Welcome to DC Restaurante Critic!




Once a month, Anna, Jaime and Jason visit a new Mexican restaurant in the Columbia Heights neighborhood in Washington, DC. Read our reviews below to find out what's hot and to help you navigate the myriad of Mexican restaurants in the city.


Our Criteria Ι Our Story Ι Tell us where to go next

Thursday, October 30, 2008

Gloria's Pupuseria


Hot Tamale Rating: 3
(1=worst, 5=best)

From the look of the place from the street, with bars on the windows and next door to mildly dilapidated brick buildings on 14th street north of the Columbia Heights metro station, you'd think Gloria's Pupuseria Restaurant was just a dank hole-in-the-wall. However, the narrow gated entranceway opens into a bright, colorful, cheery interior. Turquoise paint and tropical print tablecloths drape the walls and tables, touristy poster pin-ups of El Salvador and the requisite religious icons proudly adorn the walls, and Selena watches over the patrons from the prominently hung canvas in the middle of the room.

Once situated, we were dismayed to find no chips and salsa put in front of us. However, as Jaime pointed out, chips and salsa are a Mexican restaurant tradition and aren't found in the gastronomical commensalisms of El Salvadorian cuisine. Anna wasn’t buying it. As she sees it, if the place serves tacos, they should also provide complimentary chips and salsa. End of story.

Were there any doubts about the authenticity of Gloria's, the waitress (was she Gloria herself???) spoke only Spanish, which was no problem for the brilliant linguists Alice, Jaime and Anna, but Gloria’s lingau franca (or shall we say lingua spagnola?) did pose a minor challenge for minorly challenged Jason, who was able to order but only give the deer in headlights wide-eye-stare to questions from the waitress.

In addition to a plate of pupusas for the whole table ("when in a pupuseria, eat a pupusa"), Jason ordered Yuca con Chicharronne – rounds of fried yucca and chunks of pork with a salsa-like salad of cabbage and finely diced tomatoes. It wasn't bad. The yucca wasn't yucky, the pork was flavorful but a rather dry, and the salsa salad complemented the rest of the meal nicely. The horchata was tasty, but pretty gritty. In all, Jason was a bit underwhelmed.

Anna had a shredded beef dish cushioned between a healthy portion of beans and rice. The beef, cooked with a mix of tomatoes, green peppers, and egg was good, but a little tough. The egg was an interesting and tasty addition to the beef. Also on the plate was a nice slice of avocado and goat cheese. Overall, Anna enjoyed her meal, but thought it a bit unexciting. It tasted like a pot roast with slight hint of Mexican (well in this case, El Salvadoran) flavors, which, although tasty, did not wow her. And Anna likes to be wowed.

Jaime had the Pollo Guisado (Stewed Chicken) and disappointment doesn’t begin to describe his reaction. The dish consisted of three hefty pieces of bone-in dark meat in a tomato and onion sauce. The sauce, while tasty, could not save the chicken. Surprisingly dry and tough for stewed pieces of meat, the chicken meat took a bit of effort to strip from the bone and wasn’t really worth it. Rice, beans and a hunk of El Salvadoran cheese accompanied the chicken and were adequate. The highlights of his meal were the hearty papusa appetizer and cold Modelo beer.

All agreed that the pupusas were pretty good, but again, not exceptional. It should be noted that prices are low at Gloria's with few entrees over $10, and that you are give a full (Chinese print) plate of food. While the food at Gloria's isn't great, it's certainly not horrible. If you're looking for decent pupusas at the right price and if you don’t mind eating leathered meat, Gloria's is your place!


    Rating:



  • Location and Atmosphere: 3

  • Close to metro, some kitsch, not so good people watching.


  • Service: 3

  • Solid service, but you better brush up on your Spanish before coming!


  • Cost and Value: 5

  • Generous portions with most everything around $10.


  • La Comida: 2

  • "Underwhelming," "Unexciting," "Disappointing."


    Hot Tamale Rating: 3

    Would probably only go back to say "hi" to Selena...

