Article on McKee

Nice article on McKee from the INCH newstand:

[www.syracuse.com]

Is Dos Amigos still the only Mexican place in town? Believe it or not when it oppened around 1980 that was my first exposure to Mexican food.

Refried Roy

There's also Viva Taqueria near the Commons, although I've never been there and have no idea if it's good Mexican food or not. And, of course, there's Taco Bell.

Viva Taqueria is actually pretty good and fairly cheap. There is also Coyote Loco over near East Hill Plaza...but I've never been there and have heard mixed things.

Dos Amigos is long gone.

Coyote Loco closed at the end of the summer. We've lost the best margaritas around here. To all you entrepreneurs who want to return to Ithaca, in my estimation there's room for a good Mexican restaurant in town.

Juana's Cantina used to be great when it was a tiny place up on Buffalo (?) St. The lesson of Coyote Loco is don't locate an overpriced yuppie lunch place right next door to the bovine artificial insemination facility.



Post Edited (01-08-04 23:28)

Juana's Cantina!

That was my first introduction to Mexican food. And just a half block from my apartment.

JH

Also, the Statler offers those Southwestern wraps....

Don't forget Taco Night at RPU

there is no good mexican food in ithaca. after years of living in the southwest, i can verify that there just isnt anything this side of the Mississippi river that compares (not even in NYC a mecca of fantastic gastronomy....) Any one who tells you different just dosnt know what they are talking about. Viva Diarrhea is cheap and plentiful, but mexican it is not. never trust a mexican place that has no lard and serves crappy salsa. Sorry mcKee, you just need to eat when you go home, like i do.

The Rancor:

If you're looking for a hole-in-the-wall taqueria like you'd find in Harlingen, Nogales, or San Ysidro, you're right, you won't find that east of the Mississippi. Hell, you won't find it north of I-10, maybe even I-8!

But I disagree that "real" Mexican restaurants don't exist here. I suspect they'd never survive in a major city that doesn't have a substantial Mexican population, since they wouldn't draw enough business to pay the rent without caving to the lowest common denominator.

My experience is you'll find real Mexican food in the smaller cities, where the cost of a business isn't so outrageous. It will be family owned - a woman and her daughter who decided to open a restaurant in their home (like one here in PA), or something like that. That way they can survive on a dedicated group of knowledgeable, regular clientele, without having to "gringo-fy" their menu.

But anything other than that might as well be Chi-Chi's.

JH

JH

K, I'm officially in the mood for Mexican now. Maybe John Harvard's will have some nachos or something.

i'm still looking, my friend, and if you know of anything in a 2 hour radius of ithaca, i'm there! i've concidered having Mamma Rancor send me some burritos from Robertos, my Las Vegas 24/7 favorite. the carne assadda is the shizznit. but for fairness, i couldnt find a decent pizza for the life of me while i lived there!

I admit it, they're few and far between.

But if you ever get to Allentown (yes, Allentown), the restaurant here is called Amigo Mio. It's located on the first floor of a house at 5th & Susquehanna. They actually made a list of the top 200 Mexican restaurants in the USA about 20 years back. However, it keeps rather erratic hours, since if there's any sort of family-based conflict, they close.

Therefore, I wouldn't head here on a whim. We're 3+ hours from Ithaca, and there's NOTHING else to hold your interest if they're closed.

JH

Well this is WAY off-topic now, but..........Speaking of burritos, have any of you ever been to Chipotle? It's a growing chain here in the midwest (I believe it originated in Denver) and is extremely popular. Their burritos are fantastic.

[q]Chipotle[\q]
They're owned by McDonalds, if that makes any difference to you.

Mmmm...Chilpotle. Soooo good. I know it's not truly "Mexican", but still....sooo good.

I believe there's just one of them in New York (44th between 3rd and Lex), but it happens to be right across the street from where I just finished a fall internship.

It was tough not to go there every single day for lunch

And I'm not the only one with that opinion...if you went any time between 12:30 and 2, there was guaranteed to be at least 20-25 people in line. During September and October when it was still mild outside, lines would be out the door. (Of course, part of the reason for that is that they don't deliver...at least not the NY one).

They keep it simple, serving limited options, but doing an excellent job with what they do have, and doing it fast. Especially good chicken. And for the impressive size of the burrito/fajita/etc that you get for $7, that's as good a deal as you're going to find in the city.

Damn you Avash...Friday was my last day, but now I'm tempted to go in on Monday

Mmmmm....Chipotle.



Post Edited (01-10-04 22:29)

$7?? That's a hiked-up NY price. Here in Ohio, it's only $5 . I'm going to have to go a couple times this week before I go back to Ithaca!

Can't blame 'em when they probably pay at least twice as much in rent...

Getting a bit back on topic, I had the pleasure of chatting with McKee's mother this weekend. She was at both the Harvard and Brown games. She truly enjoyed the Cornell crowd and the loyalty and enthusiasm demonstrated by both students and alum. We did have a great crowd at both games this weekend and McKee continues to play great. Let's Go Red!

-J



Post Edited (01-11-04 13:47)

Jordan wrote:
I believe there's just one of them in New York (44th between 3rd and Lex), but it happens to be right across the street from where I just finished a fall internship.

For those who might be curious, Chipotle have recently added two more locations in NYC, one on West 34th not far from Penn Station/MSG, and one on St. Mark's between 2nd and 3rd.

Jeff Hopkins '82 wrote:

The Rancor:

If you're looking for a hole-in-the-wall taqueria like you'd find in Harlingen, Nogales, or San Ysidro, you're right, you won't find that east of the Mississippi. Hell, you won't find it north of I-10, maybe even I-8!

Y'know, I don't think I actually had Mexican food in Harlingen. But I made a point of hitting my favorite places in Brownsville and Matamoros (Bigo's and Mi Pueblito, respectively) last month. I have to say, I did have a pretty great Mexican lunch (taco con chorizo and quesadilla al camaron) in Upper Manhattan last week.

John T. Whelan '91 wrote:
I have to say, I did have a pretty great Mexican lunch (taco con chorizo and quesadilla al camaron) in Upper Manhattan last week.

"In upper Manhattan"? Perhaps the name of the restaurant might help us city residents find it.

BigRed Apple wrote:

John T. Whelan '91 wrote:
I have to say, I did have a pretty great Mexican lunch (taco con chorizo and quesadilla al camaron) in Upper Manhattan last week.

"In upper Manhattan"? Perhaps the name of the restaurant might help us city residents find it.

Working on that. It was within walking distance of City College.

We also miss Coyote Loco, and on the (very misguided) advice from a couple of co-workers who told us that "Garcia's in Cortland is better than Coyote Loco ever was", last night, with high hopes, we tried it. Well, Garcia's is God-awful! The Zamboni room at Lynah has more ambiance, and I won't even get started on how truly bad the food was; too painful.... The only good thing was Miguel, our waiter, who did a great job. We drive past Coyote Loco every morning on the way to work, and this morning was especially poignant....