Surf and Turf, Travis-Style

Guadalajara Mexican Restaurant

Sunday-Thursday, 11am-10pm; Friday-Saturday, 11am-11pm

Located in a brand-new shopping center in Lakeway, this is the new location of the original Guadalajara, a popular restaurant near the north end of RR 620 in the Lakeline Mall area. The interior has the expected feel and décor of a strip-mall restaurant: a large space with a colorful bar, booths along the walls, and a festive, family-oriented atmosphere, with mariachi music emanating from the speakers. Although not spectacular, Guadalajara serves fresh, classic Tex-Mex food and margaritas. The menu offers a wide variety of standard Tex-Mex favorites and some chef's specialties that are closer to interior Mexican dishes. The appetizers include three variations of nachos (not very different from each other, as far as I could tell), chile con queso, guacamole, and Queso Flameado ($4.99), a decadent dish of melted Monterrey Jack cheese on top of a generous pile of spicy chorizo, served with homemade flour tortillas. The entrées are huge. The Pollo Poblano ($8.99), a chicken breast topped with sautéed poblanos, tomatoes, and onions, covered with sour cream and smothered in melted cheese was good, but the huge amount of cheese and sour cream made it too rich and masked the flavors of the sautéed vegetables. The Carnitas de Puerco ($8.99) were also good: tender on the inside and crisp on the outside. Both entrées were served with rice, beans, and a small salad. Dessert offerings are very limited: sopapillas or flan ($2.95), which is homemade, very good, and also an immense portion, but I would leave out the overkill of the whipped topping garnish.