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Taqueria del Distrito Federal


Hot Tamale Rating: 4
(1=worst, 5=best)

Stepping down from the street into Taqueria del Distrito Federal, you enter another world thousands of miles away. Sitting in Taqeria, you could easily imagine yourself in a cozy corner restaurant in the capital of Mexico, forgetting that you're still in the capital of the United States.

The authenticity of the atmosphere simply can't be matched – green, white and red tiles wrap around the walls, similarly colored streamers line the ceiling, and a variety of photos from classic Mexican cinema along with a wide array of handicrafts and other cultural artifacts proudly hang on the congested walls. Aside from the standard kitsch or sombreros and souvenirs, there are a number of genuine relics, including a shrine to the Virgin of Guadalupe, complete with lit candles and burning incense.

Taqueria is a truly mom'n'pop, or shall we say mami y papi, no frills place. If you've come looking for the amenities you may take for granted at other establishments, such as air-conditioning, attentive wait staff, and complementary water, you've definitely come to the wrong place. But what's ostensibly lacking in service, the Tex-Mex-Trio unanimously agrees is more than made up in the quality, value and deliciousness of la comida.

The first item to catch our tastebuds was the thin, green salsa. The waitress explained that it's made out of avocados, and the trained tongue would also suggest copious amounts of cilantro – not to spicy, but decidedly flavorful. Thankfully, our entrees arrive promptly, keeping us from filling up too much on the chips and salsa.

Jason ordered the Alambre Espanol, a stir-fry of sorts, made up of ground chorizo sausage, bite-sized slices of well-seasoned chicken, fresh onions, thinly slice fresh jalapeños, fresh diced tomatoes, smothered with melted cheese and served with beans and rice. "Fresh" and "spicy" were the key adjectives describing Jason's meal.

As a warning to those with weak palettes, intolerant of spiciness (you know who you are!), be mindful that the homemade dishes at Taqueria come hot and only hot! Be sure to ask your server whether the dish you intend to order is hot or not. You'll thank us!

Having mopped up the residual grease and beans with soft, homemade corn tortillas, Jason finished his meal with a clean plate and sweaty face – indications of a good, hot, and spicy meal.

Taking advantage of this being a taqueria, Jaime ordered a plate of three tacos; tripa (beef tripe), chicarron (pork skin) en salsa verde and pork al pastor. Besides a generous portion of meat, the tacos all came dressed with cilantro, avocado and raw onion and shared the plate with slices of radish and cucumber and wedges of lime. The tripas lacked the crispiness that Jaime prefers, but still contained loads of tripey goodness. Tender and spicy, the pork al pastor brought back memories of south Texas taquerias and did not suffer by the comparison. The chicharron, though, beat the other two tacos, hands down. Slippery and soft bits of pork skin doused in an aggressive green sauce more than held their own against the raw onion sprinkled in the taco and, unlike its meaty brethren, required no additional spicing. Jaime washed everything down with a glass of Jamaica (iced hibiscus tea). The sweet/slightly sour tea paired with the spicy food beautifully.

Would Jaime get it again? If we went back, he would try and get a burrito of the chicharron.

After the shocking self-discovery of her own unrefined tastes for sophisticated flavors, Anna decided to play it safe at Taqueria del Distrito Federal. And it doesn’t get much safer than fried tacos aka “Tacos Dorados.” Three fried corn tacos filled with pork hidden below a fluffy blanket of lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, and sour cream. The meal was filling and tasty. It was also one of the unspicy meals on the menu, so if you aren’t feeling very adventuress, and don’t enjoy a kick to your food, Tacos Dorados are the way to go.

Since margaritas, or anything alcoholic, are not on the menu at el Distrito, Anna drowned her sorrows in a big glass (ok, styrofoam cup) of cold and refreshing Marañon. After hitting up the card catalogue at her local public library (ok, google), Anna found out why Marañon tastes nutty yet sweet – it’s made out of a nutty fruit. Marañon, also called a cashew fruit, has its origins in Brazil.* The TexMex trio recommends trying and sharing amongst your friends all of the freshly made, Latin American beverages.

