La Peña Mexicana

609 W Cypress St
Kennett Square, PA 19348
(610) 925-2651
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Kennett Square is widely known (at least in this region) as the mushroom capital of the world. What is also well known (if you have spent any time there) is that some/most of the the labor that leads to that throne is done by migrant workers. Which leads to amazing food opportunities for visitors to the area. Mexican food is well represented in Kennett Square, but La Peña may just be my favorite.

The striped building is hard to miss, and located across from the Victory brewery down there.

Chips and guacamole to start is always a good bet, and they did not disappoint. The pico was fresh, tart, and crisp. The guac was creamy and went nicely with the fresh fried chips. The smokey chipotle sauce brought the fire, and was a great contrast to the other more tame varietals.

The carnitas burrito was calling my name, so I decided that would be my next order. It was brought out quite quickly, and came packed with tender, crispy pork that was braised until rendered out and then fried to add some crunch and texture, the way carnitas is supposed to be served.

The seasoning and tenderness on this pork was perfection. It came simply filled with rice, beans, pork, cilantro and onions. They gave a couple of sauce options as well. I opted for spicy. It did not disappoint.

Look at the perfect shreds of meat. No chewy fatty gristle to be found.

I also felt the need for a deep fried burrito – so chimichanga it was. This version I ordered with chicken and green sauce. Again it had rice, beans, cilantro, onion, but also had a cotija cheese topper and a sour cream drizzle. Jalapeno slices lined the top like stripes on a delicious flag.

It was a great presentation. And somehow I even managed to finish it.

Love me some beans and rice sides for the old mouth shovel.

The tender chicken was again very well stewed and packed with flavor. Peppy tomatillo sauce gave it some tang, and the cheese and crema added extra luxuriousness to this deep fried indulgence.

When you come here, expect an authentic experience – none of that bullshit Tex-Mex – and some fantastic Mexican food. And you will be back. 

El Limon (take two)

446 Lancaster Ave.
Malvern, PA 19355
(484) 329-7969
Website

I have written about El Limon before, but damn, it's still about the best Mexican food outside of the city, so I have been a frequent customer lately. Take, for example, the barbacoa nachos.

Rich, tender shredded beef, with a heaping portion of fresh tortilla chips. a sprinkle of pico, plenty of guacamole, and an artistic drizzle of sour cream. It's the perfect size, and perfect proportion. Funny how so many local places get it wrong.

The chicken tinga tacos are another killer choice. The stewed chicken has so much flavor, smokey, and deep tomato-ish umami.

Look at the tender shredded pollo. Perfectly juicy, and well presented.

The chorizo is good, but I prefer mine to be fried a bit harder. I like it to be well rendered and crispy. This is not that, but it has plenty of flavor, and again, I still order it so it's obviously above and beyond other places...

Not to mention, the burritos. These are what Chipotle wishes they could assemble with such care and love. Smothered and covered, they come with your choice of sauce. If you can only choose one, I recommend the chipotle. It's a crema that packs so much flavor, you will be dreaming of it later. But don't sleep on the mole. I have yet to be disappointed in it.

I know it's swimming in green sauce here, but I never turn down a good sauce.

Fiesta Maya

1178 Baltimore Pike
Springfield, PA 19064
(610) 604-9599
Website

Fiesta Maya recently opened in Springfield near Swarthmore. I had heard of the original in Exton, but never been there. It's a fast-casual type place that is also a BYOB. At least no one said anything when I brought in some Modelo's.

They have the line set up like their corporate competitors. Although there are some significant differences. Most importantly, instead of picking your items as you go, you have to order them from the register. This creates additional stress if you are ordering more than one item (or making any additions to standard offerings) as you have to remember everything from the somewhat extensive menu.

I much prefer the visual approach letting you pick your items based on sight. You are also charged for all "add-ons" over three. Which is a difficult transition to make from the "all-in" approach (minus guacamole) at the chain places.

The carnitas burrito and chicken al pastor nachos were calling me, and it was quite a bit of food.

The nachos were pretty good, with a healthy serving size, and loaded with toppings. I could have used some more meat, but that is almost always the case with me.

The carnitas burrito was also just good, notably the mayo chipotle dressing (as an add-on) gave it a nice smack of rich heat. The rice was well seasoned, the shredded meat was tender. It's too bad that burritos aren't more photogenic, in general...

I liked the salsa served on the side of the chips quite a bit, and the burrito with chips and salsa alone was a very good deal at about $9. Just have your order memorized, and watch out for those "add-ons".

