Momma's Tamales

 I wanted to do a tamale run this Christmas and had big plans - Arandas and Dona Tere on Beechnut, La Roca on Bissonet, Tamales a Mano on West Bellfort @ Chimney Rock and maybe Amigos Meat Market on West Bellfort @ Roark where I've had some very good tamales as part of  a platillo.  I already know I love Alamo Tamales but I thought I'd stick to places on the southwest side, closer to home and see what I could find.

On eGullet I read about fast food tamales - I didn't know Wienerschnitzel had tamales @ Christmas time!  Then I found El Pollo Loco had three tamale offerings on their Holiday Specials menu.  

And on Next Door I read about a new place in Bellaire called Momma's.  I only made it to El Pollo Loco and Momma's, which only opened about 3 weeks ago.

These were the pork; they only have a half dozen varieties ($14 per dozen, $8 per half) and they make a couple of salsas ($4 for 8 oz as I recall).

These were pretty good, a little on the drier-than-I-like-'em side but not too much.

I'll be back to try more, including the Brisket tamales.

I got the Double Loaded Queso Tamale bowl from El Pollo Loco.  I dropped it in the driveway trying to carry too many things into the house in one trip, so no pictures (and the Holiday Specials Menu seems to have been taken down already).  But the tamales were not bad, spicier than I expected.  They only have --- pollo.  Of course.

I probably should be grateful there's not a Wienerschnitzel any where near me.

Momma's Tamales, 5214 Cedar, Bellaire, in the block just west of the Bellaire HEB market.

I went to the El Pollo Loco on Rice, just south of Westpark.  We definitely need more drive-thru tamale stands.

Take-out: Carne Asada

El Escribano - grilled skirt steak topped with  sautéed fresh garlic, scallops, shrimp and Monterey cheese, with arroz, guacamole and pico de gallo, plus chips and 2 salsas, charros, and hot, fresh, hand -made thick corn tortillas.  Note steam.

From Teotihuacan, West Bellfort location

Today's News and Forecasts - UPDATED 3X

This latest edition of restaurant news from greater southwest Houston indicates the Bellaire restaurant scene continues to evolve.


Saltillo Mexican Kitchen,  5427 Bissonnet @ Chimney Rock

I was watching carefully for this one to open and it's been open almost a month now.  I went in by the end of the first week and the place was already packed for evening service.

This is the new place by the owner of the short-lived but acclaimed Mexican steak house La Casa del Caballo in Montrose.  The menu is beef-centric and includes the 4 pound plus Tapa de Lomo rib-eye cap for $190 but the former eatery was famous for it's enchiladas, too, and that's what drew me in.

I had the Enchiladas Saltillo, 3 chicken enchiladas in a sauce made from 5 kinds of chiles, with chihuahua cheese and sesame seeds.  I also had the Hearts of Palm Ceviche with tomatoes, onions, cilantro, lime juice and olives, with hearts of palm substituting for any seafood and looking just like scallops.  Service was virtually flawless, remarkable for a new eatery.

This is not the type of Mexican restaurant where you get a huge basket of chips and salsa.  There are four salsas brought to the table to use as you wish and they are meant to be used more as garnishes or relishes than as dips, though you can get a small saucer of warm, thick chips by asking for it.  I passed on the chips but some were brought to my table anyway; I wasn't charged for them.  The salsas range from a mild tomatillo salsa verde to a tomato and red jalapeno based one with a little more heat, then a minced red onion and habanero with lime and orange juices and olive oil, and at the most intense end of the scale, one made with green papaya and habanero.  The servers were explaining the salsas to each table.

Judging by the crowd I experienced, I'd say Bellaire is ready for this kind of upscale Mexican place and it's certainly a very welcome addition to my grazing grounds.

Saltillo Mexican Kitchen


Tapester's Grill, 4520 Beechnut @ Newcastle

This is a new family-style neighborhood eatery across from the Southwest Houston Police Station on Beechnut.  It's a very welcoming modern space with a patio on the back side, away from the traffic on Beechnut.  When I went in there were lots of families with small children and a few tables with older couples.

I had the Bratwurst on a Housemade French Roll with housemade chips.  The online menu describes this as thin sliced turkey pastrami for some reason.

I didn't get a good look at any of the other menu items except the 1/3 pound burgers which were obviously a popular choice; they looked pretty good.

Tapester's Grill


Suzie's Grill, the kosher (meat) restaurant that has operated out of a tiny space in a Chevron station at Beechnut and Hillcroft for the past few years, has closed.  The website indicates the menu is available at the new kosher steakhouse Genesis on Bissonnet at Chimney Rock, in the same strip center with Saltillo.

Suzie's
Genesis


WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS

Enoteca Rossa, 4566 Bissonnet @ Avenue B, just inside Loop 610

The former much-loved Daniel Wong's Kitchen, which has been closed for over a year now, is about to open as an Italian restaurant with wood-fired kitchen.  The building is hardly recognizable.  A banner announcing they're hiring staff has gone up so the opening must be soon.

EDIT TO ADD:  FACEBOOK

(The picture was taken through the windshield on a rainy day).


Salt 'n Pepper Indo-Pak and Mediterranean Restaurant and Banquet Hall, 9619 SW Freeway @ Bissonnet

The banner indicates it's opening soon.  A url given in a sign on the front door leads nowhere and I have not been able to find anything for this online except a white pages listing but will add a link when one becomes available.

EDIT TO ADD:  A "NOW OPEN" BANNER HAS GONE UP.  THERE IS ALSO A BANNER PROCLAIMING "#1 RATED BBQ IN TOWN."  

FACEBOOK

SALT' N PEPPER GRILL HAS COME AND GONE.  ALONG THE WAY, SNP HOOKAH LOUNGE WAS OPENED NEXT DOOR.  NOW THE BUSINESS IS NAMED GHUNGROO GRILL AND HOOKAH LOUNGE.  A GHUNGROO IS A MUSICAL ANKLET (BELLS) WORN BY TRADITIONAL INDIAN DANCERS.

