Polvo's

Just before New Year's, I met a group of friends at Polvos, a place haven't been in probably 7 or 8 years, even though I live nearby. The South First Street Mexican food joint (and member of the "Mexican Mile") is well-known for it's relatively cheap but potent margaritas, but I've never known the food to be their stronger suit. Would I be proved wrong?

Fortunately, we had a reservation, because on a Saturday night, the place was packed. We were seated at an eight-foot plastic folding table with plastic folding chairs to match, and there was hardly any space to maneuver around the room. Being a colder night, there was a lot spill-over inside of folks waiting for tables, which certainly contributed to the noise levels. I arrived a few minutes late, and the margaritas, chips and salsas were already flowing when I sat down.

"Old time" Austinites may recall that the location that Polvo's took over used to be a restaurant called Seis Salsas, which had a salsa bar in the middle of the floor for customers to help themselves. Polvos has continued that tradition, with a number of salsas available. I didn't go up to the bar myself, so I am not certain on the exact names of what was at our table. On the left, is the roja, which I liked. Good bright flavor. The contrast, on the right, was a salsa that tasted very burned and overly roasted to me; looking online at their list of salsas, this may be the ahumada, or smoked, salsa. Others at our table liked this particular one, but it didn't do anything for my taste buds. Here you can see the festive lights and the salsa bar, though I have a feeling these lights may be up year-round.

One hungry eater got the Goliath Burrito; unfortunately from the picture, you can't really tell the size of this thing, but it was huge! A good 10+ inches long, and well-stuffed with your choice of meats.

The Guacamole Salad comes looking beautiful, nice chopped pieces of avocado, tomatoes, onion, cilantro. You can either eat it as is, or mash it up and make your own guac. Unfortunately, the kitchen threw a handful of salt in it, and it was practically inedible, and the person who ordered it is a salt fiend, so if she says it's too salty, it's too salty. The waiter was very apologetic, and handled the situation well; overall, given the crowds I thought he did a good job. Not his first time at the rodeo.

 

 The Camarones Diablo are shrimp in a tequila and chipotle sauce, which was rather spicy.

I ordered the Combo Plate, and my selections were a chicken enchilada with mole sauce (on the left) and an al pastor soft taco. Overall, it was good, but nothing to write home about. The mole sauce had decent flavor but no depth...honestly, I have made more satisfying mole sauces, and yes, they take time and a lot of ingredients. This one was a bit sweet and it had the cocoa undertones, but I couldn't really get any other flavors -- no raisins, or nuts, or even much of a lasting chile flavor. Now the al pastor was a bit better. The pork was nice and tender, juicy; at first I didn't see any pineapple pieces, but then I realized there were some in there. That's what I love about al pastor -- the savoriness of the meat combined with the sweet twang from the charred pineapple. The beans and rice were your average Mexican establishment fare.

So do I feel that I was proved wrong about Polvo's food? No. It honestly doesn't cut it for me. If I am going to have interior Mexican in this part of town, I am going to pick Habanero on Oltorf, just east of South First, or Sazon on South Lamar, just north of the light at Hether/Mary Streets, or Borrego de Oro (no website) on South Congress, just before Ben White/290. Life's too short to eat sub-par food!

Habanero

There's been this little Mexican place not far from me that I've heard really good things about for a couple of years, and somehow, just never managed to get there. Went for dinner last night with a couple of girlfriends, and there's a consensus that we've discovered a new neighborhood gem.

Habanero is one block east of the Oltorf and S. 1st intersection in a older house. At a little past 7:30 on Friday night, they had a few diners, but it wasn't full. Our waitress was very friendly, and we spoke with her in a combo of English and Spanish throughout the evening. After ordering cervezas, and munching on the chips and fresh-made salsa that arrived with the beers, we settled on an appetizer of "Nacho Supreme", which was a huge plate of tortilla chips with seasoned ground beef and covered in good white cheese. Not sure which cheese it was, but it melted super well, had nice mellow flavor, and wasn't a greasy pool. Their tortilla chips are really nice also, a nice thickness, and enought corn flavor to them. Don't know if they make them there or not.

I ordered the gorditas, which according to their menu is one of their specialities. Described by them as "a Mexican hamburger," our waitress suggested it with the beef fajita. It's a large plate! The corn cake part was really good -- crispy on the outer part, and slightly softer in the middle. The beef fajita meat had a nice grilled flavor, and the meat was fairly tender. It came with refried beans, rice, guacamole, lettuce & tomatoes.

My friends split the beef fajita platter for two; they each got their own plate of charro beans, guacamole, and tortillas (one ordered flour, the other corn, and without even asking who ordered what, our waitress placed the right tortillas in front of the right person). While I didn't taste their meat because I assume it was the same as in my gordita, I did try the charro beans (pintos) which were fantastic. A light bit of smokiness, and good pork flavor. When I go back, I would substitute the charros for the refrieds.

We were too stuffed for dessert, but they have sopaipillas on the menu, which I would bet are great. Overall, it was a great evening -- all the food was fresh and tasty, and the service friendly and very efficient. I am excited to have a casual place that's nearby and not a trendy spot like some of the others around here!