a future update.