Philippine Community Center, 9101 West Bellfort @ Riceville School Road

The exterior cladding is all but complete but the weeds have gotten so tall I couldn't get a decent picture from the front.  These pictures, from a blog on the northwest side, appear to me to be more pictures of this one.


Gujarati Samaj Center, W. Bellfort @ Beltway 8

There hasn't been anything going on at the future site of this sports complex, unfortunately, but someday no doubt.

Indo American News article from last February

And just what are these items about cultural centers doing on a blog that's supposed to be about food?  I keep hoping that all of these cultural institutions will spur some sort of restaurant activity in the immediate vicinity.  Of course the Raindrop Center, Istanbul Conference Center and India House, all along this same stretch of West Bellfort, haven't had any such consequences but I can still dream.  Maybe a food court with stalls from each -- or a couple of food trucks?????

Frenchy's open, Acacia closed, Lotus gets a rave - UPDATED 9/1/17

The Frenchy's Fried Chicken on the Beltway at West Bellfort is open for business.  Frenchy's has been adding locations all over town.  UPDATE:  THIS LOCATION HAS NOW BECOME WALLA-BEES - THE STING IS IN THE WINGS.

Acacia Food Market, the ambitious and impressive Turkish market on Wilcrest at the Southwest Freeway has closed. Correction:  Acacia just moved, just south of 59 at 11821 S. Wilcrest, back behind a Popeye's, in a big strip center with an Office Depot and Dollar General.

Another option for Turkish foods is Makkah Mart, 10560 Synott @ West Bellfort, Sugar Land, and, of course, Phoenicia on Westheimer. Makkah Mart is now known as Anatolia.

Lotus Seafood Market, 8550 S. Braeswood at Gessner got a rave review in Houstonia Magazine.  It's rare for any place in our part of town to even be noticed by the foodie media.  Dining in accommodations are very basic.  The tales of long lines are true and the parking lot is usually crammed; it's best to call in an order and get it to go.  Lotus Seafood Market on Facebook.  There are pictures of the menu.

Ruchi's Taqueria on Gessner between 59 and Beechnut has become Jabastian's.

Edit to add:

I drove by the former Sheba Cafe location, 6521 Bissonnet @ Hillcroft, and saw the 'Open' sign lighted in the window again.  I found a Facebook page.  It's now called Habesha Cafe, an Eritrean restaurant, and apparently it's been open all along.  The sign in the window says it's open 7 days a week.  They must neglect to turn on the Open sign many days! 

Panaderia y Pupuseria La Sultana has moved into the space formerly occupied by Panaderia Mexicana & Colombiana, 6039 Bissonnet.  La Sultana was for a long time located in the center at Beechnut and Bissonnet that has been razed for an Aldi.  It also housed a Central American grocery store at the former location but I don't know if that's the case here.

Mido, the Turkish/Middle Eastern sandwich shop at 6905 Bissonnet has closed.

Taco Loco II

2501 S. Velasco (288 B), Angleton

Perhaps inspired by the Bronco Burrito of the Donut Shoppe and La Estacion in Galveston, Taco Loco (all the signage said II or 2) offers the Hippo, a breakfast taco with potatoes, egg, bacon, chorizo and shredded cheddar cheese on a flour tortilla.  The chorizo was very mild and amazingly greaseless - perhaps the grease was all absorbed by the other ingredients - and more like an American breakfast sausage than a Mexican chorizo, leaving the predominant tastes of the bacon and cheddar.  It all held together amazingly well.  Weighing in at almost 9 ounces, the Hippo lives up to its name. Nine ounces is a lot of taco.

An interesting brownish tinted salsa containing both tomatoes and tomatillos added some welcome heat. 

Roadside stand? Check.  There are a couple of weathered picnic tables on a concrete slab just off to the right, sans any shade, the slab itself a remnant of another structure rather than specifically constructed.  Signs tacked to a pole point to a restroom out back.  I didn't check it out but they may have been indicating the structure in the background that resembles an outhouse.

There are other tacos on the menu and some plates but it's the Hippo that is building this place's fame, with nothing but 5 star reviews on Yelp right now.   The taco was $3.50; extra cheese is available for an additional cost but it certainly isn't needed. 

Open until 2 pm, six days a week.  The Hippo is available until closing. I neglected to take a snapshot of the menu board.

Trudis gone, Aldi coming - UPDATED

The Robindell Shopping Center at the corner of Beechnut and Bissonnet is all fenced off and demolition equipment is on scene.  According to Swamplot, everything is going except the Baskin Robbins.  In it's place, a new Aldi has been announced.  Aldi is a German discount grocer related to Trader Joe's featuring mostly their own store brands.  If you're not familiar, see this story from Business Insider which I posted on the sidebar some time ago.

While I, and other readers of this blog, will miss Trudis, the best birria in town, the addition of an Aldi is at least some good news.  Hopefully Trudis will find another location near by.

Elsewhere I've also seen where Taqueria Arandas is not abandoning our part of town completely.  The former Taqueria Cancun on S. Gessner, south of Beechnut, will become a corporate-owned outlet for the Houston-based taqueria chain.

UPDATE:  THIS TAQUERIA ARANDAS IS NOW OPEN FOR BUSINESS.

My earlier report on Trudis.

Taqueria Vega

7755 W. Bellfort, in the parking lot of Joe V's

I encountered this unit several years ago on Fondren when it was Taqueria Tzul-Vega but tried it only once.  I remembered the taquera apparently spoke only about 5 syllables of English and she found my Spanish just as lacking, but I couldn't remember the food nor why I never returned.  According to my notes, it was not because of the food but because the menu was so limited.  The majority of the items listed on the unit were not available, there was a handwritten menu taped to the window with only a few dishes.

