Location: 360 Brown St., West Lafayette (map it)
Phone: (765) 250-3060
Cuisine: Mexican

Recently there was an article in the Journal and Courier about a new Mexican plan over where the River Rock Grille used to be. Then I got a slew of emails from people requesting I go check it out. So being the good blogger I am, I did just that. I went to Poblanos on Monday (sorry I’m late with my review, I’ve been busy with my job that actually pays me.)

Located in West Lafayette, in the same strip as BW3 and the Neon Cactus, Poblanos is a very nice place. The inside has been redone, and it’s very clean and well organized. The decor is tasteful, the eating areas are nice, and the ambiance is also good. I was impressed.

Immediately we were brought two baskets of chips and two bottles of salsa with four salsa dishes. This is nice, because everyone had their own salsa dish and we could double dip as much as we wanted. The salsa was very good, but the chips were a bit lacking. Not warmed, which I prefer. The menu was expansive, with lunch specials as well as a regular full menu with everything you could possibly want.

From the JC article, it seemed to me that the fajitas were something of a specialty. I’m not one to normally order fajitas the first time I go to a restaurant. I like fajitas just fine, but I saw on Anthony Bourdain once that fajitas are what people who don’t like Mexican food eat. And I like Mexican food, all kinds. So my usual test is something a little more traditional, but since the fajitas were a specialty, I felt like I needed to try them.

The fajitas arrived on a sizzling platter with a separate plate of beans, rice, sour cream, guacamole, lettuce and pico. They looked fantastic. Unfortunately, I have to say they were not all that great. The chicken was pretty bland and dry. So I was definitely disappointed in the chicken fajitas. My friend who ordered a lunch special reported that all of her items were great. I am a big fan of refried beans, and the beans were quite tasty.

Perhaps the bland fajitas were a fluke, or else there’s some room for improvement. I’ll definitely go back and try again. The servers were really friendly and the manager or owner made his way around to greet the patrons, which is always a nice touch.

Kid Friendly: Yes.

Price: Very reasonable, lunch specials around $6-9.

Location: 408 Sagamore Pky N, Lafayette, IN (map it)
Phone: 765-449-0270
Cuisine: Mexican

A friend of mine told me that El Meson was pretty good, and since I think I’m running out of places to try, I decided yesterday to go give it a try and was not disappointed. This restaurant is over across from the Home Depot plaza on Sagamore Parkway. Clearly it is located inside a building that was once a fast food restaurant, but I have no idea what it originally was. Maybe a Hardees? I can’t remember what was there. It’s been decorated completely with festive tables and chairs and wall decor. (Actually, I have eaten at an El Meson in Indianapolis before, and from looking at their website, they have many locations all over Indiana.)

I walked in and there were a number of people already seated and eating. I waited to be seated by and was called “amiga,” which is a nice change from ma’am or miss. I like being someone’s friend! I asked for water and it came out quickly with chips and salsa. The salsa, while not made from fresh tomatoes, was really quite good. Spicy enough, but not too spicy.

The menu was extensive. It had all of your standard Mexican fare as well as multiple lunch and dinner combinations, an array of fajitas, and a few things that stood out to me such a the Mexican Pizza, an item made with chicken, steak, and shrimp with kudos on FourSquare. I wasn’t quite brave enough to try the pizza, so I opted for the tacos de carne asada. My friend ordered the El Meson Burrito.

The tacos were awesome. I love steak tacos, but too often they are tough and flavorless. These were tender and full of flavor. The pico de gallo was really good on them as well. Double thumbs up for the tacos de carne asada. My friend who ordered the El Meson Burrito, reported that it was really good as well.I didn’t get rice with my meal, and I’m not really a big fan of Mexican rice, but my friend got rice and assured me that it was even good.

Our server was friendly and attentive. The restaurant was clean. The floors there are standard fast-food restaurant floors with the ubiquitous brown tile, and usually when you see that places it’s almost always disgusting but they had it well taken care of it. The food was fast to arrive as well.

If you are out for Mexican, I’d definitely recommend El Meson.

Kid Friendly: Yes

Price: Very reasonable, my lunch was less than $8.

Location: 1400-3 Sagamore Pkwy North, Lafayette, IN (map it)
Phone: 765-448-1715
Cuisine: Mexican

Last week there was an article in the Journal & Courier titled, “No shortage of Mexican restaurants in Greater Lafayette.” I knew this was true already, but then I read the article and there were several restaurants I’d never heard of or never tried. So I figured I’d better get a couple more in here. Today I picked Mango Loco, which is directly across Sagamore Parkway from Taco Rico, so there’s some stiff competition.

