Mexican Lunch

My friend A drove in from Pearland at noon-time today and we had lunch at one of the local Mexican restaurants. We were celebrating her birthday... today was the first day that we could both get together. The funny part happened even before lunch--- I had left early so I could stop into the Marshalls store, just to see if they had any interesting summer tops to go with my new capri's. I was keeping one eye on the time as I browsed through the clothing racks, and I even had time to pick up a few children's pajamas from the clearance racks ($3.00 each!).

When I saw that the time was 11:45, I rushed up to the checkout counter, hoping to get on a short line so I wouldn't be late in meeting A at the restaurant. I laughed out loud when I saw who was ahead of me on the line-- A herself. She had left her house early also, so she could see what was new at Marshalls before meeting me for lunch. So we were both late, but it didn't matter.

I can't even remember the last time I'd been to a Mexican restaurant. My husband and I used to have Mexican dinners once a week, but then for some reason, we just got out of the habit. Maybe it's because we kept going to the Italian restaurant every time we went out. This restaurant, Lupe Tortilla, had the most delicious shrimp quesadillas-- on corn tortillas (instead of flour tortillas). That made all the difference, I think. And the shrimps were grilled perfectly, so that didn't hurt the taste either.

Speaking of restaurants, we haven't been to our "favorite" Italian restaurant in weeks and weeks now. The last time we went there wasn't such a great experience. Our friend and favorite waitress K hadn't been working that night, and the waiter we had was fairly new and didn't really know the menu. Plus, the fish special that my husband ordered wasn't up to the usual five-star quality that we're used to in there, and the portion was the smallest fish portion I've ever seen at any restaurant. Add to that--- my husband's dinner price was $30, which is ridiculous for what was on his plate. My dinner that night was fine... I had just ordered a fresh crab and shrimp salad, and that recipe has been the same since the beginning, so it's always been good.

But... we haven't been back, and I don't know if we'll go back. The atmosphere is always nice in there, but the plates coming out of the kitchen are only top-notch if they're cooked by the owner, and that's not always the case. They will soon be moving to a larger restaurant, which means the owner can't possibly be cooking everything that comes out of a bigger kitchen. The last time we went there may well have been our "swan song" at that place.

I just don't know why restaurants can't be consistent. There are two Greek restaurants here that we've been going to for years and years.... one locally, and one downtown. Without fail, their food has always been delicious, service is always excellent, the prices haven't gone up all that much over the years, everything is fresh and looks beautiful on the plates, and portions haven't ever been cut down. We always leave with to-go boxes, and we've never felt that we didn't get our money's worth. As I said, both are Greek restaurants, and both of them are family-run. Easy to keep up with quality-control that way. But the Italian place is family-run also, so I don't know what has happened there. So sad, though, because we truly loved going there, and we miss it. Even so, we're not in a hurry to go back.