Food in Tijuana

[Phordphan]

Colectivo 9 is a covered patio arrangement, surrounded by a bunch of food vendors, much like a food court in a mall, but with more interesting food. It's located near the NW corner of Revu and 6th. I didn't get a picture of the sign, but it's hanging over the sidewalk. You enter down a small alleyway and it opens up into the food court.

This particular day I thought I'd try something offbeat. I went to the Lebanese booth and got a Gyro. The meat was tasty, although preprocessed, as it usually is in the states. The vegetables were very fresh. The tzatziki sauce was pretty much just a yougurt-based sauce with no dill or mint. It needed work. The pita was fresh and warm. As typical in a lot of Mexico, the fries were limp and a bit on the greasy side. Mexico, in general, hasn't got the hang of fries yet, and the oil is always too cold to properly fry them. They did have a good flavor. The combo, which included a small Coke, was 80 P.

I scoped out several other dishes and the pizzas looked pretty good. I'll return and report back, because pizza seems to be on the ascendency in Tijuana. The burgers looked pretty good, too, although they looked like the might also suffer from limp-fries syndrome.

My companion had the ensalada atun, from the Italian place, and it was pretty decent. Their strawberry-infused Jamaica was also quite tasty. IIRC, the salad and drink was also 80 P.

So, the Gyro rated a 5, the salad a 7. Not a home run, but a solid double. The place bears more investigation. The place is open until midnight on Friday and Saturday, so it looks to be an excellent alternative to the same old taco stands of the Zona Norte.

[Phordphan]

How do you guys navigate Tijuana without getting lost? Old fashion paper map? Or modern GPS navigation?

Google maps works *fairly* well, and that's what I use. There are caveats. Once it too me all over hell-and-gone when I was trying to get to a concert near Otay. I saw barrios I hope to never see again. Sometimes it doesn't know about 1-way streets, but not often. The most consistently annoying thing is the Via Rapida exits. Often you have to exit well before the actual turn. Sometimes it knows, other times it doesn't.

But overall it gets you to where you want to go if you have a specific address.

Paper maps? What's that?

[Jackie888]

How do you guys navigate Tijuana without getting lost? Old fashion paper map? Or modern GPS navigation?

[Phordphan]

This place is located in Col. Chapultepec, a rather upscale part of town. It's on Av. Sonora, just off of Agua Caliente. There are a bunch of interesting places here, one being Tabula, which I will visit on an upcoming visit.

Anyway, this is a busy, rather trendy establishment with a rather young clientele. I was the oldest guy in the joint. Everybody was in their 20's - 30's and well dressed. Not fancy, but obviously not poor. We had tried to get into a food and tequila place across the street, in Plaza Chapultepec, but it was swamped with a line. So, being hungry, we opted for a place we could get into fairly quickly.

Lots of high tables, a few low ones, pub-style atmosphere. I opted for, IIRC, the Ginger Mark cocktail, made from Makers Mark bourbon and ginger beer, something like 90 pesos. Rather good. My date opted for the very pedestrian Tecate Light.

She decided on the chicken fingers, I had the sliders. The fingers (called Buffalo Boneless on the menu) didn't present well, but were hot, very crispy, and had good flavor. About 100 pesos.

Don't let them tell you that Mexican beef isn't tasty. These sliders were quite good. I would quibble that I would like a bit more sear on the meat, but they were thick and flavorful. They sported some arugula and a sort of tequila aioli. Although there were only three, it turn out that they were filling. About 120 pesos.

All in all it was worth the visit. It's a bit pricey by Mexican standards, but not outrageous. I've never really understood the gastro pub concept, but these guys seem to do it rather well. You should check it out the next time you're in the area.

[Watnow78]

If any of you love beer like I do, I would recommend Mamut Brewrey Co. In Zona Norte and Plaza Fiesta (Across from Plaza Rio). The first 2 pictures are from Zona Norte, Address:

Carrillo Puerto why o Tercera 8161, Zona Centro, Tijuana, be. See. , Mexico. The second 3 pictures are from the same company in Plaza Fiesta Address: Paseo de LOS Heroes No 9415.

