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

[pissclams]

ya pretty much everything about EPR is average except the chicken.  i've never gotten the salsa smashed, it usually looks like pace but tastes worse. 

always go full bird.  high in sodium but fantastic tasting, for sure.

[Pete]

 

[Tobias]

ANOTHER ONE?!

[Dr Rick Daris]

It was with a great measure of trepidation that I called Pete to get involved with this "Straight Talk" project.  But I had several questions that needed answering.  Unfortunately, I find myself left with new unanswered questions.

At approximately 11:21 I called pete to meet me at El Pollo Rey.  I was going to jump head first into this project and boy did I.  I met Pete in the parking lot of this place and we got to work.

1.  Ambience.  It is pretty great.  The parking lot smells of a wood fire.  My jacket now also smells like I was burning off brush out on the north 40.  But it is a good wood smoke smell with a hint of food to it.  The restaurant has a great grill being covered in quartered chicken behind the counter.  Promotional posters for the next norteno concert are on the windows and Mexican television is playing loudly on a t.v. over the sodas cooler.  No music was a huge minus but the adorable 8 month old girl with pierced ears behind the counter made up for it.  A-

2.  Food.  Pretty great.  I got the half AND ordered the whole avacado to go with it.  This even threw a veteran Straight Talker like Pete a curve.  The avacado was sectioned lengthwise and the nice lady behind the counter even let me look at the slices and decide if I wanted it./  Kind of like a sommelier handing you the cork and pouring a taster.  Except I didn't get to actually taste it.  I went with Pete's suggestion of pulling the meat off and making mini tacos with the rice, chicken, avacado hunks, pickled onions, corn tortillas and salsa.  Which however was pureed to a fine apple sauce like mash that made it look almost dessert like.  This raised a new question in my mind.  Did they in fact run their salsa through a food processor?  Is this authentic?  Does this give it better flavor (the answer is no, IMHO).  I have got to find out.  The pinto beans with the hunks of pork in it are pretty average.  There was a lot of fat in there, I'm not going to lie to you muchachos. The other downside to the food is the lack of a "crunch" i.e. no chips or other such items.  But the chicken does taste as good as advertised.  I could have easily taken down a whole bird.  B+

3.  People.  Pete adeptly noticed a business man take down a half bird in about 4 mintues, foregoing anything but his hands and an appetite for grilled chicken.  Lots of workers sharing wholes.  taking down real Cokes in glass bottles.  Pretty quiet though.  I guess the cold weather has everyone in kind of a funk.  B


Anyway, this has been Straight Talk featuring LSOC.

sorry i missed this review the first time around, it was a good one. i guess i don't seem to mind the "salsa" as much as most do. also the chicken is just to die for.

[CNS]

Pete, I think after you review those on the OP list, you should go back and edit the OP to put some sort of rating/summary next to the resturaunt name.  Would be helpful for those of us getting ready to kick off and follow your lead.

TIA. 

Possibly looking to hit one up today and not sure where to start. 

Sometimes I don't know if I will have the chance to do so until I am sitting in the neighborhood and found an extra 30min and don't have the time to read the thread on my phone. 

Just a suggestion.

[ChiComCat]

Can't wait Pete

[Pete]

HERE IS A TASTE OF WHAT IS TO COME....


You may have visited Taqueria Mexico in the past....but THAT crap IS DEAD!  VIA LA BIRRIERIA MICHOACANA!  Same great location, but under new management, my main man, Junior.

Full report after I take care of my biznaz man's work.

[Pete]

Birrieria Michoacana
(former home of Taqueria Mexico
719 Kansas Ave, Kansas City, KS

Facade:  Average.  The old Taqueria Mexico had a bad ass sign painted across the side of it, but these dudes went low key.    This place is all about the food.  No flashy murals.  Personally, I like murals and crap, though.

Décor/Ambience: Average.  It’s a pretty well put together place, having been previously the Taqueria Mexico.  Seemed clean, and kinda modern relative to a lot of the places on this list.   However, no juke box, no Telemundo, no crucifixes, no shrines to the Virgin, and no left out-dated holiday décor combined to leave me wanting.

Service:   Very Good.  Junior, the proprietor of the place was great, and hooked us up with complimentary stew  (more on that later).   Our English-as-a-very-distant-second-language waitress was very nice, and patient as we mis-pronounced every single thing on the menu, and asked like a hundred questions about how stuff was made.  Her eyebrows were not painted as high up on her forehead as I normally like, but she did pay attention to her appearance.  She coordinated the turquoise eye shadow, nail polish, and ear rings flawlessly.