Freshness, zestiness, and spiciness were the themes that connected all the dishes. There was no denying that the ingredients, especially the vegetables, were all freshly prepared, and hadn't been sitting around all day pre-sliced and -diced. Tempering the spiciness and washing down the good food with homemade, cinnamony-sweet horchata, the Tex-Mex-Trio and friends left Taqueria del Districo Federal quite satisfied and well satiated!

















    Rating:



  • Location and Atmosphere: 4

  • Close to metro, lots of cool kitsch, but not A/C.



  • Service: 2

  • No complementary water, you really need to ask for everything.



  • Cost and Value: 5

  • Generous portions, nothing over $10.



  • La Comida: 5

  • Unique green salsa, incredible food, interesting beverages!



    Hot Tamale Rating: 4

    Couldn't justify a "5" due to service, but an excellent restaurant nonetheless!


*cashew apple = cashew fruit = marañon = merey = caju = cajueiro Notes: This Brazilian fruit looks like a squishy apple with an odd-looking stem growing out of it. According to botanists, though, the grayish "stem" is actually the fruit, and it encloses the kidney-shaped cashew nut that we're familiar with. The cashew apple is the yellowish-orange part that's attached to the fruit. Cashew apples are juicy but somewhat astringent due to a high concentration of tannin. Be careful of the grayish fruit that encloses the nut. It contains toxic oils.

    Wednesday, July 23, 2008

    Catti


    Hot Tamale Rating: 3
    (1=worst, 5=best)

    Plastic flowered vases on green and white checked tablecloths, a telenovela on the big screen, and Mexican music blaring several decibels too loud - those are the first impressions your senses register as you enter Catti on 14th at Parkwood Pl. NW.

    The Tex-Mex-Trio, along with friends Alice, Adam, and Kelly (Billy was conspicuously absent...), were seated upstairs on the balcony overlooking the bar, the big screen and a wall of smaller TVs.



    Later, when we left, Kelly commented that "We're the most interesting thing to walk into this restaurant tonight." Kelly's assessment was pretty much spot on. The clientele was all males, sitting at the bar or tables - by themselves - face deep in cerveza with eyes on cell phones, televisions, or flitting over the female wait staff.

    Speaking of the wait staff, their service was quite good. In spite of our poor waitress having to continually ascend the stairs to check on us, and run down and back up again to fetch more salsa, margaritas or water, we were rarely in want of anything.

    As we waited for the margaritas to arrive, a man in black approached our table and asked if it was our first time here. We replied that it in fact was.

    "Oh, cuz I thought you were that guy ... that I hassled 'bout lookin' too young to drink. I said I'd buy him four drenks if he ever got back in here."

    This place clearly had character.

    The chips and salsa came - ostensibly out of a bag and out of a can, respectively. Nothing to write home about. The margaritas arrived too and were pretty decent.

    While the food had thus far been largely unremarkable, the entree made up for what was lacking, at least in Jason's case. Jason had requested Cecina Estilo Yec... something, something. Because he couldn't recognize any words when he ordered, nor pronounce them, he automatically assumed it would be great. His unpronounceable meal turned out to be skirt steak with refried beans, stick-of-butter shaped cheese, an avocado, zesty red sauce on the side, and home made tortillas. The beef was tender and flavorful, the avocado soft and buttery and the beans were fresh and almost creamy.

    Jaime ordered Puerco en Salsa Verde. The plate contained equal portions of refried beans, rice and chunks of pork in salsa verde, a garnish of shredded iceberg lettuce and an accompaniment of two thick corn tortillas. The beans, a pleasant surprise, tasted homemade, rather than canned, and paired well with the tortillas. The slightly under cooked rice disappointed, but did serve as an adequate vehicle to collect any excess salsa verde. The Salsa Verde was the real point of this plate. The chunks of pork combined a thin, crispy covering over a tender-fatty morsel, but they took a backseat to the bright and spicy Salsa.

    Would Jaime order it again?

    "Probably, but I’d like to try some of the other items on the menu that looked interesting," Jaime explained.

