Saturday, March 26, 2011
Mexico On Main A lot of "Ole!" for very little Dinero!
John and I are now making a weekly trek to a little hole in the wall restaurant in Trenton, IL called Mexico on Main. Located on Main Street (no kidding, right?) it is a little gem that is getting a big following. Their prices are more than reasonable, the food is excellent and they offer some dishes that are not seen on very many menus on this side of the border. The service is fast and friendly and on Thursday and Friday they have pitchers of lime Margaritas for $9.99 which are some of the best Margaritas I've had in Illinois. It's a small place and they are open for lunch which is really cheap--and I'm sure it's just as good. The line starts at around 6 pm, but moves quickly and they do have outside tables for dining al fresco (not something I particularly like) and I assume it's also the smoking section but I don't know for sure as I haven't been here when it was warm enough to eat outside. The pleasant experience begins with piping hot chips and cold homemade salsa. The chips are unsalted but you can add a sprinkle from the shaker if you like. The salsa is cold and spicy with a hint of cilantro but not a lot of bite--but you can spark it up with the habanero sauce on the table if you are a fire-eater. *NOTE: The green and red habanero sauces on the table are viciously hot and not for the faint of heart--add sparingly and at your own risk. The Margaritas are served with or without salt at your request and two glasses come pre-filled along with the first pitcher and while they are delicious, they pack a punch, so bring a designated driver if you are in a group that likes to drink. They have an amazing assortment of fajita combinations to thrill the palate, and enough to make even the pickiest eater happy. In addition to the unusually flavorful chicken, they have steak, shrimp, chorizo and carnitas in a myriad of combinations. The chimichangas are remarkably good--filled with lots of nicely seasoned beef or chicken that has been prepared on premises--no canned chicken here--and enormous for the price. The carnitas are butter-soft, lean and tasty under a blanket of seasoned fried onions. Every dish comes with guacamole, sour cream and pico de gallo and most come with refried beans and rice. The beans and rice are the only things I'm not to crazy about--the beans are salty and soupy (which seems to be the norm) and the rice is fairly bland but no worse than any other Mexican restaurant in the area. Mixing them together helps, but they could be much better with very little effort. The guacamole is delicious--chunky with large piece of avocado (and if it's not homemade, then they are using a first rate commercial product) and I'm pretty comfortable in saying that it's made by the restaurant. The tortillas are definitely homemade and are delicious--I haven't had tortillas this good since I lived in El Paso. They make the most amazing chicken soup I've had anywhere; great spicy flavor with huge chunks of white meat chicken and I am sure that they make the stock from the many chickens they boil to make the fillings in their enchiladas, burritos and such. It's a huge bowl of soup and perfect for a lighter dinner. They also have a seafood soup I haven't tried yet but I have every intention of sampling so I will post an update when I do. The portions are generous, the prices are low and if you aren't a big eater, there'll be plenty for lunch the next day. Everything I've eaten here has been exceptionally good and they are consistent in their dishes--they taste delicious every time. I'm very impressed with this little piece of Mexico on Main and I think you will be too!
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