New Mexico Central

Pete’s Mexican Cantina Shows Promise, But The Jury’s Still Out

by John Weckerle

This evening, the NM-Central staff (minus Chief Staying Home For Dinner Correspondent Wilson) took the evening off and went out for our evening meal.  Our first choice for the evening was going to be Sandia Crust Pizza, which serves a noteworthy eggplant rollatini, but after a neighbor asked us if Pete’s Mexican Restaurant and Cantina – Home of the Halfbreed – had opened yet, we decided to take a peek and see if they had started operations.

Boy, had they.  Your editor dropped the rest of the party off at the door and ended up parking on the shoulder of North 14.  We were seated immediately, despite the fact that the parking lot was completely full.

The prospect of once again being able to have a margarita (or, for that matter, any mixed drink) before or with dinner was apparently a draw; there were a lot of people in the place, and a lot of margarita glasses on the tables.  Unfortunately, after waiting more than 10 minutes for our drink order, our waiter returned to tell us that they did not have the tequila we requested (the very popular Jose Cuervo 1800 Silver).  Now, there are those who will say that it doesn’t matter what kind of tequila one puts in a margarita.  Such people are not to be trusted, voted for or, for that matter, allowed to vote.  Or reproduce.  Under such circumstances, one expects the waiter to suggest another middle-shelf tequila.  He didn’t.  We got regular Cuervo Gold instead.  Strike one.

Chips and salsa were on the table before the drinks.  That is to say, some very tasty salsa and some whole chips on top of a bunch of smashed ones.  This is the sort of thing that does not go over well in other states, but in New Mexico, it’s nigh unto treason.  Strike two.

The menu at Pete’s contains a mix of regular favorites – New Mexican foods, steaks (Lucy says they need to add an 8-ounce steak; 12 ounces is too big for a lot of people), and so on – and other things we don’t see in some restaurants.  Shrimp Veracruz is one of the selections, and shrimp fajitas are another.  A green chile pasta dish was also featured, and that could be ordered with shrimp. Your editor was delighted to be able to get something with some protein that didn’t involve meat or poultry.  With great enthusiasm, I ordered the pasta with shrimp – and at almost exactly 5:45 in the afternoon, the waiter replied, “We’re out of shrimp.”

Strike three.

»» Pete’s Mexican Cantina Shows Promise, But The Jury’s Still Out

Filed under: Restaurants,Sandia Park,West Mountains | |3 Comments