Borough Vegetarian

Chela & Garnacha - Great, Casual Mexican Fare in Astoria

Chela & Garnacha has a tiny storefront in the southern part of Astoria, Queens, and with lots of scaffolding and other restaurants on the block, I have to admit that I had walked by it several times without even realizing a restaurant was in the space.  

What led me to Chela & Garnacha instead was glowing Yelp reviews which have elevated Chela & Garnacha to one of the highest-rated restaurants in Astoria.  To note that it serves Mexican fare instead of the other more familiar options in Astoria also made Chela & Garnacha a must-visit.

My eventual visit to Chela & Garnacha didn't disappoint - in fact, I returned the following weekend for brunch.  Both visits featured immediate seating, friendly service, and a no-frills atmosphere.  During my dinner visit, I ordered the quesadillas fritas flor de calabaza (squash blossoms) and the nopales taco, the latter of which I confirmed was fresh and not canned/slimy (nothing worse in my mind than slimy cactus slices).  

My friend also ordered a side of the grilled jalapeños, which were served in some sort of soy-like sauce - very tasty.  Overall, simple flavors and clean presentation.  The only slight downside was that I felt that I had to add a fair amount of salsa/jalapeños to get more spice into the both the quesadillas and taco.

For my brunch visit, I ordered the chilaquiles, one of my favorite Mexican breakfast favorites.  The chilaquiles were served in a tart tomatillo salsa and with an insane amount of avocado and vegetarian black beans.  I was able to cut the tartness of the salsa with some additional red salsas, which made for two strong meals (huge, huge portion of food!).  

I will actually be going to Chela & Garnacha next week for another dinner, so this casual spot is definitely part of my regular Queens rotation!

Chela & Garnacha

33-09 36th Avenue

Astoria, Queens

A few short blocks from the N/Q train at 36th Avenue, and maybe a 5-minute walk from the M/R trains at 36th Street.

Cosme - Dining Delight for Vegetarians!

Cosme has been one of the most popular restaurants in New York City since it opened last fall in Flatiron.  The sleek space was opened by one of Mexico's most renowned chefs, Enrique Olvera, and uses local, seasonal ingredients from the Hudson Valley.  

When one reads reviews of Cosme, vegetarian options are not really highlighted.  Instead, the duck carnitas, uni tostada, and variety of fish options are oft-cited as can't-miss dishes.  

Thankfully, having finally visited Cosme this summer, I can report that vegetarians should not just go to Cosme if dragged along by friends or significant others, rather we should be actively seeking out Cosme for its great vegetarian options.  Cosme has five such choices on its menu, and each of the dishes I ordered was really well-designed and executed.

When arriving at Cosme, you first receive some crispy tortillas with a light, yet rich, pumpkin seed spread.  Not sure exactly how pumpkin seeds could be transformed into such a smooth consistency without the flavor being diluted, but somehow it happens with this appetizer.

The first vegetarian dish that arrived was the enfrijolada, a tortilla smothered in the smoothest black bean or enfrijolada sauce I have ever had.  And not only was the black bean sauce itself freshened by Mexican herbs, but also the simple onion, cheese and herb toppings helped lighten this otherwise heavy dish as well. 

The next dish was the beets served with farmers cheese, again complimented by a perfect helping and combination of fresh herbs.  The beets were also served with beet-based tortillas, which were really amazing as well - perfect size and a very light beet flavor.

I can already feel myself getting full, because that's exactly what happened at this point in the meal.  But I powered forward to try what was probably the even most complex and interesting dish I ordered - the roasted eggplant and cauliflower with sesame seed "salsa" that our waitress said was one of her favorites.

Where to start on this one - the sesame seed "salsa" was like a 10x better version of tahini (sweet to complement the nutty flavor, and so, so smooth), and the eggplant and cauliflower were roasted so well.  Were they maybe marinated in something beforehand to really bring out their individual flavors?  

In any case, I will definitely order this again on a return trip because there were so many distinct flavors and they were also great folded into the tortillas on our table.

Ok, at this point, I am definitely over-full.  But my husband ordered dessert, so I mustered the effort to try a perfect consistency and temperature panna cotta, flavored with honey and accompanied by fruit jellies.

Next time, I think I'll order one fewer dishes (2 was enough plates for me) and save room for the popular corn meringue dessert.  Thankfully, Cosme is too expensive and hard to get into for every day dining, otherwise I would fear how often we would return!

Cosme

35 E. 21st Street (btwn. Park and Broadway)

Flatiron, Manhattan

Approx. 2 blocks from the 6 train at 23rd Street, and the N/R trains at 23rd Street.

