Las Carnitas

Today I went with a group of new friends to the Carnitas, which is Mexican Barbecue. We took cabs, as it was a few miles outside of town, on the way to La Gruta (hot springs). There was some confusion when we discovered that nobody in our cab knew exactly where we were going, including the cab driver! After stopping to ask for directions, and a bit of a scenic tour, we arrived to the cheers of the rest of our group.

You order the meat here like in Texas, except in kilos rather than pounds. The sides included Guacamole, charro style beans (these are beans cooked with onion, garlic, bacon, sausage and other yummy things), and rice. The “dining room” was open air, and there was a good view of the surrounding country. It was a bit of a relief to get outside the walls of San Miguel.

Complimentary corn tortillas and rolled-up deep-fried tortillas with a bean and meat filling, with green or red sauce for dipping, accompanied the meal. Dee and I split a kilo of carnitas, and had most of it left over. I just made some carnita and bean soup, with chipotle sauce, onion and fresh lime juice for seasoning. Delicioso!

Although the meat was well seasoned, and tender, it was a bit dry, and it didn't even come close to the Texas barbecue we had at Charles' place in Austin. But I would still bring friends here for the casual ambiance and the fun food experience, which included plates, and the seasoning of the meat was very, very good.