El Camino Real

It doesn’t look like much from the outside. Just a ground floor restaurant in a low-rise condo development and because of the big windows, it could have passed for any retail store with smokers huddling outside the entrance. When you step inside, you might think that you were somewhere just north of the Rio Grande. The décor has a somewhat Texas Wild West feel complete with huge caricatures of cactus on the giant windows. That is if you don’t look beyond the windows and see the modern new condo/commercial development across the street that would put you right back to the still being gentrified NoLib.


All these come after the initial shock from walking into this faux Texas make-believe: The deafening noise from the crowd at the bar trying to talk over the music, other people, and even themselves. I don’t have the best of hearing from years of listening to loud music in confined spaces, but that was even loud for my not so 100% hearing.

The place has done a pretty good job re-creating a Southwest environment doing Tex-Mex food. Interestingly, the menu doesn’t show “Tex-Mex”. It instead has “Tex” and “Mex” with BBQ on one side and typical Mexican peasant food on the other. It even got me all excited when I saw Shiner Bock on the beer list! That’s the official Aiiyah BBQ beer! That had not been available in Philly! Sorry to say, the excitement was dashed when the waiter told me that the only way they could get that beer was to order 40 cases directly but the shipment has not arrived yet. #$%!@^*!

Tourist Tree trying to console the disappointed Aiiyah who didn’t get his Shiner Bock. He had a Laurel Double Bock instead while Tree drank a Dog Fish Brown Ale.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 

 

 
Our fried pickle chips arrived at our table sizzling hot. They were so fresh and hot from the fryer that I could not even pick them up but these pickle had a nice taste to them and the spice in the thin batter had given the chips a good spicy after-kick. The caveat was you had to eat them hot. Once they had cooled down, they became soggy and quite greasy. The spicy mayo sauce did not excite me. It was more of a distraction.
 

After some arm twisting, I was able to persuade the Gringo Tree to forgo one of her favorite food groups by skipping the burrito and go up the food chain for the ribs instead. Both the pork and the beef ribs arrived at the table stacked high like wood ready for a bonfire. They also arrived dry with no sauce on them but grilled nicely with some char on the meat.
 
 
 
 

Pork Ribs

Beef Ribs

The pork rib was tender but not falls-off-the-bone tender. The side view showed no pink smoke ring on the meat. Was this Texas rib smoked at all? The rub on the rib tasted decent but there was no character in it. Whatever spices used for the rub did not get carried into the meat which was moist but…, bland.

There were two bottles of BBQ sauces on the table, sweet and spicy. The sweet sauce was, sweet; but it also suffered from a lack of character as with the rib. There was nothing special about it. The spicy version was marginally better with a little more taste in the flavor department but not in the spicy area. It was also a bit too much on the sweeter side.

The beef ribs were big. They were attractive and looked delicious. They were quite tender and juicy but a bit too much on the fatty side, even more so than this cut of meat should had been. The meat was more flavorful than the pork rib but that probably due more to the fact that beef in general has more flavor than pork instead of a well execution of a properly used spice rub to bring the flavor out.

I enjoyed eating the beef ribs more so than the pork ribs; not because they were that good, but because, unfortunately, it was just better than the other.

The cole slaw was in perfect alignment with the rest of our meal; nothing absolutely wrong but just a simple lack of flavor and hence, character. The carrots in this dish did add a very nice and refreshing crunch to the otherwise underperformance of this ensemble.


Something that I did enjoy was the Texas toasts that came with the ribs. Each piece was toasted just right and with the right amount of crunchiness and softness. Perfect for soaking up the grease from the ribs.

 
This restaurant has everything going for it: The concept, the décor, the vibe, and even a rowdy crowd to go with the bar. Unfortunately, the kitchen could not turn out food that would put this place where it should be. It has the potential but it did not seize the opportunity to tap into that potential. At times, it seemed the kitchen purposely had turned its attempt to dial down the food to suit the gringo taste; much like an “authentic” Chinese restaurant making Egg Foo Yong and Chow Mein for the indifferent Gweilo taste.
The same can be said for the service. We sat at the bar for a good many minutes before we were served despite the bartender walking back and forth in front of us during the entire period tending to mundane things. Our waiter was cheerful and helpful when he first came to the table. It did take him a while to come back to take our order and he did return after our main dishes were delivered. That was the last we saw of him until I went searching for him for the check after our meal and had been sitting around for a while with an empty table while the deafening noise was becoming painful. May be, it was this same noise that had turned off my brain function for taste which had made our dinner uneventful.

The lackluster performance of this restaurant was a surprise considering that this place is owned by the same entity who also owns the very well-received Bar Ferdinand across the walkway. So El Camino Real has not been real enough to be a contender for good BBQ in the city. I do not know how the “Mex” side of the menu fares but judging from the “Tex” side, I am not holding out much hope. I would return to this place on a quieter night for a nicely chilled Shiner Bock with some fried pickles before going to dinner somewhere else, with a pair of eye plugs.