Mashed Potato Tacos???

Last night, the kitchen in our garden apartment at Casa Melodia was closed. The chef had the night off. So Stan and I strolled through our neighborhood to Café el Repollo Rojo, that’s The Red Cabbage Café to you gringos.

We first tried The Red Cabbage last February, when in Puerto Vallarta with our travel companions Kay and Jane. The restaurant came highly recommended by our friends Bubba (resident vegan) and Dr. LB. We loved it last year, and this experience did not let us down either. It was, however, interesting.

The café is usually buzzing. But last night all the tourists must have been in Steve’s Sports Bar watching the Super Bowl because the place was relatively quiet. There were only a few other tables occupied when we arrived at 7pm.

Lola Bravo owns The Red Cabbage. Any time we’ve been there, she’s there, working the room. She’s got a Frida Kahlo theme going on the walls and fun music (the Beatles, Elvis) playing in the dining area. Her menu is mostly Mexican with a few quirky selections thrown in for fun. For example, The American; roast turkey, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce. There is also The Russian and The Italian. Not sure what would happen if you actually ordered one of those! But why would you, with all of the yummy Mexican choices?

The margaritas here are serious. Lime juice and tequila. That’s it. The guacamole was luxurious. Pico de gallo is served with chips instead of the usual salsa, and the tomatoes were red and juicy. In addition to the interesting “International Menu” Lola also offers an entire page of veggie choices. Stan decided to try the veggie tacos. He was given a choice of queso (cheese) or papas (potatoes) for the filling. He chose potatoes, thinking it would be chunks of fried or roasted potatoes, maybe some grilled onions and peppers, all wrapped up in corn tortillas. Well, not exactly.

Remember The American? Yep, the soft tacos were filled with mashed potatoes! No kidding! Three to the plate, accompanied by a side of white rice, and some creamy refried beans. It appeared suspiciously close to a white meal, not to mention the carbohydrate load. I was horrified, but of course Stan was thrilled! “I don’t even get mashed potatoes at Thanksgiving anymore!” he exclaimed, “This is great!”

My spinach salad (chopped cooked spinach sprinkled with queso - a specialty) was delicious, and provided a splash of color. We were both happy. Oh, and I made Stan eat a green salad for lunch today!

http://redcabbagepv.com/