 |
 |
Banditos, a closer look
Aloha!
5/18/09 - With all this beautiful weather we've been having, I know it seems like summer, but technically, summer's more than a month away! Even so, it sure does seem like we're already there, not only with this beautiful weather, but also at the movie theatres! Star Trek, Wolverine, Monsters vs. Aliens, Angels & Demons, The Soloist - all kine! Wifey and I saw the first three so far, and on this particularly lovely night, took in Star Trek, in the pre-quel form George Lucas seems to have started in so many different movie series. I tried getting Wifey to watch some of the older Star Trek movies, just to make the movie more enjoyable, but when it came down to the actual Blockbuster/couch-snuggle night, she was more interested in the latest comedy/love story thing - ooooh, great!!!
We made the mini-trek out to Pearl Ridge Shopping Center to see the show, and happened to pass-by an interesting little fast-food spot in the Food Court, right outside the theatres. Mongolian food? Hmmm... Upon closer inspection, there was this huge, round, black iron griddle upon which the cook was tossing-up some stir fry with long, flattened sticks of wood, almost like a couple of over-sized rulers, or maybe thin yard-sticks. Wifey and I already had our minds set on Mexican tonight, so in passing by, I asked the person at the counter, in the most polite way possible, if I could take a pic, to which she flatly said "no, no..."
I said "Are you sure? It's free advertising for you...?"
I mean, these people, they just don't understand sometimes. I've run into this on occasion, and it always amazes me. I understand that I could be a competitor stealing trade secrets (like anything out in public can even be a trade secret in the first place!), but wouldn't it make sense to at least ask what the pictures are for? A while back, I went to the Sizzler's in Kalihi with the intention of sharing a closer look, and again, without even asking what the pictures were for, the manager came at me like I was a thief or something, rudely causing a mini-scene in front of several guests! Believe me, I felt like either making an even bigger scene right there or better yet, calling him outside, but hey, I was with mom, and I was just starting out with this site, so I figured I'd better lay-low and keep my cool - you never know what'll come back to bite you in the arse later. I must admit, though, it was reee-lly difficult holding back in the heat of the moment, and almost just as difficult coming home and not trashing that guy all over the internet right then and there!
But, aaah, what's the sense? Let idiot's be idiot's, and move on with better things - like our own lives, hopefully! Being happy ourselves is sometimes the ultimate revenge on the proto-type angry person, yes?
A good movie, a good dinner, and good company - the world's a much better place all of a sudden, yes? A margarita or three also helps, especially when going Mexican!
Bandito's has been around for as long as I can remember, located at the East Complex of the Pearl Ridge Shopping Center in Aiea. Parking is easy, and always available in the large parking lot behind the building. Most of the large and diverse menu is filled with traditional Mexican dishes, but there are also several other options, as well, such as appetizer's like loaded potato skins, buffalo-like wings, and regular or Cajun-style fries, along with entrees like blackened mahimahi, shrimp pasta, burgers, bbq chicken or ribs, and sandwiches filled with chicken, kalua pork, and top sirloin steak.
First to greet you at the entrance is your friendly host, who escorts you up a short flight of stairs and through the curiously red-tinted lighting of the bar area, which is visible on the right lower-corner of the next shot.
An even shorter flight of stairs leads you to the main dining area, which is bright, festive, and reasonably spacious, with Mex-American designs of a somewhat old-school nature throughout.
Wifey always loves a good margarita when going Mexican, and tonight was no exception, while I, in typical form, stuck with a cold Gordon Biersch Ale on tap. I did have a sip of her 'rita, though, and it was so good (really sweet) I had to get one later, as well!
The first thing on our table was a sampler platter, filled with, from high noon/midnight and then clockwise, calamari rings, cheese quesadillas, taquitos, spicy wings, and jalapeno poppers. A healthy mix of sauces were also offerred, including sour cream, Ranch, guacamole, and marinara.
