Chennai Cafe ~ Frisco, Texas

Mr. Music is roaming around the northern sections of the massive Dallas metro area. What does he have for us today?

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Mr. Grizzly met me today for an Indian lunch feast! He and I are good friends and dine together often as we have similar tastes. He's from Bangladesh, so I like his perspective on food and other things too. I've been going to Chennai Cafe for over 10 years. I can't believe I've never written about it. When I first started going, we'd go after happy hour for some South Indian items; specifically the 4 ft long masala dosa! The food was good, not great but not many South Indian restaurants were open later in the evening during the week near Plano.

 
The good news is the restaurant has increasingly gotten better over the years. Today was no exception! They added a buffet a few years back and have become more of an Indo-Chinese fusion spot that does some traditional South items well. The buffet is massive and is offered for lunch and dinner, though you can order from the menu as well. The offerings on the buffet change from day to day, which is cool but sometimes a drag if you are craving something.

First, they have a grill area where they make several types of dosa to order; today they offered just 3 and they also made fresh appam as well. We both got the masala dosa. This is a very thin crepe made from fermented batter of lentels and rice. Don't worry, you can't taste the fermentation most of the time and only then it can be slightly tart. It's amazing how thin they are and only cooked on 1 side, which is brown and crispy. The other side is moist like the inside of a pancake. It is filled with a scoop of aloo masala (seasoned potatoes using turmeric, mustard seed, green chilies, onion, ginger, curry leaves and a few other tasty spices.) I got some tamarind chutney and cilantro/mint chutney from the chutney table to dip it in. It was delish! As Mr. Grizzly said, not mind blowing but very good. He doesn't use any chutney with his dosa.

 
I toyed with getting appam (aka hoppers) as it is not that common in restaurants and honestly I thought it was only a Sri Lankan item, only recently did I find out they make them in Kerala and Tamil. The batter is very similar to a dosa but they add coconut milk in the batter. The outer portion is thin like a dosa, but the middle has a thicker ball of batter making it look somewhat like a fried egg. If I had 2 stomachs, I certainly would have had one.

I had idli and vada with some sambar and coconut chutney to complete my South Indian craving! I like my idli super tart and most times they deliver at Chennai Cafe, but today the idli lacked the tartness I crave. It was still good though. Idli is a fluffy (but dense at the same time), steamed biscuit made from a fermented batter that is similar to dosa batter, but is much thicker.

The vada was very light and fluffy, which many probably love, but I like mine a bit denser - still tasty here. It is another South Indian breakfast treat sorta like a savory donut. It's made from a lentil based batter seasoned with black pepper, chopped green chilies, cumin seeds and other yummies then deep fried. It can be plopped into a bowl of rasam (tamarind broth seasoned to the hilt) or sambar (thick lentil soup loaded with veggies like carrot chunks, drum sticks (the pod from the now famous moringa tree and similar in taste to a more fibrous yet milder asparagus) and pieces of onion also seasoned to the max (mustard seed, chilies, curry leaves, coriander seeds). It was not the best I've had, but still very good with decent heat.

 
The coconut chutney is very thick and laden with dried red chilies, some chopped green chile, and mustard seed. Just how I love it. Well, I'd be glad to have more heat, but it still had some.
Next, I attached the khichdi and pongal; these are Mr. Grizzly's weaknesses here at Chennai Cafe and he piled up. I do love them too, but they are super dense and filling. I'm not exactly sure what makes them different. They are both made from a base of rice, moong dal and ghee. So they are similar in consistency, but are totally different at the same time. They both share some ingredients but I guess that is where they can vary, which ingredients are used. They are both a thick, dense porridge-like dish but nutty due to the urad dal and cashews and loaded with things like chilies, mustard & cumin seeds, ginger, chilies and more. They are often used for cleanses in Ayurveda. Both were divine per Mr. Grizzly and myself.

 
We both had tindora (small, green squash about 3 inches long and a little bitter. sliced like puckle chips, and stir fried with lots of spices), Manchurian baby corn (1 inch pieces of baby corn battered and fried then stir fried with onion, ginger and other goodies) and dal makahani (a thick, buttery dish sorta like a creamy vegetarian chili made with black lentils and kidney beans (often pretty mellow, but surprisingly spicy today... loved it). All 3 were faves today for me, especially the tindora!

 
We both tried the chicken biryani and veg biryani. Biryani is a rice dish that is so complex with seasoning with green cardamom, black, smokey cardamom, star anise, cinnamon stick, bay leaf, and many other flavors. We both prefer mutton, but any biryani is better than none. Actually he said he was embarrassed to admit he had the veg. His friends and family would not approve! lol, but interestingly we both though it was more flavorful than the chicken. Nothing compares to Al Markaz (mutton dum biryani which is strategically layered and meat tenderized in spice laden yogurt), but this is a different style of biryani and is pretty darn good.

He had goat curry which I passed on today. It's usually a fave but I wanted to try other stuff I hadn't had before. He said it was good but not the usual. The pieces of meat was diced up and there were no bones. That might seem good, but in this dish, it is not! Big bones with lots of marrow are needed to intensify the flavor. Plus slurping out the marrow from a straw-like bone is a treat!

We agreed, the star of the show today was probably the fish curry! The fish were big, cubed pieces and sooo tender and flavorful without a hint of fishiness. The dark brown curry was amazing and a little unusual. I can't even put my finger on it. Mr. Grizzly thought It seemed to have a mix of Indian seasoning with some Chinese spices too. In either case, the curry was heavenly on a bit of white basmati!

 
We tried a batter fried chicken stirfry that was Indo-Chinese and reminded me of a dish from the Bombay Chinese food that was all the rage in India in the 80s (I've been told) and hit DFW in the 90s (which I had!). It was quite good today.

 
I had some cuddy (curd) rice which is a palate cleanser and digestion aid. It's basically basmati rice soaked in thick, sour yogurt with sauteed curry leaves, black gram, cumin seeds and mustard seeds (aka temper).

 
There were SO many things we didn't get to. Rasam, paneer curry, butter chicken, tandoori chicken, tomato chutney and much more. They had 4 sweet dishes including sweet sabudana (like kheer using tapioca pearls instead of rice), galub jamun (fried balls of dough like a dense donut hole) soaked in syrup made with rose water and a couple types of halwa.

 
I love this place! It's a couple dollars more than other Indian buffets, but worth the price.

- Mr. Music review

Felipe's 109 ~ Colorado Springs, Colorado

Latest visit: Mar 2025

First visit: Jun 2021

I'm back at Felipe's 109 for the first time in two years. And I'm out of work again! Haha, but this time it was my choice since I'm retired. Once again I found myself down south and time had gotten away from me. I had another place in mind to try, and will soon enough, but I wanted something quick and not necessarily heavy as I was running late. All the best laid plans...

Except Felipe's 109 was mobbed on this fine Wednesday at noon. I had to wait to put in my order, as they also have a drive thru, and were in the midst of a very large to-go order. No problem, I didn't really have any urgent matters to attend to, just my regular Colorado Springs thrifting Wednesday. To be honest, it's refreshing to see a restaurant packed with patrons. And they're not cheap either. Everyone is trying to make it work I think. And the help staff was very friendly. While waiting, I snapped a quick photo. Do we still "snap" photos? Questions.... Zippy is now starting to mug for the camera. Why do we mug cameras anyway? More questions...