It’s located in a little strip mall just south of Greenbush on Sagamore Parkway (on the east side of the road) and is surrounded by a Mexican bakery and a Mexican grocery. So if you need anything Mexican, this is apparently the place to be.

The place itself is set up in just one long area. Colorful bright walls and booths line up the wall, then the kitchen area is walled off to the other side. It is not a big place.  We arrived and a server brought us some menus and we picked a spot. There did not appear to be many people working there, or eating in there actually at the time. We sat down and perused the menu. I actually think when it started it was mostly a smoothie venture, with a few options to go with your smoothie, and it has morphed into a full restaurant. The menu had two sides, one side in English and another in Spanish. That was a very nice touch.

The menu consisted of your regular Mexican fare: tacos, burritos, tostadas, etc. as well as smoothies. My standard order at any new Mexican place are tacos de carne asada, so I tried to order those but was told they were out of steak. So I switched to a chicken burrito. My friend order chicken tostadas. I also asked for some chips and salsa, which were not immediately brought to the table.

The wait for the chips and salsa took a while, and the server apologized for that, but the they were very good. The salsa was on the thinner side, but I like thin salsa with good flavor, so it was just fine. The chips were extra salty which I like.

Then out came the food. My burrito was huge, so big  that I knew immediately that eating all of it in one sitting was not going to be a successful mission today.  The burrito had in it rice, chicken, lettuce, some kind of cheese sauce, and an interesting bean option. I ordered beans on the side, because I really like refried beans, but these weren’t the same. It was like a cross between black beans and refried beans. Like refried black beans perhaps. I really liked it in my burrito. I was not as much a fan on the side. The burrito also had avocado slices in it, and that’s really unusual and was extra tasty. It looked like the burrito had been grilled a little on all sides. It was really good and I’m looking forward to going and finishing the other half after I write this review.

My friend had the chicken tostadas and they were each loaded with a big hunk of avocado. She reports they were delicious. (They looked really good.)

The service wasn’t spectacular. Our water went dry and things kind of came out slowly and in no particular order. The restaurant itself is small and the Mexican MTV on the TV in the back was a little loud. There was only one other person eating in, but there was a steady stream of people coming in for take out orders the whole time we were there.

I would definitely recommend going and trying Mango Loco. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. But I think next time, I’ll get it to go. (Next time, I need to try a smoothie. That was a mistake I made today.)

Kid Friendly: Yes

Price: Very reasonable. $8 for a large burrito and a side of beans.

Location: 2090 Erie Street, Lafayette (map it)
Phone: (765) 449-0160
Cuisine: Mexican

Last week when I did my weekly call out to my Twitter and Facebook friends asking, “Where should I eat?” I got several Twitter responses that I should go to Taqueria El Maguey. I had never heard of this place, so I did a little searching. I started at Yelp, and there were several rave reviews. Then I looked in Google, and there were excellent reviews there as well. So it was decided, I’d definitely have to go try this place.

It’s over in Market Square, near Erie and Elmwood. I found two different addresses online, but it’s hard to miss. The building was once a KFC and while it has been repainted, etc, it still looks like a KFC.

So I parked and went in and this is a part that I really debated about including in the review because what I am sincerely hoping is that this was a fluke, a single incident, and this isn’t normal at all. But I feel like I have to be completely honest so here goes. When I went in, the whole place smelled bad. Not bad as in you don’t like the way the food smells (like how my kids react at Noodles & Co) but it had a distinctly “sewery” smell to it. So it basically smelled like a public bathroom. And I hate that I had to write that. I’m not sure why. And like I said, I hope it was a one time occurrence. My friend who was eating with me confirmed that it was not my imagination but if you have eaten there and had it not smell like a sewer, please put that in the comments and reassure me that this experience was not the norm.

Aside from the smell, it wasn’t a bad place. It had what was clearly the KFC floors, but some effort was made to create a Mexican environment. There was a Mexican daytime talk show on the TV that I couldn’t stop watching. It wasn’t huge, but there was a very nice looking patio that I would have really enjoyed eating on had the weather been a little warmer.

I was greeted warmly by our server and brought out some chips and salsa right away. And YUM, the salsa was very good. It was quite spicy, so if you are a spice wimp you might stay away, but it was very good. We perused the menu and made our selections and away our server went. And we didn’t see her again for quite some time.

