I haven't done the best job of updating this blog. I think "bloody fucking awful" in the voice of Gordon Ramsay is a better way of putting it.
Since my last post a lot has happened in my life. I now live in Virginia, well, Northern Virginia to be specific. I had to specify this as this state overlaps through three different and distinct regions of the United States. Richmond and Hampton Roads are clearly a part of the south, everything to the left of Interstate 81 is Appalachia and where I am is culturally mid-Atlantic/Bos-Wash/Northeast. And from what I can see, everyone from each of these regions have a deep contempt for each other. The borders here are really amazing and confusing. I can drive roughly seven hours northeast and (without traffic) reach Boston, MA. Conversely, I can do the same and still remain in Virginia, almost to the Kentucky Border. Crazy? I think so.
Once again I'm forgetting that this blog is about food.
I had planned on eating at Taco Del Mar for some time now. The review on tesg's website left me curious to try it but I had never been anywhere near one. The chain seems to be in the same boat as Qdoba, Chipotle, Pancheros, etc. and I was ecstatic to find out that I was now in the same area as Taco Del Mar in Annandale, VA.
Now of course I had to run into an obstacle in the form of finding the damn place. Weeks ago, I attempted to find this restaurant but, unknown at the time, took the wrong exit off of the beltway. I ended up in "little Seoul" where literally every sign was in Korean. Frustrated, I gave up on my conquest, hopped on I-66 and went to Pancheros instead - only to find out that I took one exit too soon later on that day.
So today, I took the right exit and it led me to the "Bradlick Shopping Center", which appropriately named for its intersection at Braddock and Backlick roads. I find that distinct combination of those street names to be very unsettling.
When I reached the cramped and dated shopping center, I had a hell of a time finding the place; partly due to someone tailing my ass as I was browsing the storefront signs. Initially I couldn't find it, became aggravated and was ready to give up and go to Pancheros again in Centreville. I began to drive away until I decided to pull into a random church parking lot and do further research on my trusty Samsung Instinct. Low and behold the website still showed the location being at the "Bradlick Shopping center." I go back, again, look at all of the storefronts all at once. From a new perspective I see a place that I overlooked reading "Del Mar." Immediately my hopes begin to drop as I was beginning to think that this was nothing but a local Mexican place.
Upon a closer look of the place I found the typical Taco Del Mar ads on the storefront windows, and it was down to business. There must of been a lawsuit with an older restaurant in the area named Taco Del Mar. This was apparent with the Waffle Houses (homes?) in Indiana that are named Waffle & Steak.
Ironically, the only parking spot open was in front of Gold's Gym, of all places.
I entered inside the place. It was very claustrophobic and cramped for a five dollar burrito joint. I found the decor a bit cheesey with the surfboards and beach theme, especially in a strip mall in Northern Virginia. I had a wash of my hands and then proceeded to the counter. The menu layout is standard fare in the 5 dollar burrito world though the menu includes combos, fish tacos and enchiladas. I ordered a "mondo burrito" and upped it to a combo, which entitled me to tortilla chips and a drink.
The setup is of the typical assembly line format. We've all seen this so I won't explain any further. One unique thing about this place is that the only rice available is Mexican Rice.. I usually prefer white rice on my burrito. The lady working was skimpy on the toppings, so skimpy that I was fearful of asking for more in fear of being charged extra. The manager rang me up and asked if I was a first time customer. This also entitled me to a free side of queso that looked like diluted "nuke and serve" nacho cheese straight from a ballpark concession stand. Thanks?
The burrito wasn't too bad, but small/skimpy. The chips were awful, salty little circles that were literally taken out of a supermarket-brand bag. Completely unacceptable, considering that most of these restaurants make their chips on site. The queso wasn't too bad, the salsa was better than anything at Baja Fresh, which in all honesty isn't a hard feat to accomplish. However, the burrito tortilla was of the freshly-pressed-Panchero's kind and tasted decent. Though strangely enough, I don't recall ever seeing a tortilla presser in the kitchen.
All in all, I paid $8-9 for a meal that was sub-par. I found that the place was having an identity crisis. Cups display "Taco Del Mar" while signs tell you otherwise. Kind of haphazard, if you ask me.
Kind of similar to what my new home state has gone, and will continue to go, through.
Monday, June 8, 2009
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