Review of Cantina Mexicana in Einsiedlerhof

Josh and I are Tex-mex snobs. We're both from the great state of Texas, and are therefore very proud of most things Texas. The food is perhaps one of the most brag-worthy aspects of the state. Tex-Mex, BBQ, German, baked goods, hippie food, etc. It's all delicious. Well, I guess I can't really talk about BBQ....I vaguely remember stuffing myself silly at a Llano BBQ joint, but, seeing as how I haven't eaten meat (quit making jokes, Mr. Aycock) in 15 years, I can't really vouch for that any more.

But I can talk about the Tex-Mex. God, how I love it.

And miss it. Josh and I haven't lived in Texas for 6 years now. ::tear:: We haven't had good Mexican food since we left. Also, in Texas, we can read Spanish menus. We know exactly what we're getting when we order food anywhere in the state. I can tell you the exact difference between taquitos, flautas, chimichangas, chili con queso, chili con carne, enchiladas, fajitas, etc. etc. etc. etc.

Good heavens, I just drooled on my keyboard....

Now, I know to any of my Texas friends reading this (hi, Mom!), that does not seem that impressive. But trust me, once you exit the Great State (I'll give exception to Arizona & New Mexico - even though they don't have Tex-Mex) people just haven't got a clue. It's rather depressing.

I remember when Josh and I first moved away, in 2006. We moved to the Hampton Roads area of Virginia (southeast). We were so excited to find a local chain of Mexican restaurants there. We crossed our fingers the first time we ate at this establishment. (to remain nameless....alright, alright - Plaza Azteca)

The first thing we did was order an appetizer.

Courtney: Hi, can we get some queso?
Waitress (who, by the way, was Hispanic): Ummmmmmm.....do you mean the cheese dip?
::crickets::
Courtney: ....yes. (she replied, in a completely defeated way)

It was then that we realized we were probably not going to find any good replacement for our favorite restaurants back home.

And, it didn't change when we moved to Ohio in 2008. In fact, it got worse. For some reason, Ohioans are weird (hi, Patti!). Like, really weird. Like, put chocolate & cinnamon in chili, then pour that over spaghetti, then cover it with shredded cheddar weird.

Somehow, their love for cinnamon got into the Mexican food establishments in Dayton. Hell, there was a place near our house (part of a city-wide chain) that was 100% owned and operated by Hispanics, and yet their food was FULL of cinnamon. Why the HELL would I order enchiladas roja, and expect the sauce to be full of it???? Have some pride in your food, people! Don't kowtow to the weird locals!

Just one reason why I am glad I no longer live there. (for those of you who may be offended by my obvious dislike for Dayton....well, I don't care)

Well, y'all have no idea how happy Josh and I were to be able to move to Germany last year. Well, I guess if you read this blog, then you do know how happy we were/are. But, the mister and I just assumed that we'd have to go without Tex-Mex for the next few years.

Which is true. There are no authentic Tex-Mex restaurants in these parts.

But, we've been here for a year now, and our craving for bottomless salty tortilla chips, and super spicy salsa forced us to bite the bullet, and try a local Mexican food restaurant.

A couple weeks ago, we went out to a restaurant called Cantina Mexicana in Einsiedlerhof, right outside of Vogelweh housing.

I think it was about 8:30pm on a Friday night when arrived. Maybe a little later. It was kind of a last minute decision - we didn't have reservations, but we did call ahead (we had a group of 11) and they were able to seat us.

Cantina Mexicana is a pretty big restaurant (HUGE by German standards), and it's VERY close to the Vogelweh gate - it's pretty much a restaurant catering to Americans. Apparently it is/was owned by a Mexican family (but please don't quote me on that...), but all of the waitstaff that helped us were German. Not as if that matters, just giving you all the info.

We had one main waitress, then a bus boy that came around refilling drinks.

Yes, you read that right. They refill drinks at this restaurant. For free. This is pretty much unheard of in European restaurants. I'm not talking about free refills on alcohol, just free refills on water & soda. Sometimes I crave free refills of iced tea (unsweetened, please) so much, that we will go to the Chilis on base just for that reason. So, I was pretty happy to find out that Cantina Mexicana offers this as well.

But, I didn't have soda or water that night. Cantina has a different drink special every night, and this time it was a tequila Caiparinha for €2.55. So, Caiparinhas are NOT a Mexican cocktail, but that's okay, because it was delicious. It's basically like a mojito without the mint. They are typically made with sugar cane rum, but this one was made with tequila - which I NORMALLY don't like the taste of (unless it's in a margarita).

But, man oh man....I will DEFINITELY get one of Cantina's Caiparinhas again. It was strong, and sugary, and tart. Josh got one, as did a friend of ours at our table (hi, Kate!). Neither of them liked it. They said it tasted like salty tequila, but I say they are crazy. I don't mind that they didn't like it, though, because Kate ended up giving me hers. :D

Unfortunately, the chips and salsa were not free at the restaurant. I guess I didn't really expect that. Hell, they aren't even free at some American restaurants (hi, Chilis!). The chips & salsa were bottomless, however, and for €2, I guess that's not bad.

Except they weren't that good. Well...not only are Josh and I Tex-Mex snobs, we're also salsa snobs. We get "our" brand of salsa shipped to us. I will say that Cantina's salsa was way better than mild Pace, so take that as you will. The chips were fine. I dunno...I don't need to get them next time, but it wasn't horrible.

Now on to the food. The menu at Cantina is pretty expansive. Check out the menu on their website\. Heck, they even have "Southern" food - one of our friends ended up ordering ribs & coleslaw.

I ordered the Vegetarian Fajita Quesadilla (€7.25) and Josh ordered a 2-item combination plate (€7.55). With Josh's plate, he picked two items from the a la carte menu, and it came with rice and refried beans. I know one of his items was a tostada, but neither of us can remember the other item. I'm an excellent restaurant reviewer, eh? ;)

It didn't take too long to get our food. Even though it was past 9:00pm at this point, the restaurant was still really busy. But, the wait staff was fairly attentive, so no one went too long without refills on drinks/chips/salsa.

Then the food comes out - jeez louis, the portions were HUGE!! Josh had a huge platter of food placed in front of him, and my quesadilla was about the size of my head. Which is huge. Because of my big ol' brains.

The quesadilla was one huge tortilla folded in half, absolutely filled with charred vegetables and cheese - but waaaay more veggies than cheese. In fact, there was almost no goopy cheese factor, which is actually fine by me. The vegetables were marinated, and sauteed over very high heat. I love crispy charred (but NOT burnt) vegetables, and this was spot on. It was a combo of carrots, bell peppers, zucchini, broccoli, and cauliflower. The 'dilla also came with salsa, guacamole, and sour cream. It was good food, and it actually managed to sate my Mexican hankering - which is no easy task. Josh managed to clean his plate as well.

It wasn't authentic Mexican food. It wasn't authentic Tex-Mex. But I definitely think we'll return when our cravings get to be strong enough. I can honestly say it was WAAAAAYYYYY better than Ohio-style Mexican food. Thanks, Cantina-Mexicana, for a non-horrible Euro-Mex meal.

All-in-all, our bill was €25, including tip. (Josh had one beer at €3 to get rid of the taste of his Caiparinha...that fool).