broccoli and chocolate

El Rancho Taqueria is a countertop-conveyorbelt-style setup along one edge of the El Rancho Supermercado across from Trader Joe’s on Redwood Road in Castro Valley.  What I mean is that it’s a Subway Sandwiches sort of deal with one long glass-protected counter where you order and watch as the cooks assemble your order in front of you.  You then make your way down the length of the counter and pay at the end.  When we went the other day, there was a line of a few people in front of us and the service was sloooow.

Counter at El Rancho Taqueria

We visited El Rancho on a recommendation from friends, but we sadly did not have as pleasant of an experience as they did.  I thought at first that the service was taking so long because one of the cooks must be new.  But after watching both of the men scurrying around behind the counter handle some of the food, I realized otherwise.  I think it was actually a large to-go order that was holding up the line, though I feel like they could have dealt with it a bit better than they did (for example, have one cook work on the to-go and the other help the patrons in line).  Regardless, we paid at the counter and decided to eat in, which appears to be less common that to go orders.

Tables and chairs at El Rancho Taqueria.

There is a little section of chairs and tables–nice ones, actually–just near the food counter and we sat down at one of the clean, tidy tables.  Since this place is in a supermarket, we were surrounded by the non-refrigerated beverages on one side, and the refrigerated drinks behind us.  It did make for a colorful scenery, and we had a variety of refreshments to choose from–I bought a Snapple.

The menu at this place is standard Taqueria: burritos, tacos, quesadillas, nachos, and soups, but also has tortas, tostadas, breakfast, dinner packs, dinner combos, and seafood meals.  I was pleasantly surprised to see many of the standard choices also listed with a vegetarian option on the menu.  All Mexican food can be made veggie–just take out the meat–but not all places list the items on their menu as vegetarian.  This always makes me feel more comfortable ordering meat-less dishes, I can be confident that they already know what they’re doing.  Veggie choices include burrito, quesadilla, torta, and tostada.

Veggie torta at El Rancho Taqueria.

Veggie burrito at El Rancho Taqueria.

I ordered a veggie torta, which is like a Mexican sandwich, and Boyfriend got a veggie burrito. At the recommendation of our friends, we also tried an a la carte chile relleno.  The torta included melted cheese, freshly sliced tomato and avocado, lettuce, mayo, and onions.  It was pretty good, I enjoyed it.  Boyfriend’s veggie burrito had the standard beans, rice, cheese, and also included tomatoes, lettuce, and guacamole.  It was pretty good as well, though we’re somewhat of veggie burrito elitists, so we’re a bit hard to please on this item.

Our sad chile relleno from El Rancho Taqueria.

The chile relleno was a different matter.  The one described to us by our friends was delicious.  Lightly battered, fried but not greasy, and smothered in a delicious tomato sauce.  Ours was not similar to this.  It was large but flat and floppy, filled with an inordinate amount of cheese, and resting in a pool of grease – no sauce.  I’m not sure what went wrong with it, but I deemed it not worth eating and only had a few bites.  My friend showed me another chile relleno he bought at a later date that was again what he experienced the first time.  Maybe we just hit them on an off day.

Overall, I didn’t find this place particularly special, though Yelp reviewers seem to disagree.  The store itself is actually awesome; it’s phenomenally clean and organized and offers a large variety of Mexican food stuffs.  Plus, their take away menu is extremely pro.  They’re open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, so if you’re driving by it might not be a bad option.  I may not be returning just because there are literally hundreds of other taquerias to try in the area, but it seems like other people really like this place, so I wouldn’t be opposed to trying it again someday.

Also, where else are you going to fill all your tomato and shrimp juice needs?

Tomato and shrimp juice was offered in the non-refrigerated drink aisle of El Rancho Supermercado. How can you resist?

Don Jose’s is an age old Castro Valley delight.  It’s been here since before I was, proudly heading up the ever-changing lineup at Castro Village shopping center on Castro Valley Boulevard in, yes, Castro Valley.  I’ve been frequenting DJ’s since I was a kid on-and-off with my family.  It’s a solid restaurant, and my most recent visit has left me intrigued and wanting more.

The shopping center where Don Jose’s is located houses dozens of shops and restaurants.  And though I often overlook the rest of this area, relying only on DJ’s and Loard’s, there actually appears to be some other interesting restaurants sharing the space, and I hope to try the good-looking Indian place next time around.

Don Jose’s is really quite a large restaurant, though you can’t really tell from the front.  Its high ceilings, open dining room, dedicated bar area, and two large banquet rooms make it a great hang out for all sorts of occasions.  We were there for dinner last week on a Monday night, and I was pleasantly surprised to see a good number of customers present on this famously slow weeknight.  It makes me happy to see good businesses doing well.

Chips and salsa at Don Jose's.

And our visit was no exception, the service was extremely attentive (as evidenced by the four baskets of chips we devoured), and the food was excellent.  The menu is extensive, offering a huge variety of all the Mexican favorites, plus some less traditional fare for the people who are dragged to the burrito shop when they really only wanted a hamburger.  Not feeling like something heavy, I ordered the mesquite salmon salad off the menu insert, which consisted of a grilled slab of herbed fish over a bed of lettuce and a side of creamy, Italian-ish dressing.  Squeeze a tortilla between the salad and the plate and – voilà! – it’s south of the border-style.

Mesquite salmon salad.

My fish was very good and the whole salad completely hit the spot.  Boyfriend ordered nachos that were pretty good, but were really nothing terribly special.  The price was right though; they’re technically an appetizer (he filled up on chips and salsa anyway).  Mom ordered the winning dish of the evening: a shrimp dish doused in a creamy barbeque sauce with rice and veggies.  I don’t know what that sauce was made of (and, incidentally, the head chef was on a break when we asked the waiter to find out for us…) but it was fabulous.  A little sweet, very creamy, potentially good on just about anything.

Delicious shrimp in bbq-cream sauce, with rice and veggies.

Mom’s boyfriend’s super burrito was a hit; he had a doozy of a time finishing the thing since it was so huge.  Though something didn’t sit quite right because he was awake that night with some indigestion – but Mexican food can do that to a person from time to time.

Generally, it was a great night and great food and I’m excited to see that Don Jose’s is keeping with the times and continuing to be a quality restaurant in the area.  And they even have some fun promos – happy hour from 3-6, margarita night on Tuesdays, and mojito specials on Wednesdays.  It’s true that there are many Mexican restaurants in the area, but few are the calibur of Don Jose’s.