★★★ (3 Stars)

Panchito's Downtown

Shhhh!
This is a review of the super secret Panchito’s underground, downtown location.  As a visitor to this website, you have this privileged information in your hands.

Top Secret
—–begin dossier—–
Most downtown employees and residents know of this location.  It took me about 8 months to realize this is the location they were muttering about under their breath.  It’s free of tourists and it’s cheaper than any Mexican restaurant on the Riverwalk.

Even walking by this location, it is difficult to distinguish it from other offices in the area.  One would presume there are only offices beyond the white door that leads in to the building in which the restaurant is located.  Even once inside the building, you have to traverse downward and into the underground to eat there.

This is no regular Panchito’s.  Their menu is different and you order at a station and pick it up when your number is called.  All along the wall, you will see their various lunch specials for the day, week, and month.  Legend has it they have a full-service area as well, but I have yet to see it.

It does get busy here at times.  As people in-the-know even visit this location on weekends!  And, you know downtown San Antonio restaurants aren’t big on weekends, unless they’re on the ‘walk.  But, the food is about the same as any other Mexican Cafe.  They use this awful American Cheese to fill their chili topped, Tex-Mex Enchiladas.  Their tacos are good and I’ve come to enjoy their Carne Asada Tortas, when they have them.  If you’re into this sort of thing, this secret location may be the thing for you.
—–end dossier—–

Shhhh!
Those who release this Top Secret information will be hunted!

★★★ (3 Stars)

I visited Aldaco’s for the first time after going to another restaurant that I found was closed.  I’d seen Aldaco’s advertising in various places and they seem to always be at local festivals with a booth set up.  So, I thought I’d give them a try.

It’s another Mexican restaurant in San Antonio.  Their lunch menu and lunch prices were decent.  I thought I’d give their ‘Loco Sampler’ plate a try to taste a couple of their items.  It had a crispy taco, an enchilada, a flauta, and the standard rice and charro beans.  I liked the enchilada at first, but it kept reminding me of enchiladas I’d find at a cafeteria.  Everything else on the plate was also good, but not quite enough to make me salivate over.

I don’t know if I’d go back for dinner because while the food was decent, I can’t see myself paying their dinner rates for mediocre food.  I might return for lunch one day if I’m on that side of downtown.

★★★ (3 Stars)

3.5 Stars.

I’ve visited Acenar a few times.  They have some items that are a little more creative than the  typical Mexican restaurant.  The service is excellent, and the food is decent.  The prices for the types of dishes offered is a little high, but overall it’s not too bad.

I’ve ordered various items on their menu, but the Green Pozole seems to be what I like the most.  It’s in the appetizer’s section of their menu and is under $6.  The portion is fairly big and the first time I ordered it I didn’t realize it would be.  I had ordered the mole plate but had to take it home ’cause I was full on the pozole bowl.

The last time I went, I ordered some empanadas.  I was hoping for a more flaky pastry and for the filling to have more flavor.  The sauce they poured over them overpowered anything the empanada was filled with.  The presentation was very nice and neat, but seemed to lack in the flavor department.

Their service has always been on-par with some of the best restaurants.  I’ve chosen times where they’re not busy to visit, so I’m not sure what it would be like during peak dining periods.

★ (1 Star)

The first time I tried to grab some food from Casa Rio, I was told abruptly that they don’t do take-out.  So, I moved on.

But, after watching the longest lines on the Riverwalk at Casa Rio this summer, I decided to check this place out this Fall despite their “no take-out” policy (see my initial review).

Plain and simply, while the service was good, the food was not.
The prices were decent, but there is much better food *anywhere* else.  And I do mean ANYWHERE else.

The only thing I would come here for is maybe a beer and some chips and salsa cause the salsa was fresh and probably some of the best on the Riverwalk.  But that’s it.  The tortillas reminded me of the cheap-o, factory, mass-produced, HEB ones.  . . . though the HEB brand does have some decent variety tortillas, if these were HEB ones, these were their lower quality ones.  You know, the ones that don’t cook right.

In any case, don’t get fooled by the long tourist lines.

★★ (2 Stars)

I’m going to agree with the people who say that Taco Taco isn’t all that.