Food: Excellent.  It’s a very traditional place, loads of stuff on the menu here that you will not see at Carolos O’Kelly’s.  The owners are from “Central Mexico” and the specialty is the Birria, which is a stew , in this case made with lamb.  It’s pretty spicy, but very flavorful.  Junior hooked us up with complimentary cups of stew when we were asking about the specialties of the house.  He was rough ridin' pumped about it.  They served it with corn tortillas, but he said that on the weekend they make extra special corn tortillas, and he seemed to suggest that if we ever tried them it would blow our minds or something….again, he was pumped.  They give you chips and salsa, with a mild and a hot.  The hot was a verde, which was pretty good.  The guys I was with ordered carne asada tacos, and carne asada enchilada.  Both said they were really good. I shot the moon on this one, and ordered a  Molcajete on the suggestion of my waitress.  What a rough ridin' spectacle this thing was.  It’s severed in a big stone mortar (called a Molcajete, coincidentally).  Huge hunks of meat hanging out of it, and a whole green onions, with a big ol’ pepper in the middle of this bubbling stew of spices and stuff.  It was really good, but difficult to eat.   Pretty good pic of this thing below. 

['taterblast]

food porn

[Skipper44]

Is the Molcajete in the shape of pig? 

Also,  at the Friday lunch beers

[Pete]

Is the Molcajete in the shape of pig?

Also,  at the Friday lunch beers

Sadly, that was a diet coke.

[JavaCat]

It’s severed in a big stone mortar (called a Molcajete, coincidentally).

  With the description of this being a spectacle I had to read this several times to make sure something really wasn't severed at the table. I'm still not sure something wasn't.

[Tobias]

my word pete, that thing really is a spectacle.  like, what was your plan of attack on that?  just go at it with a spoon?

[Pete]

It’s severed in a big stone mortar (called a Molcajete, coincidentally).

  With the description of this being a spectacle I had to read this several times to make sure something really wasn't severed at the table. I'm still not sure something wasn't.

Unfortunate typo, sorry for any confusion.

[sys]

looks pretty great, pete.  if another installment from this establishment ever becomes available, i hope there'll be pics of the barbacoa (de borrego, como dios manda).

[CNS]

Doing Las Arenosas right now.   Will report back later

Back later:

Taqueria Las Arenosas



Seemed very much like an old school cafe with much better food.




As far as service goes, I was one of only 5 or 6 ppl there, so I was taken care of very quickly. 

The place smelled fantastic. 

Before going in, I had decided that I was going to try the Barbacoa if they had it, since it seemed to be discussed quite a bit in this thread and I haven't had it outside of Chipolte before.

Half the menu was dedicated to Tortas, which I have never had before.  As good as the Barbacoa was, I will probs drop back in this spring/summer and try a torta.



 I ordered the barbacoa with the corn tortillas and it came with refried beans and Spanish rice.



The Barbacoa was really flavorful.  Much more so that I thought it would be with a description of "Steamed beef". 

Also, they had two salsas.  Their mild was actually really sweet and unique.  I liked it a lot, but spent most of my time on the hot.  The hot was served in a mustard bottle and was yellowish orange and thin.  It almost looked the color of a really thin melted cheese(color, not consistency).  It was fantastic.  Like, really really, smother-your-barbacoa-rice-and-bean-soft-tacos in it fantastic.

I really enjoyed the food.  If the OP's list wasn't so long, I would be going here once a week this spring/summer.

[Norm93]

I'm pretty sure that kck has a bonito michuacan.  Carnicerias should be on the list.

http://www.kansascity.com/2013/04/11/4175664/area-food-establishments-cited.html

Bonito Michoacan, 1150 Minnesota Ave., Kansas City, Kan., had 12 violations during an April 3 follow-up inspection, including workers unloading raw pig carcasses held at improper temperatures in a unrefrigerated pick-up truck.

“All the violations have been corrected,” Armando Romero, owner.

They have a busy website:

http://www.bonitomichoacankck.com/

[pissclams]

those beans look like a joke

[CNS]

I love beans.   Don't get me wrong, they were normal.  They weren't a culinary innovation or anything, but considering that their job(imo) as a part of this meal was to assist and not to lead, they did their job just fine.

[pissclams]

you deserve better, we all do.

[Mr Bread]

I think those are the appropriate level of bean for CNS Casey. 

[CNS]

I think those are the appropriate level of bean for CNS Casey.

What does that mean?  Do I not deserve elite beans?

Like I am a second class bean citizen or something?

You are dangerously close to treading on my feelings.

[paulnyakatura]

Shame on all of you. A KCK taco thread and no mention of Tacos On Wheels? 

Its at 299 S.10th St. just a couple blocks north of Kansas Ave.

The name is misleading since it's in a building now (former food truck). Pastor anything is my favorite.

[8manpick]

Shame on all of you. A KCK taco thread and no mention of Tacos On Wheels? 

Its at 299 S.10th St. just a couple blocks north of Kansas Ave.

The name is misleading since it's in a building now (former food truck). Pastor anything is my favorite.

To be fair, it is about Kansas avenue kck Mexican restaurants, not north of Kansas ave

[paulnyakatura]

To be fair, it is about Kansas avenue kck Mexican restaurants, not north of Kansas ave

Noticed that. Tacos On Wheels is actually closer to Kansas Ave. than 3 of Steve's original picks.