Journal Restaurant Review
La Fogata Steak & Grill
2150 Del Rio Blvd.
Eagle Pass, Texas
Eagle Pass and Maverick County are blessed to have many choices of restaurants and eateries. Just by Googling alone, one can review a list of over seventy-five eateries in the area. Additionally, there are many that will not be found on any advertisement but depend on faithful customers to spread the word about their fine goods.
However, as my spouse and I were making a list of the places we frequent, we realized that we visit only a handful and conclude that we are not alone. Our goal in writing this column is to share our positive experiences at the restaurants in our area so that readers can be encouraged to try new places close to home.
Therefore, we will be helping our area businesses continue to grow and prosper. Our method will be simple and objective. Most importantly, we intend to perform our reviews anonymously; in other words, they won’t know we are coming or if we are there.
The first restaurant we visited was La Fogata on Del Rio Blvd. next to the America’s Best Value Inn. This location has been used by many restaurants in the past. Most recently it was the birthplace of La Parrilla San Miguel with the name of GUVA’s. My first visit was during the lunch hour. My friend and I were welcomed immediately at the door and accompanied to our booth. I found the restaurant to be small, which gave a very cozy friendly atmosphere.
Additionally, they have a closed area towards the back which I presume is for private parties or special occasion events. I loved how they had the booths right next to the windows which allowed the restaurant to be very bright thanks to all the natural light.
Tasty seasoned chips and guacamole salsa were brought to our table by the friendly waitress prior to ordering our drinks. The menu is a great combination of American and Mexican Food. My friend ordered the Philly Steak Sandwich ($7.99) and I ordered the CABO Fish Tacos ($6.99). While we were waiting I was surprised to see many what looked like frequent clients ordering a humongous bowl of Caldo de Res without even looking at the menu. Next time I will definitely order the Caldo de Res ($6.99). Our food arrived with a perfectly great presentation. The Philly Steak Sandwich had the traditional Philly Style Steak in a sub topped with grilled onions, green peppers, mushrooms, and melted Monterrey and Cheddar Cheese.
The bread was not as fresh as I would have preferred but the inside was good. My CABO Fish Tacos had a great presentation. The fried Tilapia was excellent. The top of the tacos were adorned with Cabbage and Aguacate with a little bit of Chipotle sauce (excellent sauce). Both plates were served with fries. Both had a great taste.On our second visit the same waitress greeted and took us to our table. As an appetizer I ordered an Aguacate Relleno ($6.99) (it is in the Salads side of the menu). This dish is a whole Avocado peeled and sliced down the center and filled with shrimp, and surimi in a delicious homemade chipotle sauce.
The “Divine” sauce made this dish very special and prompts you to order again. This dish is so good it could have been a good light lunch entree.
La Fogata offers a lunch special every day. We found that when you ordered from a la carte menu, the plates took longer to be served than the specials. Therefore, if you are in a hurry, it is better to order from the lunch specials menu. For our main entrée we ordered a Chile relleno de Queso ($5.99) from the Lunch Special and Agujas Nortenas ($11.99) from the a la carte menu.
For an extra $1.00 tasty shrimp can be added to the chile relleno. The lunch special is served with a tasty soup prior to your entrée. The Chile Relleno was served with a colorful yellow rice and refried beans with a green salad. The cheese filling in the chile relleno was excellent. The agujas were also EXCELENT. They were tasty, juicy and tender. The plate was served with charro beans and steamed vegetables. Other Lunch Special plates that I have ordered and have found them to be excellent and quick include Crispy Tacos ($6.99) and Chicken Milanesa ($7.99).
I highly recommend this restaurant for their fresh, tasty and great value food. Be prepared not to order alcoholic beverages. This restaurant does not serve beer or wine.