There has apparently been a change of ownership.  The menu card in the window, which identifies the business as Taqueria Vega, lists just about everything named on the side of the unit plus a few other items and I had no trouble communicating.

I tried a couple of tacos, pastor on the left and chorizo on the right.  They came on handmade corn tortillas, a big plus, with roasted onions and mass quantities of cilantro, plus a surprisingly fiery salsa.  According to my notes, the fiery salsa was a feature of the old cart, too.  The pastor wasn't bad, not dried out like it often is and I got a couple of tidbits of pinapple, but the chorizo was much better.  I have also tried a barbacoa taco and, on a whim, a chorizo gordita.  These were served with a very mild salsa verde.  The gordita was almost as big as a torta and would have been better as one; the barbacoa is another good choice for meat along with the chorizo.

Tacos are $2 and apparently there's no upcharge for requesting flour tortillas.  There is an upcharge for requesting lengua or tripa.  The gordita was $3.50.

Openings and Closings 2013 - 2014 (Edited 10/3/14)

So I don't go out for a year and a half and there are all these changes.  Who knew this was going to happen?

Around the intersection of Hillcroft and Bissonnet, which I once bragged about as one of the most diverse in Houston the kosher pizza place Aroma Pizza Cafe has closed.  It looked for a while like a pizza chain was moving in but the space is now vacant.  Tortilleria La Reyna and Birirria La Reyna, next door to each other, have merged into just the tortilleria.  Their Miercoles con Pollo Wednesday special is a cheap eats bargain - a whole rotisserie chicken, a cup of rice and half cup of a decent ranchero type salsa for just $6.  Fresh, warm, corn tortillas are extra but just $1 per pound.

Sheba Cafe has apparently become Habesha although the Sheba name remains on the building.  Sometimes it's closed when the sign says it's supposed to be open and other times a I see the Open sign lit in the window.  Next door, which long ago was Hoagies and More offering banh mi and pupusas, is now Ostioneria La Reyna.

South on Hillcroft, Istanbul Market has closed and Pollo Loco Charcoal Roasted Chicken has moved into the strip center with Pupusa Buffet.

On South Post Oak where Willow dead ends, Super Chicken offers Peruvian style charcoal roasted chicken with sides.  There's a dining room but I've never seen any one dining in the couple of times I've stopped in.    SUPER CHICKEN HAS CLOSED.
 
On Fondren at South Braeswood a shop offering cake pops, donuts, cupcakes and coffee according to signs in the windows has taken over the space formerly occupied by the Chili Bowl and before that Luke's.  There's still no sign on the building or streetside but a banner on the building now announces the Grand Opening of The Cake Fairy.  Maybe the third time will be the charm for that space.  ETA:  There is now a street-side sign, although it's mostly obscured by trees.

Shortly after I reviewed it, East Africa and Middle East Restaurant changed names to Mandi Halal and was identified online as serving Somali and Yemeni food.  Now Mandi Halal has closed but a new place has opened at 8403 Almeda at Holly Hall named House of Mandi.  Mandi is a Yemeni dish. 

Our second Afghan restaurant, Afghan Village, 6413 Hillcroft, has been open for about a year and I still haven't gotten around to going; now another Afghan place, Afghan Dastarkhwan, a word which I understand means something like smorgasbord, has opened at 6800 Southwest Freeway, back behind Lucy, which I've never been to either.  Edit to add:  a second location of Afghan Dastarkhwan has replaced Durrani's Tandoori Grill at 10581 S. Hwy 6 at West Bellfort, Sugar Land.

On Gessner between 59 and Beechnut, Taqueria Cancun has closed.  A block south of 59 Taqueria Arandas has become Don Rey Mexican Restaurant.  The huge streetside sign is new, as is the hand-painted plywood sign saying they're open.

I watched for months for the opening of Lahori Maza on Bissonnet next door to Afrikiko Ghanaian Restaurant, then I found out it was only open in the evenings or maybe only after dusk.  I still haven't checked it out.  Signs in the windows have advertised supari, bun kabob, keema paratha, samosas, tea, chess, and pool.  The other Desi game rooms I've been to, Salaam Namaste, Alpha Capri and Mehfil Grill, have more than just snacks on the menu.  The strip center parking lot up front is notorious for prostitution activities and raids

And probably the two best for last - AA Supermarket, 9896 Bellaire, is in the process of becoming an H Mart.  I read about it on Yelp and went to check it out.  There's no indication outside or in except that your receipt will show H Mart and you groceries will be in H Mart bags.  It's not a bad supermarket but it has a long way to go to match the H Mart on Blalock.  Still, I'm excited to have an H Mart much closer to home.

And Pho Binh, the acclaimed pho restaurant, has opened it's fifth location, Pho Binh Grill, in the shopping center at the corner of Gessner and the SW Fwy, between Maharaja Bhog and Peking Cuisine, making that strip center a great destination for dining.

Edit to add:  India Grocers, 6606 SW Freeway @ Hillcroft, has become Subhlaxmi Grocers.

Panaderia Mexicana & Colombiana Restaurante Cafe

6039 Bissonnet

This place was formerly Panaderia Y Pasteleria DF.  Gone is the wall of display cases of Mexican breads and pastries, replaced by a cooler.  There is a small display of Colombian baked goods at the counter, menu boards on the back wall and a menu for sit-down service.  The menu includes both Mexican and Colombian items including tamales but is biased towards Colombian dishes.

On my first visit I tried, from 11 o'clock, Pan Colombiana, Pastele de Carne, Pastele de Guayaba and Milhojas, 'thousand leaves cake,' a pastry popular throughout much of South America that is sometimes referred to as the South American version of a Napoleon.

