Betty's, in Yuba City, wasn't even on my list, since it isn't in the Yellow Pages. Maybe the place is new and the book is old. I was heading for another place on my list to see if it was a dive or a likely prospect but by the time I got my gps out, "Kathleen" said I had passed it by. Then I remembered seeing this one nearby in the little plaza by the Harvest Bread Co. and zipped over there.
With the unlikely name of Betty's Authentic Mexican Restaurant, as opposed to Los Charros, Los Mexicanos, Taqueria Guadalahara, I wasn't sure what to expect. It looked sort of "lunchy" from the front, so it surprised me to fined out that the waitress came around to take care of things instead of the order counter. I was very happy with the joint. Let's score on a 1-5 scale, 5 being the highest.
Atmosphere: 4. Pretty yellow walls, tasteful decor, Mex music playing, but not too loudly. 2 booths and the rest tables. Kitchen visible, which is nice to see, as it is clean and orderly, but a little noisy with the hood vent.
Cleanliness: 5. Must be brand new, as it is the cleanest place I've been to in this town. Even the bathroom was spotless and new looking.
Chips: 3. They were warm and crunchy, but quite thick. Lots of them.
Salsa: 2.5 Not bad, not especially good. Perfectly adequate, but forgettable. Medium hot.
Stove hot: 5. The plate was hot, the food was hot, too hot to eat right away in fact.
Beef Burrito Platter: 4. Couldn't think of much to improve on here. The rice was seasoned well and was soft and moist, the beans were, well, beans with a little white cheese on top. The burrito was delicious. I'm only giving it a 4 because one has to have some place to go if something turns up better. It was pretty plain, but that was fine, since the flavor was very nice with a thin seasoned chili sauce and chunks of lean, tender, seasoned beef. I guess if you want the foo foo fillings, you'll order the supreme type one.
Service: 5. The girl came around quickly, gave the menu and chips, came back in about 3 or 4 minutes for the order, and I got my plate 5 minutes later. She filled my tea once without me having to ask, and then checked on me once later.
Value: 5. Lots and lots of chips, extra salsa when I asked, $5.50 for the beef burrito platter, and full service too. Hard to beat that.
This is definitely going on my A list.
1954 - …And Now, Miguel
2 years ago
For some reason I always end up reading your blog when I'm already hungry and waiting for my husband to get home. Warm crunchy thick chips, chunks of beef with thin chili sauce, soft hot rice - you're killing me!
ReplyDeleteWhat I wonder is why they don't set out bottles of hot sauce? Just about every Mex restaurant doesn't give you that unless you ask. And it's always Tapatio. Maybe that's a Norteamericano thing. (Excepting Chipotle with its Tabascos)
ReplyDeleteBack in Memphis, there were Mexican restaurants (which did not have hot sauce) and taquerias (which did). Nobody even pretended to speak English in a taqueria, and the food was slightly less Americanized and really good. A good taqueria would have at least two hot sauces, usually Tapatio and Valencia.
ReplyDeleteWe've found one really good taqueria in Reno so far, but - alas - my husband doesn't care for it as much as I do. :(
I have to admit something about taquerias, they intimidate me. It's the menu. Most of the fast food burger place menus intimidate me also. That's why I like In-and-Out, simple. The menu board lists all the possibilities in bewildering order. That's one reason I decided to go with a standard menu choice. I can just say "burrito" and "carne" and "arroz" and "frijoles."
ReplyDeletereading all of your lovely restaurant reviews makes me want to do a series of my own! This "Betty's" place does sound interesting though
ReplyDelete