Latest visit: Mar 2013 (North Richland Hills)
First visit: 2003 (Trophy Club)
Back on home soil again, let's cover off on the newest Cristina's location. We've already written about Cristina's before, primarily their Southlake and Trophy Club locations. As such, please follow the link above to read more about the chain, and their other locations.
The newest Cristina's has already hit the Top 10 of hottest restaurants in DFW according to Urbanspoon (Talk of the Town). And given that this is the chain's 12th location, that says something about the power of the Cristina's brand.
Cristina's did the smart thing here, and took over a fully loaded former Mexican restaurant, that had been recently redesigned. Therefore that limited the amount of decor overhaul that is normally required to reopen a restaurant. The former tenant, Anejo's House of Tequila, was an elegant place, with a superior bar that suits the moniker "house of tequila". We went once a couple of years ago, and while the drinks were solid, the food was lackluster. Still, the place seemed reasonably popular, so I was a bit surprised to see it closed. But not disappointed. When Cristina's stepped in, it looked to be a stroke of genius. And I think it is, given its early popularity. Though I have to wonder if they aren't starting to eat their young. Southlake isn't that far, and most certainly former patrons of that location will just head over to the NRH store for convenience.
So for this lunch visit, the RJG started appropriately enough with a frozen margarita. I'm on a roll here, as this was yet another excellent concoction, with a great flavor and the right smoothness. I went with the 10 ounce (instead of 20), and I was still pretty knocked out. Hooray. Mrs. RJG abstained from the sinful liquids, and started digging right into the chips. Their chips continue to be boring, and their table salsa (tomatoes, cilantro, and onions) is quite frankly dull as ditchwater. But they still have the heated habanero sauce if you ask for it, and it's absolutely delicious! It's not that spicy, and the flavor is miles better than their normal offering, so definitely ask for it. I went with the puffed tacos, which were just OK. The ground beef needed more seasoning, and while I appreciate the homemade crispy fried shells, the fact remains they aren't strong enough to hold the ingredients - and it collapses on the plate for a taco salad. As I read my former review of the rice and beans, it appears they aren't as special as they once were. The rice was slightly mushy. The beans were good, but nothing extraordinary. Mrs. RJG had a ground beef taco, that they placed in the beans, so that the shell would disintegrate quickly. Her verde chicken enchilada was cold and lifeless.
So there you have it. Final conclusion: Better than Anejo's, about par for Cristina's. Which is to say they are good, not great, middle of the road Mexican. Exactly, I think, what they are striving for. Appeal to the masses - which is good business honestly. Mrs. RJG has pretty much written off Cristina's, which means I'm resigned to going there if I'm craving a frozen margarita and a taco or two (they have upscale tacos that look pretty good actually). That translates into very few, if any, further visits. Oh well.
The current rating as I write this on Urbanspoon is 45%. But that's only based on 11 votes so far. This number will almost assuredly go up. Despite the rather harsh review, I continue to give them a thumbs up. But it's not exactly a ringing endorsement.
The newest Cristina's has already hit the Top 10 of hottest restaurants in DFW according to Urbanspoon (Talk of the Town). And given that this is the chain's 12th location, that says something about the power of the Cristina's brand.
Cristina's did the smart thing here, and took over a fully loaded former Mexican restaurant, that had been recently redesigned. Therefore that limited the amount of decor overhaul that is normally required to reopen a restaurant. The former tenant, Anejo's House of Tequila, was an elegant place, with a superior bar that suits the moniker "house of tequila". We went once a couple of years ago, and while the drinks were solid, the food was lackluster. Still, the place seemed reasonably popular, so I was a bit surprised to see it closed. But not disappointed. When Cristina's stepped in, it looked to be a stroke of genius. And I think it is, given its early popularity. Though I have to wonder if they aren't starting to eat their young. Southlake isn't that far, and most certainly former patrons of that location will just head over to the NRH store for convenience.
So for this lunch visit, the RJG started appropriately enough with a frozen margarita. I'm on a roll here, as this was yet another excellent concoction, with a great flavor and the right smoothness. I went with the 10 ounce (instead of 20), and I was still pretty knocked out. Hooray. Mrs. RJG abstained from the sinful liquids, and started digging right into the chips. Their chips continue to be boring, and their table salsa (tomatoes, cilantro, and onions) is quite frankly dull as ditchwater. But they still have the heated habanero sauce if you ask for it, and it's absolutely delicious! It's not that spicy, and the flavor is miles better than their normal offering, so definitely ask for it. I went with the puffed tacos, which were just OK. The ground beef needed more seasoning, and while I appreciate the homemade crispy fried shells, the fact remains they aren't strong enough to hold the ingredients - and it collapses on the plate for a taco salad. As I read my former review of the rice and beans, it appears they aren't as special as they once were. The rice was slightly mushy. The beans were good, but nothing extraordinary. Mrs. RJG had a ground beef taco, that they placed in the beans, so that the shell would disintegrate quickly. Her verde chicken enchilada was cold and lifeless.
So there you have it. Final conclusion: Better than Anejo's, about par for Cristina's. Which is to say they are good, not great, middle of the road Mexican. Exactly, I think, what they are striving for. Appeal to the masses - which is good business honestly. Mrs. RJG has pretty much written off Cristina's, which means I'm resigned to going there if I'm craving a frozen margarita and a taco or two (they have upscale tacos that look pretty good actually). That translates into very few, if any, further visits. Oh well.
The current rating as I write this on Urbanspoon is 45%. But that's only based on 11 votes so far. This number will almost assuredly go up. Despite the rather harsh review, I continue to give them a thumbs up. But it's not exactly a ringing endorsement.
