Re:[CH] Mexican Food
The Old Bear (oldbear@arctos.com)
Fri, 15 May 1998 04:28:41 -0400
In Chile-Heads Digest, v.4 #417, Chuck Demas wrote:
>Date: Thu, 14 May 1998 11:34:58 -0400 (EDT)
>From: Charles Demas <demas@tiac.net>
>Subject: Re:[CH] Mexican Food
>
>Well, I love chili, but finding good chili at a restaurant in
>Massachusetts is like searching for the Holy Grail.
>
>Anyway, one night, long ago I was heading home to visit my parents,
>and being hungry, I stopped at a Howard Johnsons on the Mass Pike.
>
>I said I was hungry. :-)
>
>Well, HoJo's had chili on the menu, and I ordered it. Well, it
>didn't look like chilli, but it was very, very tasty, and that was
>a complete surprise (I hadn't expected much). I mentioned how
>good it was and how surprised I was to the waitress, and she
>replied, "Yes, the cook's Mexican." :-)
With my luck, I'd show up there during the shift when the cook
on duty was British. ;)
Anyway, Chuck, worth a try is a fairly new place right on Beacon
Street in Brookline called the Kokopelli Chili Company which not
only leads with its variety of chilis, but also has a small
hot sauce bar with about two dozen hot sauces ranging from the
mundane to the somewhat exotic. As might be expected, there are
a number of "How can anyone do that to good chili?" adaptations
for the great unwashed masses, but there are also some very pleasant
surprises like the "Chile Experiment #3" and a pretty good green
chili made with cubes of pork.
Chili by the cup ............. $3.95
Chili by the bowl ............ $6.50
Chili Mac (over spaghetti) ... $7.95
Chili over rice .............. $7.95
Beantown Chili: Our Beantown chili is made with ground
sirloin, onions, tomatoes, kidney beans, green bell
peppers and assorted chiles and seasonings. [ * ]
Original Texas Tenderfoot: For the milder palate. A
traditional hearty Texas-stle chili made with diced
beef, onions and a blend of chiles and seasonings [ * ]
Cincinnati Chili: A tangy tonato-based chili made with
fine ground sirloin and a blend of chiles and seasonings.
This Midwestern classic is sweetened with cinnamon and
cloves. Try it as a traditional "5-way" with spaghetti,
beans, onions and cheese. [ * * ]
Vegetarian Chili: A unique combination of fresh
vegetables, black beans, red chile peppers and assorted
other seasonings, [ * * ]
Albuquerque Green: A spicy favorite. Diced pork
simmered in tomatoes, New Mexico Green chile peppers and
a blend of other chiles and seasonings. [ * * * ]
Chili Experiment #3: Chef Ben invented this chili one
rainy day when he was cooking up new ideas in the kitchen.
It's spicy mix of coarse ground beef, Kokopelli IPA,
tomatoes, onions, cumin, garlic, jalapenos, our homemade
mole sauce, and even a few drops of Dave's insanity hot
sauce. [ * * * ]
Arizona Chicken Chili: Spicy and flavorful. Our seasoned
marinated chicken breast, mesquite-grilled and mixed with
a blend of red chiles and seasonings [ * * * ]
Chili Sampler: Can't decide? Choose any three of our
signature chilis and do your own taste test. Served with
warm tortilla chips. [ spice level varies by chili ] $7.95
Kokopelli's Sauce Selections
Tomatillo: A tart combination of tomatillos, poblano,
serrano and Anaheim green chiles, white wine and fresh
cilantro. [ * ]
Ranchero: A hearty blend of roasted tomatoes, poblano,
serrano and mild green Anaheim chiles, onions and garlic.
[ * * ]
Compuesto: Smokey and hot. Tomatoes, poblano, serrano and
and chipotle peppers, black olives, cinnamon, cloves and
allspice. [ * * * ]
Red Chile: This spice traditional sauce is made with New
Mexico Red chiles, onions and a touch of garlic. [ * * * ]
Green Chile: The full flavor of this spicy authentic green
chile sauce is derived from fire-roasted New Mexico Green
chiles. [ * * * ]
They also do a range of interesting specialties like: a "Margarita
Chicken Burrito" which is made with tequila-lime marinated chicken
and poblano chiles; "Pineapple-Ancho Chicken" with a barbecue
sauce; "Pecan-Crusted Chicken" with a mole sauce; and a "Chile
Burrito" made with any of the above chiles and then topped with
your choice of the above sauces.
And, as proprietor of the Secret Tequila Cave, I am pleased to say
that their specialty margarita, called "El Gecko Grande" is the
genuine article made with Sauza Horintos tequila, Citrone, and
fresh lime juice -- a nice improvement over the usual Cuervo and
commerical mix you get at most places around here.
Their tequila bar consists of about a dozen varieties (not quite
as extensive as the Iguana Cantina in Waltham) incluidng Lapiz,
Herradura, Cuervo Tradicional, Sauza Hornitos, Sauza Tres
Generaciones, Chinaco, Cuervo Reserva de la Familia, and the
usual Cuervo Gold and Cuervo 1800.
It' ain't Albuquerque, but it is sure an improvement over what
one used to be able to find in Massachusetts.
Cheers,
The Old Bear
PS: I did speak to the barmaid about that "Beantown Chili" name
being a little tacky and she explained that she no idea that
"Beantown" was a strictly a tourist moniker. She was from Tuscon.