Eventually my meal came out (to your right). I ordered the same thing as below with the same results. It was definitely a hot kitchen, and everything came out perfectly. I was starving so I even munched down all those fries. And I also enjoyed plenty of Pepsi Zero while waiting.

The most surprising part is when the front counter lady called me by name, showed up at my bench, and handed me a card for a free meal because of how long I had wait. That was super nice! I think they did it because I wasn't upset in the slightest, I was happy for them. So with that, I'm going to publish this, and then I'll send a fresh update very soon. I want to try something else on their menu.

With kindness like this, Felipe's 109 is now in the RJG Rotation.

---6/22/23 update

As I was reminiscing on the Cy's entry about the celebration of my one year anniversary of receiving my job offer, Felipe's 109 represents my out-of-work life. Last year I had just been abruptly let go in late April, which lead to the current position (nothing I did, just change in business direction, that impacted far more folks than myself). Two years ago I was looking at my very first no-job-but-on-severance situation. That role ended in divestiture, that I was in charge of. I was responsible for my own demise lol. So it's refreshing to visit Felipe's 109 without so much drama in my life.

And I'm happy to report that they did make all the changes I grumbled about in the last two years. They now have covered wooden park benches outside (along with the concrete monstrosities for overflow). They also flipped the drink machine so we can self-serve. And all of this at no cost to us - because the food is just as good as before. I stayed loyal and ordered what I always: 2 Tacoburgers, fries, and a drink. I really should go here more often. Not being open on Sunday does impact that situation though.

---4/29/22 update

Time for the annual review, and I'm happy to say that Felipe's is exactly the same as I remember it from last year. Had the same thing: 2 Taco Burgers with fries and a drink. It's a messy meal considering the green chile cheese sauce, but it's very flavorful. And the crispy shell holds up despite this. Just get extra napkins and you'll need that fork. As for the changes suggested from last year, we were largely ignored lol. The drink machine is still filled by the counter person, though at least I received it right away before my meal. The cement park benches still don't have umbrellas. And there's no air conditioning, but fortunately this was a late April day and it was very pleasant inside. The stools are still too big for the tables. But at least now they have regular seating including normal tables and chairs as well. Much more welcoming space than prior.

BTW - worth noting: You can't get here via Academy even though that's the address that it sits on (and you can see it clearly from the road). I made that mistake this time and ended up taking almost a 10 minute round trip to get back. You have to enter via Boychuk off of Hancock Expressway. No wonder the shopping center is empty! There's a megachurch there and nothing else but Felipe's 109. I just followed Google Maps last time, so I didn't realize this until now.

---original 6/24/21 review

Felipe's 109 is an established food truck who recently opened up a brick and mortar restaurant in an old shopping center not too far from one of my thrifting haunts, way down south. Near another RJG favorite Taste of Philly (other side of Hancock), that we have in these very pages. Not sure what this building was before, but they've clearly renovated it. Sleek aluminum tables and hardwood floors. When you walk in, you'll be right at the counter. You'll get a quick walkthrough of their limited menu. We like limited menus! Focus on what you're good at. I already knew I was getting the taco burger combo which includes fries and a drink. Sat down, and had to wait a bit as they had just received some large to-go orders. One downside is they don't allow you access to the drink machine, and they made me wait until I got my order. I was thirsty, so that wasn't good. The stools are also too big for the tables lol. And they still have a pandemic look with way too much spacing and not enough seating. They have three fetching concrete patio setups outside, but no umbrellas, so that option was out. And no air conditioning inside, and in this part of the Springs, it gets pretty hot in the summer. Hopefully they'll be able to rectify all of this soon enough. I guess if they keep getting those large takeout orders, they'll be rolling in dough. Anyway, all easy fixes.

Finally my meal and drink showed up. They ran out of ice. Ha - one of those days. They did get some as I was leaving, and offered me another drink (new cup) which was nice. Actually the ladies who work here are very nice. Death metal seemed to be the music of choice for the cook, which gave me a wry smile. I started in on the fries and they were absolutely delicious. And piping hot - yes! The taco burgers are very interesting - and favorable to the RJG.  You get two per combo order (they're $3 each if you want to try one a la carte). They come in a very crispy homemade taco shell with hamburger meat (yes, a cooked hamburger, not like a ground beef taco) with lettuce, tomato, and the best part - a homemade green chili sauce with queso. I could see this becoming an addicting food. The chili was hot in temperature and had a nice kick too. It's a bit sloppy, but that's OK.

So yea, definitely a thumbs up from the RJG. Love new food concepts such as this. I originally put Mexican in the labels, but that's misleading. No tacos y enchiladas here. Taco burgers and creative bowls is their schtick. Try them out!

6/24/21 (new entry); 4/29/22; 6/22/23; 3/5/25

Las Tortugas ~ Colorado Springs, Colorado

First visit: Feb 2025

I'm once again in the southern part of Colorado Springs near lunchtime. It's Friday and the weather is similar to the day before: Sunny and very warm for this time of year. Just the way my Colorado Springs digging routine goes, the south is where I'll often be during lunch. I'd hoped to make it back to downtown, but I was running behind. 

I was up for a hamburger or tacos and was hoping to try someplace new. Right across the street from where I was lies Las Tortugas, and their street tacos looked good in the images I saw. OK, let's try it. Las Tortugas sits in a strip center that I had never been to before. Most of it is empty, but one segment is still hopping and that's where the restaurant is. Looks like my 2017 Acura SUV, affectionately known as "Zippy" due to its excellent ability to zip in and out of insane traffic, makes a cameo (bottom right). Mrs. RJG drives a fancy schmancy 2024 Lexus SUV, but I still prefer my Zippy. Besides it has a CD player. Can't get those anymore either...

Walk in, and you'll see a gigantic place, some of it allocated to arcade, pinball, and parlor games. Las Tortugas have the ninos in mind, and they want you to bring the whole family. It's a modern place and the menu is bright and large. Order at the counter. Tortas (Mexican sandwiches) is their primary offering, and next time I'll insist on having one. But I had tacos on the brain, and I asked if they were good. "Oh yes!" proudly said the friendly lady at the counter in accented English. I went for a taco plate that gets you two tacos, rice, and beans. Sounds bueno. For the tacos I settled on pollo and al pastor. 

To your right is what I received. I started in on the beans. Not hot enough temperature but a good flavor. They were almost like chili (thinking Hormel or something similar) rather than the traditional refried beans offering. I went next to the rice. Here the temperature was perfect. This isn't really my kind of rice - sort of flaky and oftentimes mushy. For this style, however, I thought it was very good. Next time though I'll lay off both. Now to try the main course. Tacos were wrapped in double corn tortillas and served "street style" with cilantro and onions. Very hot to the touch (hooray). The counter lady said the chicken wasn't that "asado-y" (word of the day). But I was pleasantly surprised. Excellent grilled chicken flavor. Even better was the al pastor, and I had the option of getting pineapple, but I passed. It's been a long time since I enjoyed pastor this good. Heavily seasoned and not a hint of the porky flavor that oftentimes ruins the dish. Both tacos were great. Also worth noting the salsas that you see. The green is a creamy lime, with medium heat, and very good. The orange had a chile de arbol flavor and packed a punch. 

