Cabrera's is souper
And the ceviche is also pretty good at this affordable Southland institution
By Erica Wayne 02/25/2010
Cabrera’s has been active in Southern California almost as long as I have, but I’m sorry to say that until last week, we’d never been introduced. The family opened its first restaurant in Arcadia in 1985 and now operates two others, one in Duarte and the other in Pasadena. But I, alas, was initially hooked on the late and still lamented Merida and then switched allegiance to El Portal. (Babita’s is our first choice for haute Mex, while El Torito is the hands-down favorite for large and festive family affairs.)
So, as I said, Cabrera’s has been only a name until I bought a $25 food voucher for three bucks on restaurant.com a few weeks back and decided to head out with a hungry friend for a leisurely lunch and the new Sherlock Holmes flick. I was equally undecided about both. Could Cabrera’s satisfy my fussy tastes in south-of-the-border cuisine? Could Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law convince me, a Conan Doyle fanatic, that they were Holmes and Watson? Dubious, dear readers, decidedly dubious!
We found the restaurant — which is on the site of the late (but not as lamented as Merida, to me anyway) Italian restaurant Bona Corso’s — in the 600 block of North Lake Avenue. I don’t remember Bona Corso’s décor all that well, but the acoustic ceiling and scalloped booths along the south wall rang a distant bell. Cabrera’s background music, of course, is Mexican. And there are TVs along the back wall — not sports, but one tuned to CNN and another advertising house margaritas.
Our voucher required a minimum purchase of $35, which we feared might be difficult given the relatively modest prices of most of Cabrera’s entrees. So, to augment our meal, we decided to order starters of guacamole ($4.95), ceviche ($6.95) and two bowls of sopa de tortilla ($6.45). These, along with our basket of warm chips and a relatively mild salsa, would pad the check along with our bellies.
Our guacamole came in a boat-shaped container, the ceviche in a huge sundae dish. Both were generously portioned and visually appealing, if perhaps a little under-spiced. However, my penchant for highly seasoned food was easily handled with the addition of some freshly chopped chiles and a plateful of sliced lime brought to our table by the accommodating (but somewhat incredulous) server. Once heated and pickled to the appropriate level of tongue-discomfort and lip-pucker, both starters were, if I say so myself, marvelous.
The soup was a real surprise. Even though, like most of the dishes on the menu, it was illustrated with a color photo, we had ignored both picture and definition, which clearly stated that we should expect a chicken and tomato broth with pasilla chile, chicken and tortilla strips, topped with avocado and panela cheese. So, we were surprised and delighted to find that a) the soup base was rich with tomato flavor and color and b) it was entrancingly smoky and pungent from the roasted chile. By far the best tortilla soup either of us had tasted in years.
We finished the soup wishing for even more and turned to our shared entree with some reluctance. The shrimp and crab enchiladas ($11.95) were certainly adequate. Two corn tortillas were stuffed (but only lightly) with a mix of shredded crab — my guess is canned snow — and small, tender shrimp (“cooked with respect” is the way my friend summed up) sautéed with cheese, bell pepper and onion and covered with a gentle, creamy green sauce. The rice was colorful (flecked with red and green pepper) and the beans, thank the lord, were a hearty red-brown with great texture instead of the dismal washed-out gray paste that finds its way onto so many plates in Mexican restaurants.
We were well over $35 and out of time after finishing the enchiladas. And the quality of most of the meal made both of us quite willing to come again to try other entrees, like their chicken mole (made with six different chiles — only $9.95), molcahete (beef, chicken or shrimp on a bed of nopal cactus paired with panela cheese, grilled chorizo, grilled onions and a special sauce of spices ground with mortar and pestle — $15.95-$16.95) and carnitas Michoacan (marinated in spices before being grilled and served with pico de gallo, sour cream, guacamole and tortillas — $10.95).
Instead of crepas con cajeta (caramel sauce), fresas con crema (fresh strawberries with sweet cream, vanilla and cinnamon) or fried iced cream on a sweetened flour shell (all $4.95), we took our leave and bought some overpriced candy at the overpriced Paseo theater for dessert. And, would you believe it, the film was great! Holmes aficionados need not fear. And neither, for that matter, do Mexican food fans. Our lunch at Cabrera’s was a thoroughly enjoyable meal. But, should you choose to dine there, do not — I repeat DO NOT — leave without trying the soup!
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