PETE TITTL: Tiny cafe is home-cooked delight
| Sunday, Jul 03 2011 06:00 AM
Last Updated Sunday, Jul 03 2011 06:00 AM
813 Baker St. 324-5250
Hours: 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday to Sunday, 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday.
Prices: Lunch specials $5.50 to $7.95, dinners $5.95 to $9.95, burritos $1.50 to $1.95, tacos $1.50, tortas $4.50, enchiladas $1.75 to $5.95, shrimp $9.95.
Payment: MasterCard, Visa and personal checks accepted.
Dress: Casual.
Amenities: Wheelchair accessible; beer and wine served; some vegetarian options.
Food: HHH
Atmosphere: HH1/2
Service: HH1/2
Value: HHH
Next week: Ol' West Cafe
LOS REYES RESTAURANT
I struggle to keep up with every promising little restaurant out there, and that's why I appreciate readers who send me suggestions. David Irvine dropped me a note about a small Baker Street cafe he happened upon while getting his tires changed. Apparently he'd been on a search for the best huevos rancheros in town.
"Instead of waiting at the shop we went out for breakfast," he wrote. "We found this little Mexican restaurant on Baker Street, Los Reyes. Now I have been to the Arizona Cafe, which is just a few doors up, and I have to tell you this little place has been missed by many. The owner-operator/ waitress/cook/dish washer is struggling to stay in business. Her business may be struggling but her food is far from it. The huevos rancheros was the best I have ever had. The service was slow but understandable due to the fact she had to do it all. I hope you give her a try and find that the quality of food will outweigh the service."
The Arizona Cafe -- with its exceptional chili verde in that outstanding brown-orange sauce -- casts a big shadow from its position next door. It's no wonder a humble enterprise like Los Reyes Restaurant would get lost in the shuffle.
But we consider ourselves culinary detectives, so we dropped by early on a Saturday evening, calling ahead to make sure they'd still be open until 7:30 p.m. (Another reader had recommended the place to me, too, but warned that I should call first as the posted hours are merely possibilities rather than set in stone).
The huevos rancheros ($5.95), surprisingly, are available at any time so I had to order those, while my companion selected the chili verde ($8.95). And while I'd love to say the huevos rancheros plate was the best in town, I was troubled by the lack of tortillas underneath. A trifling matter to many, I'm sure, but I love these best when they have a crispy, tostada-like corn tortilla underneath -- nevermind that the owner/chef/waitress brought me some on the side. The beans and rice flanking my entree were exceptional, the beans partially refried and whole, all mixed together. The rice was moist, pink and fluffy. My huevos were topped with a solid chili verde that had flecks of red pepper mixed in with the green. Another gripe for a purist, but I loved it.
My companion got a larger portion of the verde and thought she detected some smokiness in the pork, wondering if perhaps the meat had been grilled before stewing with the peppers. I'm not sure, but I did notice the nuances she spoke of.
The menu has a lot of everything, including seafood choices, chicken mole, enchiladas, tacos for $1.50 each, and eggs with cactus and eggs with chorizo.
You just feel like you're getting some home-cooking here. The atmosphere is a tad more dated than the Arizona, with a counter, clean but aged tables and a small TV showing some Mexican drama (in the movie we were watching, two guys were killed but the process was hilariously melodramatic). There was only one other customer there during our visit.
Don't wait until your tires need changing or the Arizona Cafe is too crowded. Visit Los Reyes when you're seeking authentic, home-cooked Mexican food.