I'll be back next year. And I'm getting a sandwich...

2/28/25 (new entry)

Glacier Ice Cream & Gelato ~ Colorado chain : Castle Rock

Latest visit: Feb 2025 (Castle Rock)

First visit: Jul 2009 (Boulder)

Locations: Boulder; Castle Rock; Fort Collins

After Port of Subs and then over an hour of digging at a local record shop, I was ready for some dessert. Ooh, look what's walking distance away? Our annual visit comes much earlier this year as it's only been five months since my last trip.

On this visit, I went for the peanut butter fudge gelato in a waffle cone. I did receive more than last time (see below), but not as much as Westcliffe's Sugarlump. So creamy and so flavorful. They are really good at making gelato. Of course I didn't photo my treasure like a knucklehead. But then again they didn't provide a place to put my cone when paying, which is weird. So that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

See you next year Glacier, if not sooner!

---11/1/24 update

Here's yet another establishment serving food that has suffered hard times. Best I can tell, they are now down to three locations: Boulder (only one now), Fort Collins, and this one in Castle Rock.

So after parting ways with Old Boss at Granelli's, I walked a block over to Glacier to squeeze in its annual visit. I had a single cappuccino brownie ice cream in a waffle cone. I've been so spoiled getting overserved that I feel cheated when I get the right amount. But that's OK, I don't really need any more calories. But it sure was good! I would have gone for gelato but I wasn't enamored with the flavor selection. 

Super expensive for what you get, and one can see why all these places are going out of business. Not sure how they're going to solve this problem. It's not just the food costs, it's the labor. Minimum wage is at an unsustainable high level here in Colorado. Owners have no choice but to raise prices to cover their costs. Except young families can't afford the freight, which is your primary ice cream audience. The further we get from zero, the less people can participate in the economy. I'll say that phrase over and over. I hope to come back next year, but I have to wonder will they even be here then?

---original 4/15/23 review

After eating at the Castle Cafe, I visited one record shop and then wanted a craft beer. Mrs. RJG said she wanted "nieve", Spanish slang for ice cream (means snow - helado being more formal). Guess who won that argument especially considering our lunch didn't go over too well?

I remembered the name Glacier, but could not place it until I checked my personal database. Sure enough, we had gone one time in Boulder during our summer townhome years (on July 4th no less). This is only our second time back. The location sits just outside of the old downtown in a bustling new urban district known as the Riverwalk. It's only a block from Granelli's where Old Boss and I enjoyed a lunch last December (as noted here in the RJG). 

What's nice about Glacier is you can choose between gelato or ice cream, just as the name suggests. In recent years, we've both favored gelato as it's more rich and creamy. Though sometimes I want the more chewy ice cream. Mrs. RJG finally learned that a "small cup" is plenty, as she oftentimes will load up a waffle cone with 3 scoops and then feel terrible later. Ya-huh. I have no such issues enjoying a small portion as it adds up nicely while eating. I tried the Cappuccino and she had the Nutella. Both were absolutely delicious. This is some really excellent gelato, and worth more visits than every 14 years. I think we can manage that...

Though they're a chain, they don't seem to have central ownership. Best I can tell they have 2 locations in Boulder, one each in Greenwood Village (Denver suburb) and Fort Collins - and the one here.

7/4/09; 4/15/23 (new entry); 11/1/24; 2/27/25

Port of Subs ~ regional chain : Castle Rock, Colorado

Latest visit: Feb 2025

First visit: Jul 2011 (Carson City, NV)

HQ: Reno, NV (founded 1972 in Sparks, NV)

Locations: 129 (-6 since 2022): NV (74); CA (29); AZ (11); UT (5); WA (4); ID (3); Bend, OR; New York City. Castle Rock is their only locale here in Colorado.

It's a sunny and warm Thursday and off I go to Denver to visit some estate and garage sales followed by thrift and record stores. It seems I may be onto a weekly ritual, though that will be a game time decision each day. The second estate sale completed near lunch time, and I knew exactly where I was going.

I had seen Port of Subs with their "Coming Soon" sign when meeting with Old Boss late last year. As noted below, they weren't in Colorado prior. But they are now, and let's see how it goes. Walk in, spacious and clean, and you'll be greeted with the traditional sandwich shop setup. The below review reminds us that Port of Subs is in the Jersey Mike's category of making a sandwich with the meat slicer.

I tried the #13 (to your right) which includes pepper pastrami, turkey, and swiss cheese. This option recalls my old favorite #3 from Great Outdoors in the DFW area. I added their "works": Lettuce, onion, oil, vinegar, salt, and oregano (no tomato). I also added pepperoncini and spicy mustard. All on sourdough bread (you have a choice here too). A very good sandwich though I felt the bread might have a been a tad old. Nonetheless, I'll be back next year (RJG Rotation) as there's many items to try on the menu, and it's highly likely I'll be in this part of the Denver metro area often. I consider it part of my "territory".

---original 11/11/22 review (Gilbert, AZ)

The rest of the afternoon was all presentations followed by an early evening team meeting in Tempe. After that, many of us were looking to recharge and we went our separate ways to achieve that. I wasn't particularly hungry, and was very tired after a chaotic day. I decided to get something light, take it back to the hotel room, and enjoy a couple of beers while watching the election results. The perfect brainless activity so that I would be fresh in the morning! But what was going to be that light meal? Already did the hamburger thing as noted on the The Habit post. How about a sandwich? And up popped Port of Subs. Yes, of course, I remember them. Recall Rule #1 - it can't be a place I can visit at home in Colorado Springs (or even Denver really).

I had a note on my spreadsheet, and that same note entered my mind the minute I ordered: Jersey Mike's. It's the exact same modus operandi. Pull out the meats and cheeses, and make each slice just like your neighborhood delicatessen would do. Add in the toppings, wrap 'er on up, and out the door I go. Even though it was late, I was impressed by the counter person who was the consummate professional. He may have been the manager. No matter, I felt like my sandwich was being made with care. As for the verdict, Jersey Mike's wins on better bread and toppings. It's just a much sloppier sandwich than the decidedly drier Port of Subs, even though the ingredients are more or less the same. The Great Outdoors chain in DFW also gets the edge. All the same, I was more than happy with my sandwich, and if they were in Colorado Springs, I would go a few times a year. In this case they provided (ahem) a port in the storm. They have approximately 135 locations in 8 western states.

7/13/11; 4/5/12; 11/8/22 (new entry); 2/27/25

Carson City, NV; Las Vegas, NV; Gilbert, AZ; Castle Rock, CO

Sugarlump Co. ~ Westcliffe, Colorado

Last visit: Feb 2025

First visit: Aug 2021

See below reviews. I'm done here. lol. 

OK... On this visit I had the waffle cone with coffee ice cream (such imagination I possess), and Mrs. RJG split one scoop between Cookies & Cream and Chocolate Mousse. Just like last year (and we went twice) they gave us far more than one scoop indicates. The ice cream was so smooth. Mrs. RJG enjoyed every second of hers, being the ice cream fanatic she is. I forgot to take photos. I'm a mental patient when it comes to the camera. Next time.

