This Way to Fajita Avenue

With the absence of Mary (who's in the Philippines for the second time this year... we miss you, girl!) and the R&R schedule of Shoegarfreeruby, we decided to have a "guest blogger" for this entry. Baka kasi sawa na kayo sa'min, teehee. We coerced (and bribed and promised heaven and earth) good friend J to write this piece for us. Thanks, J! - Eyecandy and Sundrenched

Mexican cuisine is what we had in mind last September 16, 2009, the start of our Eid vacation.

I had the pleasure of having another food tasting happening with the The Pink Tarha ladies at Fajita Avenue, somewhere in Dabab street in Suleimania. We were looking for Mexican cuisine at its finest and 'fajita' sounded Mexican enough. The restaurant looked inviting from afar, but we were kinda lost looking for the family section. There were two doors separated by a few meters but there was no "single" or "family" section sign waiting. We had to do go with our guts to find the right door.

Welcome to Fajita Avenue! Walk that aisle!

The restaurant's interiors, to our surprise, doesn't look Mexican. There was no indication that we'll be experiencing some burritos and enchiladas (as S and E expected) too. The wooden interiors and cozy lighting were perfect for a dinner that can last a long time. We love that the center aisle was spacious (we can even do cartwheels in there, only if we can). There's a playground for kids too with a console and tv (showing Ice Age 1 when we were there, yey!). Perfect way to keep them occupied while the adults enjoy good food.

Go play!

On to the food... I don’t know what fajita is before going to this restaurant (but the Pink Tarha Ladies are that persuasive I decided to go anyway), so I did some research and thanks to Wikipedia here it is.

A fajita (pronounced /fəˈhiːtə/) (Spanish pronunciation: [faxita]) is a generic term used in Tex-Mex cuisine[1], referring to grilled meat served on a flour or corn tortilla. Though originally only skirt steak[2], popular meats today also include chicken, pork, shrimp and all cuts of beef. In restaurants, the meat is often cooked with onions and bell peppers. Popular condiments are shredded lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, salsa, pico de gallo, cheese, and tomato.

Here's our starters:

Prawn Cream Soup, SR19

Caesar Salad, SR 17
Iceberg lettuce with Caesar dressing and parmesan cheese

Garlic Cheese Bread, SR13
A basket of garlic bread with melted mixed cheese

Trio Platter, SR 29
Triple mixture of chicken wings, fried cheese fingers, boneless buffalo wings, blue cheese dressing, and tomato sauce

Well, I ordered a Caesar Salad, and some Garlic Cheese Bread, since I was craving for something “cheesy”. The cheese bread was fantastic! Eyecandy started her meal with their seafood soup. She found it creamy but unfresh. Sundrenched who had a taste of it said it reminded her of blended street fishball. Hmn, is that a good or a bad sign? The latter also ordered the sampler, a mix of buffalo wings, chicken balls and cheese sticks. The chicken pieces were okay and the sticks were great: hot and crispy!

Saffron Salmon, SR43
Grilled fresh salmon served with saffron sauce and a side order of your choice

Garlic Rib Eye, SR53 (10 oz)
Grilled rib eye steak marinated in Cajun butter topped with garlic sauce, served with a side order of your choice

For the main course, E had the salmon. It was delicious! The pasta and vegetable side dishes were so-so. S had the rib-eye steak, which tasted a lot like liempo! That's a good thing, although the steak was a bit dry. The garlic sauce though packed in some flavor. I also ordered some “Fajita Marina” which sounded good (and it is but right to order the resto's bestseller, right?), but it would’ve tasted better if it arrived! The waiter kinda forgot to add them to the order (he apologized afterwards). So we actually didn't eat fajita in a fajita restaurant!

Volcano Cake, SR25

Strawberry juice, SR10 and Saudi Cooler, SR12

For dessert we had Volcano Cake. We enjoyed the vanilla ice cream and the moist chocolate cake. For drinks, we loved the strawberry cocktail and there were tidbits of strawberry. S enjoyed her Saudi cocktail although there was really nothing to it that separates it from other Saudi cocktails around. The food in general was good, but kindda served in small proportions. But it was good. But I would have enjoyed it if we did get a taste of some real Fajita, maybe next time, when we are ready to?! (And when the waiter can already hear my order loud and clear?)

Thanks Girls!! Hope to hang out with you again soon!

- J

Fajita Avenue
Dabab St., Suleimania
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Tel. No. 01-464-4999