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Chillin' Bar & Grill #2


tycobb1020

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Let's try this again . . . the former site was "locked out".

This is a new bar and grill (the young owners want you to have a place to relax and "chill") operated by two young ladies and the husband of one. The ladies are your waitresses and he is your bartender. It is located where El Azul de Frida was previously. We had the Big Papa Nachos with a well-made margarita to our delight. The prices are reasonable and the attention and service was impeccable. Give them a try . . . the enthusiasm and energy of the young owners is worth the visit.

Location:

Carr. Pte. #162 (frente a Fracc. Villa Nova)

Tel. 766 3333

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I think they know that now . . . they are new to the business and did not know your ground rules. Everyone (including them) admits they should not have posted their menu or specials here. Live and learn! It is my understanding, however, that it is OK for a restaurant to respond to a specific question by a patron on this site.

In the meantime you have locked a site that was very active and interesting. That is why this site exists. Onward and upward!

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We are going to post our Manu in the other place. Thank you for all the good reviews!! We are very happy! :D

Moderator 2, we invite you to our place to try us and show us how to use chapala.com

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I think you've got it down real well. But I'm not totally sure of where you are at. Did Azul Frieda close at their location next very close to the end of the service road or are you in their old location?

We are just exactly where Frida Azul used to be. West Ajijic in Carretera Poniente just in front of Villa Nova!!!

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Not sure this is the best time to write about my experience with Just Chillin this afternoon... still a little high from the hugs, the humour and the food. BUT here goes... I couldn't eat everything, so I tried the Sopa Azteca (I love tortilla soup) and one of their well-regarded taco dishes.

The three owners introduced themselves, forced a group hug on me with huge grins, and brought me an ice-cold Pacifica. And a bowl of fresh nacho chips while I waited.

The soup at 45p was excellent. Very traditional, very tasty, and not overloaded with tortilla strips. But the Bolo tacos, gang... wow. Shrimp and arrechera. These aren't just tacos. They've elevated the dish to something you see on The Food Network food truck or DDD shows.

This is a serious attempt to make their customers happy: three hand-made corn tortillas, overlapping and laid out on very nice-looking china, and absolutely covered with shrimp and arrechera that has been marinated or soaked or somehow flavoured up, and topped with crispy stir-fried bell peppers (2 or 3 colours) and onions, and drizzled with melted cheese. Can I say I was stuffed? Whatever herbs and spices they use gave the meal a nice taste shout-out.

I was pretty interested in their background stories, and they've really done the location up nicely, with bold colours and extra trimmings. More ideas coming, like a pool table and a sandy "bocce ball area"... . I wish I could've tried their nachos, which as everyone has heard by now is a pretty big platter, but even I have my limits. This means, of course, I will have to go back.

I cannot imagine how they can do this at their prices. I mean, that was a LOT of shrimp and steak for 80p. Congrats to them, and good luck. Lexie and Gringal: Go.

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Told ya so!

We had the pleasure of meeting these three enthusiastic young people and their chef yesterday. Loved the bright and cheerful décor changes, the music, the service and THE FOOD. Barely got through an order of Tacos Cancino...hubby had Tacos Popeye. They don't have desserts which is just as well because who could possibly have room after their main course. Saw an order of Nachos come out of the kitchen...that's BIG...and saw the totally empty plate go back to the kitchen too...that says yummy!

All the hugs...PRICELESS!

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Well, after reading all the glowing reviews here I thought my wife and I and a friend would give this place a try today. Everyone is right! I had the tacos Casa Blanca. 3 tacos, shrimp, bacon, melted cheese and apple. Never have I had this combo before and it was delicious. Each taco had about 6 shrimp. My wife had the shrimp and arrachera and they were cooked perfectly.

The owners were a delight to meet. Very friendly and attentive. This is a place we'll definitely be going back to. Thanks for the reviews!

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I just heard that they have upgraded the quality of the meat in their burger by shopping at the Tuesday market for beef...

I have to say, desertdave, I (who moan constantly about rising prices) find their prices extremely fair. The food I've tried is top-drawer, and plenty of it on your plate.

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I guess you would have to be smarter than I to recognize (like for like) hamburger meat that has been obtained from The Tuesday Market ( what ever that is) or from Walmart!

Whilst it maybe difficult to make a silk purse from a sow ear, there is much that can be done in the meats preparation to make a good hamburger.

