Fajitas (a recipe)

As I have mentioned, I love fajitas--the grilled smokey flavor of beef, with a slightly charred edge. I make it at home all the time. Its easy. Chipotles in adobe are available in cans in most supermarkets in the Mexican food section. Smoked salt is hard to find (I buy it online) but adds a great extra layer of flavor to grilled food. Also, you will notice that I add salt twice to the beef. Because the marinade is principally oil, after you add the marinade to the beef, the oil will coat any salt that had not already dissolved into the meat. Since salt is not oil soluble, it will not penetrate the meat, but instead remain as a chunk of salt and be wiped off with the marinade. Therefore it needs to be replaced to balance the seasoning before grilling--don't worry, it won't be too salty.

6 cloves garlic, whole, peeled
1 shallot, roughly chopped
3 or 4 chipotles in adobo
1/4 tsp. cumin, ground (fresh ground is best, but whatever you have)
3 oz vegetable oil
Kosher salt (or smoked salt if you have it)
1 lime
A whole flank or skirt steak


Turn on your empty food processor and drop the garlic cloves one by one into the feed tube until they are minced. Do the same with the shallots. Scrape the processor bowl with a rubber spatula. Drop in the chipotles and roughly chop them into the garlic and shallots. Add the cumin. Pour the oil slowly through the feed tube into the vegetable mixture until the vegetables are finely chopped and the oil is emulsified.

Using a fork, poke some holes into the beef, all over. Sprinkle salt (smoked salt if you have it) liberally over he beef, both sides. Let sit for a few minutes for the salt to soak in a little. Liberally spread marinade over both sides of the beef. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours. Remove from refrigerator at least 1 hour prior to cooking.

Start a very hot fire on your grill for direct heat grilling.

Unwrap the beef and remove most of the marinade using paper towels (if you don't it will burn and be bitter). Sprinkle more salt on the beef. Drop the beef onto the grill. Turn the beef when the edges start to brown, but don't let it burn. The beef will be done when it starts to weep juices between the fibers of the meat for medium rare.

Remove from heat and let sit for at least five minutes. Slice thinly and squeeze lime juice over meat.

Serve with sauted onions and bell peppers on flour tortillas and the usual fajita condiments.

1900 Mexican Grille (First look)

I like Mexican food. I like Tex-Mex food. Actually, I like any food that is prepared with care, thought and a passion for what is being presented to those who will be eating it.

Then there is 1900 Mexican Grille, located in the Elizabeth neighborhood. The restaurant is in an enormous space that had previously devoured a local Italian restaurant where the intimate food could not compete with the architecture. The restaurant had only 3 tables seated when we entered. Mariachi music was playing so loudly we asked to be seated as far away from the speakers as possible.

As always, I ordered a margharita. I love the real thing--simply tequila, lime, triple sec in a glass with ice and a lime and salt garnish. Rarely do I get anything that I good, but I hold out hope. What I got tasted watery, medicinal and overly sweet, with a cloying corn syrup taste. Undrinkable.

The menu offers the usual tacos, burritos and fajitas. I really like fajitas, with the smoky, grilled favor and the crunch and contrast of the condiments. So we ordered the Fajitas de la Casa for the table, which included beef, chicken and shrimp as well as our choice of flour or corn tortillas.

The good: the portion we were served could have fed four or five people.

The bad: the taste and the texture. Clearly everything in the dish had been previously prepared and was sitting in a steam table waiting for a victim to order it. Both the beef and the chicken looked like gray chunks of poor quality stir-fry, with no salt, let alone any other type of seasoning. Onions and peppers were a gooey, soggy mess. Now the worst part: I had to spit out a shrimp when I bit into it. It was tough as rubber and coated with some type of unidentifiable barbeque type sauce that was a terrible contrast to any shrimp, let alone these.

We pecked at the food as best we could then asked for the check. The server nicely asked if everything was ok, and I said no, it was terrible. He quickly returned with our check, with half of the price comped.

No one should have to eat food of such a poor quality.