Date Night with Chet

Restaurant Review by Chet Groskreutz

CAFÉ RIO ---WAHOO’S ,FRESCA’S, AND ALL THE OTHER MEX RESTAURANTS----WATCH OUT!....THIS MEX RESTAURANT IS IN EVEN IN THE ZAGAT GUIDE!!!

Just in case you’ve haven’t heard…CAFÉ RIO just opened up in the old Winchell’s location on 17 th street …..

This restaurant chain started in St George ,Utah… a great place stop off for some excellent Mexican food on the way to or from conference, a winter ski trip, or for summer fishermen (on their way to/from their annual Beaver, Utah trout fishing pilgrimage)….

My favorite is the Pork Barbacoa taco, quesadilla, salad, enchilada, or ANTYTHING with the PORK BARBACOA!!! If you’ve ever had Hawaiian pork cooked in an Emu, this is BETTER!!!! ALOHA!!!!! It’s sweet, and soooooo tender it melts in your mouth. My taco was on a fresh tortilla ( made there right in front of you, TALK ABOUT FRESH!) with fresh cilantro, lettuce, and a lime…(you can choose from other veggies to add, but I say less is more….don’t smother the PORK BARBACOA taste). Next was the rice…hot ( temperature is just right, I hate it when rice is cold, not the case here) plus they put some nice mild spices and onions in the rice best rice in town!!! Umm, umm good…..You can choose black or pinto beans…again they are almost perfectly cooked and the temp is just right. The staff is part of the fun…they have energetic, friendly, and personable employees…that seem to be excited to be there, they shout and yell the orders back and forth and they are havin’ fun….a surprise in this type of restaurant.

The atmosphere is upbeat, bright lights, and the tables and chairs were colorful albeit a little crowded, they have their own CAFÉ RIO station playing in the restaurant and the sounds are cool…..a great place to take the family…..the three of us adults ate like kings and the bill was $23.00….super cheap!

As they say at Café Rio “HOLY GUACAMOLE!”