Enchiladas and a Mariachi Band

On Friday night, Z and I used one of my almost-expired Living Social vouchers at El Potro Mexican Bar and Grill in Union Square.

Before Living Social featured El Potro on their site (I got the deal for $9 – it was good for $20 worth of food and non-alcoholic drinks), I had never heard of this praised Mexican eatery. Even from the photos online, I could tell that this restaurant was tiny and nothing fancy, but the reviews had me intrigued.

Upon walking into the restaurant, Z and I were immediately greeted by a jovial man, and were told we could sit wherever we wanted to. Although it was a Friday night, the tables were mostly empty – although, they were mostly packed by the time we left.

We sat at a booth and admired the brightly-colored, authentically decorated interior. Soon after we sat down, our waitress brought us some complimentary chips and wonderfully fresh and spicy salsa (we also ordered some guacamole for the chips).

Sorry for the sideways photo. Gotta love Blogger.

To wash down our chips, we ordered a pitcher of one of El Potro’s margaritas (the pitcher was about $40, and we got a little over four full glasses out of it). Per usual, I was a bad blogger and didn't write down the name of this margarita - it wasn't their house concoction, but it was the next on the list (helpful, right?).

Despite my terrible note-taking skills, I can tell you that this was one damn good margarita. Perfectly sweet, slightly sour and strong, without being overpowered with tequila.

For my entree, I went with the Enchiladas de Espinaca ($11.95), which came with two rolled tortillas stuffed with seasoned spinach and topped with creamy tomatillo sauce. Served on the side was rice, refried beans, lettuce and pico de gallo.

This was an uniquely delicious dish that was rich, but surprisingly light thanks to the fresh ingredients used. I appreciated the careful attention given to the homemade tomatillo sauce, and the dish as a whole was reminiscent of the espinaca dip my sister and I used to binge on at Shorty’s in Nashua, N.H. back in the day.

After dinner, as we sipped our second margaritas, the mariachi band started playing – and they even offered to play us a song.

The band's enthusiasm and great harmonies – mixed with the tequila and our full bellies – made for a lovely Friday evening. I’ll definitely be visiting El Potro again in the near future.

What's your favorite hole-in-the-wall place for delicious food and drinks?

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