Mi Cocina- HP 1.28.09

I never quite understood the allure of the Mi Cocina Highland Park location.  The tipsy housewives in tennis skirts and mobs of young children running between tables always made me dizzy and fearful.  But at a recent Quesorita event, A&E explained about the 3rd floor secret bar up the hidden staircase and through the stained glass doors.  Secret password not necessary! Maybe my opinion of this "family friendly" chain would change?  

And oh how it changed.  This is where all the tipsy singles go!!  As Dallas was recovering from the Icestorm of 09, the Quesorita crew headed to Mi Cocina HP for some frozen treats of our own.  As I entered this new found paradise, I started to see why D Magazine rated it best Tex-Mex (disputed by the Quesorita movement) in town.  I hope it wasn't for the food (see queso ratings below), but Mi Cocina HP is winning for "best atmosphere."

As you walk in those beautiful doors, there is a long bench seat along a completely windowed wall facing you and tiny wicker tables just large enough for your Mambo Taxi.  When it's warmer, all the windows are opened and a nice breeze comes in and all you can see are the tops of the trees.  You would have no idea that you're in the middle of Dallas, much less in the middle of a large shopping complex.  It's comfortable, casual, and inviting as it's more or less family style seating.  Service is good, but know they only serve drinks and apps up here.  I can't wait to return when it's warm out.

As for the queso... it was odd.  K-So nailed it when she said it tasted like chicken.  It really does! It wasn't that runny ball park style fake cheese, but it wasn't much better.  I'm convinced it was thickened with corn starch.  Colors disguised as vegetables were present, but there was a lot of salsa mixing going on to kick it up a notch.  Don't worry we finished the whole disappointing bowl.

As for the ritas.... they were yummy.  I feel like D Magazine should have instead listed the Mambo Taxi as one of "The 10 Best Things To Do in Dallas."  Much more appropriate.  I envision the article listing going something like this.......  

"A trip to Dallas is not complete without a stop at one of the many Mi Cocina restaurants scattered across the city and suburbs.  If you are looking for a happy hour spot, then a stop by the Mi Cocina 3rd floor rooftop bar is a must.  Order a Mambo Taxi (frozen lime margarita expertly swirled with some extreme proofed sangria) if you're up for an adventurous night.  About halfway through your rita, you will notice that your frustrating feeling left over from work is gone, and you're floating amongst the trees you see outside the windows.  If you start to chirp like the beautiful birds you see, then you know you should not have ordered that second Mambo Taxi.  They're deadly.  Quietly excuse yourself and hail a real cab."

The Quesorita Movement recommends Mi Cocina HP definitely for it's atmosphere, with confidence for it's Mambo Taxis, and not so much for it's queso.  Just saying.....

Queso                1.5/4

Ritas                  3.5/4 (extra points if you can handle that second)

Atmosphere     10/4

Thanks so much to everyone who follows the blog.  We definitely appreciate your comments and suggestions and will be reviewing some of these places in the coming weeks.  Spread the word- Quesorita, The Movement.

Matt's Rancho Martinez January 14th

I have to say, I am a little sad- I found ANOTHER DALLAS QUESO BLOG- it is called Blog Con Queso. But when I saw they have not posted since 2007- i felt a little better....
This week we decided to up the ante and hit Matt's in Lakewood.
history first....
The Matt's legend began more than 50 years ago in Austin, when Matt Martinez Sr. opened the original Matt's El Rancho. After a move to Dallas, Matt Jr. opened this spinoff in Lakewood, now managed by his son, Matt Martinez III. Contrary to popular myth Mattito's is no longer related to Matt's- it is now owned by someone named Jeff Frankel (shout out). Hence- the difference in their off the menu Bob Armstrong dip and what you will read about below.
Now- back to the quesorita...
The first arrivals got the original Bob Armstrong and top shelf margaritas on the rocks- the second wave opted for a vegetarian version of the Bob Armstrong and I think we might have stumbled on to the MOST PERFECT QUESO EVER!!!! Now, for those not familiar with this little piece of heaven- the Bob Armstrong dip has a scoop of sour cream and guacamole on top and usually ground beef which most people would be psyched about- but some times God rewards you for not eating animals- the Bob Armstrong Dip is beyond but the Bob Armstrong Dip without beef is even better (carnivores at the table agree!)
HEAVEN. plain and simple. Best queso, Best margaritas thus far, maybe ever. Not the cheapest ($8.50 per huge bowl of queso) but worth every penny.
Here are the scores-
Margaritas- 4/4 (swirls, top shelf)
Queso- 5/4

Shout outs to the friends we haven't met yet who have left comments, we can't believe you found our blog and liked it! If you have suggestions of places for us to check out- we would love to hear them!