While all the staff seemed very very pleasant, after placing our orders, they really didn’t come back very often. The food took quite a while to come out too. Not a big deal, I’m willing to wait for good food, but between the time we ordered and the time the food arrived, the server never came back. I know, because I could really have used a second basket of chips and salsa in that time.

The food did finally come. As a matter of  habit, when I try a Mexican restaurant for the first time I almost always order the Tacos de Carne Asada. I feel like if they can do this well, then the rest of the food will generally be good too. I ordered a la carte, so I got a side of beans but skipped the rice. My friend got a combo platter with a taco, tostada, and something else that neither of us can seem to remember the name of.

I had heard that the tortillas here are freshly made. I can’t confirm or deny that this is the case, but what I can confirm is that the tacos de carne asada were really good! If I had to guess, I’d say the tortillas were fresh, but I don’t have any conclusive knowledge of this. I may even venture to say the carne asada was the best I’ve had in town. The beans weren’t the best I’ve ever had, but were good enough.

My friend reported that her taco shell for her crunchy taco was stale, but the rest of the meal was pretty good.

From @khaskett94: “It was decent. Service could be a little better. Food was pretty good & good sized portions. I’d eat lunch there again.”

So good chips and salsa, good tacos, and halfway decent service. Worth another try in my book.

Kid Friendly: Yes.

Price: Very affordable. $1.75 tacos ordering a la carte, with lunch specials starting at just over $5.

Location: 111 South River Rd. Suite A West Lafayette (map it)
Phone: (765) 743-8226
Website: www.fuzzystacoshop.com
Cuisine: Mexican

When I announced on Facebook and Twitter that I was going to try Fuzzy’s today, I had a great deal of feedback – most of it really bad! So I went into the restaurant with low expectations and a fair amount of trepidation. And I learned a very important lesson: low expectations are good. Because my expectations were so low, I was pleasantly surprised rather than disappointed.

Fuzzy’s is located where Pot Belly used to be, right on the corner of SR 26 and US231 in West Lafayette. There’s a parking garage there, but depending on which location you are coming from, it can be difficult to get into. I had been in this location when it was Pot Belly, and I was surprised by just how different it was. I recall there being a balcony at Pot Belly where sometimes musicians would perform. There is no longer a balcony! But it was colorful and cheery. You enter and walk up to the register to order. It wasn’t that busy, but we had to wait a fair amount of time to place our orders. They have a big magnet board with their menu and prices. You order at the counter and they give you a number and you can find a seat and fill your drink cup while waiting for your number to be called.

Taco Dinner: one chicken, one beef, potatoes, and beans

I ordered the Taco Dinner. The menu has tacos, quesadillas, salads, sandwiches, burritos, and dinners. All the dinners are a combination of items and come with two sides. The side options include re-fried beans, black beans, rice, and something I’ve never seen offered in a Mexican restaurant: Latin fried potatoes. So I  knew that was something I was going to have to try because I’ve never met a potato I didn’t like.

I wanted to mix it up so I got one shredded beef taco and one shredded chicken taco with re-fried beans and Latin fried potatoes. A friend tried the enchiladas, one shredded chicken, and one shrimp. Another friend had a ground beef taco, so among us we had enough variety to test.

The beans were standard re-fried beans, and tasted exactly like what you’d get out of a can of Old El Paso. I happen to like canned re-fried beans, so I don’t have a problem with that. They certainly didn’t stand out among re-fried beans I’ve had. Then as for those potatoes that surprised me on the menu, they were actually quite good. I’m not sure how “Latin” they were, but they were tasty!

As for the tacos, they were okay. The shredded beef was better than the chicken, for sure. But neither had me jumping out of my seat. Neither were bad either, just average. My friend reported that the shrimp enchilada was tastier than the chicken, and my other friend said her ground beef taco was better than the chicken. So the consensus is that the chicken is not great.

Overall though, for a cheap and fast lunch, it’s not a bad option and I’d go again. This is a chain restaurant, with locations nationwide, but they do have a local Facebook page with specials.

Friends’ opinions: From @kristenrielly, “Fuzzy’s Taco Shop – my opinion: It certainly wasn’t bad, though it’s not a place I feel the need to go back to.” From @khaskett94, “Food was decent though hardly the “new addiction” they tout on the door. I would go again, but it’s not a priority.”

Kid Friendly: Yes.

Price: Starting at  $1.99 for a la carte items, and dinners starting at $5.99.