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!

National Tequila Day at Sunset Cantina

I'm the first to admit I'm addicted to Twitter. I don't miss many tweets during the week and have met a few people through Twitter but never in real life. I'm not entirely sure what that says about me, but I know one thing: it's told me about news and events I wouldn't have known about so quickly, if at all, without Twitter -- including Drink Craft Beer Summerfest and free tickets to the Odyssey Cruise on the Boston Harbor. What did I learn today? It's National Tequila Day.

Brittany and I originally planned to check out The Lower Depths in Kenmore Square last night, but decided to postpone that trip in favor of a classic tequila spot just down the road: Sunset Cantina. There were a lot of tempting tequila menus elsewhere in the city, but not with similar prices. And of course by the end of the night we realized it's still nothing in comparison to Border Cafe. (If this blog teaches you anything about getting good, cheap Mexican food in Boston, it should be to go to Border Cafe.)

I happen to be very familiar with the margarita list and over 100 tequilas at Sunset Cantina - for the past few months, it's been home to biweekly "Pay Day Margaritas Fridays" with my coworkers. Between that and several past visits to Sunset Grill and Tap, their mirror restaurant with a staggering beer selection, I knew we'd be in for some delicious drinks and Mexican food. Thankfully Brittany and I came with growling stomachs and were ready to make the most of the tequila holiday.

By the end of the night, we had just about demolished two large plates of vegetable quesadilla and blackened swordfish tacos along with four margaritas. It was a delicious way to spend National Tequila Day. The four margaritas, all on the rocks with a salt or sugar rim, were:

• Lime and coconut margarita (Margaritaville Lime and Coconut Tequila, sour mix, coconut): my favorite - strong coconut flavor and light alcohol taste
• Melon Rita (Margaritaville Tangerine, Midori, triple sec, sour mix, lime wedge): sweet and strong
• Horny Margarita (Sauza Hornitos Plata, Sour Mix, a splash of pineapple with sugared rim): insert "horny" joke here... love the drink, hate the name
• Perfecto Margarita (Sauza Hornitos, fresh lime and lemonade with agave nectar): strong and a great taste of lime

For $8 or $9 each, these weren't the cheapest drinks in the city but far from the most expensive - in the end, not a bad price to pay for tasty margaritas with good company, even if it's not affordable for every night. It was certainly a good way to spend one of my new favorite holidays, National Tequila Day!