Guadalajara Cafe

Photos on the wall

If you have been reading this blog for any length of time, you probably know the story of how my wife and I came to spend a few frantic (yet awesome) hours in Guadalajara, Mexico. That unplanned excursion turned out to be a life changing event. Guadalajara was the first place that I tried an authentic street taco (on the street), which in turn led to me starting this blog. And as they say, "the rest is history".

With all of that being said, a place called Guadalajara Cafe seems like a logical place for me to check out. It is owned by one of the part owners of Frida's Contemporary Mexican Cuisine, so you know you are in for authentic Mexican food (it is more to the traditional side than Frida's). I actually think that Guadalajara Cafe is better than Frida's, despite the fact that GC has no atole ice cream.

When you walk into Guadalajara (the cafe, not the city), you are greeted by the smell of an authentic Mexican kitchen and photos of small tortillerias. The homemade chips and salsa are phenomenal, although (for the millionth time) is never a reason to choose/not choose a Mexican restaurant.

Enchiladas en Mole

Every time that I have been to GC, I have been nearly incapable of ordering anything but the Enchiladas en Mole. The lunch version of this entree is two traditional chicken enchiladas (made with corn tortillas, as they should be) smothered in the most delicious mole that has a light, but distinct essence of cocoa. - To those of you who are unfamiliar with moles: A mole is a traditional Mexican sauce, there are all different varieties of moles (spicy moles, sweet moles, more moles than you can shake a stick at). This one is a savory mole that has a hint of chocolate in it. - If you have never tried a mole before, you are in for a treat. If you are a seasoned mole veteran, you will agree with me that GC has the real deal. The beans and rice that accompany the enchiladas, that I would normally just toss aside at most Mexican restaurants, are quite enjoyable at GC. These beans, like the mole, have been slow cooked and tended to with love (you can tell when you taste them).

Steak Picado

The last time I was there for lunch, however, I did stray from my unequivocal favorite and tried out the Steak Picado. This is a dish of slow cooked carne asada steak and sauteed mushrooms, served in a mushroom sauce, with tortillas on the side. (The tortillas that come with this particular dish are of the flour variety, but corn tortillas are available by request.) The steak picado was a delicious change of pace, especially if you enjoy a good mushroom sauce. I got so overzealous and overloaded my first two tortillas so badly that I almost didn't have enough steak left for my third tortilla. The beans and rice were still delicious as well.

I have never been for dinner, but have only heard great things about any dinner entree that friends have here. This is one of my favorite lunch spots and I can only imagine that they turn it up at dinner time. I recommend GC to anyone that loves authentic home-style Mexican food!

Atole Ice Cream

Every month or so, a group of current and former co-workers of mine go to lunch to catch up on life, work, and college athletics. We always try to pick somewhere local and new to at least half of the group. Our most recent lunch landed us in the dining room of Frida's Contemporary Mexican Cuisine.

Frida's Contemporary Mexican Cuisine is aptly named. Both the ambiance of the dining room and the food presentation are unmistakably contemporary, which I did enjoy. My personal favorite touch was the Agave plant painting that you can see in the picture below, on the right side of the photo. The presentation is nice, but most important to me is the flavour of the food. 

Frida's tacos came highly recommended by an attendee's wife. She claims that they are the best tacos ever. I have to respectfully disagree. However, I have stated many times that my frame of reference is much different than most Gringos, I have had some great tacos in my day! The tacos at Frida's were street style and were not bad, just not the best I have had. If I go back again, I will probably get the Tamal that is stuffed with goat cheese and poblano pepper. This is what my gut told me to order in the first place, but I mistakenly went against it.

Right now, you are probably asking yourself "Where is the awesomeness that he always writes about?", hold on baby birds, I'll feed you. The awesomeness at Frida's comes in the form of a happy accident. As it was told to me, this dessert was created completely by accident. Frida's used to (and may still upon special request) serve Atole, which is a masa based drink that is a sort of Mexican cinnamony-hot chocolate. One night they accidentally froze the Atole mixture and the result was a wonderful ice cream-like substance. Everyone that tried the masa based ice cream loved it, so Frida's began serving it as its own menu item. The frozen Atole comes sprinkled with cinnamon & nuts and drizzled with house-made goat's milk caramel. This dessert is out of this world! I highly recommend a trip to Frida's, even if you are a taco snob like myself, solely for the frozen Atole! You will not regret it!