--- original review
Cristina's, a DFW area chain, is part of the second wave of Mexican restaurants: A determined focus on taste, but with an eye for high style. And while their primary audience is the "gringo", those from the old country won't be disappointed either. In that way, Cristina's is similar to other Mexican restaurants in NE Tarrant like Mi Pueblo, Anamia's, and El Paseo.
This is not Cristina's first venture to NE Tarrant, as they first successfully opened in Trophy Club a few years ago, and that's where the RJG first sampled the restaurant. But we wanted to try the Southlake location, if for no other reason to see how they converted the former Baja Fresh (later Buster's) fast food outlet. Unrecognizable. Whoever did the renovation, did a remarkable job with the space. It feels considerably larger, and about the only extra space they added was the enclosure of the former porch. Very nice. Cristina's has 10 locations in the DFW area overall.
The components:
Frozen Margarita: Strong and sweet. Went with the 10 oz. and felt it. Probably the 20 oz is too much. But, hey, I'm willing to sacrifice for the blog!
Chips: Traditional corn chips. Light and crispy. Large chain style. Nothing special and needs salsa, or otherwise too bland.
Hot Sauce: A variation of the tomato, onion, peppers and cilantro sauce. Not like the Colorado styled salsa we had at Kassandra's , but still good.
"The hotter one, please": Ah yes, a habanero salsa! I love the tangy taste and the slo-burn. Beautiful! We could eat this all day.
Entree hits: Carne Asada (yum... hickory grilled meat), beef enchiladas (nicely spiced ground beef).
Entree misses: Cheese enchilada (already hardened - not hot enough); Chicken Soft Taco (naturally not separated from the platter (c'mon - you can afford it!), so the whole thing collapsed into a pile of mush. Didn't care for the seasoning, and would prefer more white meat).
Refried Beans: HUGE PLUS! Both the Mrs. and I agreed, best refried beans we've had. Super smooth and with a taste that reminded the Mrs. of the state of Sonora. Personally, I tend to never finish my beans, but I was looking for more this time!
Rice: Again delicious. Perfectly cooked, fluffy, with a slight buttery taste. Wonderful!
You know, I don't think I've ever had dessert at a Mexican restaurant! Who has the room? Yet they never fail to ask/demand "Want a sopapilla?!?" Uhhh, no.
As for the NE Tarrant restaurants we've compared Cristina's to, I'd say Anamia's is first, with El Paseo and Cristina's neck and neck for second. And Mi Pueblo trails slightly in 4th. All are very good and recommended!
The Southlake location is on Southlake Blvd, about 1/2 mile west of TX-114, on the south side of the road. Currently, Cristina's has 10 DFW locations, 8 of them on the "other side" of DFW - the Dallas suburbs.
Adding the Trophy Club location as well, since we frequent that one just as often. It's located on TX-114 (exit Trophy Club Dr.). In addition to these two locations we also have been to the Frisco location (off of 121) and the Addison one, which is now closed.
This is not Cristina's first venture to NE Tarrant, as they first successfully opened in Trophy Club a few years ago, and that's where the RJG first sampled the restaurant. But we wanted to try the Southlake location, if for no other reason to see how they converted the former Baja Fresh (later Buster's) fast food outlet. Unrecognizable. Whoever did the renovation, did a remarkable job with the space. It feels considerably larger, and about the only extra space they added was the enclosure of the former porch. Very nice. Cristina's has 10 locations in the DFW area overall.
The components:
Frozen Margarita: Strong and sweet. Went with the 10 oz. and felt it. Probably the 20 oz is too much. But, hey, I'm willing to sacrifice for the blog!
Chips: Traditional corn chips. Light and crispy. Large chain style. Nothing special and needs salsa, or otherwise too bland.
Hot Sauce: A variation of the tomato, onion, peppers and cilantro sauce. Not like the Colorado styled salsa we had at Kassandra's , but still good.
"The hotter one, please": Ah yes, a habanero salsa! I love the tangy taste and the slo-burn. Beautiful! We could eat this all day.
Entree hits: Carne Asada (yum... hickory grilled meat), beef enchiladas (nicely spiced ground beef).
Entree misses: Cheese enchilada (already hardened - not hot enough); Chicken Soft Taco (naturally not separated from the platter (c'mon - you can afford it!), so the whole thing collapsed into a pile of mush. Didn't care for the seasoning, and would prefer more white meat).
Refried Beans: HUGE PLUS! Both the Mrs. and I agreed, best refried beans we've had. Super smooth and with a taste that reminded the Mrs. of the state of Sonora. Personally, I tend to never finish my beans, but I was looking for more this time!
Rice: Again delicious. Perfectly cooked, fluffy, with a slight buttery taste. Wonderful!
You know, I don't think I've ever had dessert at a Mexican restaurant! Who has the room? Yet they never fail to ask/demand "Want a sopapilla?!?" Uhhh, no.
As for the NE Tarrant restaurants we've compared Cristina's to, I'd say Anamia's is first, with El Paseo and Cristina's neck and neck for second. And Mi Pueblo trails slightly in 4th. All are very good and recommended!
The Southlake location is on Southlake Blvd, about 1/2 mile west of TX-114, on the south side of the road. Currently, Cristina's has 10 DFW locations, 8 of them on the "other side" of DFW - the Dallas suburbs.
Adding the Trophy Club location as well, since we frequent that one just as often. It's located on TX-114 (exit Trophy Club Dr.). In addition to these two locations we also have been to the Frisco location (off of 121) and the Addison one, which is now closed.
2/4/09 (new entry); 3/15/13
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