Tuesday, June 11, 2013

A Look Inside Mi Cocina

The Collection at Chevy Chase, primarily known for its selection of luxury retailers including Dior, Gucci and Louis Vuitton, will soon be known for it's Tex-mex cuisine now that Mi Cocina is officially open. We attended the grand opening festivities for the Dallas based restaurant, and were soon invited back for a full dinner.


We started off the evening with cocktails. I don't believe you are allowed to have dinner at Mi Cocina without ordering their signature drink, the Mambo Taxi. A swirl of frozen margarita featuring Sauza Blanco tequila and house-made Sangria, the drink is named for its likelihood to make you dance after the first drink and call a taxi after the second.

Though I believe each one of my colleagues started off their night with a Mambo Taxi, a few of them changed things up a bit during the second round of drinks, while I stuck with the Mambo Taxi. I did not need to call a Taxi after my second drink, though I don't drive and I'd need a lot of drinks to keep me away from the metro. Pictured below are a few of my colleagues drinks of choice, including the Skinny Margarita and the Dilemma, which includes layers of strawberry and mango. 


While sipping our cocktails, we enjoyed tastes of the guacamole and queso blanco before settling down at our tables to order appetizers and our main course.

The Cocina Platter is the perfect starter for a group with varied tastes, as it features quesadillas, flautitas, and beef and bean nachos. I did not try the nachos, but definitely approve of the flautitas. I've generally lost my affinity for fried foods, but  flautitas (and taquitos) know how to win their way back in to my stomach. 


Cheese enchiladas are the one thing I order from any Mexican or Tex Mex restaurant I go to, and they are the standard by which I judge all Mexican restaurants. I admit that I am a little hard to please when it comes to cheese enchiladas, as my preferences are very specific. I like the tortillas extremely soft, the sauce a little thinner in consistency, and the cheese as melted as possible. I like the cheese to ooze out of the tortilla when I slice the enchilada with my fork and knife, and I like it to drip out of the tortilla as I lift up a piece of the enchilada with my fork. Out of the handful of the Mexican restaurants that I've tried in the DC area, only one has met my standards quite nicely. I would put Mi Cocina as second on my list. The cheese was not as melted as it could be, and the sauce was a little thicker than I prefer, but it was still quite tasty overall.

Furthermore, for the first time ever, I actually ordered a plate that included a chicken enchilada in addition to the cheese enchilada. I don't have any crazy standards when it comes to chicken enchiladas and preferred the chicken enchilada over the cheese enchilada.


Mi Cocina's enchiladas can also be ordered stuffed with beef or spinach, and the Deluxe 57 plate will get you a taste of each of their enchilada varieties, along with beef and cheese tacos. As evident from the photo below, this is a good selection to share. 


The Tacos "De Brisket" and Tamale Dinner come highly recommended, though my colleagues displayed their individuality by ordering a wide selection of dishes.


As if all the food above wasn't already enough for us, we of course had to order the dessert. The flan was a hit.


For Mi Cocina's full menu, visit http://www.micocinarestaurants.com/menu.html.
Mi Cocina on Urbanspoon

No comments: