Allston's Hidden Slice of Texas

You wouldn't guess it by the dark, unmarked exterior, but Lone Star Taco Bar is a vibrant, cozy place to warm up with gourmet tacos and Mexican beer. Everything about it echoes Deep Ellum - they're both owned by the same people - to the point that if feels like you're in some kind of Texan parallel universe next to its sister bar. And I have just as many good things to say about Lone Star as Deep Ellum.

It barely seems possible, but Lone Star is a little smaller than Deep Ellum, but in a cozy way. The old cowboy westerns playing on a TV above the bar, mounted bison head, and dim lighting (at least when we went around 9PM last Thursday) made you feel like you may have just stepped into Texas. Not a cheesy Hollywood version of Texas, but a cool, slightly upscale version where hipsters go for conversation and delicious food. There must be hipsters in Texas, right?

Lone Star was crowded when we got there, so we grabbed the last two seats at the bar, but by 10 it had nearly emptied out and we could hear the music again. The music was chill, but probably the only piece of the puzzle that didn't fit the authentic Texas feeling.

I couldn't resist trying the Chelado - the Pacifico on draft mixed with lime juice over ice with a salted rim. It managed to taste refreshing but not watered down at all. Brittany tried the Chica Facil (haha), a delicious blend of tequila, aperol, lime, agave, and orange bitters.

Baja Fish and Carnitas Pork Tacos

Then we moved on to the difficult food decision - everything on the taco menu looked great, but we could only eat so much (especially since I had already technically had dinner). I got the Baja Fish of the Day while Brittany chose the Carnitas Pork and the Grilled Avocado with Griddled Queso. She had been to Lone Star before so she prepared me for how great they would be, but I was still in awe. The balance of hot/cold, sweet/savory in my fish taco was exactly right.

Brittany and I followed up our first drinks with Pacifico on tap - only $4 for a pint of a decent Mexican beer.

It was a great place to catch up and adventure into some unique TexMex flavors. The Lone Star bartenders were great, too - attentive and clearly skilled at their job.

Although the tacos were gourmet, we were a little disappointed to learn after eating from one of our bartenders that the real deal at Lone Star are the tostadas: only $5 for a heaping pile of delicious ingredients. Not as gourmet or as meticulously made as the tacos, which are in a class of their own, but still delicious and at a great price.

I feel like I say this about most bars I visit... but I'll definitely be going back.

P.S. For those keeping track, no, we didn't go to jm Curley like we promised in our last blog post. By the time Brittany was done with classes and work on her long-day Thursday, we went for something closer to home. But jm Curley is still on the to-do list!

Our First & Last Time at Jose McIntyre's

What was originally supposed to be a night filled with $2.50 pitchers of Miller Lite and $1 apps at the Mexican-Irish restaurant Jose Mcintyre's turned into a life lesson that you should never eat Mexican when 1) One of you works at a Tex-Mex that never disappoints or 2) You're both too hungover to actually enjoy Miller Lite. 

When we both found ourselves too exhausted/hungover after a long Pride weekend in Boston we decided to veto the beer we're too snobby to enjoy anyway and drink something that would go down a little smoother. We probably should have known as soon as we saw the confused-puppy-dog-eyes of the waiter who greeted us that we should have skipped Jose's all together.

As a server, I (Brittany) give the benefit of the doubt and all of the sympathy that I have to waiters no matter how long it takes for us to get our drinks (about 25 minutes in this case - not an exaggeration) or the amount of times they fail at witty banter. Luckily, there were only about seven drink options so it didn't take long for Alicia to decide on the Caribbean Chill Margarita, and as someone who typically loves all things Brazilian, I went for the Caipirinha. 

Alicia's margarita had 1800 coconut tequila, coconut rum, Triple Sec, lime juice, sour mix, and OJ. The exotic Caipirinha ended up being 2/3 Leblon Cachac topped with a barely existent amount of lime and sugar. If I had know I ordered a Brazilian blackout in a glass, I would have gone with the sangria that was all I really wanted. But while still waiting for our dinners, after watching the table that had sat down after us finish up their fajitas, and after a lot of internal conflict, I had about two sips of my drink before I had no choice but to send it back. Our waiter was quick to let us know that it was the first time the bartender had made the drink and that I of course could trade it in for a sangria. I can really only blame myself for this mistake, but there are very few Monday nights where I'm ready for that kind of alcohol at 7:30 PM. 

The sangria and margaritas were over-priced but delicious and lucky for us the bartender sent over a free margarita that had clearly been a mistake by our flustered (but sweet) lil server. Our trip to Jose's wasn't a total waste: it brought us back to our Irish roots with a little bit of Mexican flavor. Alicia ate a monstrous dish of chili topped with mashed potatoes (Mexican Shepherd's Pie) til the bowl was empty and I had a Chicken Avocado Salad that mostly acted as a chaser for my Caipirinha. 

Let this be a lesson to everyone: if you're craving Mexican or tequila, Border Cafe in Harvard Square can offer you $5 margaritas within minutes and all the chips and salsa you can fit into your stomach. And I don't just say that because I work there.