Straight talk ("honest") about Kansas Ave. Mexican Restaurants, Kansas City, KS

[Tobias]

Another installment later today...

is this the one w/ special guest?

[Mr Bread]

hell yes

[Dr Rick Daris]

blame it on tortillas
got you sayin hey yeah
blame it on cilantro
got you ordering quatro
blame it on the kuh kuh kuh kuh kuh kuh kuh kansas city mexican restaurants
blame it on the kuh kuh kuh kuh kuh kuh kuh kansas city mexican restaurants

[pissclams]

don't go chasing restaurants
please stick to the white man places that you're used to.
i know that you're gonna have it your way on Kansas Avenue,
but I think you're food's gonna be too hot

[Dr Rick Daris]

ooooooh ooooooooh oooooooooooh oooooooh oooooooh oooh ooh, i want to eat you up (kansas ave mexican food that is)
to the tick tock you don't stop to the tick top you don't stop
i want to eat you up (kansas ave mexican food that is).

[ben ji]

El Camino Real II 
1147 Argentine Blvd, Kansas City, KS


Facade: Excellent.  Hand painted signs and abrasive colors abound.  I really appreciate how they clearly state that this is El Camino Real “#2” (they have three locations in total).  This is useful, because if you get kidnapped and blindfolded, and dropped off in front of this place, it would be handy to know which one you are at.  BOOM.  Problem solved.  The murals are nice…sharp looking guys making tortillas and just cooking it up.  Makes me trust them.

Décor/Ambience: Excellent.  Where to start?  Check out the pic of the dining room.  It’s late February and not only are there still Valentines decorations, but also Christmas lights on the wall.  Crucifix was a bit smaller than I’d normally like it to be, but sufficient.  Just at the edge of the photo you can see the juke box.   The juke box was pretty old school, and loaded with Latin music.  There was a large hand-written sign on the juke box declaring “QUARTERS ONLY!!!!”  Apparently they had experienced problems with that in the past.

Service: Very Good.  They were friendly and quick.  Our waitress had shaved off all of her eyebrows and then hand drawn them back on her forehead, but like half an inch higher than where the originals were located.  That’s attention to detail and a real commitment to look her best (or at least what she believes is her best), and I appreciated that.

Food: Good to Very Good.  I tried an Asada taco, Al Pastor taco, and a Carnitas gorditas.  They were each very good.  However, there was only one kind of salsa, and it was really smoky chipotle flavored and strange to me.  They didn’t offer a tomatillo version, which was disappointing. Overall, it was good and I’d eat there again, but I do not think it was better than San Antonio or Tierra Caliente.  However, Camino Real has a really big menu, and they make a ton of other traditional things and main stream American stuff like fajitas that are probably excellent.

To chicken to go to the REAL El Camino Real?

 El Camino Real, 903 N. Seventh St., Kansas City, Kan., had eight violations during a Feb. 12 inspection following a complaint. Among them, 25 percent of the food items in the cooler did not have date marks.
Restaurant officials did not return phone calls.

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/02/28/4092221/area-food-establishments-cited.html#storylink=cpy

[Dr Rick Daris]

ooooooh ooooooooh oooooooooooh oooooooh oooooooh oooh ooh, you wanna gross me out (El Camino Real, 903 N. Seventh St., Kansas City, Kan., )
to the tick tock you don't stop to the tick top you don't stop
you wanna gross me out (El Camino Real, 903 N. Seventh St., Kansas City, Kan., ).

[pissclams]

Cashier, I, must
(Warrrrrn yoooooooooou)
I sense something strange in your line
Situation is (seriooooooooous)
Let's cure it 'cause I'm on my lunch time
The tacos are so (tastyyyyyyyyyyy)
But your menu is written in a language I can't read
It's all so (confusing)
When salsa looks good but its made in meade

It's drivin' way out to KCK!
That's why it's HARD for me to say
To tell you what I want to eat!
Taco, Sancho, Burrito
(Wrong choice, barf on feet!)

