Sideoats Cafe and Bakery

I've known Chef Mike Hennessy for a number of years and have had the pleasure of working with him on a few occasions albeit briefly.  I've always been impressed with Mike and his drive to succeed and his can-do-attitude. His Menard eatery Sideoats Cafe and Bakery is a testament to what Mike is able to do and just how well his team rallies around him to put out consistently good food and desserts. I've been to Sideoats a few times but this was the first time I have decided to do a review because I was able to sample their savory dishes as well as dessert.

 We were on the road Monday night and rather than stopping at Junction for the ever familiar taste of Coopers BBQ I wanted a nice sit down meal with a few more choices along with some dessert.  We drove the few extra miles and arrived in Menard about and hour and a half before closing time.  We were happy to finally be getting near to home but we would have been eating at 9 had we waited.  I prefer to have my dinner between 6-8 pm if at all possible and Sideoats was just the place I had a hankering for. 

We were greeted promptly as we came in.  It wasn't that busy but in a small town and on a Monday night you'd expect things to be a little more laid back and this was no exception.  We ordered our drinks and after they were served we ordered our food.  I had an opportunity to take a few pics to highlight the interesting atmosphere at Sideoats. 






















I decided to have a Chicken Fried steak while my wife opted for a grilled chicken sandwich on Rye.  If you follow this blog you know my boys by now and that they usually eat the same thing when we travel and of course Jared had a cheeseburger.  Jonah had a grilled cheese with some home made chips.

My meal started off with a beautiful salad.  Doesn't everyone say that when they talk about salad? Well they might but I really mean it.  Take a look:

This mixed greens salad had a few cucumbers and grape tomatoes strewn in.  There were a couple of bites of celery and onions and as you can see it was garnished with some tasty home made croutons.  Here's another view of this gorgeous salad:

Oh and did I mention the dressing was also home made?  This creamy buttermilk ranch was the perfect lubricating agent for this wonderful salad.  In fact this salad was so good and my wife so impressed by it that she had to get one herself.  OH waitress?  Another salad please......Thank yuh!





I've had many chicken fried steaks on many occasions.  In San Angelo there are many Mexican food places that serve them with chicken gravy on them and they are all fine.  The real way to serve a CFS is to cover it in cream gravy.  Chef Mike knows how to put a good plate together and this CFS was tender, tasty, and perfectly seasoned.  To the right of the CFS you will see some grilled or what I've also heard called "scorched" green beans.  These fresh green beans are tossed with some caramelize onions and allowed to scorch a bit on the grill bringing out their natural sugars.  WOW.  This is one of my new favorites.  The french fries were also very good and the yeast roll went perfectly with a pat of butter dipped in the gravy.  I was most impressed with it.

My wife had a Monterrey Jack Chicken Sandwich with mushrooms, lettuce, tomatoes and mayo on Rye along with some fries.  It looked good and it was also very tasty.  It also retained its moisture and you could see the tasty breast meat glistening under the bread.  Here's a pic:



My son's burger was equally appetizing as you can see here:

This mushroom Swiss burger looked to be juicy but of course in the hands of my 13 year old it didn't last long enough for me to get a bite of it!  I wasn't able to get a pic of Jonah's Grilled Cheese Sandwich but I know he liked it because it was also gone.

We also elected to have some dessert.  Jared had Tuxedo Cake, while Elizabeth and Jonah had Cherry Pie.  I decided on Apple Pie ala mode and I don't think any of us was disappointed.  Here are the pictures:

I topped it all off with a glass of Texas Iced tea.  It was an excellent meal.

Food:

Everything we had was perfect. 

Atmosphere was great:

Atmosphere at Sideoats keeps with the theme.  Laid back.

Excellent Prices:

Prices for the quality you get can't be beat.   

Service Excellent: 

Our waitress was experienced and it showed.  She did an excellent job and took care of us.  If a doctorate was ever issued for being a waitress she would have graduated with honors.  Can't say enough about just how good she was. 

Overall:

Mike Hennessy knows what he's doing and I'm so glad he's found his niche with this place.  This place is highly recommended with no reservations whatsoever.  Get to Menard, Texas and give it a try.  You won't be disappointed. 

Miguelito's Mexican Grill

My recent forays into south Texas’ oil boom areas searching for sustenance have until last weekend been very unfruitful in the areas of quality and flavor not to mention cleanliness.  I happened to be in the Carrizo Springs/Crystal City area due to a death in our family but it was also Father’s Day and so I would be eating out as is our usual tradition.  I was in need of something new and unfamiliar.  I had eaten at Lee’s Steakhouse, The Balia Inn, The Royal Palace, Yolie’s Steakhouse, Rosita’s, in addition to all the fast food staples like McDonald’s, Sonic, Subway, Pizza Hut, and Dairy Queen.  I have thus far been unimpressed with the food in this area, as far as full service restaurants are concerned.  That these fast food joints are even in these small towns is a testament to their consistency and their overall quality at the national level.  You can go anywhere and basically get the same food, and I’m not particularly into eating at a national chain when I go out of town. Especially not for Father’s Day.  Having said all that I am pleased to report that Crystal City, Texas has helped me.  It has helped me to maintain my hope that even in a small town you can find a good quality local restaurant that does things right.  Miguelito’s is a place that I had passed by many a time and usually because they were closed on the days that I happened to be in the area.  Now that they are open on Sundays there was no reason not to try their cuisine.  The restaurant is located on Veterans Ave. in what I would deem to be the middle of town.  The building outside is built up with stone and with all of its colorful signage would seem to be a festive place.  The inside of the building turns the atmosphere up even more with bright colored walls, Piñatas, Latino and Chicano art and festive streamers.

