Like everything, all good things must come to an end, and so has my tenure here. I encourage you all to visit our new site:

                 tijuanafoodblog.com

Thank you everyone, see you there! :D

Imagine you just traversed the 50 mile road from Rosarito to Ensenada, with coastal views, mountain landscapes and small beach side communities… on your bike!

Lol, wut!?

That’s where we start off this week’s TijuanaFoodBlog! The Rosarito-Ensenada bike ride is a bi-annual event started in 1979. Catered for both the serious bike rider and the not-so serious bike rider (with a penchant for dressing up as TV characters), the hilly winding road is a fun experience, no matter what your fitness level is. The ride starts in front of the iconic Rosarito Beach Hotel and ends in the always-cheery tourist section of Ensenada.

So what do you do after you’ve been on your bike for 3+ hours?? Well, you have a beer of course! but then afterwards…. you look for food! Now obviously you can hit up the buffet tables set up by the organizers, but why waste such a wonderful opportunity to explore the local cuisine of this port-city?

And that’s how we ended up at Mahi-Mahi. A local favorite, this restaurant’s menu lies somewhere in the middle of authentic street-side mariscos and high end restaurant. In one word? Superb.  Our table started off with a delicious tostada de ceviche, with every ingredient fresh it started things off right!

Next up? A crunchy shrimp quesadilla. Crunchy? I’m glad you asked. It’s pan-fried with butter… wowzers! Buttery, the shrimp cooked to perfection and cheese just oozing out, this quesadilla was a delicious appetizer I’m glad we didn’t skip.

What else came with the platters? How about a bisque! A warm, delicious and creamy rendition, this plate wasn’t overwhelming in its fish taste and hit just the right notes.

One of my absolute favorite parts of this whole meal was the following piece… a sope made with abalone chorizo. Yes, chorizo made with abalone, put on top of a perfectly pan fried sope, topped with fresh-crispy lettuce, cheese, cream and a little bit of red onion. The texture of fresh, crispy, hot, crunchy and creamy all meshed together perfectly… and the flavor? Out of this world! The chorizo wasn’t too salty, with a great abalone taste, it blended perfectly with the maize flavor of the sope, the cream and the onion. I would’ve been perfectly content with just having this over and over and over and over… seriously!

but as usual, just when I think something can’t be topped, the cooks south of the border bring something else out that just take your taste buds on a wild ride. Imagine pan roasted chiles gueros (a.k.a. Santa Fe grande chiles in the U.S.) stuffed with warm-delicious marlin & veggies, dipped in soy sauce. Your taste buds won’t know what to make of it… but don’t worry. Overthinking it won’t help, just enjoy J

Hey, how ‘bout some coconut shrimp? Yeah that seems pretty standard, right? Not when it comes with tamarind sauce. (Tamarind, for those not familiar with it, is a fleshy fruit that grows in pods. The best way to describe the flavor would be sweet and sour at the same time. If you’ve never had it…you should!... anyways, back to the blog) This sweet and tangy sauce blended perfectly with the taste of coconut and obviously even better with the shrimp.

What can I say, maybe it was because I was so hungry after that 50 mile ride… or maybe it just was THAT good. I prefer to think it was that good. This place has too much good stuff going on. A super wide variety of dishes ranging from the simple basic ceviches to some more cutting edge stuff like octopus cooked with olives and olive oil. A very friendly and knowledgeable wait staff. Indoor and patio sitting… but above all, pretty good prices! All in all, dinner, beers, tip and tax included came out to $20 (U.S Dollars) per person.  Mahi-Mahi should definitely be on your to-do list next time you go to Ensenada.

Enjoy!

What can I say? Maybe this review won’t be fair. Maybe this review shouldn’t be done. Why, you ask? Well, cause I grew up eating at El Tacomiendo (on the corner of Avenida De Las Ferias & Villa Loma – behind the Hipodromo Casino) and whenever I’m in TJ I find time to visit them, so it might make me a bit biased.