[Dr Rick Daris]

Cashier, I, must
(Warrrrrn yoooooooooou)
I sense something strange in your line
Situation is (seriooooooooous)
Let's cure it 'cause I'm on my lunch time
The tacos are so (tastyyyyyyyyyyy)
But your menu is written in a language I can't read
It's all so (confusing)
When salsa looks good but its made in meade

It's drivin' way out to KCK!
That's why it's HARD for me to say
To tell you what I want to eat!
Taco, Sancho, Burrito
(Wrong choice, barf on feet!)

oh my god 

[steve dave]

 

[mocat]

this is one of those threads the quality of which other message boards can only dream of having

[Pete]

Will type up a new installment tonight!  Some eye raising statements will be made!

[Katpappy]

Will type up a new installment tonight!  Some eye raising statements will be made!

[pissclams]

Will type up a new installment tonight!  Some eye raising statements will be made!

 

[gato montes]

One thing I haven't seen on any of these menus is chile rellenos. They are one of the first things I try at most Mexican restaurants. Always important to know whether they are made with real green chiles or poblano peppers. Poblano peppers tend to be meatier, which makes it easier to stuff without falling apart, but they really lack in flavor IMO. Green chiles on the other hand are thinner and more difficult to keep whole, raising the craftsmanship level, but the flavor is undeniably better.

Something to look for even if you don't order it is the enchiladas. Do they offer the option to add an egg on top? If not, not an authentic Mexican place. Also, do you get the option of smothered in red or green chile (real green chile sauce not tomatillos)?

One last opinion. Ground beef is tex-mex (though they will offer it most authentic places because of dumbass costumers). Always go with pulled/shredded or cubed. If the only option on a dish is ground beef just turn around and walk out.

[Pete]

Will type up a new installment tonight!  Some eye raising statements will be made!

 

I over promised and under delivered.  I will try and make time tonight to get this done.  Obviously, this is not within the SLA we originally discussed, and I apologize for that.

[Pete]

Apologies about the tardiness of this installment.  As most of you know, I am a very important business man, with many business meetings that keep me very busy. 


Ninfa's Tortillas & Taqueria 
964 Kansas Ave, Kansas City, KS



Facade: Very Good.  It's charming.  Nice little awning, faded red paint, cinder block / Morton building exterior.  I'll tell you what, I bet that Ninfa's favorite bird is a Cardinal, and so they were like "hey, let's put a freaking Cardinal on the side of the building, because it's Ninfa's favorite bird!"  Done deal, Cardinal on the side of the building, rest is history.

Décor/Ambience: Excellent.  The festive orange paint and open view of the kitchen are fun, but the best part of the decor is in the form of the bright bluw Parkay squeeze bottles on every table.  If you haven't been here before, they are the first thing you notice....and immediately ask yourself "what the eff is that all about?"

Service: Very Good.  They were all very nice.  Our waitress had a camo K-State hat.  No joke.  She said her Dad owned the joint, and so her grandma must be Ninfa or something.  Not really sure.

Food: Good.  Ninfa's might as well be called "Gringo Steve's Tex Mex Restaurant, with a couple of Authentic things."  Maybe they have off-menu stuff that I am not aware of, but most of that menu is straight Jose Pepper's.  Flour tortilla's are given early in lieu of chips, with a puree salsa that is pretty similar to the salsa at El Pollo Rey.  Everyone sort of loads them up with Parkay and/or salsa and munches on them before the food arrives.  The tamales are authentic, and very good...they are the only thing that saves this place from being thrown off the list for being too Tex Mex.  You can buy them in bulk as well.  The crispy fried flour tacos looked decent, but are California style and don't really belong on this list.  I was just turned off by all the flour tortilla items.  Flour tortilla's are not too common in Mexico, seems like Ninfa sold out to the Flour Man.  They serve breakfast all day, which is nice.  However, another person at my table ordered the Huevos Rancheros and the eggs were burnt to a crisp and all brownish all over.  How the eff do you ruin eggs? 

[pissclams]

 

oh man, thx for the update pete.  i've been waiting for this for days. 

[sys]

One thing I haven't seen on any of these menus is chile rellenos. They are one of the first things I try at most Mexican restaurants. Always important to know whether they are made with real green chiles or poblano peppers. Poblano peppers tend to be meatier, which makes it easier to stuff without falling apart, but they really lack in flavor IMO. Green chiles on the other hand are thinner and more difficult to keep whole, raising the craftsmanship level, but the flavor is undeniably better.