Tijuana, Baja California. These are really cool spots to hang out during the day and maybe grab a bite to eat.

The last picture was from a restaurant I stumbled onto in search for a bowl of Pozole, and damn it was good. I can't for the life of me remember the name of this place but its on Constitution just a half block North of Calle Galeana, on the northeast Corner. This place looks very new because I can't find it on google maps. This looks like the building I walked into:

https://www.google.com/maps/@32.5303...8i6656!6m1!1e1.

[Phordphan]

For those with a sweet tooth.

[QuackUp]

Maiz.

Gobernador Balarezo 366.

Col. Thevila.

Tijuana, Baja California.

Mexico.

Zona Centro.

664 - 686 4371.

A very small but very good restaurant, just a bit off Blvd. Aqua Caliente.

Went with a friend and were lucky enough to find a table. All the time we were there, all the tables were occupied. Maybe 7 - 8 tables and we got there around 13:00. Not sure what to get we both ordered the sampler plate which has 5 items on it, and we both had two taco's de casa. For me the highlight was the pozole on the sampler plate. The quesadilla came in second with the taco's being third. We both had the stawberry lemonade. Total cost for the two of us, $210.00 mx. Very reasonable and we both left full.

Sitting next to us was a couple who had ordered the pozole by itself and the enchilada plate. It looked so good I had to ask her how it was. She smiled and said she orders this everytime she comes here. I'll have to try that next time.

[Phordphan]

Located on Calle 8 and Negrete. Small place, good service, good food.

Attached are pix of the mushroom appetizer. This one was 'shrooms sautéed in a garlicky butter sauce (for lack of a better term) with cheese. Tasty.

The other is their version of a puttanesca. The penne was cooked perfectly. There are lots of variations on puttanesca. This one was pretty tasty.

I don't have pix of the other entrée, which was a breaded and sautéed chicken breast. I think it was their version of piccata, but memory is fuzzy without pix. Rocky the Flying Squirrel gave it a hearty thumbs up.

Also, no pix of the red sangria. Pretty decent.

Their version of the garlic bread is soft, warm and delicious. The pizzas looked very good and authentic. I'll try on another trip and report back.

Price for app, 2 entrees, half-litre of sangria, just over 300 pesos. Not bad.

Overall, I'd give it a solid 7 out of 10. Definitely worth the (modest) price.

[Dickhead]

Instead of opening up a business in a Latin American country, especially a restaurant which is a fuck of a lot of work no matter where you do it, it would be far preferable and more enjoyable in both the long run and the short run to pour gasoline on your nuts and then set them on fire.

[Jackie888]

Thanks for the feedback guys. Now I just need a catchy name. How about toss my salad?

Once the chicas figure what the name means, they'll probably line up to kill you in your sleep.

[RickyVee]

Thanks for the feedback guys. Gourmet salad bar is funny because I actually grow hydroponic lettuce herbs and vegetables as well as ornamental flowers. For a living. That is why my food costs would be next to nothing. But since you mention weight is a concern to most of the girls then I can be pretty creative with a menu. Nothing is set in stone. Just figured I would ask real world people what they're thoughts are. There is definitely some cool stuff happening in the Baja food scene. I have seen the little produce market at the end of the alley and the produce was abysmal at best. How they could sell that to anybody is beyond me but that is the way it is. Now I just need a catchy name. How about toss my salad?

[Jackie888]

Are you sure you want to open a business at all in Zona Norte? As you are aware, the food service business is hard work. Food prices in Tijuana are so low that there seems to be little money to be made. Your concerns about shakedowns and security would be enough to stop me from opening such a business.

Who is your target customer base? As an American monger, I wouldn't buy pizza anywhere in Tijuana. That's because I look forward to getting real Mexican food while I'm there. And, we have many good pizza options at home.

