Chips
MEXICAN. At Chips you can see the effects of globalization, of different national cultures fusing together and producing a new hybridized style of cooking, mixing influences and styles.
On the surface, Chips appears to be a Mexican restaurant serving the usual menu of tacos, enchiladas, and burritos. But, when the food arrives, you see the signs of contemporary cooking trends, such as the plates decorated with brightly hued vegetable sauces squeezed out of bottles, and the use of mesclun, instead of shredded iceberg lettuce, for your salad.
The decor culls all the hackneyed symbols of Mexican culture - from the bold, striped serape fabric upholstering the booths to the floppy straw sombreros serving as lampshades to the framed Diego Rivera and Frieda Kahlo prints on the walls. While not original, the room looks bright and cheerful and seems to appeal to the young, ethnically diverse local clientele. With a movie theater next door, it's a convenient stop before or after a show.
Soon after you are seated, you are served a large bowl of tortilla chips and salsa. The chips were tasty, with a strong corn flavor, but the salsa, made with finely chopped tomatoes, onions, and cilantro, was too mild for my taste.
To begin your meal, consider the tortilla soup, a creamy blend of roasted tomatoes and chiles stirred into chicken broth, then spiced and topped with avocado, sour cream and strips of fried tortillas. The taquitos, which had slices of white chicken meat rolled in corn tortillas, then deep-fried, tasted dried out, but were better touched up with the creamy guacamole and sour cream served on the side.
Among the entrees, I preferred the grilled meats. I especially enjoyed the carne a la tampiquena, a plate of juicy, char-broiled slices of skirt steak, served with yellow rice and pinto beans, a corn tortilla stuffed with Cheddar and Jack cheeses, and pico de gallo, a crunchy relish made of chopped tomatoes, green and red peppers, garlic, and onions. The carnitas de Don Rolanda, featuring slices of roast pork braised with orange juice and garlic, also was excellent.
Traditional Mexican dishes, such as chicken enchiladas, were virtually unrecognizable to me. The enchiladas featured a flat tortilla layered with slices of grilled chicken, topped with another tortilla and then covered with melted Cheddar and Jack cheeses, with just the lightest brushing of tomato sauce. The dish was very dry and could have used a little more sauce to meld the flavors.
The taco salad - really an American invention - was, again, unlike any I've ever had, with roasted beets and corn kernels tossed with mixed baby greens in a balsamic vinaigrette dressing and served in a deep-fried tortilla shaped as a shallow plate. I enjoyed the mix of fresh flavors.
If you sample widely from the menu, a disturbing redundancy among the dishes becomes apparent. The taquitos, for example, prove to be not very different from the chimichangas, or deep-fried burritos, when they should be.
The selection of desserts include sweet, deep-fried plantains, topped with a light cream flavored with vanilla beans and a sweet-but-tart strawberry salsa; fried ice cream and Mexican-inspired crepes stuffed with caramelized goat's milk.
Reviewed by Rose Kim
5/10/02
