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Friday, August 11, 2000
Taqueria Fiesta makes you feel right at home
Six-Points area eatery offers home cooking in portions to satisfy a hungry party
With the pale white walls, adorned with sombreros and Mexican blankets, and vinyl chairs and tables, Taqueria Fiesta is reminiscent of the small cafes buried inside border-town mercados.
Diners are greeted instantly by the sounds of mariachi music and the distinct smells of flour tortillas on the griddle and the aromatic scent of cumin, one of the most common ingredients in Tex-Mex food.
Local residents and nearby hospital staff pour into the Staples Street eatery around noon to take advantage of the generous portions and cheap plates of steaming enchiladas, tacos and fajitas.
And like most taquerias throughout the city, the drill is the same: the waitress takes your order at the table and when you're done, you pay at the counter.
Upon our arrival, we were told to seat ourselves.
Our waitresses quickly sidled up to our table to take our drink orders and place the traditional basket of flour and corn tortilla chips in front of us, accompanied by a cup of homemade salsa.
The chips, fried from the restaurant's signature homemade tortillas, were thick, but a little tough to chew. The salsa was fiery - blended thoroughly - yet a little on the salty and watery side, though neither my dining companion nor myself complained. In fact, we found it quite addictive, ordering another basket when the first batch of chips ran out.
Made from scratch
On this particular visit, I opted for the chicken tacos, adding cilantro and onions with a side of guacamole. My dining companion ordered the Mexican plate, which included a taco and two enchiladas, as well as rice and beans. The food took a while to come out. But when the waitress put our meals in front of us, the plates were piping hot and it was obvious from the lopsided shapes of the tortillas and the brothy consistency of the stewed chicken in the tacos that everything was made from scratch. And there was a lot of it.
Frequenters of Taqueria Fiesta swear by the diner's homemade tortillas, particularly the corn tortillas, which are thick and chewy, a far cry from the store-bought variety.
My companion, upon first bite, raved about the quality of her crunchy taco, spicy hot ground beef folded into one of those fried signature corn tortillas.
The enchiladas of sharp cheddar cheese and beef rolled into the thick corn tortillas and smothered with the traditional sauce and more cheese were equally as impressive. The accompanying refried beans and Spanish rice were standard of any taqueria, but OK nonetheless.
Huge and tasty
My chicken tacos though were huge. The thick, warm tortillas were about the size of my plate unfolded. Mounds of the stewed chicken, onions and cilantro filled the inside. After spreading on the fresh and chunky guacamole and a little bit of the salsa for spice, the tacos were perfect, except for a few pieces of bone dispersed throughout. But that only proved they were from scratch.
With each bite, the au jus from the stewed chicken drizzled onto my plate, but surprisingly the flour tortilla remained firm, never becoming soggy.
The restaurant offers milk shakes for dessert, but not this time for us.
If we're in the Six Points area and hankering for some hearty homemade Mexican food, we won't hesitate to drop into Taqueria Fiesta again to cure our craving.
Taqueria Fiesta
1604 S. Staples St.
866-8921
Food: **
Service: **
Atmosphere: *1/2
Hours: 6 a.m. - 3 p.m. daily
Price: $4.95-$6.95
Credit Cards: All major
Checks: yes
Wheelchair accessible
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