I was in Las Vegas for DEFCON 17. If you're interested in my Vegas dining experiences, you can check out the newly established Whipped Cream Difficulties web log; my report is here.
Pappasitos:
Our previous judgment on Pappasitos was that, if you can stand the noise (it's pretty loud), they serve up good and plentiful TexMex at a reasonable price. And this trip confirmed that impression.
However, one caveat: Guys, charging extra for sour cream and cheese is chintzy, though at least you state that up front. However, when I asked for cut jalapenos on the side, finding out that your charged me $1 for them without telling me is not merely chintzy, but deeply irritating; surprise charges are unacceptable, no matter how small. You've got to tell people up front. Better yet, stop nickel and diming people to death. If your restaurant is as packed as it is, you don't need to squeeze out every last shekel.
This is the Sixth street location of the restaurant down on South Congress. We made reservations, but there was plenty of room available when we got there at 6 PM.
Of the three types of fried plantain we tried, the Maduros (caramelized) were the best, while the Tostones (sort of thick discs) were the least interesting. The fried yucca isn't as interesting as regular French fries. I really liked the beef empanada I had, which reminded me of the ones I used to have at The Empanada House back in Houston in the early 1980s. I also enjoyed the bite of AT's tamale, which had much tastier masa than many I've tried.
For my entrée I had the Bistek pork steak, which was very tasty, and much better than the bite of another diner's more celebrated Lechon Asada. I also liked the spicy green dipping suace that came on the side, which went very while on the white rice. I also had a very credible Tres Leches Cake (though, unlike the hype, I wouldn't say it was the best in town). Service was a bit scattershot.
The biggest problem I had with Habana Calle 6 was the picture of Che Guevara you have to walk under to get to the downstairs dining area. Yes, nothing says "Fine Dining" quite like pictures of a notorious killer and torturer. I find this especially disheartening, as most Cuban restaurants are run by people who fled Cuba because Castro and his minions like Che were torturing or killing their relatives. I was sorry Dwight didn't wear his Commies Aren't Cool T-shirt.
Chosun Galbi is a pretty solid Korean BBQ place, with a nicer interior and wider variety of dishes than Shilla Sushi just down the road. It's also a bit pricier, and I wouldn't choose the sushi here over Japon on the other side of I-35. Worth trying if you're in the mood for Korean BBQ.
Los Reyes strikes me as a slightly above-average Mexican joint, especially for this part of town. The interior is much nicer than many hole-in-the-wall places, the menu is more extensive than you usually find, and I liked my Grande plate just fine. The hot sauce also has a bit more bite than usual. There were a few hiccups in the service (see Dwight for details), but otherwise it was fairly attentive.
This is something of a find. A very solid Chinese place nestled down in Westlake. The steamed and fried dumplings were both fine, and the sesame fish was reasonably interesting. I didn't much care for the seafood wonton soup, but someone with a higher tolerance for broccoli might disagree.
For my entrée I had the Sesame Chicken, and not only was it quite tasty, but you got about twice the serving you might get at many Chinese places. Service was very attentive.
I think this would slide into my Top 5 Chinese places in Austin list, behind Pao's, Wok on Fire, and Golden Wok. It was also mostly empty for a Saturday, so you should definitely give it a try.
See the logs for September of 2009.