Tacos El Rodeo

(food truck)
1000 Washington Ave.
Philadelphia, PA 19147
(267) 997-3415
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Always on the lookout for top notch Mexican, I had seen/heard about the Tacos El Rodeo, and it got rave reviews, so I figured it was worth a try. My consensus, however, is that it needs to try harder. There were a surprising number of walk-up patrons at 5 PM on a Saturday, including a cook from Paesano's. He said it was hands down the best in the city. I immediately regretted ordering only three tacos and a burrito.

It had potential, with a spit of al pastor, and friendly folks working inside. Not to mention the sweet-ass mural covering the truck itself. A real beaut.

I took my offerings to Garage, which not only boasts a rotating food cart inside, but allows all outside food as well. I was excited for the fiesta about to transpire on my taste buds, but was left with a flavor siesta instead.

The burrito was well wrapped, the lard-infused tortilla looked so very promising – glistening in the setting sunlight, I could almost taste the fatty flavor. The inside had a sufficient amount of al pastor, but everything else must have gotten run out of flavor town.

The al pastor was chewy and mostly gristle; the rest of the components were just bland and kind of mushy. I wondered if they had run out of salt. The rice was missing that 'cooked with bouillon' flavor. Even the hot sauce had little to no spice, and was a watered down version of the traditional Mexican sauces I know and love. That tortilla was pretty much the most flavorful item.

The chicken tacos were equally as underwhelming. Sure, they were a deal at $2 a pop, but having eaten hundreds of street tacos (I spent my drinking years out west), these were just so boring. The avocado was a nice touch, but I couldn't get any bit excited about these. The chicken pieces were also without any noticeable flavor and again, the tortillas may have been the stand-out flavor. So disappointing.

I mean, when you're slingin' your wares in the hotbed of Mexican restaurants, you can't perform so lazily with seasonings. The people working were VERY nice, but my itch was not scratched. Maybe I caught them on an off day, or maybe I have become spoiled with my go-to spots around the city. I'll stick to my favorites for now...

Qdoba (of Conshohocken)

200 West Ridge Pike #108
Conshohocken, PA 19428
(484) 243-6118
Website

While it may not be my typical fare, I have some love for fast food. In particular, new "fast casual" chains where they are serving actual food, and not the garbage you get at the Golden Arches. Qdoba is a weakness of mine, especially with all of the new spicy options. I get so tired of "hot" not actually being hot. They put the heat into some spicy queso dips, and it has improved my love of burrito-bar chains. Oh, and they invited me to come "roll my own" at a grand opening in Conshy which was a perfect fit for an April twentieth posting. See below for video.

The new interior is much sleeker than what I was used to. ¡Qué color! They're officially opening tomorrow and are having a DJ with some free foods tonight. If you can't make that, then click here to get a coupon for free chips and salsa tomorrow only.

I was brought some of the new quesos to sample. The spicy version was called "el Diablo" and it brought the heat. Plus, it was spicy cheese. So it was obviously a winner. The three cheese blend was a mixture of cheese thinned with tortilla soup. A good use of resources. It certainly had more complexity than the capsaicin version.

The next sample was "Mexican Gumbo" which was really just the burrito ingredients served over rice and tortilla soup. Still, it showed some creativity, and let you create the stew you want.

We were also treated to a handmade guac tutorial. where they took 87 (appx) avocados, and smashed them using a giant masher. It was pretty impressive for a burrito chain, Especially if you have ever had WAWA's guac, which tastes like citric acid mixed with unripe bananas.

The guacamole was good, could have used a bit more salt, but the acidity was there, and I was more than happy to eat well over my fair share.

Now for the moment of truth. Qdoba - behind the glass. I strapped on my gloves and showed my dinner mates how the rolling was done.

My personal trainer was very knowledgeable (as was all of the staff we encountered) and anxious to help.

I used almost everything on the line.

Including their bacon jalapeño queso. That's right, they have 3 different kinds and I put a bit of each on my pile. The bacon jalapeño is amazing.

See a video below if you want to waste a minute watching me roll a giant burrito and struggle to atone for my glutenous choices on the line.

Now that was just the roll, you can waste 6 more minutes of your life and watch me down the entire line if you want. CLICK HERE to do so.

My dining mates were convinced they rolled a better burrito. But I disagree.

Guess which one is mine?

So anyway, check out the new menu at Qboda, they have a whole bunch of new menu items, and possibly win a card for a free entree... Come back tomorrow and enter to win.