The previous operation offered some very good tortas (they're still on the menu) and the best teleras I found on the southwest side.  The real winners here were the pastele de carne and the milhojas.  I went back a few days later to try another Pastele de Carne plus the version with chicken, the only other option.  The beef version is much more interesting but with a flaky, buttery crust like this, I wish there were more fillings to choose from.

The menu includes Bandeja Paisa, arepas and 'Alitas de Pollo BBQ'  (Buffalo wings, Colombian style), plus Calentao and Picadas and Fritanga on the weekend, dishes I don't recall seeing before at a Colombian restaurant. .  Though the signs and the menu both indicate they're open for business 7 days a week, when I went by on a Sunday it was locked up tight.

Amongst the myriad of signs in the window also are small signs in English and Spanish announcing that the business is for sale.  I may have discovered the place too late.

Pollos Y Tacos La Bala - revisited

S. Post Oak @ Willow

This blog has been pretty dormant for a while, eh?  As I mentioned before, I have been getting back into cooking again after several years of avoiding the kitchen as much as possible.  There have also been so many new grocery stores in Houston to explore (I miss Fiesta Market Place in Sugar Land, too bad that didn't catch on).

And after many years, several decades in fact, of living in Houston the sprawl and traffic has gotten to me.  Time and again when I've thought about going out to try some place that involves driving half-way across town, even before I get dressed I'm thinking I'll just rummage through the pantry, the fridge and the freezer and see what I can cook up at home and save that trip to that hyped new place until I have some other reason or two or three to be in that neighborhood.

But sometimes I get a craving for something I can't find a good version of in my part of town or can't prepare as well as a few favorites I've found over the years such as the Pollo Asado from the La Silla units on the southeast side or the El Norteno units mainly in the Spring Branch area.

I balked at making the trip just for a lunch and kept putting it off but eventually I caved to the craving and I set out, thinking I would let the flow of traffic on the major thoroughfare that runs by my neighborhood determine my direction.  There was no traffic in either direction - this doesn't happen often - so what to do now?  I avoided the difficult decision and the long drive to either Long Point or Telephone and ran over by the La Bala unit on South Post Oak, thinking I remembered they had pollo asado on the menu that I'd never tried.

Great decision-making there, Bruce!  This is the best Pollo Asado I've found on the southwest side and the frijoles charros (not in the picture) were better than any I've had from El Norteno or La Silla.  Pictured is the Medio Pollo @ $6.  Pollo Entero is $11.

My earlier report on Pollos Y Tacos La Bala

A Food Truck Park in Sugar Land, sorta...

on the southeast corner of Highway 6 and Bissonnet

Bansuri Indian Food Corner has set up shop in it's new location; it's parked along Bissonnet actually, barely visible from 6 behind a Conoco station.  It will be closed Sundays and Mondays.

About 75 to a hundred yards away, at the other end of the same parking lot, are four other mobile units including Big 6 Bar-B-Que, which I have visited and reported on before, BB's Beef and Hot Dogs, Yum Yum Sno Balls, and a new one, MJ Seafood.  Since they're outside the city of Houston they are parked practically bumper to bumper and can set up tables and chairs for customers.

I think BB's is the same operation that used to have a small shop on West Airport off of 59 serving Chicago style hot dogs and Italian Beef.

There's also a Mexican restaurant in the strip center and Vishala Grocery and Restaurant is just across Highway 6.

9431 Highway 6 South is the official address.

Bansuri Indian Food Corner

Big 6 Bar-B-Que

Lunch at The Center

8313 Southwest Freeway

I don’t follow the food trucks as much as I did a year and a half ago.  It was brand new, cutting edge back then but the excitement and newness has worn off for me as it’s become a very trendy thing to do.  The repetitive drive into the Hallowed Heights or Montrose, coupled with the occasional disappointing offering, has made me cut back quite a bit.

Fortunately, someone at this complex of buildings between Beechnut and Gessner on 59 has been arranging to have some of the trucks put in lunch time appearances and I’ve caught up with a couple I’ve been wanting to try just a few blocks from home.  The address given isn’t even visible from the Freeway or frontage road but actually faces a side street called Tybor.  Once you find it there’s plenty of parking and even a few trees to provide some shade.

CoreanosHtx

This is a new Houston unit of a popular Austin truck offering ‘Mexican Cuisine with Korean in the Middle’ and they made some of their very first stops in Houston at The Center.  The Coreanos in Austin was recently named one of the best 10 food trucks in the nation by the Smithsonian.  What?  Really?  The Smithsonian actually sent out tasters to dozens of cities and sampled hundreds of trucks?  Yeah, right.  Okay, not to take anything away from these guys, because the food is good, but they got extra points just because they were in Austin, let’s face it.

 I went for a special on my first visit, Three Wise Fries.  This is pork belly (on the left), marinated chicken (in the center) and beef short rib (on the right), on a bed of fries with cheese, onions, cilantro and their El Scorcho sauce.  I managed to extract a couple of the fries sans any condiments and they were quite satisfactory; the pork belly was a bit overdone but otherwise this was quite a feast.

I went for something simpler the second time I caught up with them since I could do without the fries even though they were quite good - a couple of the regular tacos, one with the marinated beef short rib, which had been my choice for best of the Three Wise Fries combo, with a Korean slaw with a sweet sesame dressing, and a marinated chicken taco with cheese and El Scorcho sauce.  This time it was the short ribs turn to be a little overdone and the chicken really shone.  I remember the Asian Slaw on Fusion Taco’s tacos as better than this but that Houston food truck pioneer has apparently pulled off the road and parked it.  I do recommend the El Scorcho sauce on everything but it isn’t really all that hot.  Are Austininnies a little wimpy when it comes to hot sauces?  Guys, you can turn it up here in Houston.


