Spencer and I are Mexican food connoisseurs. Spencer served a Spanish speaking mission in San Diego, California so he KNOWs his Mexican food. In fact, Mexican food is more standard at our house than American food is. That being said, we are very particular when it comes to dining out at a Mexican restaurant. Our normal places to go are Los Hermanos (a Utah classic) and El Azteca (super delicious). Last week, however, we were in the mood for something different. We had a coupon for a buy one get one free meal at Maria Bonita’s in Orem (800 N State St) and we figured we’d give it a try….
…. O_o
Oh my goodness….
Maria Bonita….
Whoever she is, she is the goddess of Mexican food….
We go inside the restaurant and immediately this lady (I’m assuming the owner…perhaps Maria Bonita herself?) greets us with such enthusiasm that we feel like we’re her long lost friends. She shakes our hands and leads us to our table, calling me “Princess” and Spencer “Champion.”
We’re seated, we place our order, and they bring out chips and salsa. (The salsa was excellent. It was very fresh and was bursting with cilantro. Mmm.) As we’re waiting for our food, several other couples come into the restaurant and the same lady (Going forward, I shall call her Maria…even though I’m not sure that’s who she is) greets them with the same zeal with which she greeted us. In fact, she hugged most of them. As we saw customer after customer hug this lady, Spencer and I began to feel very confused (insert cocked eyebrow here).
Anywhooo…the waitress brought out two little bowls of soup for us. I have never been served a soup before a meal except for egg drop soup at Chinese restaurants so I was confused, however Spencer got excited as soon as he saw it.
“I have seen this stuff since my mission!” he exclaimed. Apparently, it is very common for Latinos to serve this type of soup with their meals. It wasn’t anything fantastic, but it was very authentic. It basically consisted of a broth and rice. That’s it. Not to exciting, but adding spoonful of their yummy salsa to it made it super delicious.
Then come the entrees…. I had ordered a combination plate that included two beef enchiladas and one beef tamale. The serving dish was more of a platter than a plate. Spencer and I are both aghast at the serving sizes.
“The plate is very hot, Princess,” Maria warns.
I take my fork. I cut into the tamale. I raise the bite to my mouth. I achieve nirvana.
Seriously, I pity the Indian Buddhists who starved and meditated for days on end trying to achieve a state of spiritual peace and tranquility. All they needed to do was come to Maria Bonita’s. Not kidding. It was that good.
The tamale is spicy and tender. The outside is actually fluffy, not dense and heavy like so many others are. Oh it was so good. The enchiladas are amazing. The rice is perfect. The beans…Oh the beans. How can I even begin to describe the beans. I cannot think of any words powerful enough to describe the goodness of these beans. They are tender, smooth and packed with yummy pork flavor. I’m salivating just thinking about them.
We leave the restaurant in a state of satisfied awe. How could food have tasted that good? I now understand why all of those people hugged Maria when they came in. I wanted to hug her as I left! How can you not feel love and camaraderie towards someone who can provide you with a culinary experience like that?
I work just around the corner from this place and after driving by it for a year or so I finally stopped in. Someone tipped me off to the lunch special, about $6 for a soda, soup, and entree. Everything I've had has been pretty good, and I've been there probably 5 times now. My favorite lunch special is on Friday, the chimichanga (I've had chicken, pork and beef and I think the chicken is the best). The shredded beef is good too, probably third place is their pork. I love the juicy sweet pork at Cafe Rio so when I get something without much flavor that's a little dry I'm not impressed. The fajitas are huge and can be shared by two with room to spare, and are also delicious.
ReplyDeleteMy only complaint is that their chips are probably the worst of any mexican joint I've eaten at. No joke. I'd prefer tostitos from the grocery store over their chips. Maybe I'm not into authentic or something, but in my opinion they're the only weak link on Marias menu. They taste more grainy-corny than most, and are harder and crunchier than most as well--if you can relate to that. I prefer the more thin, lighter chips like you'd find at El Azteca or almost any other restaraunt. I've probably been to Marias like 5 times now and I'll keep going back because the food is good and the price is right, I just wish she could tweak her tortilla chip recipe and then it would be flawless. If you haven't been it's definitely worth trying.
Jaron,
DeleteYou're completely right on the tortilla chip thing. It sometimes tastes like they left them in the fryer too long. Good catch.
Thanks for the comment! - Emily
NOt to be rude, but to say you are "Mexican food connoisseurs" and then say you are regulars at Los Hermanos is like saying you are Italian connoisseurs and saying you go to the Olive Garden. Sorry. Yes, Maria's is great! Been doing it for years. And yes, little Maria is one of a kind to. Just please never admit again, at least when claiming to know any good food spot, that you eat at somewhere as bland as Los Hermanos. You lose all your cred.
ReplyDeleteGood luck finding good eats.
David,
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you on the Los Hermanos thing. I wasn't saying that Los Hermanos is authentic, I was merely stating that it's a Utah classic. If you ask somebody in Utah where they want to go for Mexican food, I'm guessing a large percentage would say either Los Hermanos or Costa Vida, neither of which are very authentic. Despite the fact that Los Hermanos is definitely not the best Mexican food in Utah, the atmosphere is nice and the food is decent. I appreciate your comment, though. :)