Was in Kenner last week for the Sysco Food Show. For out of town participants they sometimes provide rooms. We were lucky enough to score. We came in Tuesday afternoon and I had scouted out a place to have dinner. We found our way there and were very pleased. The chips and salsa were great especially the salsa. Both The Chef and I had not encountered this type before. It was so good that we said almost simultaneously " It is good enough to drink". Based on the menu they are a pan-hispanic place ranging from Mexico to northern Latin America. I am still kicking myself for not thinking to ask for a take away menu. They had a whole page of breakfast items. Several reviews I had read said authentic food and I think it was
I got an appetizer that I had encountered before in an El Salvadorian pupuseria. It is a salad of fried yuca with a marinated cabbage slaw and chicharon. This one had an added salsa. There were minor quibbles. Some of the yuca pieces were too big and undercooked and the chicaron were pork belly pieces and hard as rocks. However the cabbage was perfect and the overall flavor like I remember.
The Chef got an empanada app. Three fried crust pockets loaded with ground meat and vegetables like corn and beans. He also received some cabbage slaw that had a feta like queso on it. It had not been brined so it was fresher and not quite as salty. I am lucky I got a bite of the empanadas but there were delicous. I was drinking a guanaban or soursop Agua Fresca made from the actual fruit. This is one of those tropical fruit that taste like a blend of fruits. This one tasted of strawberries, pineapple and coconut. The Chef was drinking the exotic beers that they had including Pacifica.
The chef opted for a Carne Asada dish. He received beef, a mozzarella like cheese, cooked beans, rice, and salad with a lime wedge and flour tortillas. My taste of the beef proved tender and juicy with just the right seasoning. He sat there making tacos quite happily.
Mine was Camerone el Diablo. Shrimp in chipotle sauce. I got refried beans that I swear were made to order. Not a big fan but these were outstanding. I also got the salad and rice with lime. I went with corn tortilla and I got basically a pupusa ( thick corn tortilla). The shrimp had not been overcooked and I swear the sauce was chipotle in adobo pureed then thinned with some stock. It was that good kind of spicy. It never hurt so good. I would lick my finger and let the heat subside then go after it again.
We shared a piece of coconut flan that was to die for. It was so rich and we were so stuffed that we barely finished it. I wish we had such a place in Lake Charles. Good food. We were the only anglos in the place. I love a place where I can barely make myself understood. It seems to mean good cuisine and great atmosphere.
I got an appetizer that I had encountered before in an El Salvadorian pupuseria. It is a salad of fried yuca with a marinated cabbage slaw and chicharon. This one had an added salsa. There were minor quibbles. Some of the yuca pieces were too big and undercooked and the chicaron were pork belly pieces and hard as rocks. However the cabbage was perfect and the overall flavor like I remember.
The Chef got an empanada app. Three fried crust pockets loaded with ground meat and vegetables like corn and beans. He also received some cabbage slaw that had a feta like queso on it. It had not been brined so it was fresher and not quite as salty. I am lucky I got a bite of the empanadas but there were delicous. I was drinking a guanaban or soursop Agua Fresca made from the actual fruit. This is one of those tropical fruit that taste like a blend of fruits. This one tasted of strawberries, pineapple and coconut. The Chef was drinking the exotic beers that they had including Pacifica.
The chef opted for a Carne Asada dish. He received beef, a mozzarella like cheese, cooked beans, rice, and salad with a lime wedge and flour tortillas. My taste of the beef proved tender and juicy with just the right seasoning. He sat there making tacos quite happily.
Mine was Camerone el Diablo. Shrimp in chipotle sauce. I got refried beans that I swear were made to order. Not a big fan but these were outstanding. I also got the salad and rice with lime. I went with corn tortilla and I got basically a pupusa ( thick corn tortilla). The shrimp had not been overcooked and I swear the sauce was chipotle in adobo pureed then thinned with some stock. It was that good kind of spicy. It never hurt so good. I would lick my finger and let the heat subside then go after it again.
We shared a piece of coconut flan that was to die for. It was so rich and we were so stuffed that we barely finished it. I wish we had such a place in Lake Charles. Good food. We were the only anglos in the place. I love a place where I can barely make myself understood. It seems to mean good cuisine and great atmosphere.
4 comments:
It's a good place. Unfortunately, the new outlet on Carrollton is pretty mediocre.
FYI, it's Fiesta Latina. Sorry, couldn't help myself. I teach Spanish as a day job.
Not a problem. I correct people a lot of the time about food so I should be able to take.
I had a good breakfast and a good plate of carne asada that looks like the one in the photo at the Carrolton location and it was good. Maybe you caught them on an off day?
Jonathan
Many of things that make Kenner's Fiesta Latina great, like papusas and homemade chorizo, aren't even on the menu at the Carrollton location.
Unless they've added those items recently. Could be the case.
With Telemar not far away, there is no way I'd opt for Fiesta Latina on Carrollton. The one of Airline, however, is a different matter. In fact, I regretted not stopping there tonight when I drove home from a flight.
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