Hitting the deck with margaritas at Javier’s Cantina

Lauren Vane

The Friday night crowd on the open-air deck of Javier’s Cantina and

Grill said it all. With one hand in the chip basket and the other

clutching a margarita, the after-work bunch clinked their glasses and

celebrated the start of the weekend. My friend and I were on a

similar mission -- Fridays were made for margaritas on the deck and

we decided to see what Javier’s had to offer.

The restaurant offers a variety of seating to cater to your mood:

you can pick from the loud bar area up front, inside in the

family-friendly dining room or out back on the enclosed patio with a

nice breeze and heat lamps. We opted for the latter.

Before I had a chance to pick up the menu, the server popped over

and asked us what we wanted to drink. Margaritas, of course! That

choice didn’t require much deliberation. Wanting to mask that wicked

tequila taste as much as possible, I ordered a blended strawberry

margarita ($6) and my friend, much more brave, ordered the house

margarita on the rocks ($6), which the waiter advised was the

stronger of the two. The margaritas weren’t cheap, but at first sip I

could hear Jimmy Buffet and feel the sand beneath my toes; for peace

of mind, I will part with $6.

While we perused the menu, our waiter brought the infamous endless

basket of tortilla chips, a component no Mexican restaurant should

ever be without. You know, the basket of hot, salty chips you

unconsciously shove in your mouth until your entree comes and you

wonder why you are so full -- that basket of chips.

As my mouth was busy crunching along, my eyes surveyed an

impressive array of traditional and not-so-traditional menu items.

All the basics were there -- the quesadilla, tacos, enchiladas and

fajitas -- accompanied by several, original-sounding house specials.

For an appetizer, I decided on the queso fundido ($6.95), a dip of

jack cheese, onions, mushrooms and chorizo served with warm

tortillas. My friend the vegetarian refrained, so when it arrived, I

dug in alone. Although it sounded like a good idea when I ordered,

the dip disappointed me when it appeared on the table. It was a block

of cheese with a layer of orange fat floating on top. After I finally

broke

some of it loose and got the dip on my tortilla, I found that it

tasted better than it looked. But the longer the dip sat on the

table, the tougher it got and I could not eat more than a few bites.

Next time I choose an appetizer at Javier’s, I’ll try the taquitos.

Forgive and forget, on to the entrees. I always take the easy way

out at Mexican restaurants and order the quesadilla, so this time I

went with a different option, pollo ala chipotle ($13.95). This

chicken dish, served with rice and black beans, featured a tender

chicken breast smothered in a creamy chipotle sauce with mushrooms.

The sauce had a nice kick and the rice was there to cool me off when

it got too hot. My friend ordered the spinach enchiladas ($10.95), a

dish she constantly praises. The enchiladas were filled with fresh

spinach, corn and just the right amount of cheese. This is an

excellent choice for vegetarians.

Though we both were too full to clean our plates (thanks to those

manipulating tortilla chips) we could not refuse dessert and decided

on a classic -- flan ($3.50). Big enough to share, the flan had a

caramelized top and a creamy center -- a sweet end to a Friday night

dinner and a delightful way to start the weekend.