    Anna tried Camarones del Diablo which were spicy shrimp covered with a smoky chipotle sauce. The shrimp were large, tasty, and there were plenty of them. Instead of beans, Anna was presented with a pleasant, fresh salad with tomatoes and cucumbers.

    Our fellow compadres all tried and enjoyed el Diablo, but alas, Anna learned a hard life lesson this evening – "I don't like smoky chipotle sauce."

    Our friends who joined us highly recommend the seafood fajitas and the chicken mole. However, Anna was also saddened to discover that, like the smoky chipotle, the mole didn't agree with her unrefined palate either.

    The Mexican dude-ranch music progressively gave way to Mexican pop-rock as our plates cleared, our margaritas emptied, and our first Mexican Restaurant dinning experience came to an end.



      Rating:



    • Location and Atmosphere: 2

    • Medium distance from metro; Too loud!


    • Service: 4

    • Slow with chips and salsa, otherwise good.


    • Cost and Value: 3

    • Little pricey, but big portions. You will not leave hungry.


    • La Comida: 3

    • Mediocre chips and bad salsa. Margarita didn't use the best tequila and the taste of the margarita mix lingered long after the meal. Entrées were by and large very good, though.


      Hot Tamale Rating: 3

      Solid three, would definitely come back.

      Friday, July 18, 2008

      Our Criteria

      Please see below our carefully considered, scientific rating scheme for the restaurants we visit. As you will notice, we made every effort to include all key criteria of the dining experience, weighting the most critical factors. You'll find this survey included in each restaurant review.

      Location and Atmosphere: 15%

      1) Atmosphere

      2) People Watching Possibilities of Restaurant Clientele and/or Passersby - to be judged based on two factors:
        a. attractiveness

        b. interesting-ness
      3) Location/Accessibility

      Service: 15%

      4) Service
        a. Regular Food/Drink Service

        b. Nacho/Salsa service

      Cost and Value: 20%

      5) Cost
        a. Bang for your buck

        b. Worth your first born
      Food and Drink: 50%

      6) La comida
        a. Salsa/Nachos

        b. Hot sauce

        c. Entrée

        d. Margaritas

      Overall Hot Tamale Rating: _____


        Tuesday, July 1, 2008

        Our Story

        The Tex-Mex-Trio
        Back in the spring of 2007, Jason moved from the Eastern Market in DC across the river to the Del Ray neighborhood in Alexandria, Virginia. Upon settling in to the neighborhood, Jason soon discovered the abundance of Mexican restaurants, including Mexican Restaurant #1, Mexican Restaurant #2, and Mexican Restaurant #3, so named/numbered based on their distance from Jason’s house. To this day, Jason has failed to learn their real names.

        In this row of restaurants on Mt. Vernon Ave., Jason quickly envisioned a quest to accomplish and recognized a lure to get his DC friends to come visit him: a Mexican Restaurant tour, trying out a new restaurant every month!

        The original crowd included Anna, Jaime, Alison and Jason, and subsequent stops included guest appearances of other friends. Anna, with her trusty notebook, critically rated each visit on an astonishing number of criteria, while all who were present tasted and provided commentary.

        As the walk from the metro to subsequent Mexican Restaurants began to take over 25 minutes, the tour ended, and the core cadre and fellow friends never made it to Mexican Restaurant #4…

        That was 2007.

        2008 ushered in another year and another move for Jason. Back to the city, in Columbia Heights, Jason discovered a cornucopia of Mexican restaurants, beyond his hungriest dreams. In the largely Latino working class neighborhood, beyond the new Target and new development jazz, one can find a Taqueria or Pupusaria on nearly every corner!

        From the hole in the wall at the top of the street, to the frou-frou looking bistro by the metro, the Mexican restaurant culinary encounters seem limitless!

        With the wide field of Mexican Restaurants before us, we felt it time to take things to the next level and time to share our adventures and findings with all of you. Follow us as we explore DC’s Mexican Restaurants and discover new gastronomical treasures!

        Yours truly,

        The Tex-Mex Trio
        Anna, Jaime, and Jason