The Amish ladies that work here are always so sweet. I love that this part of Colorado is drawing more and more Amish to the area. We even have the horse and buggy warning signs that I'd only seen in parts of Pennsylvania and Ohio prior. In fact, I'm for seceding from Colorado altogether. Let's create a new state South Colorado with Colorado Springs as the capital. North Colorado (or maybe East California?) can keep Denver and all the billionaire ski towns. Well maybe we'll take Parker, Castle Rock, and southward... We want the quaint humble villages of places like Westcliffe, La Veta, Del Norte, Montrose and the rest. And the working class Midwest styled city of Pueblo is just fine by me. Grand Junction and environs will be the second city and of course all the ranches of the East will stay with us. Now, how to go about doing that? ;-)

An obvious selection for the RJG Rotation.

---1/6/24 update

Of course we went here after lunch. One of our favorite ice cream places, we always make a beeline to Sugarlump. This time I stayed simple with a single scoop waffle cone of coffee ice cream. As seems to be a mountain tradition, I got more than one scoop. Unfortunately the coffee flavor wasn't strong enough for my taste buds. I'll probably go back to the shake as noted below. Mrs. RJG, remembering her overload from the last visit, also stuck with one scoop. She just got the Black Walnut (they didn't have peanut butter this time). She enjoyed it thoroughly though there was this undertone she wanted more. And then complained about being fat all the way home. Haha.

---2/5/23 update

Seems no trip to Westcliffe happens without a stopover at Sugarlump for some ice cream dessert. Mrs. RJG went crazy with two giant scoops in a waffle cone - one black walnut, the other peanut butter. I really enjoyed the latter on the taste sample. I went back to my favorite chocolate mousse ice cream shake with a shot of espresso - and whipped cream. It's sugar overload, but doggone was it great! Can only do that once in a blue moon. Forgot to mention this last time, but most of the workers here are Amish (or Mennonite). Reminded us of the Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia - especially Bassett's! I have an entry here from our last visit to Bassett's - recent too - like 15 years ago haha.

---original 5/14/22 review

As noted on the Chappy's entry, we had every intention of coming back to Sugarlump Co. Last summer most of Colorado was wide open, including Westcliffe, but we decided on a picnic anyway - almost reminiscing the pandemic of 2020 (honestly the worst nightmare of my entire life - I'm an absolute fanatic for freedom, and to have it taken away like that just really bothered me - and I hate masks too. No matter, I was a good citizen despite my misgivings. Even got vaccinated against my wishes and that didn't go well either for me, because I never put anything foreign into my body. OK, I'll stop). Besides on that summer day I was still recovering from a nasty gum infection (an undiscovered small fragment of a buried tooth from early childhood decided to come out - I mean we are talking way crazy weird here). What were we talking about again? Oh yea - dessert! While walking the town, we both decided ice cream sounded good, and inside we went. It was absolutely delicious. So we must go again.

Sugarlump is a large space with counter service, and the expected ice cream buckets. Years ago I went on a milkshake binge, and it was high time to bring back that bad habit. And that's what I did last summer. And did it again on this visit. I usually like to have coffee ice cream milkshakes, but last time I had chocolate with a shot of real espresso. Wow, was that good! This time I just had the cappuccino ice cream as a milkshake. I should have added the espresso, but it was still great. Mrs. RJG is a waffle cone nut, and she blended two flavors in there. And she loves their ice cream. Not sure if they make it in house or not, but whatever the case, we enjoy it a lot. And that put her right back in a great mood after her disappointment with Chappy's Burger. She did tell me she wants to eat here next time and have a panini. That sounds good, but also "not enough carbs for me". We'll see...

8/16/21; 5/14/22 (new entry); 2/4/23; 1/6/24; 2/25/25

Chappy's Bar & Grill ~ Westcliffe, Colorado

Latest visit: Feb 2025

First visit: May 2022

And we are back in our favorite Colorado mountain town destination of Westcliffe. A little later than our normal winter visit since we've had quite a bit of weather early this year plus the Mexico wedding trip threw a wrench into all of our plans.

This is only our second visit to Chappy's, even though I thoroughly enjoyed our original time here. However they've made some changes including their opening hours, and oftentimes we like eating earlier. So we ventured to other places in town. Now that I'm retired, our schedule is more flexible. Like going on a Tuesday instead of the weekend. And what a beautiful day it was, with temperatures in the 60s. In late February, that's crazy.

We arrived around Noon and were both starving. We ate a little bit at home after our morning run, but it's only going to last so long. Mrs. RJG has really been in the mood for burgers of late, so Chappy's rose high on the list, and they're open! Hooray. Fortunately she had forgotten her last experience with the undercooked meat (in her estimation anyway).

This time she ordered the Mushroom Burger (top) and I had the Southwestern. Both had cheese. The latter includes a homemade chipotle sauce + a homemade salsa as the topping. We both ordered them cooked well done. And.... YES it was cooked perfectly. The fries were super hot temperature, as was the burger. Excellent flavor and you could really taste the meat. The red sauce there is the "Bite Me" concoction, which we both used to dip the fries in. Excellent cayenne based Buffalo Wing sauce essentially. 

Heck, they even were playing country music (see below for reference)! And they also have an extensive selection of beers from an excellent craft brewer northern Colorado called Berthoud. We didn't try any on this visit since we had dessert plans, like usual while in Westcliffe. Did they take my review below to heart?

It was a great visit, and Chappy's now enters the RJG Rotation. 

---original 5/14/22 review

Mrs. RJG and I have been coming to Westcliffe since about 2000 or so when we had our first house in Parker (Denver area for my DFW readers). It's a stunningly beautiful place sitting between two mountain ranges, most prominently the Sangre de Cristo's. I encourage you to look at Google images to get an idea. And we had a wonderful weather day just like those photos show. Westcliffe became a home-away-from-home during the pandemic years, as we would make the near two hour drive over and picnic in the park while looking at the mountains. Last year we did have a dessert at one place that will be the subject of my next post. But we haven't eaten at a proper restaurant in the area in many years, the last time was in Silver Cliff, which is the town right before Westcliffe.

And this gets us to Chappy's. A very welcoming place on the main downtown drag, and the decor has been updated to modern sensibilities. We grabbed a circular table with bar stool seating and took in the environs. It's an open kitchen and you can watch the cooks charbroil the burger and hand cut the fries. They were in a good mood on this day and that's always a positive sign. The music was no bueno though. Modern dance-y pop music. Give me some old time 50s and 60s country (or western swing) music! It so goes with the wood paneled interior. Their tap selection is fairly basic with a couple of mainstream crafts, so we stuck with water, knowing ice cream was coming later. Chappy's states that you go there for their burgers, so that's what we settled on too. I had the "Bite Me" Burger (lol) which is their spicy concoction topped with jalapeno's, green chili, pepper jack cheese, and Bite Me sauce, which looks and tasted like a spicy variation of a buffalo sauce. I went with a cup of red chili on the side, and that's what I started with. It's a very meaty and garlicky blend with cheese and onions, all but guaranteed to keep people away from you the rest of the day. And it was temperature hot - hooray! Mrs. RJG went with the All-American classic with fries. And she started with the latter, and they're fantastic (I snuck a couple away too). Oh wow - this place is great! Or so I thought. I started in on my big ol' messy hamburger and loved it. Cooked to perfection and filled with spicy goodness. All we now need is for Mrs. RJG to love her burger and we have a home run. Toasted bun - already in the win column. And then...awwww.... crap. They didn't cook it well done. You all know now how she gets when this happens. "It's OK, I'll eat it". Ah jeez - just send it back. NOPE! It was medium to medium rare. A big miss really. Fortunately my burger was cooked more like medium well, and because the sauce was blocked from the meat, it was perfectly dry. So we swapped out. Better, but still she wasn't happy (mine wasn't well done either, even though I asked for it that way in a move of solidarity). I enjoyed her patty and finished my original burger patty as well. lol. She really did like the fries and the ambience, but when the burger isn't well done, a frown emerges. I always tell her to get the grilled cheese...

