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Menomonie
place updates beef patty-in-a-bun concept
Feb.
13, 2007
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You Go |
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Name:
That Mexican Place.
Established:
March 22, 2002.
Owners and chefs: Carol and Curt Blodgett.
Address: 710 E. Second St., Menomonie (off Main Street
on the Clock Tower Plaza of UW-Stout).
Hours: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays and
11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays. Closed Sundays
and Mondays.
Phone: (715) 233-1445.
Web site: www. thatmexicanplace.com.
Reservations: Requested for large parties.
Smoking: No.
Wheelchair accessible: Yes.
Parking: On the street.
Prices: Any-style Sombrero Burger — a la carte,
$4.25; with choice of beans and rice, a dinner salad or french
fries, $6.25. At Saturday lunch, Sombreros with side dishes
are on special for $5.75.
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Every restaurant needs a dish that's just plain fun.
The Sombrero Burger is a happy fusion of the American hamburger
and the chimichanga of Arizona or northern Mexico.
Inspired by a dish her sister tried in Texas, Carol Blodgett developed
the Sombrero Burger in months of dedicated work. The idea was simple,
its realization surprisingly difficult. Cook a beef patty close
to done, add hamburger fixings, wrap in a large flour tortilla,
deep-fry perfectly, then garnish with a tiny paper Mexican hat.
Regard your burger's whimsical, colorful, multicultural decoration.
When mini Mexican hats proved impossible to find, Carol and Curt
Blodgett began folding Chinese paper cocktail parasols into adorable
little semblances of sombreros.
This burger's "bun" is its precision-folded tortilla
envelope. It turns out that perfect deep- frying is a fine thing
to do to a good flour tortilla. It emerges golden brown and beautifully
crisp, with layer upon flaky layer of what seems almost like pastry.
Inside, not a drop of moisture from meat or toppings goes missing.
This makes rich, satisfying eating, with lovely interplay between
soft filling and shattery crust.
Of the four Sombrero Burgers offered, we're least enthused about
the Simple. With just meat and cheese within, it's somewhat monotonous.
Get the Deluxe instead — with still-crisp lettuce, onions and
tomato — or the classic Bacon-Mushroom-Swiss.
Eat your burger out of hand, dipping the next bite into the good
Special Sauce, a clingy, Thousand-Islandy concoction with mild Southwestern
spices. Enjoy with the refried beans and superb Mexican rice —
the best in the Chippewa Valley.
If you love hot and spicy, get the Diablo, which is filled with
garlicky White Queso cheese dip and a tart jalapeño-garlic-
cilantro relish, then lashed with habañero sauce for extra
oomph. This powerful union of heat, sour and herbs counters the
unctuousness of meat and molten cheese.
Main Course, the Leader- Telegram's restaurant review column,
runs the fourth Sunday of the month. Diners' Notebook, a sampling
of favorite restaurant offerings, runs the second Tuesday of the
month.
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