Something to look for even if you don't order it is the enchiladas. Do they offer the option to add an egg on top? If not, not an authentic Mexican place. Also, do you get the option of smothered in red or green chile (real green chile sauce not tomatillos)?

gmafb.

[8manpick]

Pete, thoughts on a gE post Big XII Tourney Championship pak  installment next Sunday?

[sys]

Flour tortilla's are not too common in Mexico, seems like Ninfa sold out to the Flour Man.

hey, pete.  i like you a lot more than whoever i just replied to, so i'm going to reply nicer.  my friendly advice is to just evaluate stuff on how it tastes, not on whether or not you think it is "authentic".  for one thing, you don't know what is authentic, and for another thing, it doesn't matter.

[8manpick]

Flour tortilla's are not too common in Mexico, seems like Ninfa sold out to the Flour Man.

hey, pete.  i like you a lot more than whoever i just replied to, so i'm going to reply nicer.  my friendly advice is to just evaluate stuff on how it tastes, not on whether or not you think it is "authentic".  for one thing, you don't know what is authentic, and for another thing, it doesn't matter.

I like the idea that there is one style of "authentic" Mexican food, despite Mexico being a fairly large country. Like Louisiana has the same "authentic" food as New York.

[kim carnes]

flour tortillas >>>>! corn tortillas.   That is a fact, not an opinion.

[Pete]

Flour tortilla's are not too common in Mexico, seems like Ninfa sold out to the Flour Man.

hey, pete.  i like you a lot more than whoever i just replied to, so i'm going to reply nicer.  my friendly advice is to just evaluate stuff on how it tastes, not on whether or not you think it is "authentic".  for one thing, you don't know what is authentic, and for another thing, it doesn't matter.

I'm merely repeating what was told to me by a Mexican chef at a cooking class that I took in Mexico.  I was told that in Northern Mexico (the crap hole and pit of despair of all of Mexico) they can't grow corn as effectively and resort to flour.  I was told that 90%+ of the rest of Mexico prefers corn over flour.  Please correct me if I was mis-informed.

I should add a disclaimer that I don't consider the dirty ass border towns of Northern Mexico to be authentic traditional Mexican fare.  I hope that doesn't offend anyone.

[Pete]

Looks like I was accurately informed.  (Maize means corn, boys).

Maize has been the most basic necessity in the kitchen for centuries. It is the most planted crop in the Mexican region. The country grows more than 42 different types of maize. In turn, each of these types has several varieties whose number is estimated at more than 3,000 by the International Center for the Improvement of Maize and Wheat (CIMMYT). The characteristics of each breed are varied according to soil conditions, the relative humidity of the environment, altitude, and even how it is grown. Although some of the earliest evidence of maize cultivation suggests domestication took place in several places at the same time, it is likely this process was linked to people who spoke Oto-Manguean, although it has questioned the origin of Mexican maize.

Either way, maize is the basis of most Mexican cuisine, with some exception in the culinary traditions of northern Mexico, where wheat is taking the place of maize as the cereal base. The primary way in which maize is consumed in Mexico is the tortilla, but it is also a necessary input for the preparation of almost all types of tamales, atoles and snacks. Furthermore, the maize used for tortillas can be ripe and dry, but it is also consumed fresh and mature (maize), or soft and fresh (xilote).[9]

Tortillas are consumed daily. Because they are very popular, most tortillas are made in factories with machinery, but they can also be home-made, especially in small towns. Tortilla factories are very common and can be found in any city, village, or settlement, and there are places where there are several in a single street. Tortilla production starts from early morning because lunch is the main meal of the day for most people. In Mexico, lunch is eaten between 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. Some supermarkets or grocery stores also sell tortillas, and in such places they can be bought throughout the day.

Tortillas come in several different flavors and colors according to the kind of maize used. Tortillas come with all the traditional foods of Mexico, though not with all the fillings that are used these days.

In northern Mexico and much of the United States, "tortillas" mean wheat flour tortillas.[citation needed] They are the foundation of Mexican border cooking and a relatively recent import. Their popularity was driven by the low cost of inferior grades of wheat flour provided to border markets and by their ability to keep and ship well.[10]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tortilla

Corn FTW.