I'm still rating it very high, and will try to arm-twist her back next time we come for lunch.

5/14/22 (new entry); 2/25/25

Dragon House ~ Highland Village, Texas

Other location: Southlake. They also plan to open up in the city of Dallas soon

---

My close friends, Soundgardens Cuz and his wife, Realtor Queen took me to the new Dragon House in Highland Village for my birthday. I know the current trend around DFW is handmade dumplings and handpulled noodles and saw they offered them as well. But Dragon House sets itself apart from others. First, its a more elegant dining experience and yes, that does mean it's a bit more expensive than others I've been to. Highland Village is a great location for this upscale type of dining experience. I don't always subscribe to that, but it was nice! Our server was super attentive, but RQ noted that our dishes arrived right after the appetizer came. She saw the same occur at a nearby table. 

OK, on to the food and menu. They have a very big menu and includes hand drawn noodles, handmade dumplings/wontons, beef noodle soups, fried rice and fried noodle pages, and some traditional dishes like Mongolian Beef, Hunan and Kung Pao Chicken, etc. They even had dim sum items. We started with an appetizer of Wontons in chili sauce. We loved them. Pork and veggie filled noodles in a bath of slightly hot, lightly sweet sauce with scallions. We liked the sauce so well, we ladled some over steamed rice. My friends ordered from the lunch menu where small portions of soup, rice, edamame and a spring roll are included. They had Mongolian Beef and Kung Pao Chicken. I tasted them and found them very good. I decided to try the clear hand pulled noodles. Hand pulled clear noodles?? I've never seen or heard of this. Sign me up! I assumed it would be like a glass noodle dish with beef and veggies. It was more like a cross between beef noodle soup and pho. I would not call these noodles clear (when I hear clear noodles, I usually think glass, bean thread noodles), they reminded me of rice noodles like in pho. Don't get me wrong, they were good, but not what I expected. I didn’t expect soup either. ** The broth was mild, but flavorful. Fresh snow peas, carrots and broccoli were welcome and the beef cubes were tender and delicious. I added some chili flakes in oil. 

** I'd like to clarify that on my 2nd visit, I saw that the hand pulled clear noodle dish clearly (pun intended!) stated it is a soup. I completed glossed over that the first time. Overall, the experience was good and I totally plan to go again to explore the menu further. 

Update: I was back on Tues, Feb 18 (less than a week later) with good ol' Mr. Grizzly and my new favorite foodie partner, Baby Music to try some different menu items. The cold front moved in quickly with a brisk wind and dropped into the 20s! But we were determined to go. 

We decided to order big and just take leftovers home if it came to it. Baby Music looks forward to just that! We started with dumplings galore! The Dumpling sampler. 8 colorful, handmade dumplings with various filling. There were 2 of each of the following: green vegetable dumplings filled with bok choy, tofu, mushrooms, ginger, scallions and seasoning. Surprisingly, these were my faves! The red dumplings aka delicacy dumplings contained shrimp, scallop, fish and pork. Mr. Grizzly and I had these and both agreed they were ok but seemed a little fishy. The yellow dumplings were ground chicken with zucchini, ginger, scallions and seasoning and sounded good. Baby Music and Mr. Grizzly got to them first and concurred they were good. Finally, traditional ground pork dumplings with uncolored (white) wrapper were quite nice. All the dumplings had a yummy, handmade noodle wrapper. 

Next we ended up with 2 orders of juicy soup dumplings: shrimp with pork and shrimp, pork, & scallop. 10 pieces came in each order. It was the result of an ordering mishap, yet we persevered! Both contained a small "meatball" of ingredients floating in a pool of broth inside the loose, balloon-like handmade wrapper. Baby Music learned fast to eat them on a spoon and be prepared for very hot broth! Once she got the hang of it, she became extra fond of them. We liked them as well. We had soy sauce, black vinegar and chili flakes in oil to further season them. Baby Music loves fresh string beans Szechuan style, blistered in a wok with minced garlic, black bean, green onion and chili flakes. This interpretation was a bit saucier than others we've had, which I welcomed. They were very good, but not as flavor packed as I had hoped. Mr. Grizzly mentioned he usually doesn't care for string beans, but found these very good, and interesting. It was a big portion of the dish and Baby Music happily scooped up the leftovers to take home. 

It was then time to bring on the noodles! Up first, were a house favorite, Dan Dan noodles! Made with a peanutty sauce using crushed roasted peanuts, sesame oil and dried shrimp paste. I was delighted to try it as I'd never seen them offered with hand pulled noodles! And to further the intrigue, the noodles were about the thickness of spaghetti. We all liked the noodles themselves and the sauce too with different thoughts. I think I liked them best. I found the balance between peanut and sesame to be perfect and a touch of heat. Mr. Grizzly thought they were a little too sweet and saucy for his taste, butcdid enjoy them. Baby Music said they were good, but didn’t have much more to say and was ready for the next dish! 

Finally, the moment we (especially Baby Music) were waiting for: Hand pulled, stir fried noodles. We ordered a combo with pork, beef, chicken and shrimp and also just pork at the request of baby music. This type of hand drawn noodle dish has become pretty popular in restsurants around town so we had some expectations of what we were in for. Much to our surprise, these were completely different than others we've had. These noodles are wide, about an inch, like pappardelle. They said hand pulled, but were very uniform in width and thickness; thinner than others we had. Others we tried were extremely varied in thickness and width; rightly so when you see them swinging the long dough like a jump rope to stretch them. The stir fry had onions, garlic and light soy sauce with their respective meat tossed in. They were very good and the flavor and look reminded me of chow fun made with homemade noodles. The portions were big (particularly the sliced pork) and had a good amount of meat. Baby Music loved them and the big pile of leftovers she got to bring home. 

For dessert we had the steamed bao filled with "molten chocolate". Mr. Grizzly passed, as he was full and trying to limit sweet intake. Baby Music was a big fan and gladly snagged an extra. I liked mine as well. The soft, steamed bao with melted, creamy chocolate was very nice. There were 4 and were a perfect size, probably to prevent chocolate overload and scalding one's tongue! I liked the neutral tasting bun combined with chocolatey, slightly buttery, yet not too sweet filling. 

