El Fenix
1620 E. Copeland Road
Arlington, Texas 76011
http://www.elfenix.com

This place bills itself as “the original Tex-Mex,” claiming to have started the so-called Tex-Mex movement back in 1918 and that their style has “been copied, but never duplicated.” Considering this high (self) billing, I was a bit surprised to see that lunch hour on a Sunday — with a home Cowboys game at 3:15 and a home Rangers World Series game that night, mind you — was pretty light. Both of those teams I mentioned play in venues that are within walking distance of the restaurant. I sat right down at the bar but noticed there was no wait for regular seating either. A bad omen, perhaps? Or just a haphazard coincidence? Either was possible. The atmosphere was basically exactly as you’d expect from a Tex-Mex place, and props to them for having three flat screen TVs hanging inside the bar (it was a U-shape, so each side of the bar was provided its own view of an HD NFL game).

What I Got: El Fenix Dinner; $13.99. It has: Guacamole, one cheese enchilada, one meat taco (I went ground beef; a decidedly boring choice, I know, but I like it), one soft cheese taco and two tamales topped with chili con carne. Rice and refried beans come as sides.

The problem most certainly wasn’t the quantity, as that was a pretty big portion of food for that price. It was the quality that was lacking.

Look, it wasn’t horrible. As WIBIA might say, I wasn’t offended by anything. I just…man, for saying it’s never been “duplicated” I felt an awful lot like I’ve had this meal dozens of times in the Indianapolis area. The cheese (queso, basically) that was melted over the enchilada was actually pretty good, but the chili con carne was bland and had no spice. The beef taco was a run-of-the-mill taco and the shell didn’t even have a decent crunch. I could have made it myself, except I’d at the very least actually fill the shell with a decent helping of meat instead of a minuscule spoonful. I feel like the tamales might have been done pretty well, but the chili con carne had already ruined them. Same thing for the soft cheese taco, which was also buried below the lackluster con carne (that taco is at the top of the plate, going horizontally, under the sauce). But, really, what’s the point of having a cheese soft taco unless what covers it makes it worthwhile?

Would I Buy It Again? No, I wouldn’t. As I said above, nothing was offensive or worthy of being sent back, but it was average at best. Considering I’m an Indiana resident saying that about a Tex-Mex place in freaking Texas, that’s pretty bad. I also didn’t care for the non-flexibility of the combinations. A lot of the stuff I wanted was listed on different dishes, and I couldn’t go a la carte. For example, I’m not a huge fan of guacamole, but chose this one because the offerings with sour cream (which I prefer) didn’t have enough items I really wanted. I don’t understand what the point is of having like twenty different combinations if you can’t be sure that all of them will cater to every customer. If I’m a boring Midwesterner who only wants some combination of burritos, enchiladas and tacos with sour cream and not guac, why can’t I do that? I wouldn’t even be picky on the meats in that case. Why not just assign prices to an a la carte menu with all these items? It saves menu space and each customer can happily choose an item. But it’s cool, I won’t have the issue again, because I’m not going back. I should have found it a bit curious that it was the closest Tex-Mex place to my hotel but my concierge — who knew I was going on foot — didn’t say a word about it when I asked for Tex-Mex restaurants (I ended up going anyway because I was pressed for time that day).

-Show

Ted’s Montana Grill
5910 W 86th St
Indianapolis, IN 46278
http://www.tedsmontanagrill.com

Ted Turner’s place is known for their Bison heavy menu and American classics.  I think that Ted is the number one bison rancher in the country, but don’t quote me on that.

The interior of the restaurant is entirely wood that has hints of old west saloons.   There are notes about the tablecloth being 100% recycled, straws, etc.

They start you off with a small bowl of pickles.  Pretty tasty actually.  They lean more towards the taste of a Claussen than a Vlasic.

The menu is prominently burgers where you can choose beef, chicken or bison for a few dollars more.   They also have some entrees as well.  Having a gift certificate, we needed to spend $50 for two people so I choose from this side of the menu.

We started off with a crab cake ($11) and a wedge salad with blue cheese ($4).     The crab cake was pretty bad.  Very little flavor and the crab didn’t taste very fresh.  The guac on the plate was more brown than green, it was basically inedible.  However, I didn’t want guac with a crab cake anyway.

The salad wedge didn’t offer any surprises, but I found the blue cheese to be pretty tasteless.   The bacon bits seemed a little stale and cooked a little too much for my liking.

I ordered the Bison Ribeye ($24) and chose onion rings and creamed spinach.  Obviously it wasn’t diet night.   The bison ribeye was a little under the requested medium rare, but that was okay.  I didn’t feel that this steak was really fresh as something was a little off here and I just couldn’t put my finger on it.

