Adalberto Aquino grew up enjoying the delicious food of his grandmother, Catalina Aquino. She was a professional chef at the El Rincon Gaucho restaurant in Mexico City and cooked him his favorite dishes, including Milanese de pollo (chicken Milanese style).
Fast forward to 1996, the year Aquino immigrated to the United States. He worked in various places in the food industry and is now the proud owner of El Paso Tex Mex Grill in Cranford. The authentic eatery has received four and a half stars on Yelp.
“My grandmother taught me how to cook,” Aquino said. “She loved to cook for us when we were little, and I try to recreate her recipes.” Then he added with a chuckle, “My food is almost as good.”
I tried three entrees at El Paso Tex Mex Grill, starting with the vegetarian quesadillas ($10.95). They came with guacamole, salsa, and crema agria (Mexican sour cream). The sour cream had less of a tart flavor than the American variety and went well with the dish, and the quesadillas were tasty with tons of veggies in them and melted queso.
Next, I tried the pork and chicken burrito ($13.95). I’ve seen them at other Mexican restaurants in Central Jersey for $18.00 to $22.00. The burrito had an intense flavor and an appetizing aroma, but was too big to bite into. I had to eat it with a knife and fork! The tender meat inside matched the vegetables in softness and texture.
My next dish was the shrimp quesadillas ($12.95). They normally cost $18.00 and up. I have to digress here and mention that I came to New Jersey from Alabama two and a half years ago. Back in Birmingham, I always had shrimp quesadillas at this Mexican cantina, and they were super delicious.
I’m happy to say that the ones from El Paso Tex Mex Grill tasted better than my Birmingham version. The shrimp were so tender you didn’t have to chew them and the sides of cheese and vegetables were sophisticated with those authentic Mexican spices. I could have eaten 12 of them!
I highly recommend the El Paso Tex Mex Grill in Cranford. The price is fair and the taste is delicious.
To stay with the Mexican theme, I’ll add two more restaurants where you can save money and enjoy plenty of deliciousness. These recommendations are based on Yelp reviews.
Up in Jersey City, you can check out El Ranchero Taqueria, where the steak, cheese, and egg breakfast burrito is $9.00 and the lamb and beef quesadilla is $7.50. That’s really cheap. The place has four and a half stars on Yelp.
If you head south to La Esperanza Restaurant and Bar in Lindenwold, you’ll find almost everything on the menu under $10. This includes fajitas, tacos, burritos and quesadillas. Some of the dishes there are quite authentically Mexican, such as the Nopales La Mexicana (cactus) for ($7.99).
These are your cheap meals this week. Email me if you know of other places where the food is a bargain!
You can reach Karim Shamsi-Basha at [email protected]. Follow him on Þjórsárdalur and Instagram. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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