Overall we liked it and think lovers of Chinese food should go. Just beware of the prices. They have some items I usually only find at hole-in-the-wall, "more authentic" places but have been slightly Americanized. So it's mid point between the scale of adventurous and Americanized Chinese food. I believe there is a good market for this. The menu is huge and there are plenty of other items I want to try.

- Mr. Music review

Quijote's Mexican Grill ~ Colorado Springs, Colorado

Latest visit: Feb 2025

First visit: Apr 2018

Back for the first time since last year's update. Yep just once a year these days. And this was also the first time I've been here solo. Mrs. RJG had remembered that she didn't like it last time and told me that she wasn't interested in going back. Good to know because Quijote's is on my looking-for-inventory route. So on this cold but sunny Thursday near lunchtime, I was starving and a smothered burrito sounded great. It had snowed earlier in the morning but was beginning to warm up.

I changed my order slightly deciding to go with a ground beef burrito, which includes rice and beans inside the flour tortilla (see to your right). As is my custom I tried the chili first and it was hot, spicy, and delicious as always. Once I mixed it with the beef, the flavor profile was different. I think I prefer the eggs and bacon, so I'll go back to that next time. Quijote's is a charter member of the Colorado Springs RJG Rotation and isn't likely to fall off anytime soon.

The restaurant had a few patrons, but I didn't recognize anyone this time. I presume it's the same owners. Service was great. It seems they only have "the big room" open again similar to the pandemic era, and have shut off the original breakfast and to-go portion. Prices have risen again. I would submit they are still cheaper than the competition, but it's getting tougher and tougher out there for independent restaurateurs. 

---3/30/24 update

Back at Quijote's for the first time this year, much later than usual. As noted below, we used to come here often. Before the pandemic at least twice a month, but now maybe twice a year. I did take Mr. Music here last April, and that was the last time I'd been. Mrs. RJG and I were craving a spicy Mexican breakfast, so we made the pilgrimage down south for some yummy green chile - mine burying a burrito, hers the chile relleno. Mrs. RJG said it wasn't as good this time, something about the cheese not tasting right. Mine was the same as always, super great. Chips and salsa were good as well. Quijote's used to be packed on a Saturday morning, but we were the only ones there today. And even though they too have had to raise their prices, they're still cheaper than everywhere else. Doesn't matter, too far from zero for most folks to afford. Once competition reenters the markets, we should see some normalization to all of this. But until then, it's survival of the fittest. If the below updates aren't clear enough, do not miss going to Quijote's and trying their spicy green.

---2/18/23 update

Back again for our annual review. Last year's note said nothing more than still our favorite restaurant in Colorado Springs. And that could suffice here too, but I'll add a little more color this time. Since we were last here, they reopened their breakfast / lunch space on the north side of their (rather large) building. They also gussied it up and made it more sleek. We also noticed the calming jazz music. Perhaps someone mentioned the B Street Cafe? All restaurants should take note of this. Ditch the annoying pop music. On this visit, I went with the ham breakfast burrito smothered in spicy green. That chile is arguably the best in town - and certainly one of the hottest. I probably will go back to bacon next time as the salty meat penetrates better the acute flavor of the chile. Mrs. RJG had a chile relleno smothered in the same green along with a side of rice. We were both crying at the end. Because we were sad that it was over? Maybe. Well, you know why. We don't come to Quijotes as much as we used to, or would like to. Part of that is they're not open on Sundays, as they were when we first moved here. And our Saturday schedule tends to fill up. But on this gloomy and cold Saturday, it seemed the perfect antidote. Oh - and it's still the cheapest meal in the Springs. Glad my readership here in the Springs is still light - because there should be a line around the door. 

---original 1/30/21 review

If there was ever a reason to restart the RJG, it's been Quijotes. As you can see, the first visit goes back to April 2018, and that's because we were here to participate in our new home "walk through". Sort of a pain in the butt (not to mention expensive), as we had to fly from DFW to do this. Oh well, not one to complain, the RJG is always up for trying new restaurants when traveling. For whatever reason, all the hotels up north were sold out or super expensive, so we stayed south by the airport. Mrs. RJG and I knew it was going to be a long day, so why not enjoy an old school Colorado Mexican breakfast on the way north. But where? A quick search suggested Quijotes might be our kind of place. We've been going back ever since.... It's not around the corner, but who cares? Honestly nothing is that far in Colorado Springs. It's not like going from White Settlement to Wylie in DFW.

So what's the draw here? Smothered burritos (as if you have to ask). And, in particular, their hot green. They have a mild one, which isn't to our taste honestly. But the hot is seriously spicy. Like crazy-I-can't-believe-you-can-get-this-at-a-restaurant hot. And super flavorful, which is required given the heat level. We have never tasted anything like this chile - ever, anywhere. And we seek this stuff out! I usually get the egg and bacon breakfast burrito. And it's unbelievably low priced. Not only is this the best food in town - it's the cheapest! Mrs. RJG will sometimes get the huevos rancheros buried in the same green sauce to much glee and delight. Oh, and the salsa that comes with the chips is great too (chips aren't free, but you have extra money to burn here).  Everywhere we live - or travel to - we find a favorite. And with almost three full years in Colorado Springs, Quijotes is ours! Not much else to say about that.

The location is split into two dining rooms - one is a small area that primarily was used during the week to handle sit down and to-go customers. In what has to be considered a genius business decision, they also opened up a large space that was to be used as a karaoke bar and dance floor for the weekend evenings. Well guess what? That's now their primary sitting area, and it's spacious so as to handle the pandemic regulations. Good things happen to good people. Oh, the ladies who own and work here are wonderful. Tough as nails, but sweet as pie too. Go here.

4/20/18; 1/25/20; 7/3/20; 1/30/21 (new entry); 3/5/22; 2/18/23; 3/30/24; 2/20/25

Wayback Burgers ~ national chain : Woodland Park, Colorado

Latest: Feb 2025

First visit: Mar 2024

HQ: Cheshire, CT; Founded in 1991 (Newark, DE)

Locations: Wayback is nationwide, but lightly populated. It's difficult to calculate how many total they have. They have 2 stores in Colorado, the other in Englewood / Denver. Looks like they have 5 in DFW (one opening soon) with north Fort Worth being the closest from our old home in Keller. 

If there's a restaurant Mrs. RJG has been craving, it's Wayback Burgers. She threatened to go to Woodland Park alone multiple times just to have that Cheesy burger I enjoyed last time. It never happened (as I predicted below), so I knew that Woodland Park needed to be our first "mountain incursion" of 2025, much later than usual (the wedding in Mexico is why). It's a very cold Tuesday around 11:30 when we arrived. Restaurant is empty though we saw two patrons on the way out with a to-go order. We each ordered (of course) the Cheesy along with one order of fries and two milkshakes. She got the Pistachio and I got the Chocolate Brownie. 

I think our respective orders totaled 10,000 calories each if I calculated right (see to your right). First the shakes came out, mine was wrong but they fixed it straight away. Oh yea, this is good stuff. Too good really and I need to stop having them. Then out came our cheeseburgers. Perfectly cooked double patties, hot to the touch, with toasted reverse buns. Delicious. You can really taste the beef. I just realized that last year I added lettuce and mustard. I should have done that again to balance the flavor a bit more. The homemade fries were also excellent and hot. Everything was as good as we remembered.