For the last twelve years this taco stand has been doling out some of the tastiest, well portioned and delicious tacos around. Way off the beaten path, no where near any tourist attraction, this taco stand really is for locals. Now these aren’t what people would consider ‘traditional’ TJ tacos. They aren’t even made with carne asada! But… man o man are they good. First, every taco starts off with a recently made tortilla. Did you get that? I’ll repeat it: They make the tortillas right in front of you! Yup, so that’s a good start. Next? Well, if you’re smart you’ll order it made into a quesadilla. They’ll put the cheese straight onto the griddle and put that recently made tortilla on top of it… So you know that little crunchy crust that forms when you cook cheese straight on the griddle? Yeah they put that on there. Then? Well, here’s where we can start breaking it down. We have several options: carne a la plancha (which is a whole piece of meat cooked on the griddle), chile relleno (cheese stuffed pepper), chorizo and tripita (tripe).

Now at this point you might be saying to yourself… ‘Oh that sounds pretty good. Some toppings to that and we’re good to go’. But I’m not done. What else could they add to make it better??? Well, how about some sautéed onions and some slow cooked pinto beans *drools*

Now we can add our regular toppings: guacamole (heaps of it- no extra charge), regular onions and cilantro. Add to that an assortment of salsas ranging from red pepper based, to smoked jalapeño to the Pièce de résistance – onions pickled with habanero peppers.

I really can’t say enough good things about this place. Many a nights have ended here after a bit partying and before some shut eye. The staff is super friendly, the tacos are good, the agua de horchata is delicious and made on premises… and the price you ask? Well, on average, per person you’ll be looking at around 6 or 7 dollars with tip included. No wonder I’ve always liked this place…

Enjoy!

Oh… just as an addendum. Every person that I’ve brought to these tacos for the first time has fallen in love with them. Just sayin’…

Break ya’ neck! Errrrr…. or something along those lines. It’s kind of hard to make a segway into this blog. Anyhoo! Kentucky Fried Buches. What can you say about a place that has been open for nearly 50 years!?  A tijuana institution, this place has been serving up fried chicken necks since 1963. Now, while chicken necks aren’t really the first thing you think of when talking about Mexican food, let me tell you, these are delicious! It’s really simple, you take chicken necks, deep fry them to the point where you can even eat the bone, serve with salsa and unlimited tortillas and PRESTO! These buches are delicious, almost akin to a fattier, meatier version of a chicken wing, but more juicy! You can also eat around the bone and meat slides right off! The tortillas? Warm, soft and plenty! The salsa... spicy! Watch out for this, if you're not used to spicy food then use with caution!

The menu, which is on the wall, has to be one of the best I’ve seen. They offer two items at this establishment: an order of buches (chicken necks) or soda/water. That’s it! and for less than $4 (U.S. Dollars) you can be feasting on an order of 7 necks and a drink :)

An anthropology professor once told me that a trait of a successful society was its ability to remain the same and keep thriving. I think that tenet applies to this food stand. A place that has been offering up one dish, and one dish only, for 49 years now, Kentucky Fried Buches has to be the definition of success. It’s also, I think, very emblematic of the essential Tijuana down to its name, which is an obvious parody on KFC. Kentucky Fried Buches offers up delicious food, on the cheap, with excellent service. It’s located in the notiorious zona norte – downtown part of TJ (Ave. Constitución #670, Tijuana), but don’t let that deter you from going, it’s really only a block away from Revolucion, or if you’re hitching a cab ride, just tell them Kentucky Fried Buches and they’ll know where to go.

So, let’s recap. Easy menu, delicious food. All in all – tip included- you’re looking to pay around $4.50 (U.S. Dollars). How can you beat that?

Enjoy!

One of Tijuana’s more unique restaurants, La diferencia (Blvd. Sánchez Taboada No. 10521, Zona Río. Tijuana) offers food from many of the different regions of Mexico. It’s one of the few restaurants that can offer such a wide range of dishes and execute them properly. They also emphasize seasonal dishes that are (obviously!) only available for a couple months or weeks at a time.

In this weeks edition, we’re going to cover a couple of dishes that are a bit out of the norm but that were nonetheless mouthwatering good (seriously, I’m drooling as I’m thinking of what I’m going to write).

First up, Gusanos de maguey! Something WAY out of left field for a lot of people but, that, if you give it a chance, you will NOT be disappointed. Translated literally as Maguey worms, they’re not really worms. Technically they’re caterpillars that are found in the maguey or agave plants in Mexico. These can be prepared in several ways: braised, fried or even raw! These ‘worms’ have a distinct smoky flavor to them that went excellent with black beans, guacamole and warm tortillas. They really are a unique experience that, if given the chance, you shouldn’t pass up on.

