In this town you can’t fling a dead cat without hitting 5 Mexican food restaurants. What you’ll find (in addition to some really grossed out people in the path of a flying feline carcass) is a variety of styles of Mexican food.  You’ve got fusion, upscale, hole-in-the-wall to white washed gringo chow and everything in between.  This week’s restuarant is Jimmy Carter’s Mexican Cafe.  Contrary to my first thought, it was not founded by our 39th president but by a guy named Jimmy Carter in 1991.  It was classic diner food but after noticing a lack of authentic Mexican food in the area, he reopened it as a Mexican cafe and it’s been there ever since.  It took 23 years for me to have my first meal here but better late than never, right?  Joining me were some of my Mexican food loving friends:

Aimee-Roommate since the 90’s, BFF, allergic to hot dogs and therefore labeled a commie by many

Amy J-Rocky Horror performer, Michigan football loyalist, a common floozy

Chris-Attorney, lifelong food snob, loves good Scotch and gay jeans

Dylan-The newest addition, the 2014 model.  A Kate & Joe production.

Harry-Wise guy, master of the grill, loves camping for some reason

Joe “Bish”-Computer wunderkind, Husband of Kate, a tall drink of water

Kate-Costume designer, Comedian, Once starred in a church rap video

Sebastian-The coolest kid in Kindergarten.  A Kate & Joe production.

You will be shocked to learn that this picture was taken post margaritas.

Margaritas were a must for starters.  Amy Ordered a Mezcal Margarita.  She thought it was a tasty and different take on a smoky mezcal.  Harry had a Cucumber Margarita.  He loved it and found it to be very refreshing.  Aimee got a Azul Margarita which looks a lot like Windex in a glass.  She said it was very good and they didn’t spare the hooch!

For appetizers, Aimee had the Calamari Strips.  She thought it was a little unusual that they actually sell Calamari by the piece but she enjoyed them.  A bit chewy but that was more than made up for by the outstanding sauce that came with it.  Harry started with a cup of Chicken Tortilla Soup.  He said it was tasty but nothing he would lose his mind over.  I started with Chicken Taquitos.  They arrived, as it traditional, buried under a pile of shredded lettuce, sour cream, pico de gallo and guacamole.  I’m sad to say what awaited me under all that was less than impressive.  In fact they were kind of burnt to all hell and back.  The Chicken on the ends was so charred it almost had a bacon-like consistency.  They could have done with a quicker journey through the fryer.

There are rolled tacos under here, I just know it.

For our main dishes, Harry had the Shrimp Tostada.  He said it was fine but nothing spectacular.  Joe had the Calamari Al Mojo de Ajo.  He loved the big, tender pieces of Calamari and the sautee in butter and garlic.  Also high marks came from Joe for the side of Telaquepaque Sauce.  Kate ordered the build-your-own-plate with shredded beef crispy taco, chicken enchilasa with green sauce and Chili Relleno with Red Sauce.  She also enjoyed it and praised the moist beef, the Chili Relleno which was “Larger than my head” and had a unique texture outside of the normally runny fillings.  She loved that the enchilada was so fresh and made with hand made corn tortillas.  Chris had the Chile Colorado.  He said it was competently executed but not outstanding . This particular dish, according to Chris, can be found done better elsewhere.

Aimee also had the Chili Colorado with pork.  She loved it and praised the tender pork with just the right amount of heat on the finish.  Amy got the Taco Salad with Soy Ground Beef.  She said it was good but there were some issues with the taco shell-to-filling ratio . Also she mentioned the salad would likely be better served tossed than layered.  Overall she found her dinner to be not much better than what could be found at a drive thru Mexican place (of which there are roughly 12,345,678 in San Diego).  I ordered one of the house specialties, the Comidas Del Mar Enchiladas (Shrimp).  I was really not impressed with this dish.  The shrimp were tiny.  The kind you can add to a salad for 50 cents at most chain restaurants.  The sauce, billed as “Creamy chipotle” tasted like reheated Tostitos cheese dip.  It was really greasy and gross.  I’m sad to say I really did not enjoy it.

Unfortunately the flavor spectrum on this dish was about as wide as the color spectrum.

In closing while my experience at Jimmy Carter’s was not the best, others seemed pleased with their drinks and some of the things they had but I got the distinct impression that better Mexican food can be found at too many other places in San Diego.   This is why we try new things.  Well, that and my obsessive need to publicly state my opinions on everything.  Anyway, you get the point.  Walk don’t run.

Further reading

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