KurbSide Eatz

This is another one of the very new trucks offering Asian fusion fare I was really happy to have a chance to sample.  I only managed to catch up to them once but will look forward to trying some of their other offerings in the future.

I went for their Philly Cheesesteak egg rolls - couldn’t help myself, had to check it out.  There aren’t any good Phillys on this side of town and it’s been a long time since I’ve had one so a craving instantaneously set in.  Beautiful to behold they were not as impressive taste-wise, unfortunately, and left me wanting to know what these guys could do with a more traditional egg roll and wondering if I’m ever going to find a good Philly on this side of town.

My disappointment over the egg rolls however was more than compensated for by the Braised Pork Belly Bun, served in a lightly fried bun with cilantro, green onions and fried onions.  The lightly fried bun was a very nice finishing touch to a very good slider sized sandwich

There have been other trucks make the harrowing trek outside the Loop without falling off the edge of the earth but I haven’t caught up with any of them yet.  There haven’t been any for a couple of weeks so I hope the program hasn’t ended.  I’ve seen on Twitter recently where some of the trucks have been putting in appearances way out on 290 and I think that’s a very positive development on the food truck scene, letting people outside of just a few neighborhoods experience how good the food can be. 

The crews on both these trucks were super nice and I appreciate not only their coming out but also whoever at The Center has been arranging these appearances.  I’m hoping more food trucks will make the trek out on the southwest side in the future, if not to the Center to some other venue, some of my favorites like Bernie’s, Good Dog, OMPP, HtownStreats?  I guess I’m already too late to get something from Htown before their endearing paint job is destroyed in the name of commercialism but I’d still like to see them.  Let me add to my wish list some of the new ones I’m really wanting to try - Happy Endings and one that only hits the streets this week, the Sirena Seafood Truck (a mermaid roams the streets of Houston). 

Ladies and Gentlemen, start your engines and come on down.

M & M Grill

6921 Almeda Rd.

I used to like to brag about the unique TexChick, the little Puertorrican restaurant in Montrose. It was, I would tell out-of-towners, probably the only place in the world where you could get a chicken fried steak, and a very good one, with a side of mofongo, or an order of bacalao with a side of crispy, golden onion rings. The couple who took over the neighborhood hamburger joint in the 1980s wisely kept not only the name but the American food menu to hold on to what customer base they had, just in case their Puertorrican fare did not go over well.

The couple has since retired and the restaurant is in the hands of descendants and I haven’t been in several years and I don’t know if the dual menus are still available but I’ve since learned there are many other examples in our city of restaurants that feature dishes from more than one cuisine and do a good job of them. We’re not talking fusion here, we’re talking distinctive dishes from more than one cuisine. There’s Hoagie’s and More on Bissonnet, a shop offering pho, banh mi and pupusas and many a Mexican or Central American panaderia offering donuts and kolaches along side the churros and pan dulces. And there is M & M where the two Ms stand for Mexican and Mediterranean, where the appetizer menu offers chile con queso, chips and salsa and guacamole plus hummus, falafel and foul. You can have tacos, enchiladas, chimichangas and fajitas or shish kabob, kafta, or shawarma brought to your table by servers several of whom must surely be someone’s Lebanese or perhaps Saudi mothers or grandmothers.

My first visit was on the day the Texans made their debut in post season play. The tiny restaurant (with very tiny parking lot) was jammed with people wearing Texans jerseys plus one guy in a # 34 in Columbia Blue and every customer was getting a complimentary slice of Go Texans cake, a Texas sheet cake decorated with Texan’s colors and logo. This seems to be a very popular place to grab a bite before a game. After scarfing down the freebie, I went with an order of foul.

I didn’t even know this dish existed a couple of years ago and now I seem to see it on menus everywhere and I’ve come to treasure it as comfort food, just like the Pharaohs supposedly did. This version was described as a salad on the menu and I’ve had it presented such that it looked just like refritos or like Texas Caviar with fava beans instead of black-eyed peas but this was really a warm soup and so good. The fava beans, mostly still whole, had been dressed with lots of lemon juice, olive oil and tahini with diced tomatoes, and minced, still crisp bits of onion and parsley, accompanied by a very large, warm, thin and pliable pita. On top of the sugar bomb of the thickly iced cake it was all I could handle though I did look longingly at many of the other dishes being brought out and couldn’t help but notice the most often served items seemed to be burgers.

Yes, they ought to add another letter to the name, A to stand for American (or another M to stand for aMerican?), for besides the burgers - there are twelve listed - there are also wings, fries and onion rings and a Philly.

On my second visit I gave into my curiosity and went for a burger, but not the Swiss Mushroom or Mango Habanero, I chose the Kafta Burger, 2 kafta skewers on a bun with mayo, tahini, just a drizzle of mustard, plus lettuce, tomato, pickle and onion. The two kabobs, about 4 oz. each, were grilled with some nice charring, the minced beef mixed with minced onion and herbs retained a lot of its moistness and the burger was very juicy. I worried that it would fall apart and it did, one of the loosely packed kabobs breaking up after a couple of bites. I also worried that the bun would disintegrate from all the juices and condiments but it didn’t. It was a very sturdy though only store-bought bun and held up through out instead of becoming a soggy mess between my fingers.

The fries, of the frozen, crinkle-cut variety, though looking well-seasoned were in need of salt and were undercooked, lacking any crispness on the exterior and mushy on the inside.

I seem to be regularly reminding readers of some of my tried (or trite) and true conclusions in recent reports so here’s another one: if this was in my neighborhood, I’m sure I’d be a regular. I don’t roam all over the city as much as I used to a couple of years ago but I’m happy to keep finding little neighborhood places like this with good food that I wish were more convenient to me. This is a little far away from where I live to be a regular haunt and isn't destination dining, but if you’re in the Med Center/Reliant Park area, needing a nosh and prone to avoid the Usual Suspects, national and local, and particularly if you like friendly, family run places with good, unpretentious food, you should give this place a try. There are many items on the menu to try and I haven't sampled any of the Mexican items.