Oh yeah, who is Bob Armstrong- thank you Blog con Queso friends- we are keeping your dream alive....

Herrera's on Maple

 
I must confess that I felt a little pressure when I volunteered to write the blog for quesorita this week. No, not THAT kind of pressure. THAT pressure was because I ate too many beans. Not only is this the first quesorita blog of 2009, it is our first quesorita WITHOUT margaritas. I will do my best.
When you look up “Hole-in-the-Wall” in the dictionary, Herrera’s on Maple is what you will find. Their service was speedy, chips hot, salsa spicy, queso lumpy (in a good way) and liquor license non-existent.
I will start with the queso…Upon arrival to our table, I have to admit that I gave it one look and thought, “Great, it’s that Sysco powdered, flavorless, orange/yellow *%#@!.” Then we tasted it. It was surprisingly good. The closer we got to the bottom, as only Shelby and I know because we were the only two still eating it, the better it got. The onions and peppers were all there waiting to be scooped up by only a truly devoted queso lover. L.E. thought it was “fluffy” and “too airy” but other than the way it looked, it tasted pretty darn good.
Queso: 2.5-2.65/4
Again, this place does NOT serve any kind of alcohol…have no fear, Herrera’s is situated along a street catering to the thristy B.Y.O.B.ers. We got a six pack of Tecate and a six pack of Pacifico with which we washed down several plates of yummy food. Lauren (that crazy girl) got the Crazy Nachos-loaded with tac0 meat, shredded chicken, beans, cheese, guacamole, sour cream and jalapenos. Rich had the Huevos Rancheros, Shelby didn’t eat because he was bloated and begging Lauren to “pull his finger”. I had the “Number 10” which consisted of one chalupa smothered with guacamole, one cheese enchilada (I substitooted the meat sauce for a greener one) and one cheese soft taco. It was delicious. After several inappropriate wrestling jokes, The DJ (Angela) arrived to have her Quesorita cherry popped. She refused the hazing rituals even though we promised to go easy on her but she did agree to help us finish the leftovers. Unfortunately, L.E. had to leave before she could sample the food. I think she would have liked her options considering there were several vegetarian plates on the menu.
After paying at the cash register up front (the entire bill for ALL 6 of us was 33 dollars!!!) we realized that we still needed to discuss/recruit more peeps for Surf Camp, so we sat back down, cracked another beer and talked about stuff for an hour or so…
We would all like to go back to Herrera’s at some point, it would be kind of silly not to. The prices are UNBEATABLE!!!
Shelby’s Inappropriate Joke of the Day:
"My girlfriend isn’t very good at wrestling, but you should see her box!"
Looking forward to many more Quesoritas in 2009 when we go global!!!
PURA VIDA, QUESARITA!!!
Kelly (K-so) out!

Chuy's 12/10/08 O.M.G.

"as i sit here in my empty classroom my thoughts wander to a happier place, a place where jalapeno ranch flows like wine. i wish i could speed up the hands of time most wednesdays, today is no different. even though a chill is in the air, my heart is filled with warmth just knowing that in a mere nine hours, i will be sitting down in a retro, stainless steel wrapped vinyl covered chair dipping my first of many crispy chips into countless bowls of goodness." -kelly

As you all can tell we were EXCITED about this one. A free queso bar? Sphincter says what? Balls in all y'alls faces!

We got there and had the prime queso eating table. I'm sure it was because they knew we were the Quesorita crew. Above my head was a lovely mural that read, "She thought he wanted her heart but all he wanted was her taco." Gross. We all had to eat mounds of queso and creamy jalapeno to get over the disgusting painting.

Served out of the trunk of an old car was the queso, jalapenos, refried beans, and taco meat which we proceeded to make all sorts of concoctions with. Atkins queso, Chunky queso soup, Queso and beans, Queso with meat, etc. The waitstaff was getting a little irritated with our table as every time they came around there was all sorts of mess on the table, and we begged the waiter each time to refill the queso and creamy jalapeno dip. The queso was good enough to stand alone. It was not the runny nacho cheese, but a little thicker with some nice spices and a few colorful things disguised as vegetables. And then of course was heaven. Creamy jalapeno ranch dip/dressing. I didn't know it could get better, but a light dunk of a chip through the ranch followed by a plow through the queso was AWESOME!

