After hearing several friends say that Chevy's was "good", "great", "really good", etc., we finally tried it on Friday. Before I begin, let me say that my husband and I are fairly adventurous eaters (sorry, I'll pass on the monkey brains) and love to try new foods and restaurants, always with an open mind. As I am a secret shopper, I'll write this review as if having been on an assignment.
Chevy's Fresh Mex, Pentagon City
"Early-bird" dinner at 5 pm
The restaurant was not very busy, probably due to the holiday (everyone was already in the process of leaving town) and the early hour. The bar was busiest with a World Cup match playing. Three tables were seated outside and four table were seated in the main dining room.
We were greeted right away and sat immediately. Our waiter explained that one of the menus was ending on Sunday. I appreciated him telling us that as I have been very frustrated before when I fell in love with a menu item, only to find out it was "for a limited time only". So, I put the seasonal menu aside and didn't even look at it.
We did not order an appetizer, but I did want a Margarita while I checked out the menu (it's a Mexican restaurant, right!?!?!?!?). There was a Cadillac Margarita on the menu which had my favorite elements: a reasonably good tequila (1800 Reposada), Triple Sec, Grand Marnier, and here is where they lost me...sweet and sour. I must tell you that I am a Margarita snob. Besides the point that sweet and sour mix gives me awful heartburn, it's just not right. The only sweet and sour thing that belongs in a margarita is Rose's lime juice or fresh lime juice and agave syrup. I decided to ask for what I wanted. I asked for a Cadillac with no sweet and sour, but with sweetened lime juice. I then proceeded to cross my arms and dare them to please me. Hrmph.
Much to my surprise, the waiter arrived back at the table with a "naked" margarita and a shot glass of their house-made "fresh" sweet and sour - agave nectar and lime. Sold!!!! I mixed in the amount that I wanted and proceeded to be a happy camper.
Back to the menu:
Apparently, one of the claims to fame for Chevy's is their super thin, house-made tortilla chips; I was very eager to try them. I LOVE really thin, crisp chips and I was not disappointed! The chips were super thin, crisp, crackled when you bit them, but were great at scooping and holding the salsa. Speaking of salsa, Chevy's is apparently "fire roasted". It was a dark salsa that tasted of roasted tomatoes and peppers. It was very mild, but with lots of flavor.
I finally decided from the nearly overwhelming menu, that I would order the BBQ Chicken salad. Bud chose the Dos Equis Shrimp Tacos with refried beans.
My salad was great with the exception of the crispy onion strings, which were cold, greasy and tough. Otherwise, the salad was a go. The lettuce was fresh and crisp, the BBQ sauce on the chicken was spicy with a kick and the chicken was moist. I would get the salad again, just leave off the onion strings, please. Which I must say was a disappointment because I tend to like them!
Bud's tacos would have been great except that the shrimp were way too heavily breaded. We both decided that a non-fried shrimp taco would have been better. But, not to worry; Bud ordered from that menu that ends today! I will comment on their refried beans, also. I particularly liked them because there were not "mush", and had lots of flavor. They were almost like a thick bean stew.
We were both too full for dessert. Bummer. Next trip will be margarita's and dessert! Bottom line: Not bad. They scored grande points for accommodating my Diva margarita request, but overall, the food was just not that impressive. So far, Uncle Julio's gets my vote for food.
On a scale of one to five, five being highest:
Cleanliness: 4
Food: 3.5
Service: 5
Location: 4 (validated parking for up to one hour)
Price: 3.5
Sunday, July 4, 2010
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