Most of the parking is out back and requires negotiating a narrow alley frequently lined with cars. A small mosque next door also has a tiny parking lot and when prayers are underway, the shoulders on both sides of Almeda are lined with vehicles.

Try to remember to check out the specials listed on an erasable board sometimes on the counter, sometimes just inside the door. I’ve missed it a couple of times until after I’ve ordered and am sitting down or I’m leaving. I don't remember the exact name they had but on that first visit it was something like a Whoopass Bengalese Burger while on a recent visit I learned on the way out I could have had Kabsa and Chicken. Kabsa is usually considered a Saudi dish though it is served in several Arab countries and is similar to biryiani.

Edit to add:  Since posting this I have learned there is a community of Gulf immigrants including Kuwaiti, Saudi and Yemeni in the area south of the Medical Center, the neighborhood where M & M is located. I understand on weekends it is common for the restaurant to have a daily special of a Saudi dish.

M & M Grill on Facebook

Pollos y Tacos La Bala

S. Post Oak @ Willow

Or is the name of this trailer Gorditas y Tacos La Bala? That's what it says on the sign on the fence.

I’d seen an older truck with the La Bala name on it at this location many times but never stopped. The very new looking wagon, a line of customers, and the fact my first choice for lunch one day was closed, persuaded me to give it a try. I’d wondered if the truck had any connection to Tacos La Bala (Bellaire, Beechnut, Dashwood) and I noted machacado on the breakfast menu and desebrada and cochinita pibil for tacos, gorditas, tortas, etc., items that are not very common on taqueria or lonchera menus, and there is the Torta de la Barda, too. I’ve had the machacado and desebrada at the La Bala taquerias and I was persuaded this must be a mobile unit by the same folks.

One of the phrases I have used repeatedly on the blog is something like ‘I burned out on such and such’ and it applies here. I burned out on loncheras over a year ago and I don’t think I’ve stopped at more than one or two since then. There seem to be a lot fewer of them around my part of town than there were a couple of years ago. This turned out to be an auspicious re-acquaintance opportunity - the food was very good, perhaps the best I’ve ever had from a lonchera on the Southwest side.

I went with desebrada, one of my favorite meats, and pastor. The desebrada was better than I’d had at the taqueria on Bellaire, the pastor better than what I had at the location on Beechnut. It was the juiciest and most flavorful pastor I’ve had since my last visit to Karanchoe’s over a year ago with tender meat and fatty pieces, not a dried up or overcooked morsel among them. I squeezed both of the impressive salsas on the tray rather than on the tacos so I could get a better picture of the taco meats then decided I didn’t need the sauces at all.

I got home and looked up the comments online about the taquerias and was reminded their cochinita pibil is highly acclaimed. Then I realized that for some reason I’d never gotten around to trying the cochinita pibil at the taquerias, a bit strange since I’m sure it’s what first persuaded me to put them on my list of places to try. So I went back the next day and tried that and the nopales. The pibil is fully worthy of all the praise and I’m kicking myself for never having tried it before. For many years, this was my favorite Mexican dish and there are only a couple of other versions around that I like. It's good to know there's a purveyor so close to home. I got this order to go and unfortunately the taco de nopales suffered from being wrapped up in foil for the trip home, the cactus becoming unappealingly limp verging on mushy.

It’s a bit of a sketchy neighborhood; the parking lot/driveway for the convenience store/gas station is frequently packed and parking can be a hassle. Tacos on maiz are $1.50, for flour, $1.75 - have prices at loncheras gone up? Is that the new standard price? If not, this place is a bit more expensive, but worth it. Lengua and tripa are a bit more expensive than the other meat choices but the pollo asado offerings, which I have not tried, are less pricy than other pollo asado wagons.

Tacos estilo Jalisco/tacos de barbacoa dorados

In a recent communique, a blog reader has asked for my help in locating the above named tacos, a specialty of Guadalajara. We haven't had much luck over the years in trying to locate another Guadalajaran specialty, the torta ahogada, but maybe we will with this.

These tacos are not the same thing as the Tacos Dorados de Papas at Hugo's described by Alison Cook in a review last fall nor the tacos dorados described by Robb Walsh two years ago in a review of Airline Flea Market, both of which are deep fried items.

These tacos are described as tacos, usually barbacoa, that are fried on the flat top in the grease from the meat until the tortillas become crispy, then topped with the usual toppings.

We have tons of taquerias with Jalisco in the name and probably quite a few taco trucks. Anybody see these on a menu anywhere? They sound tasty (all three types).

AL/Al's Quick Stop and Grill

2002 Waugh Drive



I’m sure this little corner grocery was in existence umpteen umpteen years ago when I lived near Cherryhurst Park but I never went in. The menu says only since 1991, probably meaning the popular eatery inside the store. I’ve been hearing about the latter for years and wanted to check it out but I seldom get back down to the ‘trose.

It was 8 months ago when I found myself close by and decided to try it out. Though I’d heard most about the gyro when I noted the spit was not turning nor glowing I opted for a falafel plate with tahini and relish.

My first thought on getting a good look at the finished product - uh oh. That’s not the color I like to see when I behold falafel and just as I expected the exterior was too crusty and overcooked, there was even a slight taste of charring. The interior, a beautiful forest green, was mush. I seldom throw food away but I tossed several pieces of this as just not worth eating. The pita bread was dry, too, but the rest of the plate was very good; I particularly liked the pickled vegetables and hummus and would go back to try other plates if I get those things; the bed of parsley and radish underneath the falafel patties was also a nice refreshing note.  (Edit to add:  I have since learned the falafel may have been revithkeftedes, the Greek version of falafel, which is made with cooked, mashed chickpeas instead of ground, dried chickpeas.  This would account for the mushy texture.  I plan to give them another try).

