Philly-Philly goes Mexican

As spring break is to spring, so is the East coast to cheese steaks, Italian hoagies and Naples-style pizza, and of course, Yakima is to tacos, enchiladas, and pozole. At least that’s what two young men just in from Philly found out.  Philadelphians and recent Super Bowl Winning Eagle fans Chase Cook and Chase Rotelle recently found themselves on their inaugural stopover in Yakima (excitedly breaking their spring break routine of surfing in Puerto Rico) so they could visit their newly displaced buddy, JP Newstead, who just moved back to the Valley after a long-time stint out East with his family.

The fastest way to understand the heart of a community is through its food.  I figured there was no better place for the guys to experience the delights of the art that is Mexican food than right here at Yakima’s Antojitos Mexicanos on Summitview Avenue.  Having to pick just one of the many great Mexican restaurants over the bounty of other great stops in town was unfair.  Heavenly refried beans and chicken enchiladas at Mercedes.  Lengua tacos at Tammy’s.  The tamales at Los Hernandez.  The barbacoa or asada at just about anywhere.  One thing is certain; that first taste of Antojitos Mexicanos food does kind of assuage your regret over the places you missed.

A quick word about our guests; these are no average teens.  For one, they punch well above their weight when it comes to appetite.  The smaller of the two-man Donner party will make child’s play of a pound of pasta.  The larger Chase seems to be half-human, half locust.  So, they can eat.  More surprising still is they know good food because they have good, food-loving parents.  One father is a professionally trained chef, who moonlights as a land developer.  The other is owner to arguably Philadelphia’s best restaurant.  They boys are not afraid to try new things and love to cook as well.  Enter the tripe taco…

After devouring chips, beans, and many salsa samples, “I’VE NEVER HAD CHIPS THIS GOOD!” it was onto a first course of pozole.  The boys had no idea what it was, but after properly loading up the soup with the plate of fresh accouterments–lime, chilies, shredded cabbage, diced onions and radishes–they tore into it like animals.  Between the slurping, moaning, splashing and many and various incantations of “OH MY GOD!” it was easy to see the look of satisfaction and wonder on their faces.  “I’VE NEVER HAD SOUP THIS GOOD!

Then came the mains.  Barbacoa Torta.  Fish Tacos.  Tacos Al Carbon.  Enchilada Rancheros.  Next thing I knew, silence, and a blurred fury of elbows and queso shrapnel.  One Chase chided the other that he hadn’t eaten enough and he was bringing shame to his family.  The boys did some damage to the dishes as well as their small intestines.  That devil-may-care, bring-on-the-meat-sweats attitude is somewhat like a point of pride in old Philadelphia.  You don’t just show up and eat like a debutante.  It can get aggressive.  I once saw these boys devour a Cowboys fan after a cruel Eagles loss.  Right there in the parking lot of Lincoln Financial too.  Didn’t even waste time to drag the carcass over to the pile of burning tires being used for warmth. But today, they were full; and by God satisfied.