Chiquito is a major chain of Mexcican restaurants here in the UK, there are 68 (according to Wikipedia at least) of them up and down the country, one of which is just a stones through from us so we thought we'd try out the new sizzling menu.
We prebooked so we were seated quickly, and greeted by staff in full Christmas mode, including wearing reindeer antlers! Wow, talk about getting in the mood. The place was decorated beautifully too.
I had a look at the drinks to begin and picked a mocktail called Yucatan Breeze. It was a citrus affair, and came decorated with a sprig of mint and a piece of passion fruit to show off its tropical edge. There was a lovely sour bite from the lime which was softened by the passion fruit and pineapple, it was a wonderfully refreshing drink, and it was beautiful to look at too.
We were also given some spicy popcorn as an aperitif.
For a starter I went with Tostadas, which consisted of a toasted mini flatbread topped with sweet potato and feta cheese, there were other options for a topping but I'm going through a phase of loving sweet potato, so I couldn't resist! When it came there was also plenty of salad on top which helped keep the flavours together. I enjoyed the contrast of the cheese with the sweet potato, but did find the Tostadas a little dangerous to eat. I'd recommend a knife and fork rather than balancing them!
For my main course I went with the Southern Fried Chicken and BBQ Pulled Pork. I was impressed by the presentation of the meal and the number of sides. There were chips, onion rings, coleslaw, BBQ sauce and a corn on the cob (which was passed to Spectre as per family tradition). The sauce was lovely and spicy, but sweet and tangy too. It went well with the meaty flavours and I loved the cheese topping which helped mellow the sauce. Both the chicken and pork were very moist and well cooked meats, and the combination made the platter fell like a proper feast. The flavour of the breadcrumb coating on the chicken wasn’t lost, it added a nice spice. If you are a fan of barbecue sauce this really is the perfect meal.
Okay so my main course was pretty substantial, but I still had room for dessert, let's call it a skill. As you may have picked up on from reading this blog I'm a bit of a chocolate fan to say the least, so the choice here was obvious: Toffee Popcorn Brownie. After we ordered there was a bit of a delay on our desserts. We went on a Friday night, and as the evening drew on the restaurant got busier and busier. After we chased the puddings arrived shortly after.
Mine was certainly worth waiting for; the brownie was soft and rich with a good strong dark chocolate taste. The popcorn on top added a bit of texture, and there was a creamy vanilla ice cream and strawberry garnish on the site to mix up the flavours and textures further. The dessert was without question a chocolate lovers dream.
Aside from the slight delay on puddings the service was excellent and the waitress was friendly and knew the menu well. We paid about £30 for three courses, including a cocktail, we all had a fab evening with good food and it certainly got us in the Christmas spirit too. There are so many fab things on the menu, it is definitely a place will be going back to very soon. :-)
By Cinabar
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