On the other hand, some of the girls have mentioned pizza, perhaps the locals would buy it. Don't know if they are thinking PapaJohns/Dominos or Neopolitan. I've only had a few meals with Zona Norte girls (all from Hong Kong) and these girls were very concerned with their weight; they may stay clear any type of pizza (even Neopolitan). I have no idea if pizza would appeal to the chubby bar girls or street girls or men around Zona Norte.

Just my opinion without doing any real market research.

I was recently with a pretty Tropical girl. When asked what's a pretty girl like you doing in a place like this instead of HK, she replied that she gained a couple of pounds and was sent to Tropicals gor rehabilitation. However she is on a strict diet and will be returning to HK in a month or two. To me she had curves (a beautiful pompi), but HK absolutely has a no-chubbie standard that the girls must meet to work there.

Pizza will give them mommy bodies. So Ricky, how about openning a gourmet salad joint instead?

[HorseTrader]

What are your guys thoughts on the viability of a pizzeria in the zona. In a past life I was a chef for a high end Italian eatery in SoCal. As a result I learned how to make authentic Neopolitan pizza. I read a while back that there is no decent pizza in or around the zona. I have access to ingredients so that would not be an issue. Figured since there is a void in the market why not fill it. There would definitely be some concerns as far as shakedowns and security issues. I know since nothing like that exists down there it would attract a lot of good and bad attention. Your guys feedback would be appreciated.

Are you sure you want to open a business at all in Zona Norte? As you are aware, the food service business is hard work. Food prices in Tijuana are so low that there seems to be little money to be made. Your concerns about shakedowns and security would be enough to stop me from opening such a business.

Who is your target customer base? As an American monger, I wouldn't buy pizza anywhere in Tijuana. That's because I look forward to getting real Mexican food while I'm there. And, we have many good pizza options at home.

On the other hand, some of the girls have mentioned pizza, perhaps the locals would buy it. Don't know if they are thinking PapaJohns/Dominos or Neopolitan. I've only had a few meals with Zona Norte girls (all from Hong Kong) and these girls were very concerned with their weight; they may stay clear any type of pizza (even Neopolitan). I have no idea if pizza would appeal to the chubby bar girls or street girls or men around Zona Norte.

Just my opinion without doing any real market research.

[RickyVee]

What are your guys thoughts on the viability of a pizzeria in the zona. In a past life I was a chef for a high end Italian eatery in SoCal. As a result I learned how to make authentic Neopolitan pizza. I read a while back that there is no decent pizza in or around the zona. I have access to ingredients so that would not be an issue. Figured since there is a void in the market why not fill it. There would definitely be some concerns as far as shakedowns and security issues. I know since nothing like that exists down there it would attract a lot of good and bad attention. Your guys feedback would be appreciated.

[ScatManDoo]

Before this thread was started by Dickhead, there was a heated discussion between two posters over whether restaurants in Mexico or on the US side in Southern California were better. One poster was asserting that Mexico, and Tijuana in particular, contained many good restaurants that offer far better values than can be found in the United States. I couldn't agree more.

The other poster very aggressively disagreed and asserted that the quality of the food ingredients commonly available in the US were far better than in Tijuana, and thus the food dishes served in restaurants in the United States were far superior. While I agree that restaurants in the US have the opportunity to obtain better quality ingredients, I never ignore prices. Dollar for dollar (or pesos for peso) the poster favoring Tijuana eateries saw things more as I observe them.

If you are not trying to be snobby about what fine dining is the finest, Tijuana has San Diego, LOS Angeles & the OC beat for their relative dining values at low end and medium-priced dining options.

At the higher end of dining options, Tijuana will still offer much cheaper high-end options. They have a great advantage over SoCal with far lesser labor and rent costs. But their variety and options and quality will always be behind what the SoCal market has to offer. Tijuana, with between one and two million residents, is of course much smaller than the three SoCal counties I mentioned above that have a combined population of between 20 to 25 million residents.

While Tijuana is developing more and more, and constantly improving, high-end dining options, that part of the dining spectrum will always be better developed in SoCal, where hundreds of thousands of California's are served every day in high-end eateries. I doubt there is much more than a thousand Tijuanses that can afford and choose to eat out daily in fine dining establishments.