A Venture Outside Atlanta: Guadalajara Mexican Grill‎ - Callaway, FL

So, yes, we always find a Mexican restaurant when we are on vacation. As picky as we are, I never have very high expectations. This was a trip to Panama City to visit my sister and niece, and to go to my hairdresser and good friend's wedding. Saturday at lunch we needed FOOD! What better time to eat Mexican!? My sister, Jane, had told us that they had discovered a new Mexican restaurant so off we went after running many errands.

Guadalajara Mexican Grill is in a little strip mall beside Wal-Mart in Callaway, FL. It's in the general Panama City/PCB area. Nothing really special on the inside, but I was pleasantly surprised. Now, let me preface this by saying that I had had w-a-y too many margaritas the night before, lovingly made by the wonderful hubby, Scott...so I wasn't feeling great. I'd almost gotten rid of the headache, but generally was trying to ride out the slight hangover I had. When it came time to order drinks, I truly was going to order a sweet tea, but HOW could I judge this restaurant fairly without having a Texas margarita on the rocks, no salt!? You tell me? Not possible. So...I ordered a large water and the margarita. I had no serious expectations and was really pleasantly surprised. It was good, flavorful, you could taste the tequila and it wasn't overpowered by the mix. Just enough sweetness to suit my taste. They were off to a very good start!

Of course, out came the chips and salsa. Not what I'd call awesome, but very good. And I especially liked that each person got their very own little serving dish...I'm stingy; I don't like to share!

Next came the food; low and behold, they were running a lunch special: all burrito lunches were $5.99! They all ran about $7.99 so that was a deal not to be passed up. So I decided to REALLY put them to the test. I ordered their pork burrito. While it did not come near to equaling the Burrito de Puerco from my favorite Frontera, it was very good! Great perfectly cooked pulled pork, seasoned well, and just the right size for lunch! The beans and rice were typical, and overall I was very happy with the meal. We will definitely go back to Guadalajara while in PCB next time. Try it, you'll like it!

El Torero, Traditional Atlanta Mexican

El Torero is probably one of the first Mexican restaurants I went to here in Atlanta when I first started dating Scott and moved down before we got married in 1997. I remember the first time I walked into the location in Stone Mountain; I wasn't impressed, it looked very cafeteria-like. The walls are covered in pictures of sea life and actual mounted large big game fish like marlins and swordfish. After learning, however, that the owner, Manual Magana, is an avid deep sea diver and photographer, I understood the decor more. And honestly, I'm not impressed by lush settings if the food is no good.

Manuel Magana opened his first El Torero restaurant in Chamblee, GA in 1981. Almost 25 years later he has nine stores, six in the Atlanta metro area (including the original, on Peachtree Industrial Blvd.) as well as three in the Nashville, TN area. El Torero is known for its excellent quality and rapid service, and most of the offerings are drawn from family recipes down in the Mexican state of Jalicsco where Manuel grew up. Everything in El Torero is made fresh from scratch daily and each dish is made to order. Quality and freshness are the restaurant’s hallmarks, from its Black Angus beef and crisp lettuce to Hunt’s tomatoes and Land O’Lakes cheeses. All El Torero restaurants are non-smoking, family friendly and employ a helpful and courteous staff.

Here, the food is VERY good. I like to sit and watch the servers come out with plates lined up down their arms. For the longest time my favorite thing to eat was the Special Order ABC: An order of two burritos topped with nacho cheese sauce, lettuce, tomatoes, guacamole and sour cream...but I would get a single. That was plenty! Scott loves the El Diablo: Select one of your favorites: chunks of pork, steak, chicken, shrimp, or scallops; choice of green chile peppers, onions, tomatoes, cilantro and spices simmered together, served with rice, beans and flour tortillas. It's over the top hot...he typically has what he calls "El Diablo's Revenge" the next day, if you know what I mean! :)

We both really love their salsa; spicy, delicious and never ending! One server walks around with a literal pitcher of salsa, filling you up every time they come by. Margaritas? Definitely one of the best things about El Torero. Their Texas margaritas are strong and good. You can taste the tequila and they don't skimp on it. If you are looking for good food, good value and don't care about atmosphere, this is the place for you!

Frontera, Generally and Specifically

So, I'm going to start with what we consider the best Mexican in our area, Frontera. As a general rule, we like all Fronteras but specifically we are very attached to the Frontera on Five Forks Trickum at Sugarloaf Parkway. It is amazing!

What do we like about this particular Frontera? Well, the service is always, always good. Rarely do we have to wait at all for a place to sit and it's always busy; how do they do that? Our request is usually to sit in a booth at the bar and 9 times out of 10 we get to do that. Next? The margaritas are our favorites. We only drink Texas margaritas and they make the best. We haven't figured out if it's the mix they use or the mixture of ingredients or both, but they are perfectly made. Sweet but with a bite, buttery with the taste of tequila.

My favorite thing on their menu is the Burrito de Puerco: a flour tortilla filled with pork, onions & peppers, topped with cheese dip and served with Mexican rice & refried beans.. The pork is tender and mouth-watering; you must have it with the jalapenos though; it's not the same without them. Cheese sauce in addition to rice and beans make this dish enough for three solid meals. If you can eat this whole thing at one sitting, they will have to carry you out of the restaurant!

Scott's favorite thing on the menu is the Alambre: an authentic Mexican shish kebab, charbroiled steak, bacon, onions & bell pepper, lined up on a skewer, marinated & served with onions& bell pepper, guacamole, pico de gallo, lettuce, flour tortillas & sour cream.

They also have my favorite chips and salsa. The chips are different somehow and lighter than most Mexican restaurants, and you get two salsas for dipping. Their brown (or "dirty") salsa is YUM! We always order the cheese dip with beans and jalapenos.

Simply said, you can't go wrong at this restaurant!