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Chile Rellenos, covered in an enchilada like
sauce and sour-cream. I'd prefer some deep-
fried crunch, but they're more of a soggy
surprise. |
I find it funny that the passive aggressive rants of Villa Del Mar (Little Town of the Sea) as an authentic Mexican restaurant come across as the ramblings of a gringo trying to sell the concept of traditional Mexican food to BBQ eating southerners. After all, it's unlikely that's the case, yet their tag line: "For those who know REAL Mexican", combined with a disclaimer on their menu that white people shouldn't request silverware as many dishes are finger foods "similar to your hamburgers.", perpetuates that image. Then there's the overbearing decor, like the Cracker Barrel of Tijuana, and the warning on their business cards that say (and I quote) "Local Mexican Nujeress Bonitas are known to frequent and eat in this place.[and] MIGHT STEAL YOUR HEART." (Really?)
Villa Del Mar is located in a little strip mall next to Toys R Us on High Point Road, which if I remember correctly is the exact location of the former Mexican Mafia (MS 13) and a large shoot-out that occurred a few years ago when I worked in the neighborhood. A large cctv security camera sign remains posted at the front-door, though I do not believe that this is the same business. Yet Villa Del Mar has that Mafia front feel. Corner tables filled with the chuckles of some men the size of construction workers. Were they actually construction workers, or merely hit men? I do not know.
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Nachos were actually pretty good. I'd
definitely consider their steak nachos. |
Each table has a bell to ring for service, and there's a menu which includes octopus, cow tongue and goat. The special of the day is a guy named Paco who "accidentally" fell into the meat grinder Sunday evening. Upon trying to order in butchered Spanish from the 12 year old waiter, he looked at me as if I just sat on his childhood perro (dog). My use of his native language brought tears to his eyes.
Their salsa, as with salsa from all Mexican restaurants (which tends to vary from each restaurant to restaurant) is purportedly based on their family recipe, but tasted like seasoned store bought (Mexican store bought, but store bought non-the-less) hot-sauce rather than the expected fresh compositions you'd expect from a restaurant that prides itself on authenticity. Of course the reason I know they're pulling one over on me is, I have that exact same hot-sauce sitting in my fridge. Now we know why they're mad at Paco.
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Shan's mole chicken. It's like a chocolate
covered cinnamon chicken. |
That said, the moment the food came, I was happily surprised. The tacos looked typical (though Chance clamored over them), and the nachos looked and tasted good (I stole a few from Ren). I ordered Fajitas-Texana, and found the flavors rich and tasty, with a large, above average proportion. They provided me exactly two tortillas, which meant I ended up eating my fajitas with a fork. Shannon got the chicken-mole, which she liked, and a chile relleno, which I didn't. The food and service was hit or miss. My strawberry daiquiri was great, and topped with cinnamon which instantly led me to believe this was more a southern Mexican (perhaps Yucatecan cuisine) type of restaurant than the usual Tex-Mex cuisine we've come to expect. Yet there's nothing unusual, nothing truly spectacular about Villa Del Mar. (Sans the goat. Where do you even buy goat?)
Would I go back? Sure. But consider this. We took a restaurant.com $25 coupon, and the four of us each ate a dish. Total before the coupon? $68. That's right, muy expensivo. I ended up spending $50 with the tip (18% included) for good, but not great Mexican food. Is Villa Del Mar a good Mexican restaurant? Overall, yes. Is it authentic? Definitely not (what is?). Is it worth $50? Probably not, unless octopus is your craving. My advice, drop in for their $1.50 (special: .99) tacos, get five, and leave the fajitas to someone not charging and arm and a leg. (Sorry Paco.)