FOOD CZAR REVIEW 45: THE BLUE GOOSE CANTINA

Blue on blue. Heartache on heartache. A beautiful Sunday morning, and my lovely wife The Rock Star was down in the dumps. We had planned on attending the North Texas Irish Festival that very afternoon, indeed we had attended the one last year and loved it, particularly the food, the Irish music, and most of all (of course), the whiskey tasting room. But, clearly, she did not feel up for a drive all the way to Fair Park, just to have fun. Why couldn't the fun come to us? Why not indeed?? We could order movies, but who feels like spending all day indoors when it's so nice outside? Clearly, Plan B was needed. Suddenly, it hit me. (No, thats OK, I was not seriously injured.) As you have probably discerned from my past few posts, my lovely bride has become a serious lover of brunch. In fact, the only thing better than brunch to her was brunch outside on the patio on a lovely day. Therefore, I decided to put Plan B into effect immediately, and soon we were jaunting happily across town to that acclaimed bastion of Tex-Mex, The Blue Goose Cantina.

The atmosphere of The Blue Goose Cantina is very much like any other Mexicana-in-the-suburbs establishment, with a couple of notable exceptions. First, how many other restaurants boast bright blue-and-yellow exteriors? Second, how many employ a Rube Goldberg contraption for making fresh tortillas? A pretty Hispanic miss carefully monitors the device as the blobs of dough are pressed into tortilla shape, cooked, and then travel up the narrow chute to be deposited into waiting baskets for hungry diners. Pretty clever, if you ask me. We were seated quickly on the sunny patio, and Everett took charge of us almost at once.

While The Blue Goose's lunch and dinner menus are a veritable smorgasboard of all things Tex and Mex, the brunch menu is a much smaller affair, consisting of about a dozen Mexican and American favorites. We decided to start with the usual suspects: chips, salsa, tortillas, and a cup of queso. Wisely, the staff will set a container of fresh-from-the-oven tortillas on the table the moment you sit down. Pillowy and hot, these slices of flour heaven were the best part of our dining experience, whether slathered in butter, dipped in the spicy salsa, or dunked in the thin and creamy queso. In short, our starters clearly set high standards, and for the most part, the kitchen did not disappoint. My lovely wife adores quesadillas, and her large portion was studded with chunks of juicy fajita meat, and more of that marvelous cheese. At Everett's suggestion, she got hers with green chilis cooked inside, and their subtle but specific bite elevated this dish several notches above the norm. My own choice was the Breakfast Chimichanga, and this proved a slight disappointment: Though the chicken, potato and egg filling was quite nice, the exterior was not fried enough for my taste and the interior was undercooked and gummy. Still, the dish was nicely improved by adding touches of salsa and queso and I dined quite well. The accompanying fruit salad was fine, but I think it was there merely as a palate cleanser. The rice and beans were very good, paticularly when wrapped in one of those hot, fresh tortillas and doused with (do you sense a pattern here?) queso and salsa. We paired our repast with Blue Goose margaritas, made fresh to order, quite bracing, and some of the best we've had in a Tex-Mex establishment. All too soon, brunchtime was over.

Servicewise, Everett proved quite capable and his recommendations were solid. Website is www.bluegoosecantina.com, where you can make use of their unique map; when you choose the goose cooresponding to the location you wish, he drops into place and the map will unfold. Clever.

Overall, The Blue Goose Cantina has some of the best tortillas, queso and margaritas around, and the crowds attest to its popularity. Beat the blues yourself soon, and remember:

LIFE IS TOO SHORT FOR MEDIOCRE FOOD!!!