 
When you first walk in the building looks deceivingly small.  Once you get around the corner though you do see another dining area with quite a few tables that will seat at least 4 people each and a few that seat 6-8.  As we stood waiting for a place to sit the first thing I noticed was that the plates coming out of the window played on the theme of festivity. Lots of colorful veggies and nice bright sauces adorned the plates as they came out.  My first thought was: well at least it looks good!   

For it being Father’s Day we had a very short wait of not more than 10 minutes so I was pleased with that.  After we were seated,   I perused the menu and was glad to see they had some of my favorites there.  Beef Fajitas, Steaks, Mexican Plates, and even Catfish.  Then I saw Menudo on the menu.  I like to try Menudo at places just to see if they have done their due diligence which in this case means 1) thoroughly cleansing the meat of hair and unsavory smells, 2) correctly seasoning the dish, and 3) making it look appetizing.  So I ordered a small bowl of that along with another Texas stand by beef fajitas.  I’m looking for something in a Mexican restaurant with these two dishes obviously.  Can they pull off 2 of the hardest dishes to make?  Are
they able to put out a consistently good product?  Fajita plates usually have the standard Beef, Chicken, or Shrimp (Chicken and Shrimp aren’t really fajitas but that’s another story) along with some beans, rice, tortillas and either some guacamole, pico de gallo or some other hot concoction and sometimes sour cream and shredded cheese depending where you are.  Miguelito’s fajita plate comes with pico de gallo and a lime right on top of the meat as the top layer with sautéed onions and bell peppers mixed in.  This is served (as is customary in many places) on a sizzling cast iron comál or hot plate. My personal preference is to have the pico on the side but this particular set up works well also.  The beef had great flavor with a tinge of lime.  If I had a complaint about this it’s that the meat was slightly overcooked for my tastes.  I prefer medium rare to medium on any steak that I’m eating.  The Borracho beans served with the fajitas were the best part of the combo.  They were perfectly cooked and were garnished with a small bit of cilantro.  The rice was notable in that it had authentic flavor and was moist but just a bit overcooked.
My wife had a green chicken enchilada plate and I did get a small taste of that and the chicken inside was very moist.  The green sauce was mildly piquant and very tasty.This was a good plate.  She really enjoyed it.  We shared a bowl of menudo just to see what it tasted like and the flavor was great.  I would have preferred less fat on a lot of the meat and there was very little hominy.  Had those two things been remedied it would have been an excellent bowl of soup.  It came with the standard accoutrements of lemon wedges, fresh jalapeños, and onions along with a few tortillas.  Jared has his standard Cheeseburger with everything on it….lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pickles, mustard and mayonnaise.  He seemed to thoroughly enjoy it.  One of the most remarkable flavors I tasted at Miguelito’s was that of my daughter’s grilled Catfish.  Being a person raised in Texas and having had Catfish at home and at many restaurants I must say it has always been deep fried in a cornmeal batter and usually served with some French fries and hush puppies.  Miguelito’s gives you a choice of having it fried or grilled and my daughter opted for their grilled version.  The fish tasted very fresh and light and was grilled perfectly.  It was served with the traditional fries but no hush puppies.  She made an excellent choice and I think between my wife’s chicken enchiladas and her plate I would have to say those were probably the best 2 meals on the table. My fajitas were a close second.  On this trip to south Texas my faith was restored.  I really didn’t think that would happen in Crystal City but I’m so glad that I gave it a chance.     

Food:

But for the slightly overcooked meat and rice and a bit of fat on the tripe this meal would have been excellent all the way around

Atmosphere was great:

The piñatas and streamers really added to the festive atmosphere at Miguelito's. The colors pop and it is an upbeat type of place.

Excellent Prices:

Prices are what you’d expect in just about any Tex-Mex restaurant but I’d have to say getting a fajita plate for $8.99 is really a good deal.  

Service Good: 

Service was good but the waiter seemed green. Being so new he seemed a bit apprehensive and nervous about serving.  He just needs some more time doing it and he’ll become a pro.  I do have to say that although it took him some time he did bring everything extra we asked for.


Overall:

I’d definitely eat at Miguelito’s again. In fact I may have to stop there the next time I’m in town on the way to my Mother In Law’s place. 

Check out the website for more info: www.miguelitosmexicangrill.com