Saturday, July 31, 2010

Taco Cabana. Renovation. I went by to investigate.

Last week the Fort Worth Taco Cabanas had a kind of grand re-opening. Restaurants had been renovated and the menu updated -- so I decided to try it out. Here's a summary of my visit.

The renovation. Great job. Loved the two-toned wood tables and chairs, brushed steel on counter spaces, and lighting. One HDTV. Very comfortable, clean, and easy on the eye.

The menu. "Out" are those really bad pictures of Tex Mex platters. "In" is simplified ordering. It's got kind of a Chipotle look to it instead of old Burger King.

All that is good.

The food itself. I ordered the two fajita lunch for $6.50. The tortillas are made on-site and delicious, the fajita beef was tasty and good but something is lost when it is not sizzling from a pan. I had assumed beans and rice would be served with the fajitas but chips accompanied them instead. That was disappointing. Then again, I could have actually read the menu. The salsa and condiments island is good, clean, and well stocked. I have always liked their salsa island. Fresh cilantro helps.

A little serving of rice or a small bowl of charro beans would have made the meal much better and not added much to their cost. Two moderately portioned fajitas with a handful of chips for $6.50 is not a bad deal but probably not enough to make it my lunch spot of choice.

One other change to the Taco Cabana method is the roving server. Ordering is done at the counter but a server brings the meal to the table and asks if more drinks and chips are needed. I liked it except the girl, even given her friendliness, came back four or five times during a twenty minute meal. I know one man's helpfulness is another man's annoying helpfulness, but this seemed overdone to me. Yes, we did leave a small tip.

Free offer: Taco Cabana is offering free chicken fajita tacos on Tuesday, August 3, from 4-9 pm., and half-priced nachos and $1.50 margaritas during happy hour. (one free taco per customer, in-restaurant only)

There are about a half-dozen Taco Cabanas in the Fort Worth area. I visited the one on I-35 around Seminary. Here’s a link:  http://www.tacocabana.com/locator/
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Update two weeks later:
Editor's note: I went back a second time and asked for the dinner which included rice and beans, same price, and it was excellent. Great value. I will go back.

3 comments:

Doohickie said...

I've heard the old Krispy Kreme on Hulen will soon be a Taco Cabana.

Lynn said...

Your experience was better than mine. I went (halfway) through the drive-through in Duncanville on Friday night, after the bomb threat at work. Granted, I was a little jangled. OK, more than a little jangled. But it was not fun. See last Saturday's blog post. I gave up and went to another drive-through where I didn't have to make decisions.

Unknown said...

The salsa bar is a fantastic idea. The variety of options and freshness makes for a nice change.

It sounds like you ordered the fajita taco combo (fajita tacos, chips, queso, and drink). They have a fajita taco dinner which comes with rice and beans. They also have a fajita platter (I think). Try the dinner next time.