Well it’s Ted’s pick again and so of course we’re heading out for a surprising night of Italian food.

Just kidding. It’s Mexican again. 

He said he did have another place in mind that he thought would be new to us, but it turned out when he researched it we had been there before. Like eight years ago. That’s pre-pandemic, Ted. That’s like another lifetime in restaurant years, and if the place is still open then we really should go back again because there must be a reason they survived that time period, right?

Anyway.

So here we are at El Fogon. Which Ted said was recommended to him by a friend that lives in Green. To which we replied that Latinos is also in Green, which we all are aware is the gold standard for us for Mexican restaurants.

Ted mentioned this friend hadn’t been to Latinos until Ted took him recently, but this friend still seemed to think that El Fogon was better.

To which Shane said: Challenge accepted.

To be honest, you have a better chance at sighting this place from the highway – where you have no hope of actually accessing it – than from the main road it’s located off of. We’ve driven past the road it’s on probably 200 times over the years and never had any idea it – or anything, really – was back there that far.

Might want to think about some new signage options. Just saying.

While they’re at it, a new printed menu might be worth an estimate as well. The current one has about 6,000 words on it and they’re all in about a six point font. So I’m really glad my eye exams are up to date.

But hey at least we could read MARGARITAS so let’s start there, shall we? Shane and I started the night with a pitcher of watermelon margaritas. Because it is nearly summer, after all.

Which explains why Ted opted to start with a pina colada. Sure.

Side note, when it actually is summer, they do have a patio out back. Just putting that out there.

When it finally came time to order, Shane debated getting his usual fajita quesadilla or trying something new. The old standby won that battle.

He also added a beef enchilada. Because we always have to have as many plates as possible on the table at one time, right?

Shane finished his enchilada before diving into any other part of his meal – I guess we could call that the appetizer? – and immediately declared Latinos the better restaurant.

Ok then.

Because apparently seeing how many ways we can prepare fajitas in a tortilla of some kind is the theme of the night, Ted got the fajita burrito.

When it arrived at the table Shane’s eyes nearly popped out of his head just due to the size of it. There may have been some food envy detected there.

I mean, it has shrimp in it so Shane can never order it. But then again I also think he may risk a trip to the hospital just to give it a try.

Seems fair.

And Ted did actually finish almost the whole burrito. A few shrimp and part of the shell were all that was left, and despite some ragging from Shane that wasn’t enough worth warranting a box. But be also couldn’t fit anything else in his stomach so he called it.

I got the combo #3, which is a chicken burrito, cheese quesadilla and rice. And a side of sour cream.

It was good. Nothing overwhelming, nothing I have to come back to have again – but OK.

So I think Shane’s initial vote after his “appetizer” stands: the winner of this very unofficial contest that neither restaurant knew they were going to be a part of was still Latinos.

The flavor just wasn’t the same here. And on top of that the service was really lacking. Our server only sparingly came back to check on us. It’s a good thing Ted wasn’t super thirsty of anything because he never got another drink beyond that initial pina colada. And thankfully we ordered the pitcher of margaritas or else Shane and I would’ve been in the same boat had we just ordered one glass each.

So yeah, while might’ve still been a lot of food and a nicer restaurant space, given the option of one over the other we’d rather go down the street to the #1 option.

Picked by: Ted