One of them suggested Romesco's, a place I hadn't been to in at least five years...
and definitely before everyone started salivating about "Baja Med" and "Mex Fusion" and all those buzz words that so-called "foodies" get wet about...
Now the restaurant has everyone panting like a dog in heat because of the celebrity status of the chef, Javier Plascencia (a local from South Bay, class of 1985 from Hilltop High; my neighbor went to school with him). Because of the restaurant's good food and popularity, people aren't as afraid to go south of the I-8 to go to Romesco's. C'mon people, it's Bonita, not the ghetto!
Seriously speaking though, it's one of the better places to eat down south and I'm was excited to try the "new version" of Romesco's which used to be a more conventional European style restaurant (with a Mexican twist) in days past. It took over the old spot of Tomato's Plus in the late 2000's.
The new name of Romesco's includes "Mexiterranean Bistro" in the title...
This whole shopping complex, with the exception of Vons (which is still stuck in the 70's with it's nasty brown wood), has been redone with lighter colors and looks cleaner and more fresh.
To compare, here is an older photo:
(photo from my "Romesco" post from December 2008)
Also refurbished was this outdoor seating area. Very nice!
One of our older friends is a "regular" there. She and her husband go every Thursday night w hen they have live music, a Mexican trio (a band of three musicians playing guitars, singing romantic music). Another co-worker loves going to the Tapas Bar (also a new addition, located in the back, behind Baskin Robbins Ice Cream). Both of my friends are Mexican but Romesco's is now just gaining attention from folks that aren't from the South Bay. It's not just Latinos there anymore. Come on down!
Most of us (Mr. TJ, La Ley and myself) ordered from the lunch menu...
and the TJ Street Food menu...
AND the Tapas menu:
Holy $#%@, I want to try the Bone Marrow Sope next time! I've had their Gobernador taco in the past and really liked it. See the Tacos de Fideo? Spaghetti tacos yo'. Been there done that thanks to TC's obsesseion with "iCarly" when she was young , ha ha.
Their bread was so good, crusty and warm...
Our friend (who shall heretofore be renamed as TR, for "The Retiree") ordered one of her favorite tapas to share with us, pickled garlic.
Not a fan.
I'd eat them roasted though.
Mr. TJ got the Costillas de Res ($6.25/shredded beef short rib) trio of tacos. It comes with sides of lemon, cilantro, salsa and onion (but he skipped out on that since he had a dentist appointment later that afternoon).
He really really loved this meat (insert dirty joke here)! I was impressed because Mr. TJ is a very picky eater. He said it was the best tasting beef he's had all year (insert another foul joke here). He also liked the portion because it was just right - not too small and not glutton sized.
TR got the same thing, but the actual entree ($14.25/not the lunch portion) which comes in a cazuelita with 4-6 tortillas in a warmer). This was a hearty portion.
She was kind enough to share some of her dish with me and La Ley...
who ordered the Gambas al Romesco ($6.95) - Shrimp and thin cut fries served with Romesco sauce (a nut and red pepper based sauce).
Her entree was soooooo delicious. She ended up using the bread pieces to soak up the sauce. I had a few of the fries and dipped some bread as well. OMG. It might look like a small dish, but it was really filling considering we had a plate of bread earlier.
As for mine, I ordered the Tostada de Pulpo ($5.85/octopus tostado) with mustard and bell pepper aioli, chipotle piloncillo (which gave it a bit of sweetness), mixed greens and cotija cheese...
It was small, but as Mr. TJ said earlier, it was perfect for just a small bite. The sauce was as delicious as La Ley's dish.
The freshly fried tostada was both thick enough to hold all the tender octopus. The shell was also puffy and crisp and didn't taste like the crappy kind you get in a pack of 20 at the store. I want this again.
Who else went to the "new" version of Romesco's?
Marie enjoyed Happy Hour here back in September 2012
Mary - February 2014 along with Kirbie who also went later that same month. It looks like they had the tasting menu which had a great selection of exciting new dishes.
Previous visits to the old version of Romesco's when it was still known as Romesco:
December 2008 with D
January 2009 which was a combo post (lunch with MFH and the Educator GF's)
I'm glad the South Bay is getting more attention from non-locals. It's well deserved in Romesco's case. This new version made me look at Romesco's with new eyes. I guess living down here, I took it for granted and assumed it was still the same old same old which may explain my lack of visits in the past five years. I like that they added the Tijuana Street Food items on the menu which gives the food an upscale twist...
We all want to come here for lunch again (so I can plus I have use my buy one get one free coupon before it expires)!
2 comments:
We never tried it here because it seemed to be an evening/date night place. The menu is fascinating and this is definitely on my radar now. Great post-what a variety of quality.
Yeah, I wouldn't want to go at night because I don't like crowds. Lunch time is another story and they do have some interesting lunch choices...
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