Though I had shied away from the gyro, I had noted there seemed to be some pink on the meat on the spit and I still wanted to give it a try but it was not until earlier this month that I was back in the neighborhood. Though again the spit was not turning I went for a gyro anyway. A large portion of meat was deftly sliced off and warmed up on a flattop. A modest portion of onions and tomatoes were added as well as a pita.

Okay, this one lives up to the hype. Though it’s not apparent in the picture there was a tinge of pink on some of the pieces of meat and this was by far the juiciest gyro meat I’d ever eaten. And probably the biggest gyro - I think the whole sandwich weighed in at 11 oz. Some reviews online have stated it’s only beef, not the typical beef and lamb mix, but I didn’t think so and the menu does say it’s both. The pita in this case was fresh and fluffy, almost like naan. I could have used more of the onions and tomatoes and sadly the quantity of tzatziki which I got (to go) was very inadequate. I must admit the sauce is half the reason I like gyros so I was disappointed but I’m sure if you ate in, you could ask for more, if necessary.

The menu is very varied with Tex-Mex, Mediterranean and American sections; given how infrequently I’m in the neighborhood, it’ll probably be a long time before I try any thing else and I’m probably going to want another gyro next time.

Now, under the heading of Unsolved Mysteries of the Montrose, I'm not sure what the name of this place is. The sign and the take-out menu both say AL Quick Stop. Capital A, capital L, no apostrophe, no s. (The take-out menu makes it even clearer- there are pictures of the menu on Yelp so I’m not going to post it here). But it’s known by everybody as Al’s, listed on every user review site that I know of as Al’s, and there are dishes on the menu such as ‘Al’s Diced Salad,’ and ‘Al’s Chicken Sub.’ Rogue sign maker and rogue printer perhaps? Or perhaps the chef at AL is named Al?

Sazon

Kempwood @ Blalock


I have to thank commenter Rubiao for tipping me about this one. It's quite a ways outside of my regular roaming area but I took a little detour after a shopping trip to Super H Mart, cruising up Blalock past the best Polish grocery store and restaurant in Texas (and possibly the whole Southern US).

There are actually two units here; a short Sazon bus purveying hot dogs, hamburguesas, papas asados, papas fritas and tortas is parked at a right angle to the bigger unit. And the menu is not the same old-same old lonchera menu, either. One specialty is barbacoa de borrego available either as consomme or tacos.

I got a couple of tacos with everything, after ascertaining that meant onions and cilantro and not lettuce and tomato. Then I helped myself to the salsas on the side of the truck including a very spicy salsa fresca with marinated onions, habaneros and jalapenos, I think. That was the best of the three and really picked up the tacos which were already very good. There are not that many places offering borrego; I wish this wasn't so far away.

Also on the menu were pancitas, which I think is menudo made with sheep stomach, fajitas, cabeza de res, flautas de pollo and more.

Refresqueria y Taqueria South Houston

3812 South Shaver @ Edgebrook, South Houston, TX

After a recent shopping excursion to Mi Tienda I headed south on South Shaver instead of back across Spencer Highway, hoping to find a new scenic route home. It wasn't a mountain road snaking through snow capped peaks or a coastal highway overlooking a surf pounding up against a rocky shoreline that I was expecting to see, nor even a meandering drive through a lush forest. About a mile south of Spencer I did spot exactly the sort of scenery I was hoping for - a sign for a refresqueria touting trompo. The beauty of the scene was enhanced by a sign also touting home-made tortillas.

As we all learned from Robb Walsh a few years ago, authentic trompo preparation (al pastor) is prohibited in Houston by health department regulations. The meat that goes on the spit has to be already cooked and can only be kept warm on the trompo. This results in al pastor as served in Houston frequently being over-cooked and dried out.

This refresqueria y taqueria, however, sitting right next door to South Houston High School, clearly was not in Houston and hence not subject to those restrictions. Whenever I see trompo advertised at a taqueria or lonchera outside of the Houston city limits, I know there is at least the possibility they do it the way it's supposed to be done.

I've tried this gambit a number of times, sadly with disappointing results more often than not, but it's always worth a try and I made a note to hit this place the next time I trekked over to Mi Tienda.

Alas, the curses of living in Houston. I can get just about everything I ever need for Mexican cooking at the carnicerias, mercados, tortillerias and Fiesta stores near me (even a Food Town), and I seldom have a need to go all the way over to Pasadena. It was going to be months before I was over that way again and a few weeks later my expectations and cravings got the better of me and I made a special trip just to try the trompo.

I arrived about 1:15 pm and encountered a problem I had not anticipated - no parking place. The parking area was jammed with two rows of cars in a strip center lot intended for just one; a narrow alley was left between the rows making it possible to gingerly enter or leave the front row. More customers were parked on the shoulder of Shaver. This place is popular. I cruised around South Houston for a few minutes, spotting a few taco trucks of possible interest, but having come this far I was not going to be denied. After passing back and forth several times I finally spotted an opening and zipped in.

A full parking lot is not necessarily a sign of good food within, of course, but it is a hopeful sign. Just inside the door was another - the trompo itself, readily on display in the open cooking area just inside the door. However I noticed the coils were not glowing and the spit was not turning, the meat had been whittled down to resemble an apple core more than a child's top. Had I gotten there too late? Was the meat that was left going to be too dry?


I was just planning on trying the trompo but assessing the situation and surveying the menu, I went for one taco de mollejas (sweetbreads), one taco de cabeza (the menu says pig's head), and one taco de trompo, plus a Coca Cola Mexicana Grande.

