Recyled Chips?!

Reviewer: Chris

Original Review Date: 04/19/2006

Rating: -1/+3(Crap)

I walked in at about 1:00 and the place was empty. I was the only customer. That gave me pause, but the staff was friendly--"have a seat anywhere." Chips and salsa ensued. Chips were kind of bland and "dry," if that makes sense--definitely not made in-house, and not served hot. Salsa was not bad. They have several standard lunch specials, all for $5.25. I opted for the #2--cheese enchilada, crispy taco, rice & beans.

The lunch components were neatly partitioned in a rectilinear fashion on the large platter. Taco was uninspired--crappy mass-produced shell surrounding typical taco fillings. Tasted ok for what it was. Enchilada was edible, but not that great. The chili sauce was pretty greasy, and the enchilada was heavy with cheddar cheese. Rice had a few crunchy kernels. Refrieds were just there. It was obvious to me that this was not a standout tex-mex platter when I found myself, after consuming the taco and enchilada, uninterested in scooping up every last remnant of chili gravy/beans/rice with chips. I left quite a bit on the plate.

I was charged for the usual side of jalapeños and onions--30¢ I think. Nothing new there.

The most interesting and disturbing part of lunch came as I was munching a few chips towards the end of the meal. Something in the chip basket caught my eye. Something blue. I dug around and pulled out the chip of interest, and damn if I hadn't found a tortilla chip with writing on it. The blue was from the blue ink used to inscribe someone's initials and a date on the chip--"AW 4/19/06". Unbelievable! This told me two things: that the chips must have been recycled from a previous diner who had brought a tortilla chip pen with him to the restaurant (yuck!); and that the chips were at least fresh, as the date inscribed on the chip was the same date as I was dining.

Very weird. And very unappetizing. I was on track to give them a 0 rating, "ho hum," but the inked chip really left a bad impression, so unfortunately, Los Portales drops to a -1 for me.