Yesterday I had my first paid photography session! Super exciting. I did senior photos for a girl from my church. Lots of fun, and I think the photos turned out great!
We met her and her mom at Coolidge Park, so I consulted my handy Adventures in Dining coupon book to decide where we should eat. We settled on Poblanos, which I didn’t know existed until we got the coupon book. Poblanos is located at the opposite end of River Street from Coolidge Park, in the location that was Pisa Pizza for a long time. Turns out they really haven’t been around all that long, so I don’t feel too guilty for not realizing they were there.
The dining room at Poblanos is fairly small but it was surprisingly crowded for 2:00 on a Saturday. We decided to sit in the screened in/covered porch area (they also have a second outdoor seating area that isn’t covered). Our server brought us our menus and our waters and we decided to order some guacamole (instead of our usual queso) for $6.50. The guacamole was just slightly chunky and garlicky, yet creamy. I didn’t notice any tomatoes but there was cilantro. It was very good, and I liked that the chips were very thick, hot, and not overly salty.
I toyed with the idea of ordering the flautas but instead decided to get the tortas Milanesa, a Mexican sandwich with a breaded chicken breast, refried beans, lettuce, tomato, queso fresco, and avocado. I asked our server for a her side dish recommendations. She recommended the salad, which I ordered with the housemade mango vinaigrette, and the grilled Mexican vegetables (yellow squash and zucchini). The salad was pretty good, with romaine lettuce, chopped tomatoes, julienned cucumber, sliced radishes, and white cheese. It was fresh and cold, just like I like it. The housemade dressing was sweet with a strong hit of vinegar. I really liked it. The vegetables were well seasoned and tender. Unfortunately, I think our server got confused by my order and I ended up with what I’m pretty sure was a Torta Especial-the chicken wasn’t breaded. I didn’t feel the need to send it back, though, so I ate it. The chicken was well seasoned and I liked the crustiness of the torta roll. A couple of times I got a little too close for comfort with seeds from the jalapeño, but nothing too major. I would order this again.
Philip decided to get the flautas. Three flautas were included with the dish so he ordered one with pulled pork, one with steak, and one with chorizo. He decided on rice and refried beans for his sides. He felt that the beans seemed like they had a more “homemade” texture than most Mexican restaurants (i.e. not über-smooth) and that the rice was pretty standard Mexican restaurant rice. The flautas were fresh and hot, with sour cream drizzled over them and queso fresco crumbled on top. The chorizo was not as spicy as most that he has had. The pulled pork was tender with a few crispy edges. He didn’t find the steak to be as tender as he would have liked it, though it did have a good flavor.
Overall, I thought that the food here was fresh and tasty. The menu items were pretty standard, though the menu was not as huge and overwhelming as most Mexican restaurant menus. I liked the selection of tortas, which many Mexican restaurants don’t have. They do try to serve local ingredients, which of course I appreciate. Our total before our buy one get one free coupon was about $32….definitely a little more than we usually pay at El Metate or Delia’s. Still, Poblanos is worth a try if you’re in that direction.
Poblanos is located at 551 River Street, Chattanooga, TN 37405. You can call them at 423-490-7911. They are open Tuesday-Sunday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Check out their website at http://www.poblanosofchattanooga.com. You can also “like” them on Facebook.
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