The waitress delivered a basket of chips and generous sized bowl of salsa to the table along with a cup of very good frijoles charros with almost as much meat and chicharron as beans. The chips were cold, possibly store bought, but the creamy salsa verde was interesting with just enough heat. I nibbled at a few chips as I observed my order of trompo being skillfully sliced off the spit. In a corner, some balls of dough were retrieved out of a bowl covered with cloth and placed one by one in a large wooden tortilla press and my tortillas were ready for the grill.

Before long, one of the three taqueras brought out my basket of tacos and I smiled as big as I could, pleased at the appearance of these beauties and patting myself on the back for being such a genius to have discovered this place. I hadn't even tasted any of the meats but they sure looked promising. One of those 3 bowl servers like you get with a baked potato was brought to the table with one bowl of chopped onion, one of chopped cilantro and one of lime slices and I was ready to dig in.

I nibbled a few pieces of each meat plain, then folded up the tortillas and tried them that way. . The trompo was just a little dry but not bad while the other two meats were exceptionally good. I applied a little lime and tasted again, then the onions and cilantro and more lime and tasted again, then finally some salsa to finish each taco off. The thin, floppy, slightly irregular tortillas, just one per taco and slightly crispy around the edges, were exemplary. They had to be the thinnest tortillas I've ever had. These were some very good tacos, worth the time and trouble I had gone to to try them.

My tab came to $6.50 - $1.25 per taco (more for flour tortillas), $2 for the coke; apparently there is a $.75 charge for the beans though I didn't recall seeing that on the menu. Fair price, anyway. Three tacos and beans and I was stuffed.

While it lacks the ambiance of Karanchoe's in Channelview and the trompo is perhaps not quite as tasty (it's been more than a year since I've been there), this place is not without it's charm. I could wish for better chips and salsa (and a little fresher looking cilantro) but South Houston is a whole lot closer to where I live than Channelview and I have the occasional need to be in the neighborhood, anyway, so I will be back.

The menu includes tacos, platillos, hamburguesas and a few other things. The meats, besides what I had, were fajita, pollo, barbacoa, chicharron, and deshebrada, as best I can remember. I saw no sign about hours or days of operation but it is cash only. One side of the menu is s devoted to the refresqueria offerings.

Tacos la Joya

Southwest Freeway frontage road, outbound, @ Beechnut

I'm always on the lookout for something different and new, something I haven't tried before, and driving down this stretch of the 59 frontage road I seldom use I spotted this lonchera I'd never seen before advertising tortas y tacos al vapor.

It's in the parking lot of the Bonita Chica Bikini Bar for those interested (there's also a Wings spot, what else?, and Tau Bay and several other businesses - it's a big parking lot).

Tacos al vapor, i.e., steamed tacos, are a rarity around here. I can't name one place that serves them and I had to give them a try. According to some discussions and explanation online, they may be produced by layering tortillas and meat in a tamalera, covering with a towel and steaming for a hour or so. Sometimes the tortillas are folded over the fillings and the resulting tacos are somewhat like dumplings; some people prefer to eat them with a fork.

That's not the way mine were produced, however. I saw tortillas being put into the tamalera, just inside the window where you order, but the tortillas for my tacos came out of a plastic bag and were heated on a griddle, just like other tacos are done. But with the differences that they were heated in stacks of two and for a very long time, maybe close to five minutes, getting flipped at least a dozen times and tested (kudos to the taquerero for wearing a plastic glove as he is supposed to). The burner must have been on very low.

At last they were removed from the griddle and assembly took place very quickly. A pile of meat was retrieved from the tamalera with tongs and the cebolla y cilantro were added, they were wrapped up and handed to me along with a half lime and a small cup of dark green, thick salsa, in exchange for $3.75 for three and I was on my way. They're available only with this chopped beef filling.

It was apparent right away when I dug into them that the tortillas were very moist so I concluded they must have been steamed previously and held until needed. The quantity of salsa was completely inadequate but it was a squeeze of lime that most benefited these delicately flavored tacos. Obviously with steamed beef, you're not going to get the intense flavors of some other means of preparation, so if you're longing for the caramelized beef of tacos al carbon of the intense flavors of al pastor or barbacoa, you're not going to get it with these tacos. I really liked them however.

The first time I saw the wagon during the day it was closed; I caught it open around dusk. I didn't notice any posting of hours but since it's only about 20 yards from the door to the bikini bar, I'd hazard a guess they're only open in the evenings.

Now, does anybody know where to get tacos a la plancha in Houston? That's another method of preparation I'd like to try.

Edit to add: I was quite surprised to read in the Press that these tacos did not live up to my expectations. I hadn't realized that.

Taco Keto

1401 Cullen

I first heard of this taco truck a couple of years ago but never caught it open until recently. The owner is from Guerrero and there's a unique thing about their tacos. What they're known for is the enchiladaded tortillas used. Actually what I observed was dabbing some of the salsa roja on the tortillas on the griddle rather than dipping them, but the effect is pretty much the same and the tortillas fluff up some as they are grilled besides absorbing the flavors of the salsa. You get only one tortilla per taco here, at least with the corn (didn't try the flour if they even offer it), and fillings are perhaps a mite skimpy, but the extra step with the tortillas makes a big difference flavor-wise. I found myself craving more of these before I even got back home. As you can see, they also use grilled onions, and a generous amount, and the other unique ingredient is potatoes. I wasn't too sure about that last ingredient so asked for no potatoes on the al pastor (top) and potatoes on the fajita (bottom), but I wound up with no potatoes at all and all the onions on the al pastor. There was a breakdown in communications between the two workers on the truck, apparently.

Oh yes, another thing - parking is virtually non-existent: they're in the parking lot of a tire shop. I drove a block away to the parking lot of a rather infamous Kroger in a torrential downpour that lasted about 3 minutes to dig in.

I'll be going back to this truck again.

Open only Tuesday thru Saturday, 11a to 11p.