And I guess more great meat meat has been ruined over the charcoal coals before it reaches the bun

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I guess you would have to be smarter than I to recognize (like for like) hamburger meat that has been obtained from The Tuesday Market ( what ever that is) or from Walmart!

Whilst it maybe difficult to make a silk purse from a sow ear, there is much that can be done in the meats preparation to make a good hamburger.

And I guess more great meat meat has been ruined over the charcoal coals before it reaches the bun

The "Tuesday Market" is in the big white building west of Ajijic, next door to the Monte Cristo restaurant. The individual vendors sell "organic" vegetables (some actually are) and home made foods such as tamales, quiches, and many food products the Secret Garden folks bring, along with some odd items like a rack of clothing, starter spice plants and maybe, just maybe, hamburger tucked away in a corner.

Some of the prepared food is very good. The tamale ladies use olive oil instead of lard. The Mexican couple on the far right from the entry make excellent quiches. A few good bakeries. Some other places: "meh". Matter of taste. Since I've never seen hamburger meat at the Tuesday market, either Mike was pulling our legs or I just haven't been looking.

The thing that used to pizz me off about Walmart ground beef was that the second best grade was nice and red on the outside, but turned out to be gray below that. I just bought some of the "best" (as in most expensive) ground beef there and was delighted to find that it was the same color all the way through. That probably won't last. :(

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I guess you would have to be smarter than I to recognize (like for like) hamburger meat that has been obtained from The Tuesday Market ( what ever that is) or from Walmart!

Whilst it maybe difficult to make a silk purse from a sow ear, there is much that can be done in the meats preparation to make a good hamburger.

And I guess more great meat meat has been ruined over the charcoal coals before it reaches the bun

Just passing along what I heard. The whole story is, a friend tried their hamburger and was disappointed, and told the owners so. Within days, they had redone their meat selection and the burger preparation to provide a better experience. Yes, anyone can ruin a burger (maybe not as much as anyone can ruin a steak), but I think it only fair to give them a chance, no? How many other times on this board have you heard of a local restaurant trying that much harder to please their patrons?

If you follow this board, there are lots of comments on hamburgers, going back to when El Ancla originally opened, and before, and a lot of them are from me, in the search for a great burger. One of the things that can be done "to make a good hamburger", apart from the meat and cook, is of course the seasoning. So that leaves it wide open.

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For the record, they were given the information of how to contact the butcher at the Tuesday market who does sell organic meat from his own organic farm outside Chapala. Whether they use that information or have another source of ground beef is entirely up to them. Vamos a ver.

I do know for sure that they are trying out their "new" recipe for their homemade burgers and started last Tuesday.

Their "old" recipe was too dry and somewhat indigestible.

On the other hand, why I would even try their burger makes me question my good sense when they have so much more to offer in their selection of tacos. The search for a really good, moist and tasty burger that is homemade is a constant here...and I'm looking forward to trying their new one but I'll probably order tacos the next time we go.

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Four of us had lunch there today. My husband had the seafood taco dish; I had the Monte Cristo and our friends both had fajitas. WOW! I can't say enough nice things about the food. Fresh, delicious and very generous portions. Not the cheapest in town, but by FAR the best. If this stays that good, we'll dine there often. Nice people, too.

Rating: Triple YUM

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A group of 10 women had lunch here Friday. All very pleased. I had the Popeye tacos and they were fabulous. Their enthusiasm to please is delightful. We all plan on returning.

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Yes, three incredibly nice, but naive, young people in one of the toughest businesses....particularly when you're undercapitalized. Their low prices and location will make it very difficult to survive. The $100.00peso natcho special with two free beers will not likely provide them with a net return even close to $3.00USD. (And that $3.00 has to pay for: staff, rent, equipment maintenance, utilities and taxes. When we were there we saw one table of two order only the aforementioned special.... and stuffed themselves silly. Hopefully they at least left a decent gratuity. We watched another table of four order what would normally have been expected to serve two and subsequently split everything. Again, four people splitting one appetizer, two entrees and six beer at ($17.00pesos) and two glasses of wine at ($20.00pesos). Not much hope of making a living if one gives any thought to what their overhead must be. We spoke at length to the owners and they even suggested that they might try opening for breakfast. Again, at that location.....a recipe for disaster.......just look at the local competition. They're newcomers, have not done their research and many of the "Snow-bird" crowd, particularly those without cars, are unlikely to even give them a try. It's sad that their enthusiasm will likely dissipate fairly quickly.

Sure they deserve a chance........but they definitely lack guidance.

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