Article 2157 of pgh.food: Path: fs7.ece.cmu.edu!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!uhog.mit.edu!nntp.club.cc.cmu.edu!crabapple.srv.cs.cmu.edu!bb3.andrew.cmu.edu!andrew.cmu.edu!mj0v+ From: "Mary R. Jensen" Newsgroups: pgh.food Subject: Casa Chapala Date: Mon, 27 Jun 1994 10:08:01 -0400 Organization: Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA Lines: 52 Message-ID: <4i3hp1_00iUx41dKlS@andrew.cmu.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: andrew.cmu.edu There's a new Mexican restaurant in Somerset, PA, run by (gasp!) Mexicans. If you're out there for an afternoon of shopping or skiing, I really recommend: Casa Chapala 373 E. Main Street Somerset, PA 15501 (814) 445-3312 They have an extensive (and as far as I could tell, authentic) menu with lots more suggestions than your usual combo plates. Atmosphere: Pleasant, airy with white walls, plants, soft lighting and light woods. Service: Our waitress got a VERY BIG tip- She was friendly, patient, cheerful, attentive and managed to do this without being overbearing or obnoxious. Food: Yummy! Chips and salsa are complimentary starters though refills cost $.75 extra. The chips are home-made and and fresh-fried, with a light, crisp, just-right-salty texture and taste. The picante sauce (too thin to be called salsa) was richly flavored with a deep, sneaky heat. I had chicken mole, boneless chicken breast in a smoky-sweet mole sauce. My husband had mole ranchero, pork roast and cactus strips in a dark, spicy-hot mole. The beans and rice that came with were just perfect- flavorful enough to have made a meal by themselves with the soft warm, just-made flour tortillas. My one small complaint is I would've like more of the r&b. For dessert, we had fried ice-cream, mine with honey, his with strawberries. It was good (crowned with freshly whipped cream) but the coating could've been crisper. The waitress raved about some bananas and chocolate concoction that's a house specialty, but I don't like bananas so didn't try it. We split a carafe of home-made sangria. It was light and tart, with the fruit juices complementing the wine rather than overcoming it. Value: Excellent! Our entire meal was about $25. The entrees were in the $7-10 range, the desserts $2-4. We were so taken with our chips, we didn't check out the appetizers. They print the prices for everything (including drinks) on the menu, so there are no surprises at the end of the evening. Article 2169 of pgh.food: Path: fs7.ece.cmu.edu!crabapple.srv.cs.cmu.edu!nntp.club.cc.cmu.edu!hudson.lm.com!tusk.lm.com!not-for-mail From: Peter Berger Newsgroups: pgh.food Subject: Re: Casa Chapala Date: 28 Jun 1994 09:34:13 -0400 Organization: Telerama Public Access Internet, Pittsburgh, PA USA Lines: 19 Sender: peterb@telerama.lm.com Message-ID: <2up8sl$7pf@tusk.lm.com> References: <4i3hp1_00iUx41dKlS@andrew.cmu.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: tusk.lm.com In article , Joseph S. Mertz wrote: >"Mary R. Jensen" writes: >> There's a new Mexican restaurant in Somerset, PA,... > >is it close to the turnpike exit? Umm. Its on 31 east, about 5 minutes from the exit. When you get off at the turnpike, go straight to the traffic light. Cross the street. Go through the next light, and make a left at the one after that (so a left at the third light after the exit). Casa Chappala is the pink building on your left about a quarter of a mile down the road. -- ........................................................................ Peter G. Berger, Esq. Telerama Public Access Internet, Pittsburgh Internet: peterb@telerama.lm.com Phone: 412/481-3505 Fax: 412/481-8568