I have now been twice and let me tell you, it is already on its way to becoming one of my VERY favorite restaurants. The Tavern, off Hulen Street in Fort Worth is unassuming. Sitting on the corner of South Hulen and Stonegate Blvd. (formerly Snookies) with a bright neon sign, you would never guess that Chef Felipe Armenta is serving gourmet, budget-friendly dishes inside. The atmosphere is warm and dark with unique kitchen themed artwork and Pottery Barnesque industrial light fixtures. Waiters are friendly to say the least as you can tell that they all love the restaurant just as much as Chef Armenta himself. However, none of this compares to the amazing food coming out of the kitchen.
Like I said, I've visited twice and tried two different meals, both of which were worth talking about days later. Armenta's queso, although very untraditional, is to die for. The queso, which is basically an upscale pimento cheese with fire roasted peppers is served as one member of a trio accompanied by guacamole and salsa. As my boyfriend and I order a refill of chips to make sure that we could scrape every last ounce of the three dips off the plate, we realized that each dip individually was more than good enough to order on its own. Although the queso is the most unique of the three, we honestly couldn't pick a favorite (which is a big deal because we like to think of ourselves as chips and dip connoisseurs) they were all three that good!
My first time at The Tavern, I went for the Mexico City Enchiladas, an enchilada fiend, I enjoyed the larger cut chicken smothered in cheese and a sweet but spicy red sauce as opposed to the overdone pulled chicken and sour cream. However, my favorite dish so far was the Zuni Chicken Salad. I need to preface this with the fact that I am not a salad orderer, if I had a choice between salad and enchiladas, I wouldn't even have to make a decision, however that night, my quick lapse in decision making was rewarded ten-fold. Thinking that I was ordering a chicken salad, in the chicken salad sandwich sense, I was surprised if not a little disappointed when my waiter delivered a large salad with sliced chicken scattered throughout. This disappointment quickly turned in to the best salad I have EVER eaten. Fresh lettuce lightly coated in some sort of magical sauce is tossed with dried cherries (they might as well have been gold), golden raisins, walnuts, bacon (yes bacon), some of the best grilled chicken I've ever eaten and GOAT CHEESE. As you can remember from my earlier post, goat cheese is a necessary staple in my diet, and this salad definitely subdued my craving (at least for the night).
I know my adoration for this salad might seem over exaggerated, but I can promise you it is not. Even my boyfriend, with a steak and enchilada plate sitting in front of him, agreed that this was a dang good salad.
To finish our meal we had key lime pie (that's right, they have pie...my favorite dessert) on recommendation from our waiter and it also was to die for. But I do have to say that my first time in, I had banana pie and it was the best banana pie I have ever had (there's a little surprise inside...you'll have to visit to find out).
Bellies stuffed, we left happy from our second trip to The Tavern and I can guarantee that we will be back soon.
My recommended meal:
Queso "Americano"
Zuni Chicken Salad
Banana Pie
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