Next up? Mouthwatering (and for me, probably the best part of the experience) tacos de salmon al pastor.  If you’ve ever had tacos al pastor, you know how good these can be, but these were just something completely different. They start out with warm corn tortillas, pile on salmon with rich adobada sauce, tender chunks of pineapple and fresh guacamole. Now pause and think about all those flavors for a second… you’re welcome :) These tacos were really unique and not something you can just get anywhere, they really outdid themselves having them on the menu.

Last but not least the pièce de résistance. Pescado a la sal. This particular dish I hadn’t tried before but had heard a lot about. It’s pretty simple and straight forward. Take one (pretty big) red snapper, cover it completely with salt (in this case, salt specifically taken from the Cuyutlan Lagoon in the state of Colima) and pop it in the even. The salt makes a crust around the fish, which keeps in all the flavor and (very importantly) the moisture. The fish comes out juicy , tender and full of flavor. It doesn’t really need any garnishments because the taste is all in the fish. You know it’s a good dish when it doesn’t really need any accompaniment at all.

La diferencia (The difference in English) really does a good job in capturing all the different flavors and essences of Mexico. A friendly staff, valet parking, and even menus in English (if you need them) are all here! All in all dinner, tax and tip came out to about $30 (U.S. Dollars) per person.

Enjoy!

btw I should point out that since it is a whole fish, the dining staff does an excellent job of deboning the fish for ya!

El Potrero is a restaurant in Tijuana (Blvd Salinas 4700, Colonia Aviacion, Tijuana) that is known for both its food and its iconic architecture. The restaurant itself is shaped like a gigantic sombrero and, accordingly, its food couldn’t be any more Mexican.

This place serves up traditional Mexican cuisine from breakfast to lunch to dinner. And pretty much everything they do here is good… but that’s not really the whole story here. Much like the giant sombrero that sits atop the building, it’s the details that make this place special.

I came in for breakfast and before anyone even took our order we had already a plate of warm, soft,  delicious chicharron rojo (pork rinds in red sauce) at our table, along with house salsas and tostadas. Now this definitely beats having stale bread served up… or worse yet, crackers! It was the perfect way to start off our meal and we hadn’t even ordered breakfast yet! As I said before, it’s the details here…

Next up? Well we ordered our breakfasts and ordered coffee which, much to our delight, was café de la olla. (For those who don’t know what café de la olla is: it’s bold black coffee, presweetened in the pot with unrefined blocks of brown sugar that dissolves in the coffee).  And our orange juice? Freshly squeezed right next to our table by the guy behind the bar. Ahhh yes, those details…

Now  for breakfast we went with an order of chilaquiles al caballo, which included red chilaquiles, machaca (dried meat), beans, two eggs and a side order of potatoes with onions and peppers. Needless to say, it was a ginormous breakfast and really I didn’t even finish the whole thing, even though I wanted to! The chilaquiles had plenty of sauce, but were still crispy (meaning they hadn’t been sitting under a heat lamp for hours). The refried beans were a good match for the potatoes and the egg yolks brought everything together.

We also had a menudo rojo which is a delicious (sometimes spicy) soup made of beef stomach, pigs feet and hominy. It’s garnished with chile, cilantro, onions and lime for a kick. A savory meal by any standard. But that wasn’t all, because it was accompanied by tortillas. Not just regular run-of-the-mill tortillas, but 4 different kinds. They serve black-bean tortillas, chile guajillo tortillas, blue corn tortillas and, last but not least, regular corn tortillas.

Now to top it off, the restaurant does have its assortment of pastries but we opted for the basket of warm pan dulce (traditional Mexican sweet bread), which I might add goes PERFECTLY with the café de la olla. For the basket of bread, you are only charged however many pieces you consume.

They say the devil is in the details, and believe me when I say this, but there are a LOT of details to be noticed at this restaurant. From the architecture, to the coffee, to the pre-order of chicharron, to the freshly squeezed orange juice and the 4 different kinds of tortillas, this place does it right! All in all a breakfast with coffee, O.J., pan dulce, tax and tip will run you about $12 (U.S. Dollars).

Enjoy!