The onion rings were horrible.  The breading reminded me of dry cornbread.  It didn’t keep on the ring and they were not freshly made.   The creamed spinach was the worst item of the night.  It tasted exactly like spinach artichoke dip that you can get frozen from TGI Friday’s at the grocery store.  I couldn’t eat it…dreadful.

Would I Buy It Again?   No. I am finished with Ted’s.  Their burgers do not substantiate their price and I would rather go to Outback if I am buying a steak at that price point.  The apps and the sides were pretty bad as well.   I just can’t find anything that they do better than their competition.

-wibia

El Meson
8920 Wesleyan Road
Indianapolis, IN 46268
Phone: (317) 872-6400
http://www.elmesonmexicanrestaurant.com/

Nestled in around Michigan Road and Interstate 465, El Meson has a very odd looking building.  The back of the building faces Michigan Road (the busier road) so I am never sure when they are open.  The place also looks a little sketchy right in between five chain restaurants.

The interior was a lot bigger than I thought it would be…and it was a lot nicer.  See:

Normal setup as a chips and salsa guy hooks you up right away and then a totally different guy comes and takes your order.  The chips were stale, but the salsa wasn’t that bad.

What I Ate: Burrito Gigante, Thursday Special = $4.99

When this burrito hit the table, it quickly proved that it was appropriately named.  It was packed with refried beans, rice, chicken and lettuce.  Overall, it was okay and satisfied my gluttonous lunch.  I wouldn’t consider this authentic and I can’t say there were any surprises here.

The guac that was plopped on top of the burrito was pretty bad and I removed that quickly.  It was too smooth and I didn’t taste a hint of cilantro.

I spent most of the meal thinking about how cheap this was instead of any standout flavors.  I was stuffed from this meal and I can only imagine the calorie count.

Would I Buy It Again?  Maybe, but probably not.  If I am looking for a cheap burrito fix without wanting to drive to my favorite taquerias, this might satisfy my craving.  I have had a lot worse…and a lot better.  If I worked on a number scale, I would give it a 6/10; slightly above average for a non-authentic “authentic Mexican restaurant.”  If you have been to El Rodeo, La Hacienda, Cancun, I can’t say that you will be surprised by El Meson, but it would not stand a chance against the real taquerias in town.

-wibia

It is about that time of year that I consume a good amount of guac.  Salty chips, guac and cold beer…you just can’t beat it.  This recipe is really simple, quick, easy and pretty good.

Before I continue:  MAKE YOUR OWN GUACAMOLE!!!   The stuff is supermarkets is scientific junk.  They rarely contain avocados.  Think I am kidding?  Check out this list from debris.com.

4 ripe avocados
1 lime, juiced
1 garlic clove
1/2 red onion
Cilantro leaves…about a cup.  I never measure.
1/2 teaspoon of cumin
1/2 jalapeno, no ribs or seeds.  Want it hotter?  Use a Serrano.  You can add heat later, so default to low heat.
Quick drizzle of olive oil.
Salt and pepper to taste.

Add it all in the food processor, press the button.  If  you want to be a little more authentic, go with a Mocajete.

Garnish with a little red onion and cilantro.  I like a little crunch form the red onion.

-wibia

Guacamole Double Steakburger

Recently, Steak ‘n Shake started offering guacamole as a topping to several of their menu items (burgers, hot dogs) and as a guacamole lover, I decided to give theirs a shot to see how it held up.

What I Got:  Guacamole Double Steakburger combo $3.99 with coupon; $4.99 regular price (comes with fries)

If you’ve never had Steak ‘n Shake before, you are probably unfamiliar with the way they cook their burgers.  They cook their burger patties on a flat-top grill and press the patties to be very thin and since it is on a flat top grill, the patties cook in their own juices.  This burger had two of them.  Other toppings on this burger included the aforementioned guacamole, pepper jack cheese, tomato, red onions and lettuce.

The pepper jack cheese was a nice little addition to the burger.  I’ve always been a cheddar cheese guy on my burgers, but I’ve recently had a couple of burgers with pepper jack cheese on them and I may be quickly converting to that being my cheese of choice.  The rest of the toppings were crunchy and fresh, so that was a nice thing as well.  But, let’s not kid ourselves here though, the cheese choice was not the reason I bought the burger…the guacomole was the main attraction.

And for being a main attraction, it was a major let down.  You could obviously taste the avocados and could taste that they actually did make this guacamole fresh at the restaurant, but it really lacked tang that you usually get from good guacamole.  Their brand of it could have used more salt and more lemon juice in order to turn up the tang because this was just boring. 

Would I Buy It Again?  No, I wouldn’t.  This was disappointing, but I guess I should have expected this from a place that primarily serves burgers and milk shakes and doesn’t really dabble in “exotic” foods like guacamole.  The only time to really consider this burger is if you have a desperate craving for guacamole and you happen to have Steak ‘n Shake as your only food option.  If you have other options, definitely choose those first. 

-IndianapolisEater