Pretty much, it was several of your favorite common culprits, but for $8.95, I believe it was well worth-it. The only thing on the plate that wasn't tasty was the taquitos, not that that came as much of a surprise - I have yet to taste a good taquito, anywhere, anyplace! That thick corn husk, that always-dry pork or chicken filling, that seemingly right-out-of-the-freezer flavor and texture - maybe I need to risk catching pig flu and the thuggish violence of armed drug dealers and head to the homeland herself to sample a real taquito, but for now, here on this rock, I can only do my best to avoid it altogether.
Everything else was fine, the rings coming surprisingly soft and tender (although the batter could've been a bit crispier), the jalapeno poppers coming stuffed with a smooth, mellow cream cheese stuffing, and the wings large, slightly spicy, and perfect for a starting dish.
Actually, that wasn't the first plate to hit our table. First was actually the chips, in case you were wondering, and I know you were, always trying to inquire and find out if the salsa was fresh or not. Well, this one seemed, as almost every other Mexican restaurant on the island, to be a mixture of both. What can you expect, right? It was still fine, as were the chips, which were thick, crisp, and served in relatively generous portions.
One item that is made completely fresh and from scratch, though, are the flour tortillas. The helpful and friendly manager proudly explained that they bring flour in all the way from Sonora, Mexico, and one of their workers, also from Mexico, shapes, presses, and molds them fresh with the help of several different machines, located just upstairs of the dining room.
We did notice that the tortillas lasted much longer than regular tortillas, meaning they didn't harden after exposure to air, nor did they turn starchy and brittle, but kept a relatively even consistency and remained soft, tender, and pliable. Yes, it definitely makes a difference!
We went with two of the items our friendly manager recommended, the first coming as one of the big-sellers here, a fajita fiesta, as they call it. It comes with either vegetables, chicken, steak, or prawns, but since the chicken and steak are priced the same price, at $13.99, you can get a combination of the two - a little inside info, it is, as it doesn't say so on the menu. Add some guacamole for another buck, and wifey was all set.
The sizzling platter arrived still hissing as loud as a caged mangoose (ever heard one of them cornered before?), throwing-up billows of steam high into the atmosphere. Every so often, thoughout the course of our meal, angry mangoose's showed up intermittently all over the dining room in impressive display's of force. The hot skillet was full not only of chicken and steak, but generous portions of fresh bell peppers, onions, and tomatoes, bathed in Mexi-flavored herbs and spices.
On the side were your usual culprits - refried beans, rice, salad, guacamole, sour cream, and those delicious, fresh-made tortillas, wrapped to keep them warm and tender.
My plate was called a tacos al carbone, which consists of sliced, marinated top sirloin covered with guacamole, sour cream, and pico de gallo. Instead of refried beans, I went with black beans (you can also select frijoles de la olla, or whole pinto beans), which came slightly sweet and surprisingly light, at least as compared to other beans.
Since it was top sirloin, I thought it'd be tough and hard, but it actually wasn't so bad at all, really. I've tasted Mexican steak a lot more flavorful, but just getting sirloin to be reasonably tender was good enough to keep me happy!
All in all, I was glad how the evening turned out. The large servings, decent prices, roomy dining area, good service, and that always-festive Mexican atmosphere all combined for a great place for a casual dinner and a few drinks. If you can take-in a movie, as well, all the more power to ya!
Happy hour's are from 3pm to 6pm nightly, with various specials running, but curiously enough, they don't have any margarita specials! Instead, they offer 70 cents to $1 off of anything on the drink list (except for bottled beers, which are $2.55 per domestic and $3.25 for imports), depending on what is ordered. Multi-person orders, like pitchers ($2 off) or bottles of wine ($5 off), are also offered - not the best deals, but hey, deals nonetheless.
Hope you've all had a great weekend, and are geared-up for the coming work-week!
Take care and Aloha till next time!
Aku
Post a Comment or just say hello! Don't worry about leaving REAL names if you don't want to! Changing to Code names are fine, but just stay consistent with your code names, allright? No e-mails will be posted without consent! Hope to hear from you all, even if you disagree!