On the downside, Wayback Burgers is very expensive for a counter serve restaurant. $38 is a tab I would expect at a sit down full service establishment. Since we only go annually (though Mrs. RJG continues to insist we go more), it's a splurge meal. We've enjoyed the experience to date, so we'll definitely go back. Only one other to-go order showed up while we were there. But it was a slow Tuesday in the middle of winter, so we're not drawing too many conclusions from that. Maybe we should go in the middle of July to get a true assessment of how their business is going.

---original 3/9/24 review

Back on home turf, and Mrs. RJG and I decided a short drive into the mountains would be in order. Especially on this cold, crisp, beautiful clear blue sky day. Woodland Park is our closest true mountain town, and it makes for a nice getaway. I had heard that Wayback Burgers were going to open there, and it appears they did that five or six months ago. Apparently they used to be here in the Springs at some point, but I don't remember the name, and this is my first experience with the restaurant. The chain started as Jake's Hamburgers and I had wondered if it was the same brand that we knew in DFW. Nope, that's a different setup (Jake's Burgers and Beer). Perhaps that's why they changed their name ("rebranded" in corporate speak). There's no alcohol here, strictly a family oriented fast food joint. This is one of those chains that attempts to regain the "the way things used to be." As my dad always appended "...and probably never were."

Wayback Burgers sits in a strip center, with a very confusing parking lot situation. Once you get settled, walk in, and order at the counter. I went for the Cheesy with lettuce and mustard. And a Pistachio milkshake. Mrs. RJG got a single cheeseburger with cheese, lettuce, pickles, onions, and mustard. Plus fries and a drink.

I have to say this is one of the most flavorful hamburgers I've ever had. The meat is extremely tasty. If you get the Cheesy as is, it comes with two oversized beef patties and extra slices of cheese. The bread is served almost Patty Melt style with two flat topped and toasty buns. I received plenty of envious stares from Mrs. RJG, whose hamburger was more standard. She stated the same as me though, that the flavor of the burger was insanely good. She asked for light mustard and they squirted too much on there, but otherwise she was happy. The hand cut potato fries were excellent as well. The pistachio shake almost seemed more like a vanilla shake with chocolate whip cream. It wasn't very green nor pistachio-y in flavor. But I still enjoyed the heck out of it :-). Mrs. RJG even boldly declared she was coming to Woodland Park on her own during the mid week to have them for lunch again. She probably won't, but we for certain will be back next year, if not sooner.

3/9/24 (new entry); 2/18/25

Red's Sunset Grill ~ Colorado Springs, Colorado

First visit: Feb 2025

It's a cold and dreary winter Saturday, and I didn't have any sales to go to. Mrs. RJG had some family business in Denver (we're two ships passing in the night apparently), so I was on my own for lunch. Why not pick a place nearby to the house that Mrs. RJG hasn't shown enthusiasm for. Well that would be Red's Sunset Grill that just opened a couple of months back. She doesn't often like to try places unless I've reconned them first. Happy to perform my spousal duty...

The establishment here prior was Beasts & Brews, a miserable place that I wrote a scathing review of (since removed). I can deal with a lot of issues, but I can't handle restaurants that deliberately try to rip you off. And they did that with their self pour beer tap system. I suggested they needed to change that business model pronto or face going out of business. And no truer words were ever written... Good riddance.

Red's Sunset Grill has completely remodeled the (very) large space into a sports bar but with an "elevated" menu (I'm getting good at these new terms, eh?). Essentially it's a gastropub. It looks almost identical to RJG favorite Back East Bar & Grill. And I'll be damned, it's the same owner. And I had no idea they also owned Abby's Pub along with two other distinct restaurant concepts. They are apparently Colorado Springs' version of the Lettuce Entertain You group of Chicago. Hey - that's awesome. More power to you. They have money and it shows. They also have uniformly friendly help and are clean as a whistle. In an era when most restaurants struggle to bring in patrons, all their restaurants seem to be packed. When I arrived there were only a few customers (I was early), but it started to fill up. I'm sure at nights they do great. And when there's an event at the nearby Ford Amphitheater, then good luck in getting a table.

Shall I talk about the food? That would be good of you Mr. RJG. Their beer list is somewhat perfunctory, so that's another major break from their predecessor. I stuck with water, since I have a full day of activities, including typing this review out 😊. I went with the Wicked Spicy Burger which they describe as thus: "Charred jalapeño, bacon, habanero cheddar, blackened chipotle aioli, brioche bun." Yep that's got my name on it. And substituted the fries for Mac-n-Cheese for $2. There it is to your right. I started with the Mac, and it was super hot temperature, creamy and absolutely delicious. Love that the mac is actually penne plus the parmesan cheese and panko crumb addition. For the burger the first thing I notice is the crispy bacon. Mrs. RJG would love that. I ordered it medium well, but I'd say it was more medium. Fine with me, but something to remember with the Mrs. The bread was just a tad mushy on the bottom, another Mrs. RJG no-no. None of this deters me and I was excited about the various spicy flavors. Excellent burger. The pickle was great too. I also have to say that I was completely full and struggled to finish it. This after a three mile run and nothing else to eat. I was starving upon arrival with my stomach growling an hour before. I can't remember the last time I felt that way about being stuffed.

Into the RJG Rotation Red's Sunset Grill goes. I'll see if I can get Mrs. RJG here as well. It's less than a five minute drive away.

2/15/25 (new entry)

Chago's Mexican Food ~ Centennial, Colorado

First visit: Feb 2025

I decided to go digging for inventory in Denver on this sunny and warm Friday morning, which later turned cloudy and rainy. After having great success at the first sale, I was hungry, considering I hadn't eaten anything and I had run three miles in the morning. I was in the mood for a Mexican breakfast likely a reaction to our recent visit to Hermosillo. The sale area I was in is where Mrs. RJG resided while we were dating in 1996 and early '97.  It was simply part of Aurora (or SE Denver) back then, but is now part of the Centennial carve out. I have no go-tos here, so let's find the first Mexican restaurant nearby that is open at 10:00 am. Chago's came up, reviews looked good, so let's try it.

I was expecting more of a restaurant like setting. As I arrived, it became clear this was a taqueria with counter service. No problem at all. They had tables and chairs strewn about, but it appears takeout is their primary business. As long as there's a place to sit I'm good, because I refuse to eat in the car.

I went about ordering three tacos: Carne Adovada, Grilled Pollo, and Carne Asada. They all come street style with onion, cilantro, and double wrapped in corn tortillas. For salsas they have a red and a green, and the friendly lady at the counter suggested they were both very spicy. I'm now getting excited.

When the Styrofoam container came out (to your right), I couldn't even handle the tacos they were so hot to the touch. That only makes me happier. After about three minutes of waiting for the cool down, I started on the adovada. OMG! Is this delicious or what? I can't even remember the last time I had such a great adovada. So much spice and extremely flavorful. I poured some of the creamy green, which looks like a mild but is anything but. Really nice flavor and kick. Then I tried some of the "red", that was really orange which indicated habanero most likely. Even more spicy and delicious. And both had the perfect texture to pour on tacos. Then I tried the chicken. Oh gosh, this is awesome too! Meaty, chewy, and filled with flavor. The Carne Asada, comparatively, was a bit less dynamic. Certainly was good, and maybe I should have tried it first, as I was struggling to get the steak flavor. Of course my mouth was on fire, so it's probably my fault. Should also mention the tacos were loaded and very filling. I met Abuela afterward, and told her it was muy rico. I presume she was the cook, or at least had a hand in the recipes. 