Tacuba - Surprising Mexican Find in Astoria, Queens

From the outside, Tacuba, the cavernous restaurant around the corner from the Kaufman Astoria movie theater, seems like a substandard Tex-Mex chain.  While its continual crowds should speak to the quality of its food, for some reason, we had associated the crowds with margarita pitchers, drink specials, and cheap but unsatisfying food.

Thankfully, our preconceptions were put to rest when we were looking for a northwest Queens restaurant that could accommodate a relatively large group at somewhat short notice.  Tacuba not only had very good reviews, but also seemed to be from the same owners as Toloache, a Mexican restaurant in midtown Manhattan that is also surprisingly good given its otherwise tourist-y location and the unfortunate fact that many NYC Mexican restaurants are just not that great.

Despite the aforementioned research, we still went to Tacuba with a bit of apprehension.  Thankfully, our food was very good and the service was also quite accommodating despite a packed house.

I started my Tacuba experience with a pineapple juice cocktail, the "skinny" Pina Para La Nina, which was light, tasty and not overly sweet.

We then started our meal with a number of appetizers, including the guacamole, elote (grilled corn), and chips with actually spicy pureed salsa.

While none of these appetizers was necessarily outstanding, our main courses were really, really well done.  I ordered the Calabazita con Jamaica tacos - one of a few vegetarian options - and was surprised at how well the squash, jalapenos and "crispy" hibiscus flowers worked together.  Sweet and spicy, and the salsa accompaniments also added distinctive flavors as well.

Cocktail two, a cucumber-based "Pepinada" was also really well done and refreshing with fresh juice.

And while we weren't hungry at the end of our meal, we still ordered dessert.  My favorite were the churros, which while seemingly easy, can still be hard to execute really well.  Thankfully, Tacuba's were the right size to get the texture consistent and the dipping sauces were equally well done.  

Moral of the story - don't judge a book by its cover.  And visit Tacuba whenever you are in northwest Queens!

Tacuba

35-01 36th Avenue (near Steinway)

Astoria, Queens

A 5-minute walk from the M/R trains at Steinway Street or a 7-10 minute walk from the N/Q trains at 36th Avenue

Borough Vegetarian Visits Parkchester in the Bronx - Taqueria Tlaxcalli

Parkchester in the Bronx is an incredibly diverse neighborhood with a ton of great food options.  During our latest trip to Parkchester, we visited Taqueria Tlaxcalli, a great Mexican restaurant that we had been to before.  

Almost everything in Taqueria Tlaxcalli is (or at least feels like) homemade, and I have really enjoyed both of my meals there.  While they aren’t particularly vegetarian friendly, their large menu definitely has a number of solid vegetarian options.

My most recent meal there was anchored by their simple quesadillas with mild cheese that felt like Oaxaca cheese.  Simple, but effective dish.

We also ordered the tostones, or fried plaintains, which are served with chopped fresh garlic which I LOVE.  These tostones are not too oily, and have a great plantain flavor.

Finally, the fresh guacamole is pretty good, and served with house made tortilla chips which are slightly oily, but completed by a great salt flavor.

The only dish I’ve had at Taqueria Tlaxcalli that I have not liked is the nopales or cactus salad, which was definitely slimy and really not that appetizing, unlike fresh grilled or cooked nopales.

Here are the restaurant details:

Taqueria Tlaxcalli

2103 Starling Avenue

Parkchester, Bronx

Short walk from the 6 train, Castle Hill Ave stop.

Exceeding Tasty Mexican in Long Island City, Queens - Casa Enrique

While walking through Long Island City, Queens one evening, we stumbled upon Casa Enrique.  Casa Enrique beckoned to us beyond other plentiful, veg-friendly restaurant options in LIC because of it’s laid-back decor and menu, which seemed like it could satisfy both me (the vegetarian) and my husband (the carnivore).  

We sat at a thick wood communal table, thankfully not too packed, and started with some drinks.  My Aguachile Margarita in particular tasted quite fresh with a really nice, mildly spicy flavor from the serrano chiles. 

For my main course, I had a few vegetarian options to choose from on their relatively small menu.  I ended up with enchiladas dona blanca, which had poblanos, onions and tomatillo salsa.  

The enchiladas were amazing.  Not a completely overwhelming amount of food, and each bite had a ton of flavor from the many ingredients on the plate, including the avocado, red onion and crema on top of the plate.  My husband also loved his meat tacos, and declared them among the best he has had in NYC.

While not the cheapest option around (enchiladas were $14, and two tacos were $8), the food was really top-notch and I look forward to returning again and again!

Case Enrique

5-48 49th Avenue

Long Island City, Queens

Easily accessible from the 7 train at Vernon-Jackson, and approx. 10 - 15 minute walk from the E/M/G trains at Court Square