Margs were a little above average. It was nice that their regular margaritas were on special, even the dot which is a regular frozen lime margarita with a dot of strawberry margarita on top. It was a nice change from the typical sangria swirls. Rocks was better than frozen, and the Father Agave margarita rocked!

Then it happened.... the food coma. We were all talking about our ratings for this week and had just given the overall experience a 4/4 when the faint rumblings began to be heard and felt. Kelly quickly left, and the rest of us entered into a staring contest and started knocking points off the food as the after-effects were kicking in. We tried to talk ourselves into this just being the intermission but after about 10-15 minutes of guzzling water we all knew... we had finally over done it.

Atkins queso 3/4

Chunky queso soup ?/4

Queso bean combo 2.75/4

Queso taco meat combo 3.25/4

Plain queso 3/4

Dot Margarita 3/4

House Rocks 3/4

Father Agave rita 3.5/4

Creamy jalapeno 9/4 or "double plus one"

Overall experience (pre coma) 4/4

Overall experience (post coma) 2/4

PS- Quesorita is taking a break for the holidays, but we will resume our regular schedule again on January 7th. Happy Holidays!

Rafa's 12/3/08

We took an Uptown/Lemmon detour this week and headed for a quaint strip mall on Lovers to quesorita it at Rafa's.  I was only 10-15 minutes late and a full bowl of queso was already gone.  Yes folks, you better get there early if you want dibs on the first bowl.  Thank goodness the boys had ordered the spicy queso which was a little too hot for me and as my two best girls arrived (sorry Kelly- this is a Jillian joke that I've been trying to work in for sometime now) we got our own bowl of regular queso, and regular it was.  I doctored (ha ha) it up with a bunch of salsa and it got a little better but I did have to order some nachos to tide me over.  Sherby marked the spicy queso a 3.75 and under the comments section wrote, "Slightly runny.  Good flavor.  Nice heat when you add extra pico.  Mixt w/ salsa for fun.  Yum."  Margs were very average and we moved on over to the Inwood Lounge for the post-party where we all got a little tipsy and spilled our guts.

All in all, food and drinks were very average and I probably wouldn't go back.  I am very pleased though that my Jillian joke finally made the blog and I figured out how to use Quesorita as a verb.  See y'all at Chuy's this week.  G-Unit out.

SPOILER ALERT!! Cantina Laredo 11/30/08

Court, Kelly, and I had an impromptu post-bowling quesorita at Cantina Laredo in Addison.  Queso and Margs were delicious!  The Margs were actually therapeutic and helped to relieve my post-service funk.  We will be visiting here for a formal happy hour soon.  

T.C. 11/26/08

Who knew?  Who knew?  That this favorite college haunt would reappear with such royalty in my thirties.  Sitting in the plastic table, staring at the dirty salsa/topping bar, with whiffs of fake corn and fake cheese floating around, ahhhh....  I felt like I was in the middle of some small backwards town with this being the only restaurant still open after a long night of drinking.  I clicked my heels together three times and knew I was home again.

We started out with the 16oz queso, a whole pound of cheese!  This was the first place that offered it in three different sizes!  We (of course) went with the extra large and had two additional ones later.  It was also interesting that the medium and the small queso come with chips, but not the large.  Problem solved!!!  We ordered a ton of those soft, thick yummy tortillas and lopped up the queso like a few drunk college kids!  When it hits your lips....

Now for those margaritas... I had recalled that they previously were made with a questionable wine blend.  On the menu, it brags "Real Tequila Margaritas."  What???  When did this change come about?  It did feel much like college when you had to show your ID for a cup to drink out of the pitcher.  I giggled with delight showing the girl (who was way younger then me) my ID.  Margaritas were frozen, something close to a lime color, and thick.  But... for what they were, we drank multiple pitchers.

Continuing our theme of the evening, we moved to the parking lot where an impromptu game of wiffleball, dodgeball, and badminton broke out.  All I remember was that I was chasing around the birdie, dodging a ball that hit me in an unmentionable place, when I twirled around to the sound of a loud bang and hushed giggles.  Yes, the new member of quesorita, Bill, had taken out the car in the drive thru with a line drive up the middle.  It was awesome.

I love Taco Cabana, not much for the drinks, somewhat for the food, but much more for the way it makes us all feel like kids/drunk college kids again!

Queso 3.5/4

Margaritas 2.25/4

Wiffleball in the parking lot  PRICELESS!