By: Carlie Sorosiak
Dining at the Fiesta Grill
When a restaurant comes along with superbly authentic and fresh Mexican cuisine, with enormous portions at reasonable prices, people take notice. Fiesta Grill is such a restaurant, although its pedestrian, metallic exterior and dirt-and-concrete amalgam parking lot may suggest otherwise. Franklin and Rosemary Streets surely have their fair share of Mexican restaurants, but why not try something other than Qdoba or Los Pos? Located on Chapel Hill’s Highway 54, Fiesta Grill is eleven miles from UNC’s campus. Even in its relative isolation, Fiesta Grill has a line, filled with casually-dressed college students nursing Dos Equis beers, extending well into the parking lot; this is the perfect Friday night dinner spot, and to research the cuisine, I brought my appetite for the authentic.
I make my way through a crowd of my peers, young families and a few locals well acquainted with Fiesta Grill’s extensive menu, past a wall adorned with newspaper clippings and awards denoting Fiesta Grill’s success, to look at the weekend specials: Poblano peppers stuffed with shrimp, queso, fresco and Mexican salsa, and another dish, Menudo (beef tripe). After scanning the menu, a fusion of English and Spanish that resembles a thick catalogue of traditional Mexican food, I decide to order the Bean and Cheese Burrito – a large flour tortilla stuffed with beans and cheese, then topped with green tomatillo sauce. Adding to the impressive breadth of the menu are unique (at least to Taco-Bell-eating Americans) dishes: pulpos (octopus), mojarra (a whole Tilapia fish), chorizo (Mexican pork sausage), crab enchiladas, huevos (eggs, odd for a typical Mexican restaurant) and tacos stuffed with lengua (stewed cow’s tongue).
After a few minutes of snacking on crunchy tortilla chips and spicy, yet tangy and fresh red salsa, I am seated by a window, underneath a fluorescently-lit sign for beer. Most of Fiesta Grill is filled with the epitome of “this is what Mexican culture is like” décor that borders on tacky, but works with the environment. Besides the red, green and white painted walls with a chili pepper printed border, sombreros and colorful blankets hang from the corners, while maracas, plastic Mexican vases, fake red pepper plants, pictures of the owners, and man-made cactus statues don every display surface. The decorations, mixed with the light, relaxed atmosphere (the result of a sense of localness and a laid-back, informal setting) are part of the restaurant’s charm. However, after trying the Bean and Cheese Burrito, I would return to Fiesta Grill even if it decided to rip down its decorations and relocate to the woods. The food is just that good.
My meal arrives quickly after I order, with impeccable and polite service, and as my waitress sets down my burrito, I immediately notice: it is literally as big as my face. I stare at it, wondering, how am I expected to eat this much? The first bite has just the right amount of cheese, and the sweet green sauce accompanies it to perfection. This is the essence of a meal at Fiesta Grill, delicious and abundant, something owners Jesus Bravo (affectionately called Chuy), Jesus Carrasco and Fernando Rodriguez worked very hard to achieve. According to Chuy, with whom I had the pleasure of speaking for a moment at the cash register, “the three amigos” (himself, Carrasco, and Rodriguez) are Mexican natives and met in southern California over ten years ago. Their collective dream was to own a restaurant, as they all worked in the restaurant industry for over a decade and longed for a place to call their own. Eight years ago, the trio moved to North Carolina, and on June 26th, 2002, they opened Fiesta Grill to showcase their culture and cuisine.
Since its opening, Fiesta Grill has certainly distinguished itself from the corporately-owned, chain establishments that dare to call themselves “Mexican restaurants.” Simply put, it’s is no Taco Bell; everything from Fiesta Grill’s unique décor to its traditional, delectably fresh food puts to shame the manufactured atmosphere and processed junk served by its competitors. At Fiesta Grill, I felt as if I was a part of something greater, like I walked into a real local establishment (at a time when, honestly, I was starting to believe that those types of places ceased to exist anymore). Different from the restaurants I usually patronize, this out-of-the-way eatery dishes up a heaping helping of community along with some of the best Mexican food that I’ve ever tasted. The warmth of Fiesta Grill’s food and people filled me with contentment, and I walked away more relaxed, and certainly fuller, than when I arrived. I plan to return within the coming weeks. After all, the last time I ate at Taco Bell, I found a Band-Aid in my Crunch Wrap Supreme. I’ll pay the extra $3.50 at Fiesta Grill; I trust that not only will my food be Band-Aid-free, but it will also be tastier, heartier, and still inexpensive and served in an incomparable atmosphere.