This goes right into the RJG rotation, and I'm sure I'll be in this part of town at least once a year. 

2/14/25 (new entry)

Chile Colorado ~ Colorado Springs, Colorado

First visit: Feb 2025

Alrighty now that the wedding in Mexico is over, I hope to give more focus here to Colorado and beyond. I'm expecting 3 to 4 new restaurants (or updates) a week. I'll get the Instagram posts gathered when I get a chance. And it is this Thursday we begin our journey.

Downtown Colorado Springs now is in play, as there's a thrift shop I frequent that allows for free parking (I absolutely despise paying for parking). I've had Chile Colorado circled since they first opened, but didn't have the time to get over here. It sits right across from the courthouse and I'm now realizing I blew my chance when I served on the jury last year as noted on this blog. It sits somewhat isolated from where most of the other restaurants are. Almost like you're in a small town. That's a good thing.

Walk in and you'll be warmly greeted by the friendly waitstaff. They sat me at one of the comfortable booths by the window. The restaurant is colorful and brightly decorated. Very clean too. After reviewing the menu, with a few questions for my patient waitress, I made my order: Chile Colorado (as part of the combo, which is different than the individual menu item) and a chicken enchilada smothered in Christmas. I meant to order chips but forgot. I'll be sure to do that next time.

Out comes my very hot plate (see to your right) and I dug right into the chili. Oh yes! Great flavor, thick and meaty, and it packs a punch too. Considering the only thing on my palate up to that point in the day was my accompanying water. Then I quickly tried the enchilada. The chicken is better than usual, not the shredded rooster we often see. Tasty with cooked ingredients. The green chile packed even more heat than the chile. I couldn't really tell if I did get Christmas or just the green. If so, the color deviation is very light. But I did notice a different flavor. The tin foil is housing the hot grilled flour tortillas, and they too were great. Excellent across the board. Into the RJG Rotation Chile Colorado goes. 

While recapping my day with Mrs. RJG during our Happy Hour, she simply stated "take me there". So we'll be back soon I think :-)

2/13/25 (new entry)

Buqui Bichi Brewing ~ Hermosillo, Mexico

First visit: Feb 2025

Once again we had no plans to fill the day. At least for us guys. So after our meal at Santo's Grill, the three ladies who were with us had appointments to get their hair and makeup done. Mrs. RJG and Denver Sister were not too keen on unleashing Mr. RJG and the Ghana Ambassador out into the wilds on the wedding day. Denver Official Niece the Young had her boyfriend, but she could care less what he was up to. And Denver Official Nephew is 23 and free as a bird, so he was game for anything. There was talk of driving to San Carlos, a beautiful town some 90 minutes away. But the ladies were terrified we'd get caught up in traffic and miss the wedding. That sounded good to us guys! lol. After some deliberation, Oldest Sibling agreed to take us dudes around Hermosillo and we'd figure something out. OK, sounds like a plan.

It somehow became our mission to get a sombrero. Funny how these things become the target when it was never discussed before. Since Oldest Sibling knows the city pretty well, he took us to a place in hardcore Hermosillo. Clearly a very poor area, nonetheless we all felt completely safe. And I have to say that throughout our stay, I felt safer in Hermosillo than I do in Denver. We're freaking in the middle of cartel land, way off the tourist beaten path, and the streets at night felt safe. And in the day too. That's a sad commentary on our current situation here in the States. Only boyfriend bought a hat and then we ended up at the mall since Oldest Sibling had to visit the eyeglasses store. It's a very nice indoor mall, named the Galleria which is a clue. The stores are just like the stores back home. And so are the prices, so it's very expensive for the locals. After that we started to enter the cerveza drinking hour. We were under strict instructions not to get drunk. We wouldn't anyway, but we're not going to waste this opportunity either and drink tea.

We settled on Buqui Bichi, beers we were familiar with from the hotel bar. What a wonderful "space" as the young 'uns call it. We had a blast. All of us enjoying two to four beers each (exceptional). And we agreed we needed to eat something too, as the wedding reception would likely be way late. And not very good. All prophetic as it turns out. So I enjoyed the beautiful taco you see in front of you (carne asada and green chile). Best one of the trip. And we all got to bond with Oldest Sibling even though the poor fellow got stuck with us all day and doesn't speak much English. And none of us spoke much Spanish. It was a wonderful "moment in time". And I credit Buqui Bichi for creating that atmosphere for us. And Boyfriend paid for everything (note he gets a capital B now), raising his stock with Uncle RJG and Uncle Ghana Ambassador. Prices were great as was the norm in Hermosillo.

I wish I could share photos of our group, but must stay anonymous. We're all below that cropped photo, but it does give you a slight idea of the interior. The windows were open and there was a nice breeze coming through.

The beautiful Mrs. RJG looked like a knockout coming out of the makeup session. She usually does anyway, but this was next level. She's 51 but still looks like she's in her 30s. And in perfect condition. All of our niece's look up to her as the example of who they want to become. I'm serious about that.

And that ends our trip. As noted in the Guero entry, that's where we had our Sunday breakfast before going to the airport. Arrived in Denver at halftime of the Super Bowl. Listened to the 3rd quarter on the radio on our 75 minute drive home to the Springs. And caught the rest of the game in the house. So nice to be home again...

2/8/25 (new entry)

Santo's Grill ~ Hermosillo, Mexico

First visit: Feb 2025

Finally - the day of the wedding. Oldest Sibling, having been upstaged by 90 year old Official Mom the day before, insisted on taking us out again. This time it was just him and seven of the Colorado 9. The other two were involved in the wedding (one as the husband) and stayed in a different hotel.

Another excellent choice, Santo's Grill is clearly a cut above. Something like an independent First Watch. This would be a good time to mention that we found the service in Hermosillo - at every restaurant - impeccable. People were happy to have their jobs and were professionals at all times. High minimum wages have killed the restaurant industry in the States (California going so far as to pick on the industry itself). I think that's going to be POTUS' biggest challenge in tackling inflation. And he has Union support, making it that much more difficult to do what needs to be done. 

As openers we had coffee, pastries, and little sopas (or something similar) filled with cheese. The latter was absolutely delicious. As were the pastries - sweet, fluffy, and tasty. And the coffee was much stronger than what they served at the hotel restaurant.

I ordered the Tri-Color Enchiladas with chicken, which came with rojo (red), verde (green), and blanco (white) sauces. Along with beans, very similar to what I had at Guero (I forgot to photo the dish, only the outside building). And they were very similar, and excellent. The enchiladas are similar to some of the regional Mexican restaurants we get here in the States. The white is like a cheese / cream sauce, the verde was tangy, and the red slightly spicy. The chicken was good not exceptional. I found it very good, though for certain I would love to dive into their menu further. Their dinner selections were not available this early. Of the restaurants we went to, this felt the most comfortable to me. I would certainly come back if ever in Hermosillo again.

2/8/25 (new entry)