I went recently and after standing in line for about 20 minutes to get in, I finally got seated.  The service was a little cold.  They just seem in a rush to get everyone in and out of this tiny restaurant that they seem to lack any kind of helpful/friendly service.

When the tacos came out they looked pretty big.  The tortillas were huge, but the tacos themselves weren’t full.  They were just over half full which left a lot of empty tortilla.  I just tore those pieces off, but then the tacos were the size of any regular taco you can get anywhere else, which rings true to the overall flavor of the tacos.  They’re just tacos like any other place that sells tacos like Blanco Cafe, Thousand Oaks Cafe, etc.

Overall, average prices and sort of disappointing.  I probably won’t go back ’cause the lines are too long for basic, mediocre tacos.

★★★ (3 Stars)

Wow, why aren’t there many reviews for Diony’s online?

haha just kidding.

Cheap, good food, hole-in-the-wall; this sums it all up perfectly.  They have about 3 lunch specials daily all for around $5.  I decided to try their “three colors special” which included 2 enchiladas, carne guisada, rice, refried beans, lettuce & tomato, and 2 homemade tortillas.  It came with tea too and was only $5.49.

Cheap, Mexican goodness, downtown and only a few blocks from the Riverwalk.  Nice.

My only advice:
I wouldn’t take a first date there!   It REALLY is a hole-in-the-wall.  :)

★★★ (3 Stars)

I went for breakfast at El Mirador and thought it was pretty good.  They had a small list of breakfast items to choose from aside from the standard breakfast tacos.  I ended up ordering the chorizo and eggs.  The menu says the chorizo is made there, but who really knows?  Either way, the breakfast was good.

The service, on the other hand, could have been better.  I think there was one waiter for the entire restaurant.  I know it was the morning of a weekday, but you’d think he’d have a little help.  Luckily there were only about 5 other people at tables.  So it was slow, but it wasn’t horrible.

★★ (2 Stars)

First of all, I was tricked!

How was I tricked?  Well, Mexican Manhatten is cleverly disguised, at street level, as a hole-in-the-wall type of restaurant.  Upon entering, I figured out that it was a Riverwalk Restaurant when people were asked if they would like to sit outside along the River.  My uh-oh-meter went off.  I wanted a cheap lunch and knew what was coming.

The prices were probably about double for the same plates you can find at other Mexican Cafes a couple of blocks from the Riverwalk, like Lula’s or Blanco Cafe.  Their pre-configured plates were fairly limited but they allowed all sorts of substitutions at a price.

The lady at the next table psyched me up for a good meal as she promised this place had really good food.  I ordered 2 enchiladas and a chicken taco which came with rice and beans.  It was a lot of food, but I wanted to try the chicken taco, served prior to the enchiladas, which was really good.

Then, the enchiladas came out.  If I could have bottled the oil on the plate I would have had enough to cook with for months!  It was so bad I thought if I ate the whole thing I’d immediately get a heart attack.  I realized I was scraping off the cheese and trying to pool the oil to the side to no avail.  It was just too much!

The service was really good and the food came out quickly.  But, this isn’t enough to get me to go back after being served Oil ‘con’ Enchiladas for lunch.

★★★★★ (5 Stars)

A Quick Update

I’ve been here a few times since my pozole quest (see my previous review) and for other items on the menu. They haven’t gone wrong yet; therefore, I’m upgrading them rating to 5 stars.

★★★★ (4 Stars)

Tacos Del Julio - San Antonio, TX

Those of you who know me know I don’t just go handing 5 stars to any restaurant.  Tacos del Julio gets all 5 stars based on their food alone.

You want authentic Mexican food?  This is it.  No kidding.  I’m not saying this place satisfies people looking for various foods from every region of Mexico, but they sure do have a wide array of tacos and dishes to choose from.  Their menu provides pictures of every single appetizer, taco, and dish, on the menu, so that customers easily know what they are ordering.  Their prices are as low as they get, too!

I wouldn’t take a first date here as the building is run-down in a run-down area.  But, like I said, all 5 stars are based solely on the food.

Edit:  I dropped them a star because the quality of the meat seems to vary.  Sometimes it’s really good and meaty and other times I’ve run across fatty, chewy bits.  Yuck!

Tacos del Julio Menu